Clearview's Whalen, Kingsway's Morris fall short of state title in close bouts

ATLANTIC CITY -- It was tantalizing, for both of them.

Clearview's Ty Whalen and Dakota Morris of Kingsway will replay the moments that defined their state title bouts in the days to come. Both came up short in the final round of the NJSIAA state championships at Boardwalk Hall and both of their bouts were shaped by moments where things just didn't fall their way.

Those moments were the same kind that powered both wrestlers through remarkable seasons; a takedown on the line here. A tilt for two important back points there. A go-behind, just ahead of the buzzer, when the two points to be had meant a spot on a podium.

Both fell victim to exactly what made them so good.

Both put aside their disappointment to reflect on the journey later.

"It's just wrestling," Whalen said, after advancing through the semifinal round on Friday night. "It isn't life or death."

It is something that has brought him into contact with some great people, and a few minutes after he fell to Boonton's Joe Fongaro, 10-9, in the 144-pound final, that was something he talked about.

"I'm thankful for my coaches, my family and my friends," he said. "And you know, all glory to God, win or lose. I know I'll be back, in college, next year."

Whalen, who finished his season 37-3 and his career 132-9, will begin his collegiate career at Princeton University in the fall. Whalen is a three-time Region 8 champion and three-time district 29 champion, who's been fourth, then first, then second on the state podium.

He hoped to head up the highway as a two-time state champion, but he'll have one bracket sheet in hand.

He said that didn't lessen his disappointment Saturday.

"It's the same. It doesn't really matter," he said. "I didn't finish the job. Win last year or lose last year, I didn't get the job done."

He was close, time after time. Fongaro hip tossed Whalen twice in the first minute. Whalen fell out of bounds the first time but managed to keep a leg -- as he did the second time, in bounds. Fongaro responded with head pressure, and Whalen wisely conceded the takedown to keep his shoulders from being exposed. He got to his feet and scored a reversal, with a granby roll, and briefly took the lead with an escape to start the second period. He was right on the verge of hitting a cradle in neutral that might have turned the match, but again, he got outflurried; Fongaro did a backward roll, then powered forward to break Whalen's grip. From there, he moved through the Clearview senior and caught him with a half-nelson to complete a four-point move.

Whalen tried to respond with a tilt later on, but couldn't quite score with it.

Twice in the final minute the bout was within his reach. An escape with 44 seconds left cut Fongaro's lead to 8-7, but the Boonton senior scored the next takedown, 18 seconds later, off Whalen's desperate attempt to throw him. One more escape and a stalling point got Whalen within one, but time expired 10 seconds later.

Whalen often refers to the need to "get to his technique." He felt like it didn't happen in the final.

"In the beginning I did, but by the end I wasn't doing it," Whalen said. "It was a sloppy match. I came to compete, and I didn't. I needed to score."

Morris felt the same frustration. His overtime victory over Tanner Peake of Hunterdon Central in Friday's semifinal demonstrated his skill at scoring points in a scramble, but in Saturday's final, those points went to his opponent, Simon Ruiz of Delbarton.

Ruiz escaped in the second period to open the scoring and got his ankle free from Morris' grasp in a scramble just ahead of the buzzer to complete his first takedown.

Morris easily matched his escape at the start of the third, but his attempt at a high single ended with Ruiz getting leverage and moving straight ahead to put him on his back. It wasn't a near fall, but with so little time remaining, it was just as good. Ruiz stayed on top for the balance of the bout and won, 5-1.

"All the positions that I'm usually good in, he's good in too," Morris said. "So it just didn't come out well for me."

Morris finished his season with a 39-4 record. He's 121-20 in his career. Like Whalen, he's a three-time district and three-time region champion, with a seventh-place showing and two seconds to his credit. He'll move on to the U.S. Military Academy in West Point in the fall.

"It was a good season," he said. "I trained hard and worked hard. I couldn't have done any better if I went back and did it again. My coaches, and my team, they're all like a family. We all care about each other. This is a heartbreak for everyone."

John A. Lewis is a sports writer for the Burlington County Times, Courier Post and The Daily Journal. E-mail him at jlewis@thebct.com or follow on Twitter @JohnLewis19. Please consider supporting local journalism with a subscription.

This article originally appeared on Cherry Hill Courier-Post: Whalen of Clearview and Morris of Kingsway finish seconds at states