ELIZABETHTOWN, Pa. — Again, they make history. In the program's first-ever appearance at the NCAA Division III Mideast Regionals hosted by Elizabethtown College, the New Jersey City University men's wrestling team captured four different top-eight placement honors, including one grappler earning trip to the 2021-22 NCAA Division III Men's Championship in Cedar Rapids, Iowa, for the first time in school history. 

To begin second day of the Mideast Regionals, the Gothic Knights had freshmen Damienlee Torres (West Orange, N.J./West Orange) and Andre Ruiz (Little Ferry, N.J./Ridgefield Park) and juniors co-captain Matthew Armamento (Kenilworth, N.J./Roselle Park) and Jeff Johnson (Middlesex, N.J./Middlesex) in the hunt for their respective weight classes. 

Torres led things off for the squad with a 5-4 decision victory to move him only two wins shy of a trip to Cedar Rapids. After falling by pin in his next-match, the freshman advanced to the seven/eight match-up for 125 pounds. Torres came out of the gates explosive, wasting no time against Justin Santiago from Keystone College. The young grappler picked up the victory by pin (2:05), becoming the seventh place Mideast Regional finisher. He finishes his weekend at Elizabethtown 4-2. 

In the weight class right above Torres (133), Ruiz was on the hunt for three straight victories for himself to move onto Iowa. In his first battle of the day, Ruiz captured a victory by a 9-5 decision, guaranteeing him a top-six finish at Regionals and keeping his hopes alive for the next round. The freshman fought back-and-forth in his next match, but was ultimately pinned in the final 10 seconds (6:57) to move him into the five/six matchup. Similar to his pervious bout, Ruiz fell late again by pin (6:01), leading him to the sixth place Mideast Regional finisher at 133 pounds. 

Next, Johnson forever etched his name in the NJCU men's wrestling history books.

Today, Johnson became the first-ever Gothic Knight to advance onto the NCAA Tournament. Johnson did not make it easy for himself. The 157-pounder took on Matt Sacco of TCNJ to begin his chase to the finals. In the low scoring affair, Sacco pulled away in the final minute, defeating Johnson by 2-1 decision in the nail bitter. Sacco went on to finish in second place for the 157-pound bracket. Following his defeat, Johnson had no thoughts of his season ending, coming out on top with a 7-2 decision victory, pushing him into the consolation finals and a chance for a journey to the NCAA Championship.

Johnson took on Anson Dewar of Muhlenberg College in this final match. From start-to-finish, the Gothic Knight put on his best performance of the season. He did not trail at any point in the match, capturing a 6-1 decision victory. This win landed him in third place on the championship podium, which secured him a flight to Cedar Rapids for the Tournament. The junior is currently on a 16-2 run in his last 18 matches. 

This victory was huge for Johnson as he continues his quest to become the first All-America selection in NJCU men's wrestling history. 

The 165-pounder Armamento began his consolation title hunt on the day with a defeat by 6-1 decision. Following the loss, Armamento moved into the seven/eight placement honors match. Armamento got off to a hot start, capturing the first points from a takedown. But, Alexander LaVeck from McDaniel College came right back and defeated the co-captain by pin (2:40). The junior finishes his season with a team-high 17 victories on the year.

As a team, NJCU finished in 12th place out of 20 teams.

Up Next:
With the performance by Johnson, he will now compete at the 2021-22 NCAA Division III Men's Championship in Ceder Rapids, Iowa, on Friday and Saturday, March 11-12. As mentioned, he is seeking to become the program's first-ever All-American.