WRESTLING: Resilient Owen J. rallies to stay alive at PIAA duals

Owen J. Roberts' Dominick Petrucelli, top, tries to turn Franklin Regional's Dom Giannangeli during their bout at 132 in the quarterfinals of the PIAA Class AAA Team Duals Tournament Friday at Giant Center in Hershey. Petrucelli won 8-5 in the final bout of the match but it wasn't enough as OJR fell 29-28. (Photo by Nate Heckenberger)

By Don Seeley
dseeley@pottsmerc.com

HERSHEY — Owen J. Roberts has sure gotten its share of applause and praise this winter. All well-earned, of course, after winning another Pioneer Athletic Conference championship and another district team duals title.

But Friday night, the team may have picked up some additional props for its resiliency.

Losing for the first time in a long, long season is one thing, Bouncing back from that first setback within a few hours is another. And having to do it in the PIAA-Class Team Duals – where too often just a move or two defines who’s better than who, and no one, absolutely no one rolls over – presents quite a challenge.

But the Wildcats proved they were up for it here at the Giant Center, recovering from a disheartening 29-28 loss to Franklin Regional in the afternoon with an equally thrilling but considerably more satisfying 34-28 win over DuBois in the evening.

“Losses don’t come any tougher than they did for us (against Franklin Regional),” head coach Steve DeRafelo said after the grueling day. “To wrestle that well, to go toe-to-toe, to get that close... Yes, I was concerned when we came back (against DuBois).” 

( To read the complete story, click here )

WRESTLING: 'Overachieving' Upper Perk's luck runs out at PIAA duals

Upper Perkiomen's Dante Steffenino takes down Delaware Valley's Patrick Testino
at 120 en route to a technical fall Friday night during their consolation match
at the PIAA Class AAA Team Duals Tournament in Hershey.
(Photo by Nate Heckenberger)

By Nate Heckenberger

Special to The Mercury

HERSHEY — Upper Perkiomen coach Tom Hontz characterized his team as overachieving, but as Thursday meshed into Friday and “decent draws” dissolved, the Indians’ run came to an end.

Pitted against a pair of teams who will still be wrestling today, Upper Perk couldn’t match the depth of District 11 champion Easton or District 2 champ Delaware Valley.

After reaching the quarterfinals as the No. 4 team from District 1, Upper Perk fell to Easton, 50-12, in the quarterfinals, and Del Val, 41-17, in the second round of consolations in the Class AAA PIAA Duals at the Giant Center in Hershey, Friday.

“We’re an overachieving bunch,” said Hontz. “We had some tough competition and didn’t win the coin tosses to be able to create all the matchups, and we didn’t get that. Not that it would have made a difference today against some of the upper echelon, top teams in the state. I’m proud of the way we competed.” 

( To read the complete story, click here )

