Trib HSSN Wrestler of the Week: Burrell’s Cooper Hornack

By: Greg Macafee
Tuesday, January 12, 2021 | 11:27 AM

During the North Allegheny Wright Automotive Invitational this weekend, the No. 1 or No. 2 seeded wrestler won 11 of the 13 weight classes. That allowed Burrell freshman Cooper Hornack to stand out in his first varsity competition.

The 113-pounder was given the No. 4 seed and worked his way through the bracket before capturing the title to kick off his high school career. He earned his first victory by pinning Fort LeBoeuf’s Jacob Bennett in 46 seconds. In the second round, Hornack earned a 5-1 decision over No. 1 seed Justin O’Neill from Hickory.

Hornack capped off his weekend by pinning No. 2 seed Gabe Galioto from Thomas Jefferson in 2:40. He had built up a 4-0 lead before recording his pin in the second period.

Honorable mention

AJ Corrado, Burrell: The 2019 152-pound WPIAL champion and PIAA runner-up is picking up right where he left off as he took home the 160-pound weight class at the North Allegheny Wright Automotive Invitational. As the top seed, he earned a first-round bye and then defeated Thomas Jefferson’s Terry Newbegin with a pin in 1:24. He then pinned Southmoreland’s Josh Thoma in 3:15 to advance to the championship. He earned a 2-1 overtime decision over North Allegheny’s Collin McCorkle in the finals.

Brian Finnerty, Thomas Jefferson: The 172-pounder made it look easy Saturday at the North Allegheny Wright Automotive Invitational. He pinned Fox Chapel’s Victor River in 1:17, then earned a 17-2 technical fall victory over North Allegheny’s Travis Stipetich. He beat Timmy Church from Fort LeBoeuf in the championship match with a 15-0 technical fall.

Briar Priest, Hempfield: Bumping up three weight classes from where he finished last year, Priest took home the 132-pound weight class at the North Allegheny Wright Automotive Invitational. He earned his first win with a 52-second pin against Burrell’s Tristone Miller and then pinned Hickory’s Cody Miller in 2:25 to advance to the title match. He finished off his tournament with a third pin, taking down Burrell’s Nick Salerno in 3:32.

Chanz Shearer, Seneca Valley: The 145-pounder started his season with two wins at the Reynolds Duals on Saturday. He earned an 11-2 major decision over Saegertown’s Jaden Reagle, then recorded the quickest pin of the duals by pinning Reynolds’ Alex Ischo in 20 seconds.

Greg Macafee is a Tribune-Review staff writer. You can contact Greg by email at gmacafee@triblive.com or via Twitter .

Tags: Burrell, Hempfield, Seneca Valley, Thomas Jefferson