Matt Valenti won his second NCAA title at 133 in 2007Valenti is being honored for his performance at Kittatinny Regional High School, where he was a two-time New Jersey state champ and four-time tournament placer. He went on to wrestle at the University of Pennsylvania, where he was a two-time NCAA wrestling champion, winning back-to-back titles in 2006 and 2007 at 133 pounds. Valenti also claimed three EIWA (Eastern Intercollegiate Wrestling Association) titles. He is currently assistant athletic director at Penn.
Zabriskie was the 215-pound New Jersey state champ in 2005 for High Point High School. He then headed west, enrolling at Iowa State, where he was a three-time Big 12 heavyweight titlist, and a three-time NCAA All-American. Zabriskie won the heavyweight crown at the 2010 NCAAs. He is currently wrestling freestyle, hoping to qualify for the 2016 Olympics in Rio.
In addition to Valenti and Zabriskie, other members of the Class of 2016 of the Sussex County Sports Hall of Fame include Michele Fisher, Ryan McGowan, Elizabeth Sisca, and Catherine Stone. The six honorees were voted into the Hall from a ballot of 12 names back in August.
The Sussex County Sports Hall of Fame was founded in 1976, with the idea of honoring "county athletes, coaches and benefactors who had distinguished themselves through outstanding, extraordinary and exceptional performance in their chosen sport," according to the organization's website. Since 1976, the SCSHOF has inducted over 166 Sussex County athletes, coaches and benefactors representing a wide range of sports.
The SCSHOF is a non-profit organization supported by membership dues and other contributions. Every year the SCSHOF accepts the nominations of new athletes, coaches and benefactors to be considered for and voted on by the membership for induction. A ceremony dinner is held each November to introduce the new inductees.
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