Class 3A PIAA Team Wrestling Championships: Waynesburg, Connellsville move on

By: Paul Schofield
Thursday, February 10, 2022 | 11:06 PM

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First round

Connellsville 67, La Salle College 6

106: Edward Donovan (L) p. Trent Huffman, 1:04.

113: Evan Petrovich (C) p. Jackson Hersh, 1:19.

120: Jacob Layton (C) t.f. Connor Kwok, 15-0(3:05).

126: Gabriel Ruggieri (C) p. Aidan Buchanan, 2:23.

132: Chad Ozias (C) p. Noah Ruiba, 1:09.

138: Lonzy Vielma (C) p. Matthew Wiley, 3:00.

145: Chad Jesko (C) d. Brendan Purvis, 4-0.

152: Ethan Ansell (C) t.f. Cormac Morrissey, 19-4 (4:27).

160: Zachary Bigam (C) p. Robert Reilly, :33.

172: Jared Keslar (C) p. Josh Fayette, :45.

189: George Shultz (C) p. Dylan Clair, :39.

*215: Dennis Nichelson (C) p. Tim Petrilli, 2:38.

285: Tyler Gallis (C) p. Andrew Brennan, 2:33.

The difference: Connellsville was just too powerful for the District 12 champion. The Falcons won 12 of the 13 matches, including nine by pins.

Key win: Connellsville coach Bill Swink felt Chad Jesko, Lonzy Vielma and Evan Petrovich had solid wins. Jesko defeated Brendan Purvis, 4-0, at 145. Vielma and Petrovich got pins.

Strong start: The Falcons began the match with two quick pins by Dennis Nichelson (215) and Tyler Gallis (285).

Quote: “We came out strong, we wrestled well, and it was a good way to start. I felt if we wrestled well, that would be the outcome. It will get a lot tougher Friday, but it was a good warmup for us,” Connellsville coach Bill Swink said.

Up next: Connellsville faces Bethlehem Catholic in the quarterfinals at noon Friday.

Bethlehem Catholic 51, Canon-McMillan 12

106: Nathan Desmond (BC) p. Tanner Mizenko, 3:10.

113: Cole Campbell (BC) p. Brandon Dami, 1:38.

120: Jacob Houpt (CM) d. Charlie Pavis, 5-2.

126: Dante Frinzi (BC) d. Andrew Binni, 6-3.

132: Kollin Rath (BC) p. Mikhail Krenzelas, 2:52.

138: Tyler Kasak (BC) p. Colton Sean, :55.

145: Charlie Scanlan (BC) d. Tyler Soule, 7-1.

152: Jake Dailey (BC) t.f. Landen Simms, 16-0 (5:16).

160: Trey Miletics (BC) m.d. Ashton Slavick, 14-5.

172: Matthew Furman (CM) p. Dario Cruz, 5:48.

189: James Deluise (BC) p. Nicholas Hardy, 4:31.

*215: Geno Calgaro (MC) d. Nico Spezza, 4-2.

285: Elijah Thompson (BC) p. Mason Williams, :59.

The difference: Bethlehem Catholic, which is favored to win the tournament, flexed its muscle and overpowered Canon-McMillan. The Golden Hawks recorded six pins.

Key wins: After Canon-McMillan grabbed a 3-0 lead, Bethlehem Catholic took control with consecutive pins by Elijah Williams (285), Nathan Desmond (106) and Nate Campbell (113).

Big Mac wins: Canon-McMillan got a pin from Matthew Furman (172) and wins by Jacob Houpt (120) and Geno Calgaro (215).

Quote: “We were down two starters, and that put a lot of pressure on the guys. Bethlehem Catholic is very tough until 145. If we would have had Broxon Dean and Gabe Stafford, we could have won some of those matches at the top and maybe we wrestle a little different,” Canon-McMillan coach Brian Krenzelak said.

Up next: Canon-McMillan faces La Salle College in the first round of consolations at 10 a.m. Friday.

Waynesburg 45, Dallastown 21

106: Aiden Karlie (D) p. Jake Thomas, 1:59.

113: Ky Szewczyk (W) won by forfeit.

120: Damian Key (D) p. Xavier Harman, 5:23.

126: Zander Phaturos (W) d. Zach Luckenbaugh, 1-0.

132: Mac Church (W) t.f. Anthony Carulli, 15-0 (5:19).

138: Colton Stoneking (W) m.d. Owen Bricker, 14-6.

145: Nate Jones (W) p. Evan Baldwin,2:49.

152: Caden Dobbins (D) p. Jake Stephenson. 1:28.

160: Ashton Deller (D) d. Nate Kirby, 6-1.

172: Rocco Welsh (W) p. Isaiah Feeney, 1:51.

189: Brody Evans (W) d. Michael Klinger, 6-4.

*215: Eli Makel (W) p. Ben Usow, :46.

285: Noah Tustin (W) p. Hunter Bisking, 1:27.

The difference: Waynesburg, the reigning PIAA champion, won nine of the 13 bouts and cruised to an easy victory. It didn’t hurt that Eli Makel (215) and Noah Tustin (285) started the match with consecutive pins,

Key win: Waynesburg senior Zander Phaturos used an escape in the second period for a hard-fought 1-0 win against Zach Luckenbaugh. It started the Raiders on a four-match winning streak.

Quote: “Mac (Church) is very important to us. He had a cramp in his leg and he fought through it. He’s a leader in the room. He’ll be OK,” Waynesburg coach Kyle Szewczyk said.

Up next: Waynesburg faces Mifflin County in the quarterfinals at noon Friday.

Paul Schofield is a TribLive reporter covering high school and college sports and local golf. He joined the Trib in 1995 after spending 15 years at the Daily Courier in Connellsville, where he served as sports editor for 14 years. He can be reached at pschofield@triblive.com.

Tags: Canon-McMillan, Connellsville, Latrobe, Waynesburg