Recovered from neck injury, Plum’s Antonino Walker ready to make run at postseason medals

By: Michael Love
Saturday, February 11, 2023 | 11:01 AM

Plum junior Antonino Walker won 11 of his first 12 wrestling matches this season and hoped to add to it when the Mustangs competed at Saturday’s Pine-Richland Duals.

He made it to the 172-pound championship match at the Allegheny County Tournament on Jan. 28 at Fox Chapel before coming up one point short of gold.

Momentum is on the side of the third-year varsity performer who compiled 48 victories against just 12 defeats over his first two seasons and was a state qualifier as a freshman.

But his status in the sport was thrown into flux this past summer when a neck injury suffered in a match at a club tournament with Young Guns in Chicago forced him off the mat for several months of recovery.

“I got thrown, and I tried to bridge through it,” Walker said. “I fractured the C7 and C3 (vertebrae) in my neck and broke two blood vessels. I landed, and I went out for a second and couldn’t move. That was pretty scary.”

After several hours, he started regaining movement in his legs and received additional treatment.

“I was told if my spine was narrow, that I wouldn’t have been able to wrestle again,” Walker said.

“It was close, but I got lucky.”

Walker was fitted for neck braces which he wore for a couple of months.

“The way I recovered, they said, I recovered nicely, so I really didn’t have to go to rehab,” he said.

“The recovery was just sitting and relaxing in my neck brace and being smart about things.”

Walker said the wait and time away from the wrestling mat, practice and competition was tough, but he knew that patience would pay off.

“It was hard to see my teammates out there wrestling and having fun while I was just sitting on the sidelines. I really wanted to be out there, too,” Walker said.

“But they had my back, and that felt great. I just wanted to do whatever I could to be there for them and help them with their matches and get them ready to wrestle.”

Walker was cleared to get back to action in early January, and he made his season debut Jan. 11 in a section dual match with Shaler. He pinned Luke Jones in 2:28 to help Plum roll past the Titans, 54-15.

A week later, Walker edged Kiski Area’s Mark Gray, 6-5, as the Mustangs topped the Cavaliers, 47-20.

Plum went on to finish the section undefeated at 5-0.

“It was a matter of just getting back into shape and being ready to compete,” Walker said. “I couldn’t wait. It was just a great feeling. I wrestled well, but I knew I had to get my cardio back. I was just so happy to be back on the mat. ”

Walker’s focus then turned to the county tournament. He won five matches — three pins and two decisions — from the 172 prelims to the semifinals, and the run set up a championship encounter with Carlynton’s Chase Brandebura.

Walker led 3-2 in the third period before Brandebura used a late reversal to score the win. Brandebura was No. 2 at 160 with a 26-4 record in the Trib HSSN WPIAL Class 2A rankings released Feb. 7.

“I was so close,” said Walker, third in the Class 3A rankings at 172. “Again, with my cardio, I made a dumb mistake at the end. Instead of riding, I went for the pin, and he got me.

“But for the first tournament back, I was happy with how I did. I wrestled good every match. I was excited to be able to help us win the team title.”

With freshman Owen Campbell (107) and junior Rylen Campbell (114) leading the way with first-place finishes, Plum captured the team title with 230.5 points and outdistanced runner-up Pine-Richland (207).

Mustangs coach Mike Supak said it is great having Walker back healthy and doing what he loves to do.

“He is such a tough kid who dedicates so much time with hard work,” Supak said.

“A big thing is his mentality. He lets nothing stand in his way. He’s always pushing forward, always thriving to improve. He’ll leave here and go to another practice (Young Guns). That is just what he does. When he came back and stepped on the mat, everyone was uplifted. He brings a ton of energy and is a great example for his teammates.”

Walker said he is excited for what the next couple of weeks could bring. The Mustangs, who advanced to the WPIAL Class 3A team quarterfinals with a win over North Allegheny (33-22) on Feb. 1, begin individual championship action Feb. 25 at the Section North tournament at North Allegheny.

In Plum’s quarterfinal loss to eventual runner-up Waynesburg, Walker scored a 10-7 decision win over Raiders freshman Roan Tustin who was 19-4 through his match in the WPIAL team finals.

“I am really motivated and ready to wrestle,” Walker said. “I can’t wait to see what I can do.”

Michael Love is a TribLive reporter covering sports in the Alle-Kiski Valley and the eastern suburbs of Pittsburgh. A Clearfield native and a graduate of Westminster (Pa.), he joined the Trib in 2002 after spending five years at the Clearfield Progress. He can be reached at mlove@triblive.com.

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