H.S. wrestling: Bench-clearing brawl ends South Jersey quad-meet
GLOUCESTER TWP. - Saturday’s quad-meet at Timber Creek High School was halted after a bench-clearing brawl occurred between two of the competing squads.
During the meet between Gateway/Woodbury and Timber Creek, an altercation broke out during the 132-pound bout in which the Gateway/Woodbury’s wrestler was disqualified, sparking a melee that had both teams, wrestlers and coaches, storming the mat.
Video circulating on social media Saturday night showed several wrestlers throwing punches as actions escalated and even flowed onto the another mat.
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Several fans and parents also appear to be involved in the fracas. A Gloucester Township police officer is also seen on the mat trying to break up the altercation. The video has since been deleted from the user’s TikTok account, but the spectator provided the video to the Courier-Post.
According to NJSIAA rules, the disqualification carries a two-match suspension for the wrestler.
The 132-pound bout was the next-to-last in the meet. Both teams agreed to double forfeit the final bout and the gymnasium was cleared.
The final two meets between Gateway/Woodbury and Timber Creek/Sterling were cancelled.
“I’m beyond embarrassed, that’s not what sports are about,” Gateway/Woodbury head coach Jim Rutter said.
Rutter said the 132-pound bout was chippy from the start and got even more heated when it was declared a disqualification. Another Gateway/Woodbury wrestler came off the bench to go after the Timber Creek wrestler, but was quickly restrained by a teammate. However, the DQ’d athlete then went after his opponent again, and the things escalated quickly.
Rutter contacted Gateway athletic director Michael DiCicco and assistant coach Jamie Otis informed Woodbury athletic director Dan Howey about the incident. The referee working the meet is also required to fill out a report on the incident.
Timber Creek assistant athletic director Brian Wright, who was the site manager for Saturday’s quad-meet, declined to comment other than say the situation was still being sorted out as of Saturday night.
No arrests were made.
Tom McGurk is a regional sports reporter for the Courier-Post, The Daily Journal and Burlington County Times, covering South Jersey sports for over 30 years. If you have a sports story that needs to be told, contact him at (856) 486-2420 or email tmcgurk@gannett.com. Follow him on Twitter at @McGurkSports. Help support local journalism with a digital subscription.
This article originally appeared on Cherry Hill Courier-Post: H.S. wrestling: Bench-clearing brawl ends South Jersey quad-meet
