By Sean Farrell – Record Sports Department
ELMWOOD PARK – Tom Mulligan went airborne. And he was hardly alone.
The noise was deafening and the stands were full as the Elmwood Park coach and many by his side jumped for joy. A night they waited eight long years for was a good reason to celebrate.
The Crusaders’ bench erupted after Diego Mendoza’s pin clinched a 37-32 over Lodi in Monday’s North 2, Group 2 quarterfinal. Their first state tournament appearance in nearly a decade was a success.
“I’m never going to forget this,” Mendoza said.
Elmwood Park (16-10) won only a few matches just three years ago and had a hard time putting out a full lineup. That’s changed this winter as the Crusaders have grown the program from 20 to 31 and produced three medalists at the Bergen County tournament. And throughout the season, Mulligan kept motivating his team with a simple message.
“We got to get to the dance,” said Mulligan, in his fifth year.
“Everything is on the up. It’s a great environment in the room. They’ve been working hard. The kids are pushing for spots. It’s what we said that we would build it up to be when Tyler Martinez and those [seniors] were freshmen.”
The atmosphere was different than usual for Elmwood Park, who’s gotten used to seeing a few dozen people in the crowd. Both sides of the stands were used for a change and the fans were hanging on every point, knowing the margin for error the match would bring.
“I just said to keep doing what we’re doing,” Mulligan said. “Treat it like every day. We’ve been using the slogan this year, win the day. Just win the day. The practice. The match. Whatever we’ve got to do, you got to take care of what’s in front of you. And they did that today. They came out and took care of what we had to.”
Victories from Tyler Martinez and Eddie Alfieri gave Elmwood Park an early lead, but Lodi jumped back ahead with two pins in the first four matches. Abe Kario and Devin Trujillo brought the Crusaders fans back on their feet with pins, but the Rams kept them quiet by winning at 220 and heavyweight.
“It was definitely different,” Martinez said. “It’s my first time being in the state playoffs for any sport. The environment was crazy. Everyone was hyped. Everyone knew they had a job to do.”
Mendoza stepped to the mat with a seven point lead in the third-to-last round. The senior tried to focus on his opponent more than the math and guaranteed a Crusader win with a pin at 3:59.
“I didn’t know,” Mendoza said. “I’ve seen this kid before and he’s got a lot of wins. I didn’t know if I could beat him. I just put in my heart that I’ve got to worry about my own match and give 100 percent. It’s amazing. When we started out, there were only around 10 kids. Look at us now.”
