North Hunterdon Storms Back to Defeat Middletown South for Sectional Title

photo & coverage by: AJ Morales

Sectional finals are rarely clean, and this one was anything but. North Hunterdon trailed by double digits midway through the dual before ripping off a pivotal stretch from heavyweight down through the lower weights to edge Middletown South 37–34 and defend its North Jersey, Section 2, Group 4 crown.

The Lions opened strong at 144 and 150. Matthew Esposito set the tone with a first-period pin, and Ian English followed with a composed 5–1 decision to give North Hunterdon a 9–0 start. It looked like the Lions had early control. Middletown South responded with a thunderous swing through the upper middleweights. A major decision at 157 was followed by three straight pins at 165, 175, and 190, flipping the dual entirely and pushing the Eagles ahead 22–9. The momentum had shifted hard, and the sectional title suddenly felt like it was tilting away.

North Hunterdon answered without panic. Owen Dandeo delivered a steady 7–2 decision at 215 to stop the run. At heavyweight, Anthony DeSimone followed with a 10–2 major decision, trimming the deficit and restoring belief. Those two bouts didn’t grab headlines, but they stabilized the match and set up the stretch that defined the night.

At 106, Caedyn Wadle ignited the comeback with a 20–3 technical fall that put the Lions back in front. Owen Fol followed at 113 with another technical fall, and just like that, North Hunterdon had stormed from a 22–9 hole to reclaim the lead. The run from 215 through 113 completely reversed the dual and shifted the energy back to the Lions’ side of the mat.

“We weren’t worried at all,” Wadle said afterward. “We knew we were gonna come and get it. We knew we could pull it off.”

Middletown South made one more push with a pin at 120 to briefly regain the lead, but North Hunterdon’s lower weights weren’t done. Reid Buzby delivered a crucial fall at 126, and Aidan Yarussi followed with a dominant 19–2 technical fall at 132 to extend the advantage to 37–28. Even a late pin by the Eagles at 138 only narrowed the margin. The Lions had built just enough cushion.

For Wadle and the Lions, the comeback was months in the making. “It’s been tough for us throughout the beginning of the year. We had Delbarton and a lot of top teams in the nation, but we just kept grinding through it and working hard. This is what’s paying off right now,” he said. That demanding schedule prepared North Hunterdon for a dual that required resilience rather than perfection.

The defining story was the streak from heavyweight through the lower weights, a stretch built on composure and trust. “We work hard all the time. We’re always pushing each other,” Wadle said. “Even the heavier guys, we’re all pushing each other every day.”

Down 22–9, the Lions didn’t fold. They trusted the lineup, trusted their preparation, and flipped the match one bout at a time. Now, with the sectional title secured, another trip to Rutgers is on the horizon. North Hunterdon moves forward battle-tested and confident that when the moment tightens, they can answer.