Pope John, Sparta wrestlers H/W/S titles
Sparta. Pope John’s Lukas Katsigiannis and Cole Dunham and Sparta’s Liam Hassloch won individual championships at the Hunterdon/Sussex/Warren Tournament as the Lions placed fourth and the Spartans seventh in the 18-team field.
Sparta /
| 12 Jan 2026 | 02:08
Pope John’s Lukas Katsigiannis and Cole Dunham and Liam Hassloch of Sparta each brought home individual championships at the 16th annual Hunterdon/Sussex/Warren Tournament on Saturday afternoon at Phillipsburg High in Phillipsburg.
Pope John, ranked No. 12 in the state, boasted seven place-winners including four finalists to finish fourth in the team standings. Sparta placed seventh with five place-winners.
North Hunterdon, ranked No. 16, won the team title for the first time in five years, edging No. 14 Phillipsburg in the 18-team event.
Katsigiannis earned the 165-pound title with an 11-0 major decision over Jayden Ruplall of High Point with Dunham defeating Gavin Geleta of Phillipsburg, 10-4, for the 175-pound crown.
Pope John’s Dalton Weber, seeking his third straight H/W/S Tournament title, reached the 132-pound final but was nipped by Aidan Yarussi of North Hunterdon, 5-3.
Weber, a senior, had won the 126-pound tri-county title in 2024 and was the defending 132-pound champion.
Yarussi was named the tournament’s Most Outstanding Wrestler after defeating Weber, the top seed.
The Lions’ Daniel Arroyo wrestled for the 150-pound title but was defeated by Phillipsburg’s Owen Garriques by tech. fall (19-4, 5:41).
Other place-winners for Pope John were Jacob Campbell (third at 113 pounds), Matthew Farley (fourth at 144), Nick Mignone (third at 190).
Sparta’s Hassloch, who was runner-up at 215 pounds last year, captured the title at that weight class this year as he outlasted Voorhees’ Dimos Maroulis, 6-5.
Other place-winners for the Spartans included Kellen Shearer (fifth at 106 pounds), Patrick Bruseo (fifth at 138), Ryan Hrenenko (sixth at 144) and Trevor Ekeland (sixth at 165).
Pope John (6-2) will next wrestle at Sparta on Tuesday, Jan.at 7 p.m. Sparta (2-4) is slated to wrestle at Morris Hills on Friday, Jan. 16 at 7 p.m.
Pope John Girls Basketball
Mia Washington totaled 18 points, five rebounds and three steals, Rose Kraus added 15 points and Natalija Novkovic collected 11 points, three rebounds and two steals to lead Pope John to a 53-29 win over Paramus Catholic in the Showdown in the 6ix Girls Basketball Showcase on Saturday afternoon in Teaneck.
The win was the fifth straight for the Lady Lions, who improved to 8-2 this season. Pope John will play at Sparta on Thursday, Feb. 15 at 7 p.m.
