Overall Record: 7-2 / Shore Conference: 6-2 / A-North: 3-1
ShoreConferenceWrestling.com Wrestler of the Year
(Sr) Gavin Claro - 195
Record: 15-3
5th Place NJSIAA Tournament
3rd Place Central Region Tournament
Team Leader in Wins
2021 Roster
| Wgt | Wrestler | Record | Post-Season |
| 106 | (Fr) Noah Michaels | 7-3 | R-PQ |
| 106 | |||
| 113 | (Fr) Vincent Kain | 3-4 | |
| 113 | (Fr) Andrew Mucciolo | 1-0 | |
| 120 | (So) Anthony Vitola | 5-5 | R-PQ |
| 120 | |||
| 126 | (Sr) Chris Balzano | 7-3 | R-PQ |
| 126 | (So) Ethan Brodsky | 1-2 | |
| 132 | (So) Vincent DePierro | 9-3 | R-WB1 |
| 132 | |||
| 138 | (Sr) Jason Porcaro | 5-1 | |
| 138 | (Fr) Anatloy Fidelman | 0-1 | |
| 145 | (Sr) James Grande | 5-7 | R-WB1 |
| 145 | (So) Daniel Orsen | 6-3 | |
| 152 | |||
| 152 | |||
| 160 | (So) Kenny Wines | 3-5 | |
| 160 | (So) Michael Quagliano | 1-3 | |
| 170 | (Jr) Ryan Wosnitzer | 5-1 | |
| 170 | |||
| 182 | (Sr) Chris Cosentino | 2-7 | |
| 182 | |||
| 195 | (Sr) Gavin Claro | 15-3 | R-3rd / NJ-5th |
| 195 | |||
| 220 | (Sr) George Zavalnik | 8-2 | R-PQ |
| 220 | (Jr) John Sullivan | 1-0 | |
| Hwt | (Jr) Chris McDonald | 1-1 | |
| Hwt | (Jr) Matt Damato | 1-1 | |
| | | | |
2021 Results
| Date | Opponent | Result |
| 3/24 | vs Freehold Boro | W 38-36 |
| 3/25 | at Shore Regional | W 39-27 |
| 3/26 | vs Piscataway | W 57-16 |
| 3/30 | vs Long Branch | W 46-24 |
| 3/31 | vs Freehold Twp | W 55-12 |
| 4/1 | vs Marlboro | L 32-38 |
| 4/6 | vs Middletown North | W 46-24 |
| 4/8 | vs Brick Memorial | W 40-33 |
| 4/9 | at Old Bridge | L 31-40 |
| | | |
2021 Recap
4/25: NJSIAA TOURNAMENT
Senior Gavin Claro capped his career with a 5th-place medal at 195. Claro's medal makes it 3 years in a row for the Braves having a State Medalist.
195: (Sr) Gavin Claro - (3rd Place)
PQ: #6 Gavin Claro (Manalapan) p. #11 Shane Kanterman (Cranford) 3:00
QF: #3 Jack Wilt (Seton Hall) d. #6 Gavin Claro (Manalapan) 8-3
WB2: #6 Gavin Claro (Manalapan) d. #4 Hudson Skove (Rumson) 10-5
WBQF: #6 Gavin Claro (Manalapan) d. #2 Cody Thurston (West Deptford) 10-7
WBSF: #13 Alex Kostantas (Pascack Hills) d. #6 Gavin Claro (Manalapan) 9-6
5th: #6 Gavin Claro (Manalapan) d. #16 Vincent Ceglie (Lacey) 9-3
4/18: REGION TOURNAMENT
106: (Sr) Noah Michaels - (R-PQ)
PQ: #1 Nico Calello (St Joe's) p. #16 Noah Michaels (Manalapan) 3:18
120: (So) Anthony Vitola - (R-PQ)
PQ: #2 Jack Zaleski (Middletown South) p. #15 Anthony Vitola (Manalapan) 0:23
126: (Sr) Chris Balzano - (R-PQ)
PQ: #4 Travis Tuminelli (Middletown South) d. #13 Chris Balzano (Manalapan) 8-5
132: (So) Vincent DePierro - (R-WB1)
PQ: #8 Vincent DePierro (Manalapan) md. #9 AJ Benner (Ocean Twp) 15-6
QF: #1 Jack Maida (Shore) p. #8 Vincent DePierro (Manalapan) 3:01
WB1: #4 Mike Bruno (Wall) p. #8 Vincent DePierro (Manalapan) 4:19
145: (Sr) James Grande - (R-WB1)
PQ: #12 James Grande (Manalapan) d. #5 Joey Butler (St John Vianney) 2-1
QF: #13 Nick Benner (Ocean Twp) p. #12 James Grande (Manalapan) 2:27
WB1: #9 Alex Quintano (Middletown South) d. #12 James Grande (Manalapan) 13-12
195: (Sr) Gavin Claro - (3rd Place)
PQ: #2 Gavin Claro (Manalapan) p. #15 Sean Lane (Raritan) 0:12
QF: #2 Gavin Claro (Manalapan) p. #7 Andrew Conklin (Long Branch) 4:26
SF: #3 Hudson Skove (Rumson) d. #2 Gavin Claro (Manalapan) 3-2
WB2: #2 Gavin Claro (Manalapan) d. #9 Macky Liotta (Pt Beach) 10-3
3rd: #2 Gavin Claro (Manalapan) md. #4 Brian LaCross (Hopewell Valley) 13-2
220: (Sr) George Zavalnik - (R-PQ)
PQ: #8 Matt Cody (Middletown South) d. #9 George Zavalnik (Manalapan) 11-4
4/9: NON-CONFERENCE
M: Porcaro, Orsen, Zavalnik, & Balzano win by pin; DePierro majors
4/8: SHORE CONFERENCE POD 4
M: Zavalnik & Grande win by fall; Balzano techs
4/6: SHORE CONFERENCE POD 4
M: Porcaro, Wines, Zavalnik by pin; Vitola majors
3/31: A-NORTH