WRESTLING: District duals provided a lot of drama

By Don Seeley
dseeley@pottsmerc.com

FORT WASHINGTON — Unless you’re a fan of wrestling, or at least understand a little bit about the sport, you wouldn’t have been able to appreciate just how good last weekend’s District 1-Class AAA Team Duals were.
Sadly, a whole lot of fans (including many of the high-and-mighty, nameless website critics) weren’t around. The support simply wasn’t there … much like it hasn’t been nearly everywhere this season.
Maybe it was because of the wonderful winter weather we were enjoying, perhaps it was too long of a drive to Upper Dublin High School. Or maybe, just maybe, getting live updates and recaps on Twitter and Facebook (or from someone texting his or her army of friends) was good enough.
But it really wasn’t.
Unfortunately, those who opted not to be there missed what is so great about the sport … the unpredictability, and the excitement as well as drama it so often creates. You get that live, not electronically. And Memorex sure as heck can’t duplicate it, either.
The Pioneer Athletic Conference, unquestionably at its collective best in its 27-year history of wrestling, accounted for a quarter of the original 24 teams in the tournament and half of the eight teams who took center stage Friday night. Three were still around for the curtain call Saturday afternoon.
That alone was impressive.
And all three sure had a lot to do with most of that unpredictability.
Starting with the quarterfinals — Boyertown avenged a 36-33 loss to Upper Perkiomen earlier in the season with a 40-24 romp, and Spring-Ford lost on criteria to Council Rock South.
Next up, the consolations — Upper Perkiomen barely got by Downingtown West (38-30, compared to an earlier-in-the-season 38-28 win), then put a no-doubt-about-it hurtin’ on Council Rock South (42-21). Interesting, considering Upper Perkiomen couldn’t match up earlier this season against Spring-Ford but sure did against the team that beat Spring-Ford just 24 hours earlier. And speaking of Spring-Ford, the Rams regrouped to humble Pennsbury, but then lost by a jaw-dropping 35 points to Boyertown, the same team they beat by four points three days earlier.
Then the consolation final. Yet another Boyertown-Upper Perkiomen go-round.
Remember now, Upper Perkiomen won by three back in early January, and Boyertown won by 16 on Friday night. The third time was indeed the charm – for the fans, that is — as the Bears came up with one big individual upset and held on for a 35-31 win.
That sure was enough excitement and drama for a couple of days.
But Owen J. Roberts, which provided little of either in Friday night romps over Downingtown West and Boyertown, finally managed to contribute a lot of both in Saturday afternoon’s championship final with its 32-24 thriller over Downingtown East.
Yes, as they say, wrestling is all about match-ups. How often have we heard that if Team A beats Team B, and Team B beats Team C, it doesn’t necessarily mean Team A beats Team C.
But last weekend’s district team duals was also about countless wrestlers stepping up to countless challenges, countering the often boring predictability (or defying the odds), creating a lot of excitement, and providing a whole heck of a lot of suspense, or drama.
And for those in the stands, regardless of who they were hooting and hollering for, were fortunate to witness it all.
*
Quote of the Week came from Boyertown head coach Pete Ventresca, whose Bears wrestled all four of their weekend matches against rivals Owen J. Roberts, Spring-Ford and Upper Perkiomen (twice): “I don’t want to see anyone from the PAC-10 the rest of the season,” Ventresca said before breaking into a laugh. … Not so quick, though, because the Bears have Pope John Paul II this Wednesday, then get together with everyone for one day — Saturday, Feb. 16 – for the inaugural PAC-10 Championships (in the Boyertown gym, no less).
*
Owen J. Roberts, which extended its PAC-10 winning streak to 34 in a row with the win over Pottstown last Wednesday, will attempt to make it 35 straight and pin down its third consecutive unbeaten title run this Wednesday at home against Phoenixville. … The two-time district duals champions — who also own a 39-match winning streak against District 1 opponents — head out to Hershey on Thursday for the Class AAA state duals. The unbeaten Wildcats (17-0) open against District 2 champion Delaware Valley (16-2) at 6 p.m. in the Giant Center.
*
Don Seeley is the sports editor of The Mercury. His wrestling column appears Tuesdays through the PIAA championships. He can be reached at dseeley@pottsmerc.com.

WRESTLING NOTEBOOK: Seislove will get milestone win next year

By Don Seeley
dseeley@pottsmerc.com

FORT WASHINGTON — Tim Seislove did rather well in math (and all of his other courses of study) as a student at Spring-Ford and Ursinus College. He was just never into statistics, and nothing has changed since, either.
So after two somewhat surprising setbacks at last weekend’s District 1-Class AAA Team Duals denied Spring-Ford’s head coach the opportunity to pin down his 200th career, it wasn’t all that surprising to know the person who cared the least was Seislove himself.
“I could care less about that stuff,” said Seislove, obviously disappointed by the losses to Council Rock South and Boyertown far more than any personal milestone.
Now in his 14th year at Spring-Ford and 18th overall as a head coach, Seislove is determined to re-energize the Rams for Wednesday night’s Pioneer Athletic Conference finale against Methacton.
Defeating the visiting Warriors would be win No. 199 for him. And if it’s any consolation for Seislove — which, rest assured, it isn’t — a win would clinch sole possession of second place for the third straight year. It would also mean he’s guided the Rams to a 24-3 mark in that stretch, with three-time champion Owen J. Roberts dealing them each and every one of those three losses.
And it would also mean Seislove will, without a doubt, get that coveted 200th victory when the PAC-10 schedule unfolds next season.

PAC-10 NOTES
Win, lose or draw Wednesday night, Spring-Ford has already clinched its 27th consecutive winning season in the Pioneer Athletic Conference. In other words, no Rams team has finished under the .500 mark in year-end league standings. Spring-Ford’s only “close” runs at that mediocre mark were 4-3 in the first year (1986-87) of the PAC, and 5-4 four years ago. … Spring-Ford is also the only program with over 200 league wins — now at 201 — while Upper Perkiomen is second with 160 going into Wednesday’s final at Pottsgrove and Owen J. Roberts is third with 132 going into its finale with Phoenixville. … Spring-Ford’s 10 league titles (seven outright, three shared) and Upper Perkiomen’s nine (eight outright, one shared) are far away more than anyone else. … The only PAC-10 coaches with more than 100 league wins are Upper Perkiomen’s Tom Hontz (145), Seislove (110) and former Spring-Ford coach Pat Nugent (104), and Great Valley’s Joe Tornetta (101).

