GIRLS’ WEEKEND: Princeton High wrestler Chloe Ayres controls a foe in a match last season. Last Saturday, junior Ayres won the 107-pound weight class in the NJSIAA girls’ wrestling championships in Atlantic City to earn her second straight state crown. PHS freshman Ava Rose took second at 100 at the competition. (Photo by Frank Wojciechowski)

By Justin Feil

Chloe Ayres and Ava Rose gave the Princeton High  wrestling team a pair of aces in the finals of NJSIAA girls’ wrestling championships in Atlantic City last weekend.

Ayres, a junior, repeated as champion at 107 pounds in a close bout while Rose, a freshman, took second at 100 to a two-time champion Sydney Petzinger of Parsippany in her first trip to states Saturday.

“Anyone taking two girls or two boys to the state tournament and placing that high, it would be tremendous for any program,” said PHS head coach Jess Monzo.

“We’re just looking to grow our program and grow our numbers, so having two girls have success always helps. At the same time, having girls be successful like that kind of scares people because now, coming into a program, they’re not too sure about what their role would be.”

Ayres and Rose are happy to be ambassadors for others to join the team. Both have shown how far a committed wrestler can go. Ayres, whose parents helped to make the girls state championships a reality last year, returned and defended her title.

“It was super exciting to be able to get a second title,” said Ayres. “I was thankful to be chasing that this year. Going into the tournament, my expectations were a little bit different. There were a lot of girls there this year, it grew a lot from last year. It was really cool to see the amount it’s changed in just one year. I think the level of wrestling went up a lot in just one year at a lot of different weights. It’s definitely an honor to be able to say I was able to take a state title again.”

In earning her second straight title, Ayres did not have an easy time. She got a stalling point and an escape in the third period to knock off Izabella Frezzo of Becton Regional, 4-2, in her semifinal bout.

“I think the lights got me a little bit in that match,” said Ayres. “She’s definitely a tough competitor and I was honored to be able to compete with her. I thought she put up a really good match. I was a little sloppy in the beginning. I took a while to get to my attacks. That was a bit of a wake-up call before the finals that I needed to start getting to my attacks earlier rather than waiting. It was closer than I wanted, but I think I stayed pretty controlled during the match.”

In the final, it was even tougher. Ayres took on Johnae Drumright of Trenton for a fifth time in her career and the third time this season. The two are close friends who train together in the offseason and have even traveled together to the Fargo, N.D. national tournament. Each match this season has gotten tighter, and the state final was the closest with Ayres coming back and then holding off Drumright for a 4-3 win.

“She had a great game plan with her coach and she executed it super well,” said Ayres.

“I think we put on an exciting match for the crowd. I love to see that and I think it was pretty exciting. I was honored to be able to compete with her in the last match of the night. It was a super cool opportunity we had together. It sort of sucks that only one person gets to come out on top because Johnae is a very talented wrestler and we’re really close. It’s hard to be friends off the mat and to be so competitive in such a high pressure environment.”

Ayres finished her year 22-12 overall; including a 14-12 record in varsity matches against boys, and a perfect 8-0 mark against girls.

“Chloe is one of a kind,” said Monzo. “She’s a very special girl. She knew she had a target on her back from the very beginning of the season. She’s the defending state champ, and her father [Princeton University head coach Chris Ayres] is a high level Division I college coach so a lot of people are expecting her to do great things, as was I. But at the same time, it is extremely hard. I told her, you’re defending a state title. Just to win a state title is hard, but to defend one when everyone knows who you are and everyone knows the name Chloe Ayres, you have a big target on your back and it’s going to be twice as hard to not only attain that title but to defend it.”

Ayres never backed down from the pressure of being a returning champion, working hard to remain at the top of her class.

“I definitely felt a target on my back, but I think that can be looked at as a good thing,” said Ayres.

“I worked a lot in the offseason and I think it’s cool that people are starting to recognize my name from last year and the accolades that I’ve picked up. I definitely think people were coming after me a little bit and so in some of my matches it was a little bit tougher because it was harder to get girls to open up because they were trying to hold on for a win. It was super exciting. I felt like I got some really tough competition. I’m really happy that a lot of girls were working hard to give me a good match.”

While Ayres spent this season defending her title-winning ways, Rose was building hers up. This year, she established herself as a rising force, and a great year has opened her eyes to being even stronger.

