PROVIDENCE, R.I. – The New Jersey City University (NJCU) men's wrestling team competed at the Wildcat Open, hosted by Johnson & Wales University, on Saturday, January 25, at the Wildcat Center. Three Gothic Knights—Dominic Terracciano (Keansburg, N.J./Keansburg), Lucas Torre (Point Pleasant, N.J./Brick Memorial), and Zack Vera (Livingston, N.J./Livingston)—earned podium finishes.

Terracciano (25-7) began his tournament run with a tough loss in the round of 16, falling to Alex Diaz (unattached) by technical fall (6:53, 20-4). Moving to the consolation bracket, he bounced back with impressive victories, including a pin over Zach Henault of Roger Williams in five minutes (11-0) and a pin over Dan Hickey of Roger Williams in 43 seconds (3-0). Terracciano continued his strong performance, earning a 5-1 decision over Anthony Chuquilin (unattached) and a 7-2 decision over Xavier Diaz (unattached). He moved on to the third-place match after receiving a medical forfeit, but fell to Robert Stone of Rhode Island College, finishing fourth with a 6-2 record on the day. This also marked his first technical fall of the season, and he reached 20 wins on the season.

Torre (23-5) represented NJCU in the 133-pound class, making it to the quarterfinals with a 2:44 pin (3-0) in the round of 16. Torre then dropped a close 5-4 decision to Christopher Betancourt in the quarterfinals. He came back strong in the consolation bracket, pinning Tyler Lanci of Roger Williams in five minutes (8-3), and securing major decisions over Jared Chuquilin (unattached) and Ryan Arbeit (unattached), winning 8-0 and 10-1, respectively. Torre claimed third place with a 5-4 decision over Johan Aguilar of Johnson & Wales, finishing 5-1 for the day.

Vera (26-6) opened strong in the 149-pound class with a 24-9 technical fall in 6:20 over Alberto Mendoza of Southern Maine, but dropped a close 2-1 decision to Jordan Barry (unattached). In the consolation bracket, Vera rebounded with pins over Michael Harrington of Castleton (7-4) and Christian Knuckles of Rhode Island (10-1) in 2:43 and 3:57, respectively. He advanced to the consi-semis with a 12-1 major decision over Dylan Zenion (unattached), and won 10-6 in the semis over Mike Edwards of Coast Guard. Despite making it to the third-place match, Vera did not compete and finished with a 6-1 record for the day, tying Costantino for the most technical falls by a Gothic Knight this season (7).

Sophomore Andy Beras (Bergenfield, N.J./Bergenfield) (5-10) competed in the 141-pound bracket, beginning his day with a 7-1 decision over Anthony Denier of Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute (RPI). He followed with a dominant 14-3 major decision over Robert Allcroft of Castleton but was defeated in the quarterfinals by Dominic Moyer of Coast Guard with a 7-0 decision. Beras then fell to Charlie Gruen with a 15-4 decision in the consolation bracket, finishing the day 2-2 and recording his first two major decisions of the season.

Dean Costantino (Secaucus, N.J./Secaucus) (22-7), also in the 141-pound class, opened his day with a 19-4 technical fall in 2:30 over Kyle Rhoton of Bridgewater. After advancing with a 4-1 decision over Trey Lee of Castleton, Costantino suffered a narrow 2-1 defeat to Robert Rerras of Coast Guard. He rebounded with a pin over Owen Menendez of Bridgewater in 49 seconds (3-1) and followed that up with another fall over Nick Sanders of Coast Guard in 4:18 (3-3). He secured an 11-6 decision over Jack Voute of Castleton before his tournament ended. Costantino finished 5-1, reaching 20 wins on the season.


Mikey Cross (Union, N.J./Union City) (7-13) finished 2-2 in the 157-pound bracket, starting with a 15-3 major decision loss to Joseph Kennedy of Castleton. He bounced back with a pin over Jack Janes of Bridgewater (5:17, 12-7) and a pin over Ethan Tanner of Norwich (4:42, 11-2). Cross then dropped a 17-3 major decision to Jacob Caricato of Castleton, collecting his fifth pin on the season.

In the 165-pound bracket, Fabian Acuna (Somerville, N.J./Somerville) (12-9) had a strong start with a 19-4 technical fall over Anthony Marino of Johnson & Wales (6:31) and a 17-1 tech fall over Graeme Dierks of Naval Academy Prep School (2:54). Acuna advanced with a 10-7 decision over Sean Haas of RPI, but fell in the quarterfinals to Landon Kearns of Coast Guard (14-5). He ended the day with a 16-7 major decision loss to Caleb Rojas of Castleton, finishing 3-2 and recording his 10th win of the season.

Jayden Reyes (Elizabeth, N.J./Alexander Hamilton) (197 lbs, 2-14 overall) and Walter Thomas () (285 lbs, 1-13) both ended their days 0-2.

UP NEXT:
The Gothic Knights return to action on Saturday, February 8, at the Rochester Institute of Technology Tiger Duals, starting at 10:00 a.m..

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