DUALS NOTES
The Pioneer Athletic Conference’s six teams in this year’s District 1-Class AAA Team Duals went a combined 15-7, boosting the league’s overall mark in the event to a respectable 110-82 (100-69 in AAA; 10-13 in AA). … Upper Perkiomen (35), Boyertown (23), Spring-Ford (18) and Owen J. Roberts (14) own the most wins. … Going into Monday night’s state duals’ opening round, the PAC-10 was 16-22 overall (16-16 in AAA and 0-6 in AA), with only Upper Perkiomen (11) owning more than three victories and a winning percentage (.647) among the group.

BROTHERLY LOVE
Brothers Johnny Cherneskie, a post-grad at The Hill School, and Kirk Cherneskie, a junior at Pope John Paul II, are both down at 182 pounds … and both own identical 18-4 records going into this week.

FINAL ROUND
The PAC-10 finishes up its season with five duals Wednesday night and the Pottsgrove at Pope John Paul II match Friday night. … There could be a lot of excitement when Pottstown visits Perkiomen Valley, which PV won a year ago on criteria. Sixteen of the 28 wrestlers who participated in that one are back in their respective lineups for this week. … Methacton’s visit to Spring-Ford “could” provide a few interesting individual matchups — at 132 between the Warriors’ Joe Staley and Spring-Ford’s Adam Dombrosky; at 170 between Devin Bradley and Tyler McGuigan; at 195 or 220 between Mike Baccaro and Mason Romano; and at 285 with Tracey Green and Josh Boyer.

MOVING UP
Upper Perkiomen’s Wolfgang McStravick (140) in now 17th on The Mercury’s career win chart and needs nine more to move into the Top 10, where he’d tie Boyertown graduate Matt Malfaro (149). … OJR’s Gordon Bolig (112) is tied for sixth with Scott Syrek on OJR’s school chart . … The only other active wrestlers with 100 or more wins are Upper Perkiomen’s Dylan Steffenino (108), Spring-Ford’s Sean Hennessey (104) and OJR’s Adam Moser (103). … Two others — Upper Perkiomen’s Dante Steffenino (93) and OJR’s Kyle Shronk (87), both seniors — are mathematically within reach of the milestone, too.

WRESTLING: Mercury Week 10 Rankings

(Records through Sunday, Feb. 3)

Team Rankings
1. Owen J. Roberts (17-0) … defends duals title
2. Boyertown (17-7) … third at district duals
3. Upper Perkiomen (17-7) … fourth at district duals
4. Spring-Ford (19-4) … quick exit from duals
5. Methacton (15-6) … two decisive wins

* * *

Individual Rankings
106
1. Dustin Steffenino, Upper Perkiomen (29-5)
2. Aston White, Owen J. Roberts (19-11)
3. Lucas Miller, Boyertown (31-6)
HM: Logan Pennypacker, Pottstown (24-5); Owen Powell, Daniel Boone (25-10); Garrett Serwatka, Phoenixville (20-8).

113
1. Derek Gulotta, Owen J. Roberts (24-5)
2. Ryan Hayes, Spring-Ford (24-6)
3. Eric Miller, Upper Perkiomen (16-11)
HM: Garrett Mauger, Boyertown (18-14).

120
1. Dante Steffenino, Upper Perkiomen (32-3)
2. Matt Kriebel, Spring-Ford (17-8)
3. Mason Pennypacker, Pottstown (18-11)
HM: Austin Mortimer, West-Mont Christian (15-2); Eric Straup, Methacton (19-11).

126
1. Sean Hennessey, Spring-Ford (27-3)
2. Colby Frank, Owen J. Roberts (15-3)
3. Eddie Kriczky, Boyertown (27-7)
HM: Zach Coffey, WM (13-1); Dylan Steffenino, Upper Perkiomen (6-5); Bryant Wise, Pottstown (28-2).

132
1. Wolfgang McStravick, Upper Perkiomen (30-3)
2. Chad Saunders, Hill School (27-4)
3. Joe Staley, Methacton (27-2)
HM: Nico Demetrio, Pottsgrove (18-6); Adam Dombrosky, Spring-Ford (22-9); Dominic Petrucelli, Owen J. Roberts (23-9).

138
1. Demetri D’Orsaneo, Owen J. Roberts (21-9)
2. Patrick Bohn, Pottstown (22-6)
3. Tyler Richard, Daniel Boone (19-8)

145
1. Adam Moser, Owen J. Roberts (26-6)
2. Nick Flanigan, Hill School (29-6)
3. Kyle Fellman, Upper Perkiomen (26-7)
HM: Jasheel Brown, Pottstown (27-3); Christian Fernandez, Daniel Boone (25-11).

