Gone, Lost & Forgotten: Their Best = Montclair State

While not quite Ohioans or Pennsylvanians, the wrestling fans of New Jersey are quite proud of the talent the state produces & are never shy when it comes to putting in their two cents when arguments breakout over the world wide web on where the best wrestlers come from.  The only thing missing from these discussions is a mixture of braggadocios, yet backed up pride of having one of the best NCAA Division III teams the nation ever saw & a bitter anger that the team no longer exist. 

I hear New Jerseyans/Jersyites/Jerseymen speak quite often on their high school wrestling & anymore with Rider, Rutgers & especially Princeton upping their game, quite a bit of love goes out to Division I.  Occasionally the College of New Jersey gets a bit of love too.  Yet, if anyone ever wants to talk about how good Montclair State was, they have every right to. 

Now the Redhawks used to be known as the Indians, but for the purpose of this article I'm going to use Redhawks.    

To give you an idea as to how good the team was....

We're talking throughout the Mid 70's until the team was dropped in the mid 00's, eighteen top ten finishes at the NCAA Division III tournament.  This includes winning the 1976 & 1986 titles with two runner up, three third place finishes and three fourth place finishes.  Not to mention a numerous amount of Metropolitan Championship titles.  

The debate as to the best NCAA Division I team we've ever lost often goes to Syracuse.  The best Division II team Nebraska-Omaha.  The best Division III team?  Well, it of course is always subjective, but trust me, you're perfectly safe claiming Montclair State. 

Larry Sciacchetano
190, HWT 

One of the most prolific individuals in our sport, Larry Sciacchetano had a standout career for the Redhawks earning All American status on three occasions.  In 1962 & 1964 he placed third at the NAIA championships, also capturing a fourth place finish at the 1964 NCAA Division II championships.  Along with wrestling, he also competed in both football and Track & Field. He later coached at Montclair State, as well as New York Maritime & Louisiana State.  All three programs we no longer have. 

Later in life Sciacchetano was president of USA Wrestling.  We sadly lost him in October of 2019. 

Florian Ghinea

A Romanian Olympian, Ginea had an outstanding career at Montclair State capturing NCAA Division III titles in 1998 & 1999, finishing in third place in 2000.  He also fared well against Division I competition placing fifth, fourth & eighth at the Midlands tournament.  Post college Ghinea has coached at the club level, training such talent as Penn State NCAA runner-up Dan Vallimont. 

Nabil Guteklov
118, 126 lbs 

A Native of Germany, Nabil Guteklov won two NCAA Division III championships for the Redhawks in 1974 & 1975.  Invited to participate in the NCAA Division I championships, he placed fifth in 1975. 

Ken Mallory
134 lbs 

Ken Mallory has quite the story as the high school he attended, South End in Boston, Massachusetts didn't even have a wrestling team.  Instead he learned the sport from coach Jim Peckham who ran a club at Union Gym.  Despite whatever disadvantages some might think Mallory was up against, he won four NCAA titles during his time as a Redhawk. Three of them were at the NCAA Division III level.  One of them was at the NCAA Division I level.   When he won the DI title in 1978 as a junior, he became the one & only Division III wrestler to ever win a Division I title. 

John Monaco
167, 177 lbs 

One half of the Monaco brothers, John won three NCAA Division III titles for the Redhawks in 1985, 1986 & 1987.  Invited to the NCAA Division I tournament in all three of these seasons, John placed fourth in 1985.   Post college he helps to run the Edgewater wrestling club. 

Karl Monaco
142, 150 lbs 

Like his brother John, Karl won three NCAA Division III titles for the Redhawks in 1987, 1988 & 1989.  Invited to the NCAA Division I championships in these three seasons, he damn near joined Mallory as a DIII wrestler to win a DI championship when he finished at the runner-up in 1989.  Along with John, he helps to coach the Edgewater Wrestling Club. 

