Sebastian Rivera made Christian Brothers Academy’s (CBA) finest wrestling season even more memorable.
After a year in which the Colts set team records, Rivera’s championship victory at 113 pounds at the NJSIAA Individual Wrestling Championships March 6 at Boardwalk Hall in Atlantic City provided the perfect conclusion to the season.
Seeded second in his weight class, the Colt met top-seed Pat Glory from Delbarton School in the finals, where he left no doubt he was the best wrestler in his weight class in New Jersey. He beat Glory by pin at 5:59 to end his scholastic career like his father, Steve Rivera, did — as a state champion.
Steve Rivera won the 98-pound state title as a senior at Manalapan High School. He was a runner-up the year before. He went on to win a national title at then-Trenton State College (now The College of New Jersey).
Sebastian Rivera was certainly dominant on his way to becoming the first Colt in 47 years to win a state championship. He opened with a 10-2 major decision over West Orange High School’s Victor Lopez. Next up was a pin over Highland Regional High School’s Lucas Siegfried in 3:38. In the semifinals, he won by a 6-3 decision over St. Joseph Regional High School of Montvale’s Jonathan Tropea to set up his showdown with Glory in the finals.
The last CBA wrestler to win a state championship was Pete Black in 1969 in the 141-pound weight class.
Rivera, who was 31-1 this year and surpassed 100 career wins, won the District 22 and Region 6 titles en route to Atlantic City. He was named the Most Outstanding Wrestler at the region tournament.
Rivera leaves CBA as a three-time medal winner in the state championships, having finished fifth in 2014 and 2015. He also captured three district and two region crowns during his stellar career.
Jack LaCorte gave CBA a second medal winner, taking eighth at 195 pounds. The senior went 32-5.
It was quite a year of firsts for the CBA team. The Colts snapped Howell High School’s 73-meet win streak in the Shore Conference A North Division on the way to sharing the division championship with Howell and Middletown High School North. The Colts also captured the Shore Conference Tournament championship for the first time.
It was a big year for St. John Vianney High School as well, as the Lancers announced their arrival as a Shore power. They upset Jackson Memorial High School in a dual meet, made the sectional semifinals and finished second to Howell at the District 21 Tournament.
Luke Ecklof gave the Lancers more to shout about when he medaled in Atlantic City. The junior finished eighth in the 106-pound division, becoming just the third Lancer to medal at the state meet and the first since 2004, when Anthony Castro (130) finished seventh.
Ecklof closed the year with a 34-8 record. He’s on pace to reach 100 career wins next season.
