Robert Melise doesn’t like to look too much at who’s coming up for him to wrestle.
“I worry about making myself better,” he said. “I don’t waste time on the other guy. If I take care of doing what I have to do be better, I don’t think anything can stop me.”
But the Phillipsburg senior 220-pounder did admit to peeking in advance at the brackets for Saturday’s District 9 tournament and seeing 27-0 senior Sam Mellow of Montclair on the other side.
“An unbeaten wrestler – at 27-0 he has got to be a good wrestler.” Melise said. “That excites me,”
It showed.
Melise pinned his way to a District 9 championship, a Phillipsburg school record for falls, and an Outstanding Wrestler award all in one spectacular day Saturday in the Stateliners’ still-spanking new gym.
Melise’s three falls, which came in a total of 2 minutes and 26 seconds and included a 1:17 decking of Mellow in the final, played no small part in Phillipsburg’s capturing the team title with 202 points to a feisty Mendham’s 189.5. Caldwell took third at 158 with Hackettstown fourth at 116.
It marked the third district championship for Melise, who also broke Max Elling’s career pin record of 68 with his second fall of the day and goes into next week’s Region 3 tournament at West Orange with 70 falls.
“Winning this year was just as much fun as last year,” said Melise with a classic version of his big, hearty smile.
Saturday’s initial District 9 tournament at P’burg was generally a lot of fun for the Stateliners, who crowned five champions overall. Joining Melise atop the podium for Phillipsburg were junior Cullen Day (106), sophomore Travis Jones (113), sophomore Cody Harrison (126), and junior Brian Meyer (145).
Hackettstown crowned two champs in junior Alex Carida (138) – who in a Melise-less tournament would have been a superb OW choice -- and senior Kyle Connelly (195).
Also finishing in the top three and advancing to the Region 3 tournament, which opens Wednesday (district champions do not wrestle until Friday), for the Stateliners were senior Tyris Manley (second at 120), sophomore Kyle Tino (second at 132), junior Josh Ramos (third at 138), and sophomore Jayson Zinsmeister (third at 152).
Hackettstown advanced two runners-up in senior Anthony Gonzalez (160) and junior Joe Andes (285) and senior Justin Bennett, third at 132.
The single-day event was wrestled on three mats (quarterfinals), two mats (semis) and one (finals) in front of an enormous Phillipsburg crowd which, while loud all day, hit an apogee decibel level when Melise planted Mellow. His earlier falls had come in 12 seconds over Ryan Denis of Lyndhurst-North Arlington in a quarterfinal and 57 seconds over Caldwell’s Steven Murphy in the semifinal.
His selection as Outstanding Wrestler (by the coaches) was unanimous, and surprised him a little.
“I didn’t think I’d get the OW because upperweights never do,” Melise said. “Usually everybody has turned their ballots in by the time I wrestle (the random draw started the finals at 106). The OW is a great testament to all the hard work I put in.”
The final, with 29-0 Mellow against the 29-2 Melise, never lived up to whatever promise it had to be competitive. The hard-charging Melise roared out after Mellow like a great white shark in search of prey, grabbed on, never let go and once Mellow went to his back the only question was when the pin would come.
“Maybe that (29-0) record wasn’t against the best kids but it’s still (29-0) and he had to beat all those kids to get here,” Melise said. “I just go out and have control of the match and wrestle my style and you’re not going to get upset. If you are timid, that’s when you get upset.”
Based on Saturday’s evidence, there is no chance, ever, of Robert Melise being upset – because it’s impossible to imagine him ever being timid.
Brad Wilson may be reached at bwilson@lehighvalleylive.com. Follow him on Twitter @bradwsports. Find Lehigh Valley high school sports on Facebook.
Our editors found this article on this site using Google and regenerated it for our readers.