“I feel like this was a super good year for me,” said Rose. “I definitely like wrestling a ton better now. When you put so much effort into something for a long period of time, you’re going to like it better. Also, the team was super nice. I like everyone on the team. At first, I felt like I wasn’t getting better, but I feel like I definitely have gotten better. It draws you after practice to think, I can do a little bit more. So I kept wanting to do more. Now I want to do more so that’s what I’m doing in the offseason.”

Overall, Rose posted a 30-3 record this winter, going 2-0 on the varsity versus boys, 15-2 against girls, and 13-1 against JV boys.

“Ava impressed a lot of teams,” said Monzo. “She impressed a lot of coaches. You don’t see that kind of success for a first-year girl. She’s wrestling against boys at 106 and she only weighs about 102 or 103. She’s a little light.”

Rose was impressive at states to make the finals. She pinned Isabella Santos of Elizabeth in 1:18 in the semis to earn her first championship shot. She made it through two periods before falling to Petzinger.

“I thought that I would get in, but I didn’t think I’d get so far,” said Rose. “Most of it was winning regions, which was a big thing for me. It was really exciting, but also a lot of new pressure that I wasn’t used to.”

Capturing the South Region title to earn a spot in the finals, Rose kept her cool as she competed in front of the bigger crowd on the big stage at Atlantic City.

“She’s very calm,” said Ayres. “She was not very nervous, or at least it didn’t seem to me, before the finals. She’s very collected and thoughtful. She’s a little more quiet, but she’s great. She was really excited about the tournament and just to be there. I was honored to be able to guide her and show her the ins and outs of the tournament in her first year. Clearly she has nothing but bright things coming to her. She’s working hard and she has a bright future ahead.”

The freshman started wrestling two years ago with the Princeton Wrestling Club. She had shown interest when she was younger, often warming up with the club’s wrestlers when her older brother went, but it wasn’t until middle school when she had to add a second sport to her plate that she found wrestling. She found the same camaraderie that drew her in this year at the high school level on a little milder level in middle school.

“I really liked it,” said Rose. “I really liked the team. I was friends with all the guys on it. It was like a whole new experience. It’s a group of people where you’re always practicing together and always putting in a lot of work together and so it builds friendships really easily.”

As Rose spent this winter adjusting to the demands of high school wrestling, it helped her having Ayres to lean on.

“She’s really responsible and knows a lot,” said Rose. “I don’t know a lot about girls wrestling. Also, she’s always on top of things. It’s nice to have someone like that so you know what you’re doing. It’s nice to have because we’re always supporting each other since we’re the only girls on the team.”

Taking on a wide range of opponents, Rose found her hard work paying off. She is motivated by the successes and the challenges that she had this season as she looks to the future.

“A lot of the matches I had were junior varsity matches so not a lot of experienced people,” said Rose.

“I know that I won a lot, and I’m happy with my record, but I still have three people that beat me so there’s something to work towards so I can beat them next time. I always write down all the people that beat me on my phone so I can remember their names because I’m really forgetful. I’ll work toward beating them next time.”

Going forward, Rose has a plan that includes a busier offseason. Two days after the state final, she was back in the weight room on Monday morning.

“I’m going to try to do a lot more tournaments in the offseason, bigger ones so I can experience the pressure so I don’t choke up as much,” said Rose.

“Then I also want to do a lot of offseason training. I really want to get a lot better so I want to put in a lot of work with it.”

Rose and Ayres aren’t alone in their offseason commitment. The other state championships qualifier from PHS, junior James Romaine (152 pounds), is also getting back to work after his first trip to Atlantic City. Over the weekend at the boys’ championships, Romaine won one match, 10-4, over Zach Kitchell and lost to David DiPietro and Anthony Romaniello on decisions.

“He left everything on the mat in all three matches he wrestled,” said Monzo of Romaine.

“There’s not one ounce of me that’s disappointed with James. I’m super happy with what he did. He’s another one that is already talking about how he is going to improve for next year and where he’s going to go and when he’s going to start.”

PHS is looking for all three to return to Atlantic City next year and the trio has wasted no time in resuming their training after strong showings in the state championships.

“They’re life wrestlers; all three of these individuals that made it to the state tournament,” said Monzo. “They want to wrestle at the next level and they’re making adjustments for next year and for years to come.”