Robbinsville senior Brandon DiDonato is the No. 2-ranked heavyweight in the state (Suzette J. Lucas photo)

It’s overwhelming how far the Robbinsville High School wrestling program has come in a short period of time. The Ravens didn’t even have seniors in the school when it moved up to the varsity level in the 2006-07 school year. Now, as the freshmen from that original varsity season wrap up their high school careers, their Group I program has four wrestlers competing at the New Jersey State Interscholastic Athletic Association Championships at the Atlantic City Convention Center this weekend.

Two-time Region 7 heavyweight champion Brandon DiDonato, a senior, carries the best chance of being on the medal stand Sunday. That juniors David Bossie (103 pounds), Brian O'Toole (112) and Jared Icenhower (119) – who each finished third in Region 7 – also are competing on this stage shows how head coach Rich Gildner and assistant Brian Dempsey have built the program for the long haul. The Ravens won the Mercer County Tournament and Central Jersey Group I titles.

It’s a particularly good season for the Colonial Valley Conference to have 10 wrestlers representing six schools competing in AC. The group includes Region 7 champion and Canaan Bethea (171-pound senior) of Trenton, runners-up Jared Staub (103-pound freshman) of Hamilton West and Ross Scheuerman (160-pound junior) of Allentown; and third-place finishers Ray Bethea (145-pound sophomore) of Trenton and Gregg Ratner (171-pound senior) of Hightstown. Ewing junior 130-pounder Josh Garzio qualified by finishing third in Region 5. Canaan Bethea is the winningest wrestler in CVC history, but his brother Ray may own that record in two years.

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