Preview: Winter Sports at Paramus, Paramus Catholic

Fall sports at Paramus and Paramus Catholic ended with a bang as the Paladins won their first football state title in over a decade. Now many of the winter athletics have their chance as well.

Ice Hockey

Paramus Catholic is off to an undefeated 4-0 start in the Big North Gold Division, outscoring their opponents 34 to five with victories over Passaic Valley, River Dell, Hackensack and Fair Lawn.

Last season, the Paladins went 18-5-3 and so far look to repeat as one of the toughest teams in the County. Thomas Pyrka was given the go-ahead as head netminder this season and so far has made 67 saves between the posts. The offense is led by seniors Dan Sowinski and Matt Confrancesco while senior Brian Nagy heads the defense.

The Spartans, in the Big North Silver Division, are in a hole early this season dropping their first three games and are looking to fill the space left by JJ Piccinich (committed to prep school) and senior forward Dylan Rizer (MCL and ACL injuries).

Paramus fell in tight matches to Old Tappan (2-1) and Northern Highlands (5-4) before being blown out by Glen Rock (11-3). First-year head coach Denis Jelcic sees potential, in the squad that went 19-6-2 in 2011, and looks to Tom Palestina, Dean Delucia, Steven Giambagno and Rich LaBarbiera for leadership. Alex Kellenberger will be in charge of protecting the net, so far stopping 102 shots that came his way, 51 of which were courtesy of the Panthers.

Swimming

Paramus got off to a strong start in the pool with the boys winning over Paramus Catholic (90-80) and Hackensack (98-72) before falling to Bergen Catholic. The girls struggled against the Comets, falling 105-65.

The Spartans are led by their 200 and 400 medley relay squad of Ryan Stallone, Jon Scrivanich, Eric Kim and Phil Rim/Jeff Park. Kim (200 IM, 100 Free), Rim (50 Free, 100 Back) and Scrivanich (500 Free, 100 Breast stroke) should all provide momentum this season.

The Lady Spartans may have fallen in their first meet of the season, but returns top swimmers Tiffany Hsiung, Christina Boyadjian and Amanda Bocekci who all play a part in the relay teams. Laura Okecku rounds out the mix in the medley.

The Paladins will rely on John Nunez (200 Free, 100 Fly), Maciek Paz (100 back), relay swimmers Kae Hwan Lee and Jacek Deptula along with Alex Crudello and Michael Pacheco. 

The girls could fall in the middle of the United Division pack this season as a largely young untested group heads into the pool. Returning starter Marie Guerrero (200 Free, 100 Free, 200 Relay) will be joined by Jennifer Antonietti (Butterfly, 100 Breast stroke, 200 IM), Juliana Lally (Free and Back stroke), an Nicole Jaramillo (50 Free).

Bowling

The Paladins began their season claiming second (boys) and third (girls) overall at the Crusader Classic bowling tournament in Hackensack. Since then, the team has picked up shut-out wins over DePaul and Tenafly before falling to Holy Angels/Bergen Catholic. Brian Rizzi, James Kane and Devin Puccio lead the boys side while the girls are led by Nikki Vucak, Anastasia Deleon and Ameera Khan.

The Spartans, led by Tokuya Tokinaga, Anthony Marshall, Brittany Hovan and Haley Hassan are off to a quick start with opening matches against Norther Highlands (boys loss, girls win), Holy Angels (girls loss), Bergen Catholic (boys loss) and Ridgewood (boys/girls loss). Tokinaga has rolled a high series of 660 followed by Hovan's 600 to date.

Indoor Track

Following their successful cross-country season, runners Mike Secreti, Erik Helstrom, Jolie Bartner and Lindsey Lucas return to the track. They wil lbe joined by Alex Gulbenkian (shot put), Matt Schneider (sprinter), Lauren Mi­halik (distance), Inderpreet Dhali­wal (shot), Julia Castronovo (high jump), Erin Davis (dis­tance) and Nicole Pituras (hur­dles/ jumps).

WRESTLING

The Paladins are rebuilding this season, facing an uphill battle in the United Division against the likes of Don Bosco and Paramus Catholic. PC will be led by R.J. Izquierdo (132) and William Duby III (138).

Paramus will be led by state and district winners Joe Trovato (113), Eric Giannantonio (120), Justin Cocharn (132), Nick Spinoso (138/145) and Matt Tozzi (195/220) as the Spartans continue to challenge themselves against the likes of Old Tappan, Mendham, West Morris, Watchung Hills and Hunterdon Central.

Girls Basketball

Paramus Catholic returns its entire bench led by seniors forward Dejah Taylor and guard Tianna Smith along with junior Gina Crawford. Sophomore Keyla Martinez should also see plenty of playing time in her return to the court after suffering a life-threatening cerebral hemorrhage in 2011.

Under second year head coach Scott Papetti, the Spartans will rely heavily on junior guard Brittany Stone, who is just under 200 points away from her career 1,000th point. The all-around sharpshooter averaged 17.8 points, 5.5 assists and 5.8 rebounds in 2011 as a threat from both outside and inside the arc. Stone will be joined by senior Megan Ghiglioty and sophomore Ashley Dunn in the starting rotation.

Boys Basketball

Pat Gabriele takes over from Sean Kelly as the Spartans' head coach this season and the team looks to surpass the 2011 five-wins campaign. Seniors John Morella and Matt Pechman are two of eight returning starters.

The Paladins also return to the court with new head coach Holland Mack who takes over for Greg Barnes this season. The talent is there for Paramus Catholic to vie for a United Division title and knock off Don Bosco and Bergen Catholic this season and everything starts at the top with Jalen Henriquez and Kyle Menard.

Follow Patch on Facebook and Twitter or subscribe to our free daily newsletter.