Saturday's 37-15 loss to Camden County College in the GSAC Wrestling Championships semifinal proved disappointing to RCSJ wrestling Coach Paul Toppin, but at the same  time provided some upbeat moments.

The No. 3 seed Runners were forced to forfeit two matches due to injuries, but nonetheless came to within 20-15 of the No. 2 Cougars with a shot to take a brief lead late in the match. But the Cougars' Piortr Brochenski secured a pin at 184 pounds followed by a tech fall by Anthony Evangelista at 197 to lift Camden CC to the win and into the championship match vs. Union.

Despite the loss, Toppin noted that his team enjoyed a step up this season over the previous campaign in 2025.

"Hey, we made it here to the GSAC Championship meet, which we did not do last year -- plus we were very competitive," noted Toppin. "These wrestlers worked hard and we will only see improvement from here."

Among the bright spots proved to be freshman Aidan Rhea, a former Haddonfield standout who gave the squad a glimmer of hope when he pinned the Cougars' Jimmy Do in 4:05 at 165 pounds. The Runners' Quinn Weismer followed with an 8-2 win at 174 to bring RCSJ to within 20-15 after they earlier fell behind, 20-0.

Rhea had dealt with a series of injuries throughout the season, including an ankle injury and torn labrum earlier this winter followed by a dislocated shoulder prior to the GSAC championships.

"I'm glad I've even made it to this point due to injuries." said Rhea. "Right now I feel great. I wanted to get my match in today for myself so I could get back on track. I hope to continue to make progress in the Districts so I can qualify for Nationals."

Next up for the Runners will be the District Championships at Lackawanna College on February 14th, with individual wrestlers hoping to gain qualifying berths in the NJCAA Wrestling National Championship Meet in Council Bluffs, IA in March.

Tournament Preview

Roadrunner Wrestling will take part in the Garden State Athletic Conference (GSAC) Wrestling Championship Meet, Saturday, January 31, starting at 12 noon at Camden County College's Papione Gymnasium in Blackwood, NJ.

Only three teams will participate this season as Bergen CCC and Sussex CCC were forced to withdraw from the competition due to injuries or ineligibility issues within their lineups.

The No. 3 seed Runners, coached by Paul Toppin, will wrestle No. 2 Camden County, at 12 noon with the winner squaring off against No. 1 Union College in the championship match.

Toppin's team will suffer with deficits in their lineup as well, and will need to forfeit weight classes at 133 and 157 pounds. His squad compiled a solid 5-3 regular season dual meet record, but lost close matches to both Union and Camden in recent weeks. 

It is, however, a tossup at best among the three participating schools. 

"It's frustrating because you're giving up 12 points right away to a good opponent," said Toppin. "But we have some quality wrestlers throughout our lineup, and if they show up with their best efforts, they have a chance to do well on the team side."

125 pounds -- Haji Saccoh
141 pounds -- Stephen Dmytryk
149 pounds -- Charles Perrin
165 pounds --Aidan Rhea
174 pounds -- Quinn Weismer
184 pounds -- Max Adelizzi
197 pounds -- Jordan Payne
Heavyweight-- Joseph Piazza
Matches kick off at 12 noon See schedule below.

GSAC Championship Meet Schedule

Match 1: #2 Camden CC vs. #3 RCSJ-Gloucester 12 noon

Followed by 30-minute break.

Match 2: #1 Union College vs. Camden CC/RCSJ Gloucester winner