M: Wosnitzer, Cosentino, Zavalnik, Kain, Balzano win by pin
3/30: A-NORTH
M: DePierro, Claro win by pin; Vitola & Balzano tech
3/26: NON-CONFERENCE
M: Brodsky, DePierro, Grande, Wosnitzer, Claro, Michaels win by pin
3/25: NON-DIVISION
M: Balzano, Wosnitzer, Zavalnik win by pin
3/24: NON-DIVISION
M: Claro, Zavalnik, Orsen, Wosnitzer win by pin
2021 Manalapan Wrestling
Manalapan took a decent hit to graduation, with several key pieces to their recent success moving on. Still, there's a good amount of talent returning from last year's Group 5 Finalists, especially in the lower half of the lineup. Seniors Chris Balzano and James Grande, and sophomores Anthony Vitola and Vincent DePierro were all District medal winners in 2020. Those four, along with seniors Calvin Burke, a District medalist in 2019, and Jason Porcaro, a 19-bout winner in 2020, give the Braves a very strong run from 120-152. They'll be looking to underclassmen, including sophomore Advait Sepuri and freshmen Vincent Kain and Noah Michaels, to step up in the 106/113 slots. If they can get solid contributions there, this will be a very stout lower half.
The upperweights will be anchored by the 1-2 punch of seniors Gavin Claro and George Zavalnik. Claro is a 2-time State Qualifier, who was a win away from a medal in AC last season. Zavilnik may have flown under the radar the last couple of seasons due to some of the big names in the lineup, but he has picked up some big wins in his career and is capable of having a breakout season in 2021. The 160-195 stretch is where the Braves will have to do the bulk of their rebuilding. Senior Chris Consentino, juniors Ryan Wosnitzer and John Castro, and sophomore Kenny Wines all got some experience last season. They, along with sophomores Dan Orsen and Michael Quagliano, will look to contend for those starting spots in 2021.
The Braves have been one of the winningest programs in the Shore over the last several seasons, registering at least 23 dual wins every year since 2017, and are coming off of a season in which they won their first State Sectional Title since 1992. Obviously, with the abbreviated season, matching the win totals of the previous season and successfully defending their CJG5 Title are off the table, so they will turn their attention to contending for a Divisional Title in the highly competitive A-North field. They'll get a great feel for where they stand in that race as they open the season on the road at CBA.
Possible Lineup in 2021
| Wgt | Wrestler | Record | 2020 Post-Season |
| 106/113 | (Fr) Vincent Kain | ||
| 106/113 | (Fr) Noah Michaels | ||
| 106/113 | (So) Advait Sepuri | 2-4 | |
| 120 | (So) Vincent DePierro | 20-7 | D20-2nd / R5-WB1 |
| 126 | (So) Anthony Vitola | 19-14 | D20-2nd / R5-WB1 |
| 132 | (Sr) Calvin Burke | 10-10 | |
| 138 | (Sr) Chris Balzano | 27-9 | D20-3rd / R5-WB1 |
| 145 | (Sr) James Grande | 21-12 | D20-3rd / R5-PQ |
| 152 | (Sr) Jason Porcaro | 19-15 | |
| 152 | (So) Dan Orsen | ||
| 160 | (So) Michael Quagliano | ||
| 160 | (So) Kenny Wines | 0-2 | |
| 170 | (Jr) John Castro | 2-13 | |
| 182 | (Jr) Ryan Wosnitzer | 2-0 | |
| 195 | (Sr) Chris Consentino | 2-2 | |
| 220 | (Sr) Gavin Claro | 36-6 | D20-1st / R5-2nd / NJ-WB4 |
| 220 | (Sr) George Zavilnik | 17-9 | |
| Hwt | (Jr) Matt Damato | ||
| Hwt | (Jr) CJ McDonald | 1-0 | |
| | | | |
Graduated in 2020
| Wgt | Wrestler | Record | Post-Season |
| 113 | Justin Schifter | 30-7 | D20-1st / R5-2nd |
| 126 | Jason Schifter | 11-6 | |
| 132 | Mike LaRocca | 4-2 | |
| 138 | Mike LaRocca | 1-1 | |
| 145 | Hunter Konstantoulas | 34-10 | D20-2nd / R5-4th / NJ-WB1 |
| 160 | Matt Benedetti | 43-3 | D20-1st / R5-3rd / NJ-4th |
| 170 | Dylan Waller | 31-7 | D20-2nd / R5-5th |
| 195 | Michael Slitas | 14-6 | |
| Hwt | Matt Kovacs | 25-9 | D20-3rd |
| | | | |
Manalapan Braves Wrestling
