Minisink Valley grapplers Michael Raccioppi and AJ Aeberli competed in this weekends Iron Horse Invitational in South Plainfield, NJ. The Iron Horse is one of the tougher preseason high school wrestling events in the US. The vast majority of the contestants are New Jersey wrestlers but there is a good blend of NY, PA and New England wrestlers as well.
Raccioppi won his pool by finishing 3-1 recording wins over Max Nauta (Warren Hills, NJ), Tin Hamann (Jackson Memorial, NJ), and Brady Ford (Bergen Catholic, NJ). His lone loss came in his final bout of the day when he dropped an OT decision to Stephen Persaud of Parsippany, NJ. None of the wrestlers in the pool went undefeated so Raccioppi won by criteria.
Aeberli had a tough draw and finished 1-3. One of his losses was a 1-0 decision to Louie Deprez of Hilton, NY. Deprez finished 3rd in NYS last season at 138. Aeberli also lost a 5-0 tilt to Joe Grello of Bergen Catholic, NJ. Grello, who won the pool, finished 8th in NJ last season at 152.
Great job both guys! Next up…the Journeymen Classic on 10/5!!!