TOMS RIVER -- Sam Cali wasn't Anthony Ashnault's primary sparring partner in the Rutgers wrestling training room this past season.
But Ashnault won't soon forget one of the rare times he went head-to-head against Cali.
"The first time we ever went he got the first takedown on me,'' Ashnault said. "People who know me know that I'm pretty competitive, so he got that first takedown and it was game over for him.
"But from that moment when he took me down I was like, 'All right, I guess this kid's the real deal.' He came into the room ready to get after me, and that showed the kind of heart he had. He was about going the distance, and he wanted to become something really big in wrestling.''
Speaking following a Wednesday morning workout, Ashnault expressed remorse over the news that Cali and his friend, Leo Vagias, were killed in an early Monday morning car accident on I-287 in Mahwah.
Visitation for Cali and Vagias will be held from 4-9 p.m. Thursday at St. Pius X Church (24 Changebridge Rd.) in Montville. Cali's funeral will be at 10 a.m. Friday at St. Pius X Church with interment following at Gate of Heaven Cemetery in East Hanover.
Vagias's funeral will be held at 12 p.m. Friday at St. George Greek Orthodox Church (818 Valley Road, Clifton) and a private interment will be held on Saturday.
"It's going to take some time to get over it,'' Ashnault said. "I know a lot of the guys on the team were a lot closer than I was but he was a true friend to me, and he was a really good kid. Every time I saw him, he was smiling.
"On my way down here I was going through his social media feed and most of his pictures since he went to college were about Rutgers wrestling and how much we meant to him. The one that stood out to me the most was (a tweet from) the second day of winter break, and there was a picture of the team and he said how much he couldn't wait to get around them.
"For me, it's what I'm going to miss the most about him. With Rutgers wrestling, we've created a family (environment) and he was part of that movement so it's going to be sad to not see him anymore.''
Fresh off becoming the second two-time All-American in program history with a fourth-place finish at the 2016 NCAA Championships, Ashnault is on the mend after a minor knee ailment kept him from competing in the World University Championships.
"I burst my bursa sac in my knee, and it got infected so I needed to go on antibiotics to take down the swelling,'' he said. "It is what it is.''
Ashnault, who finished his redshirt sophomore campaign with a 32-4 record at 141 pounds, says he's more driven than ever to win that elusive national championship next season.
"I'm just trying to be the best I can through the summer and hopefully I come back next season the strongest, the fastest and the best technical 141-pounder in the country,'' he said. "If I get to that point, then I think mentally I'll be where I need to be to win a national title.''
Keith Sargeant may be reached at ksargeant@njadvancemedia.com. Follow him on Twitter @KSargeantNJ. Find NJ.com Rutgers Football on Facebook.