Walk-off pin caps instant classic in N.J. wrestling state semifinals

Devin Deubel took the mat with a chance to send Emerson-Park Ridge to the Group 1 state final. His task was direct yet daunting. A win alone would not have been enough. Bonus points were the only way.

“We needed four,” Deubel said. “And I got six.”

Locked in a scoreless bout with Audubon’s Will Graham at 157 pounds in the final bout of the state semifinals, Deubel cinched up a cradle and secured the fall at the 4:38 mark. His walk-off pin gave Emerson an incredible 39-36 victory over Audubon in a wild NJSIAA/IBEW Local 102 Group 1 semifinal match on Friday night in Audubon.

Emerson and Audubon combined for pins in nine of the 14 bouts to highlight a frenetic dual with a trip to the state final on the line. Audubon also received a forfeit and won by decision in two bouts. Emerson also had two wins by decision. The forfeit issued by Emerson to Audubon’s David Borodziuk at 190 pounds would have served as the tiebreaking criterion if Deubel won by decision. He needed at least a major decision, but that or a technical fall was not likely when he and Graham entered the third period tied 0-0.

Graham chose defense and quickly rose to his feet, but Deubel was able to stay on his left leg and maintain control. Graham tried to post with his right hand, but that created the opening that Deubel was waiting for. He immediately locked in a cradle and put Graham to his back for the match-clinching pin.

“We’re a cradle team and I’ve been training that every day in practice,” Deubel said. “I knew it was there, and I got it.”

“We call it the whip,” Emerson head coach Joe Mazzeo said. “The kid’s hand hits and you go near-side [cradle] off of it. We told [Deubel] to win first, and then get the extra points. He went big and it worked out for us.”

“It was getting a little nerve wracking but I had faith in him,” senior Tony Rinkiewicz said. “When they drew the sticks [to determine the starting weight], I said Devin is the guy. I wanted him to get the last match.”

Emerson (17-10) will wrestle Delaware Valley in the Group 1 state championship match at noon on Sunday at Rutgers University’s Jersey Mike’s Arena. The Cavos will be making their fifth state finals appearance and first since 2018. Delaware Valley is the defending Group 1 state champion. The Terriers defeated Hanover Park 58-19 in the other semifinal.

Deubel had the final say, but there were plenty of heroes for Emerson.

At 126 pounds, Rinkiewicz came through with a massive 10-8 decision over Jimmy Moran in a toss-up bout in which he trailed late in the third period. Down 8-4 with less than 30 seconds left, Rinkiewicz scored a reversal and put Moran to his back near the edge of the circle for four near-fall points. His clutch victory put the Cavos ahead 27-21.

“Every day at practice, coach says the only thing you can’t take back is time,” Rinkiewicz said. “And since I’m a senior, I pushed myself all offseason and I’ve been battling through a knee injury. I think about the guys who I practice with every day. We put a lot into the season, and coach keeps saying that if there’s a class to do it, it’s us. I’m just glad we pulled it out.”

“We’re living for the moment,” Mazzeo said. “I told the whole team, live for the moment. That’s why this is a great sport. Anything can happen.”

Audubon (19-9) entered the semifinals off its first sectional title in program history. The Green Wave defeated Paulsboro in the South, Group 1 final, to become the only team to beat the 44-time sectional champion Red Raiders in their home gym during the state tournament. They won the first two weights with Aydean Leahan winning by fall at 165 pounds and Georgios Kappatos winning by decision at 175. Emerson then forfeited to Borodziuk, the lone state qualifier for either team, at 190 as Audubon extended its lead to 15-0.

Emerson got on the board when senior Chase Monahan won by fall in 52 seconds at 215 pounds, but Audubon senior Jonah Jordan got those points right back with a 41-second pin at heavyweight to put the Green Wave up 21-6 through five bouts.

The momentum shifted in the lower weights. Trailing 6-3 after fighting off his back in the first period, Emerson freshman Jake Falkenstern put Mason Knopka to his back with a cement mixer for a pin at the 2:49 mark. Junior Evan Constante did the same at 113 with four seconds left in the first period. At 120, Joe Dimotta was down 3-0 in the second period when he, too, hit a cement mixer. He was able to keep one toe in bounds to finish off the pin and give Emerson a 24-21 lead.

Rinkiewicz followed with his dramatic win at 126 for a 27-21 Emerson lead.

“I did feel the momentum,” Rinkiewicz said. “It’s one after another. If one guy falls down, the next guy comes up.”

Audubon senior RJ Bauman halted Emerson’s four-bout winning streak when he ran a half-nelson for a pin at 132 pounds to tie the match at 27. Jackson Shannon put Emerson back ahead, 33-27, when he came out on top after a brief scramble to win by fall in the first period at 138.

The 144-pound bout between Audubon’s Jimmy McSweeney and Emerson senior Nate Shannon was a sight to behold. Points were scored so fast the scoreboard could barely keep up. Tied 5-5 after two periods, McSweeney and Shannon combined for a scintillating third period that featured 22 total points.

In the final 30 seconds, McSweeney scored a takedown and two back points to take the lead, but Shannon answered with a reversal to go up 16-15. McSweeney escaped at the buzzer to tie the bout and send it to sudden victory. In overtime, McSweeney hit a fireman’s carry for the winning takedown and a 19-16 decision.

The win at 144 for Audubon pulled the Green Wave within three points. Senior Joem Gonzalez gave them the lead, 36-33, with a second-period pin at 150.

Fittingly, the match ended with a pin in the final bout. Deubel made sure it sent his team to Rutgers.

“I’ve never been in a match like that,” Deubel said. “The stakes were high. I was ready for it. There was a lot of emotion, a lot of nerves, but I kept myself composed and got it done.”