Team of the Year

Pequannock

Several teams in the Jersey Sports Now area had solid wrestling seasons, but none stood head and shoulders above the competition. We are going with the Panthers, a team that despite key injuries, managed to share a division title and won its district championship.

Pequannock ended up with a 16-5 mark for the season, including wins over strong programs like Newton, Randolph and Passaic Tech. The Panthers reached the finals of the North Jersey Section 1, Group II tournament, falling by just nine points to a strong Kittatinny squad. They then went on to outscore Wayne Valley to win the District 4 tournament.

As strong as Pequannock was, the Panthers still have reason to believe they would have done better without the injuries. Almost surely, they would have won their division title outright. But they did enough for us to declare them the JSN Wrestling Team of the Year.

Wrestler of the Year

Taylor Bernstein, Montville

This wrestler authored an unlikely success story in 2010-11, bouncing back-and-forth between two weight classes and ending up near the top of the podium in Atlantic City. Bernstein spent much of the season competing at heavyweight even though he was able to go at 215 pounds. He fared well despite often giving up lots of pounds, and captured the Morris County title at heavyweight.

Bernstein then switched to 215 for the state tournament, and the decision worked out brilliantly. He won the District 2 and Region 1 titles impressively, but got a tough draw in Atlantic City, facing superstud Andrew Campolattano in the quarterfinals. Bernstein lost that match by technical fall, but bounced back impressively in the wrestlebacks, winning four matches to grab third place in the state.

A kid who didn't necessarily figure to be a big-time wrestler in high school, Taylor Bernstein won 40 matches and lots of admirers this season, and he is our JSN Wrestler of the Year.

Coach of the Year

Gavin Bannat, Wayne Valley

Wayne Valley had a lineup of solid, if unspectacular, wrestlers this season, and Bannat led that squad to a league title and a dominant victory in the Passaic County tournament. The Indians also fell just 9 points short of a more star-studded Pequannock team in a second-place showing in the districts.

This seems to be par for the course for Bannat. Most of his team doesn't focus on wrestling primarily, and many top Wayne Valley athletes choose to play other sports in the winter. Yet Bannat puts together a squad each year that competes for league and county titles and makes the state team tournament.

Bannat is an emotional guy, and recently told a newspaper that he isn't sure he will come back to coach next year. Perhaps he was just blowing off steam at the frustration of competing in state tournaments against schools where wrestling is king. Wayne Valley may not be at that level yet, but the Indians have accomplished a lot in recent years. Gavin Bannat is a big reason why, and he is our JSN Wrestling Coach of the Year.

-- Paul Mencher for Jersey Sports Now