Vince Tundo
134 lbs 

Starting off his career at Alfred State back when the Pioneers were a community college, Vince Tundo won a NJCAA title in 1973 before coming to Montclair State. Competing for the Redhawks he finished at the NCAA Division III runner up in 1975 before capping off his career as a national champion in 1976. 

Peter Gonzalez
126 lbs 

Gonzalez had an exceptionally successful career at Montclair State earning All American honors on six occasions.  At the NCAA Division III level, Gonzalez finished as the NCAA runner-up in 1986, taking third place honors in 1987, before winning titles in 1988 & 1989.  At the Division I level he placed seventh in 1988 & fifth in 1989. 

Greg Gibacthino
150 lbs 

Gibacthino was a two time NCAA Division III All American with back to back third place finishes at the 1975 & 1976 tournaments. 

Steve Caldwell
HWT 

One of the earlier products of Blair Academy, Caldwell was a two time NCAA Division III All American with a runner up finish in 1975 & a third place showing in 1976. 

Mike Blakely
134, 142 lbs 

A graduate of John F Kennedy-Patterson high school where he finished third in the state championships, Blakely was a two time NCAA Division III All American for the Redhawks.  He took runner up honors in 1976, finishing in fourth place in 1978. 

Rick Freitas
142 lbs 

"First" is a word to be used when talking about Rick Freitas. A 1971 Massachusetts state champion for Lowell High School & a 1972 New England prep Champion for Tabor Academy, Freitas started off his career at the University of Boston.  As a freshman he became the first Terrier to win a NEIWA (New England Intercollegiate Wrestling Association) title & to be named the outstanding wrestler of the tournament.  Transferring to Montclair State, he came the first wrestler from the state of Massachusetts to win an NCAA title.   He late coached at Upsala, The University of Massachusetts & Amherst. While Upsala isn't even around anymore, neither Massachusetts or Amherst have wrestling programs anymore. 

Dante Caprio
167 lbs 

Caprio won a NCAA Division III title for the Redhawks in 1976. 

Jeff Mase 
126 lbs 

A State champion out of Bridgewater West High School, Mase made the NCAA Division III finals in 1977. 

Mike Sickles
150, 134 lbs 

Another on the long list of Blair Academy products, Sickles placed sixth at the 1978 NCAA Division III championships before capping off his career with a title in 1979. 

Nick Milonas
126 lbs  

Milonas was a two time NCAA Division III champion for the Redhawks in 1985 & 1986.  

Jim Petty
HWT

The late Jim Petty made the NCAA Division III finals in 1986.  An 89-11 record for the Redhawks he was also a three time conference & two time Regional champion.  He later coached and taught special ed. 

Pete Georgoutsos
177 lbs   

Georgoutsos was an NCAA Division III champion for the Redhawks in 1988.  He later became an assistant coach at Montclair State. 

Armando Nardone
126 lbs 

A 1988 state champion for Belleville High School, Nardone was a three time NCAA Division III All American for the Redhawks.  He placed seventh in 1990, fifth in 1992 & third in 1993. 

Scott Vega
190 lbs 

Also a member of the Redhawks football team, Scott Vega finished as the 1990 NCAA Division III runner up before winning a title in 1991. 

Jim Sloan
177 lbs  

Sloan finished as the 1991 NCAA Division III runner up, winning a title in 1993. 

Dominic Dellagatta
157, 165 lbs 

Dellagatta was a two time NCAA Division III champion for the Redhawks in 1999 & 2000.  

Rami Ratel
149 lbs 

A graduate of Bloomfield High school Ratel made the NCAA Division III finals in 2000.  He'd come back in 2003 to go 39-0, winning both the NCAA Division III title & the outstanding wrestler award.  Post graduation he coached at Cedar-Grove high school. 

Eduard Aliakseynka
174 lbs 

Aliakseynka was a four time All American for the Redhawks Aliakseynka placed fifth 2001, won a title in 2002, & finished as the runner-up in 2003 & 2004.