Latrobe’s Kilkeary rolls into Powerade finals

By: Paul Schofield
Saturday, January 30, 2021 | 6:41 PM

Latrobe freshman Vinny Kilkeary is looking for his first Powerade Tournament title, and he reached the finals Saturday night with two impressive wins in the morning and afternoon session.

Kilkeary defeated Kiski Area’s Antonio Giordano, 7-2, in the quarterfinals and routed Hickey’s Justin O’Neill, 16-0, in the semifinals.

He will face Waynesburg freshman Joe Simon in the 113-pound final.

“Vinny took it to another level in the semifinals,” Latrobe coach Mark Mears said. “It was impressive to see.”

Waynesburg and Malvern Prep advanced five each to the finals, Seneca Valley four and La Salle, Ohio, three.

The finalists from Waynesburg are Mac Church (120), Cole Homet (138), Wyatt Henson (145) and Rocco Welsh (152). Seneca Valley’s finalists are Tyler Chappell (106), Dylan Chappell (132), Chanz Shearer (145) and Alejandro Herrera-Rondon.

Other WPIAL wrestlers in the finals are Frazier freshman Rune Lawrence (172), Mt. Pleasant junior Dayton Pitzer (215), Hempfield senior heavyweight Isaiah Vance and South Park senior Joey Fischer (126).

Lawrence has been impressive with three pins and a 5-2 quarterfinal win against Kiski Area senior Sammy Starr.

Pitzer also has looked strong during the two days. He, too, has three pins and a 6-1 semifinal win against Montoursville senior Dylan Bennett.

Heading into the finals, Malvern Prep led in the team standings with 230.5 points. Waynesburg had 207.5 and Seneca Valley 168.5 points.

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: Hempfield, Latrobe, Seneca Valley, Waynesburg