Competing in the sport long before it was sanctioned for girls, Rachel Daddio wrestled for the East Brunswick boys team more than a decade ago.
With girls wrestling in only its second year as an official New Jersey State Interscholastic Athletic Association sport, former male letterwinners attending East Brunswick High School’s Alumni Night on Friday will obviously outnumber their female counterparts.
The event, during which East Brunswick will wrestle against Perth Amboy’s girls and boys teams, will also serve as a fundraiser for The Marisa Tufaro Foundation, whose mission is to assist pediatric patients and children in need throughout the greater Middlesex County area.
As the current head coach of the fledgling girls program at her alma mater, Daddio knows it won’t be long before the scales start to balance out at future East Brunswick alumni nights as the number of female wrestlers continues to grow exponentially statewide and across the country.
Girls wrestling increased 55 percent nationally from 2021-22 to 2022-23 as the sport blossomed to more than 49,000 competitors. Nearly five times as many girls are currently wrestling in the United States compared to a decade ago.
The sport’s growth is also reflected in the Garden State, where Daddio serves as president of the New Jersey Girls Wrestling Coaches Association.
“We’re inviting everyone to come back and watch the matches, making a point for the girls and boys to be wrestling (back-to-back) so everyone can see both teams,” Daddio said of the Alumni Night doubleheader.
“I think the alumni that haven’t seen the girls in action are going to be super-impressed. I think it’s great to see how much the sport has changed and how we are continuing the Bears tradition with a whole new group.”
As a high school wrestler, Daddio fondly recalls the warm welcome and nurturing she received from male teammates and coaches.
Daddio is paying forward the knowledge she attained as a competitor and an assistant coach at East Brunswick, grooming the high school’s girls program into one that is currently ranked ninth in New Jersey, and helping the sport grow statewide.
The girls team’s meteoric rise, which includes dual meet victories this winter over reigning Greater Middlesex Conference Tournament champion Old Bridge and 2023 conference tournament winner Saint Thomas Aquinas, is rivaled by the recent success of East Brunswick’s boys program, which was the Greater Middlesex Conference’s most improved last season.
After finishing with a 6-19 mark and placing 22nd in the Greater Middlesex Conference Tournament in 2021-22, the East Brunswick boys posted a 16-9 record and placed sixth in the conference tournament a year ago. The team’s 16 victories were the most for the program in more than a decade.
Led by sophomore Dominick Lezark (106), the Bears finished fifth in last month’s East Brunswick Invitational. Lezark was named Outstanding Wrestler of the tournament for the lower weights. Teammates Jake Gujski (126), Aedan Samson-Huggins (132) and George Crostewitz (150) joined Lezark in the tournament finals. All four wrestlers won 26 or more bouts last season and form the cornerstone of this year’s team.
With four incumbent region qualifiers, the East Brunswick boys are currently ranked sixth in the Greater Middlesex Conference with a deceptive 5-6 record featuring a couple of narrow defeats.
The East Brunswick boys will face a resurgent Perth Amboy squad that rebounded from an 0-6 start to win three of its last four dual meets. Four of the Panthers’ losses are to teams ranked among the Top 10 in Middlesex County.
Just like East Brunswick, which nearly doubled its number of wrestlers from two years ago, Perth Amboy has similarly enjoyed a packed room with 40 boys and 20 girls in the program. Jamelle Cockren (150), Jasid DeCastro (157), and Fernando Grande (285) have each won at least seven bouts for Perth Amboy.
The East Brunswick and Perth Amboy girls finished runner-up and fourth, respectively, for a second consecutive year in this week’s Greater Middlesex Conference Tournament.
Leeah Gutierrez (107) won an individual title for Perth Amboy, while teammates Aaliyah Matias (165) and Nahomy Martinez (185) also reached the finals. Gutierrez (fifth at 107) and Elizabeth Adebola (fourth at 152) both medaled for Perth Amboy in last year’s state tournament.
East Brunswick’s Olivia Mitchell (114) and Aliya Graca (185) won individual titles at this year’s Greater Middlesex Conference Tournament, while teammates April Sarmiento (120) and Abigail Lydon (152) placed second. Graca finished eighth in New Jersey last season.
Former East Brunswick wrestlers Gene Lezark, Karlo Sarmiento, and Anthony Ruperto will be among the fathers of current Bears who will be in attendance Friday evening. Wrestling alumni with siblings that are in the varsity programs this season will also be on hand.
“It’s great to see generations of East Brunswick wrestlers,” Daddio said. “That helps build a great tradition. Thanks to the guys from the ‘70s and ‘80s, last year was definitely our biggest (alumni) turnout. We’re hoping this year is even bigger.”
In addition to welcoming back former letterwinners and coaches, East Brunswick’s Wrestling Alumni Night will also be a charity event.
Donations collected at the door will benefit The Marisa Tufaro Foundation, which since its inception nearly six and a half years ago has donated more than $300,000 to fulfill its mission.
The foundation has also donated thousands of toys, nonperishable food items, winter jackets, baby supplies, school supplies, and other items upon which it has placed no monetary value.
In addition, The Marisa Tufaro Foundation has awarded $29,500 in academic scholarships to exceptional Middlesex County high school seniors who support its mission through community service and volunteerism.
East Brunswick TV will broadcast the Alumni Night matches with the father-son announcer team of former Bears head coach Stu Kohn and former Bears wrestler Garrett Kohn providing play-by-play and color commentary.
The Marisa Tufaro Foundation will distribute wristbands and letters of gratitude to all in attendance, and East Brunswick will present handsome plaques to the Wrestler of the Match at the conclusion of each dual meet.
As a way of paying forward the kindness of the participating teams, The Marisa Tufaro Foundation is supporting other nonprofits in their school-communities, making separate donations of $1,000 each in the name of the Bears and Panthers, respectively, to Mayor Cohen’s Charity Fund in East Brunswick and the Raritan Bay Area YMCA in Perth Amboy.
“What the East Brunswick and Perth Amboy wrestling programs are doing by turning their dual meets into a fundraiser is outstanding,” Greater Middlesex Conference Executive Director Frank Noppenberger said.
“Not only is this event a wonderful way to showcase talented girls and boys wrestlers from both schools, but it heightens awareness about three wonderful nonprofits who do tremendous work in the community.
“I am immensely proud of the coaches, student-athletes, and administrators of both high schools for supporting children in need.”
Mayor Cohen’s Charity Fund is dedicated to serving nonprofits and children and adults in need throughout East Brunswick. The organization also furthers the social welfare of township residents via community grants, individual grants, and scholarships.
The Raritan Bay Area YMCA is dedicated to building strong kids, strong families, and strong communities through programs that develop the values of caring, honesty, faith, respect, and responsibility. Serving all people regardless of age, religion, gender, or financial means, the Raritan Bay Area YMCA is committed to developing healthy minds, bodies, and spirit through life-changing services.
Established in loving memory of its namesake and as a way to allow her legacy to be one of helping others, The Marisa Tufaro Foundation is honored to support Mayor Cohen’s Charity Fund and the Raritan Bay Area YMCA in the name of the Alumni Night dual meet participants.
Born with a complex cardiac defect, Marisa Tufaro survived six open-heart surgeries and a heart transplant before succumbing to a rare form of cancer in 2017 following a valiant battle. She was just 13 years old.
Despite being hospitalized for more than two years and maintaining hundreds of doctors’ appointments, Marisa Tufaro was an honor roll student involved in myriad extracurricular activities who lived a vibrant life that inspired.