For the second straight season, Warren Hills wrestler Jarod Ostir has qualified for the NJSIAA Championships.
But this time around, the Blue Streaks junior will actually get to take to the mat in Atlantic City.
Ostir tore his UCL in his elbow as he took third place in the Region 1 tournament last year, forcing him to sit out his chance to wrestle at states.
On Saturday, Ostir finished second at 170 pounds in the Region 3 tournament at West Orange High School. And this season there’s no injury holding him back from a trip to states.
“It feels great to be back,” Ostir said. “I feel like I can do big things down at states. I really worked hard for this. So I’m ready for it.”
“Jarod had a good tournament and he came up a little short in the finals,” Warren Hills coach Jarrett Hosbach said. “He wrestled quality kids every round. He came out to battle each round. The first two went our way and then this round here we fell a little short. I’m excited that he can go to states and wrestle healthy this year.”
Ostir posted a 7-6 win over Caldwell’s Kyle Schaffer in Friday night’s quarterfinals. He then won an 8-6 decision over Barak Pipkins of Bloomfield in the semifinals on Saturday to secure a spot in states before dropping a 6-3 bout to Marco Gaita of West Morris in the championship.
“I was pleased that I never gave up even when I got into bad situations,” Ostir said. “My first match, I was down 4-1 and I came back to beat the kid. So I was proud of myself for never giving up.”
Josh Folck may be reached at jfolck@lehighvalleylive.com. Follow him on Twitter @JoshFolck. Find Lehigh Valley high school sports on Facebook.
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