152
1. Nick Giangiulio, Perkiomen Valley (25-1)
1. Kyle Shronk, Owen J. Roberts (20-3)
3. Gregg Harvey, Boyertown (20-10)
HM: Jordan LaHaise, Daniel Boone (25-8).

160
1. Darien Hain, Pottstown (26-2)
2. Cody Richmond, Boyertown (25-11)
3. Paul Russo, Methacton (15-8)
HM: Jonathan Cooper, Spring-Ford (17-11); Nick Limone, Daniel Boone (22-12).

170
1. Tyler McGuigan, Spring-Ford (23-5)
2. Devin Bradley, Methacton (25-6)
3. Gray Garber, Boyertown (17-9)
HM: Tyler Rogers, Owen J. Roberts (18-12); Sebastian Shiffler, Pottstown (15-6).

182
1. Gordon Bolig, Owen J. Roberts (32-4)
2. Casey Cook, Upper Perkiomen (21-6)
3. Alec Della Donna, Perkiomen Valley (21-9)
HM: Johnny Cherneskie, Hill (18-4); Kirk Cherneskie, PJP (18-4).

195
1. Mike Baccaro, Methacton (25-3)
2. Jordan Wertz, Boyertown (26-9)
3. Jordan Valenteen, Phoenixville (21-4)
HM: John Hill, Hill School (20-12).

220
1. Jordan Wood, Boyertown (32-1)
2. Pat Finn, Pottsgrove (20-2)
3. Mason Romano, Spring-Ford (23-7)
HM: Tahar Ferradji, Methacton (17-5); Josh Slody, Pottstown (17-7).

285
1. Tracey Green, Methacton (25-3)
2. Brad Trego, Owen J. Roberts (19-11)
3. Luke DiElsi, Perkiomen Valley (22-8)
HM: Josh Boyer, Spring-Ford (20-8); Kostya Golobokov, Hill (23-9).

STATE DUALS WRESTLING: Upper Perk advances; Boyertown falls

By Don Seeley
dseeley@pottsmerc.com

CHAMBERSBURG — Apparently Upper Perkiomen doesn’t mind just a half-hour to change, warm-up and wrestle.
Because of an late-afternoon accident on Interstate 81 that delayed the Indians arrival for Monday night’s PIAA-Class AAA Team Duals opener, that’s all the time the Indians had to fire up the competitive juices for host Chambersburg.
And after a convincing 38-25 win over the favored Trojans, no one was complaining.
“We were absolutely concerned about getting there late,” said Upper Perkiomen head coach Tom Hontz. “We were in that bus for four hours. But sometimes a little adversity makes the guys step up. I do know they were chomping at the bit.”
That was obvious at the outset, when Dan Jordan started it off with a pin in the 132-pound opener. Wolfgang McStravick followed with a pin at 138, Kyle Fellman added a 13-5 major at 145, and unsung Chris Kramer needed 5:20 to get the slap at 152 and the Indians had a 19-0 lead.
“Chris Kramer has been a (junior varsity) all year,” Hontz noted. “But we plugged him in there recently and he keeps stepping up for us.”
Chambersburg’s defending state champion Garrett Hammond would end the Indians’ flurry with a pin at 160 and Calvin O’Farrell used a takedown with 20 seconds left to eke out a decision at 170, getting the Trojans back in contention at 19-9.
The teams would halve the ensuing four bouts — the Indians getting a pin from Casey Cook (182) and decision from Tyler Godshall (220), with the Trojans getting a technical fall from Dontez King (195) and decision from Cameron Kiger (285) — which still enabled Upper Perkiomen to hold a 28-17 advantage going into the final four bouts.
“Cook going down (to 182) helped a lot, and Godshall is another senior who’s only been wrestling for four years but just battles and battles,” Hontz said. “At that point, though, I felt good knowing we had the Steffeninos to go in three of those final matches.”
At 106, Dustin Steffenino did his job with a second-period pin, and at 113 Eric Miller limited returning state medalist Tanner Shoap to a technical fall. That meant Chambersburg — the District 3 runner-up to state power Central Dauphin — needed two pins in the final two bouts to create a tie and look for positive tie-breaking criteria.
It never happened.
Dante Steffenino dominated his 120-pound encounter with Garrett Kyner, taking a 10-2 major to put it out of reach and drop Chambersburg to 17-5.
“It did feel good knowing we had the three Steffeninos to go with just those four matches left,” Hontz said. “Dustin’s pin was big. Miller had a tough one against a real good kid (Shoap). But Dante really set the tone and actually lit his kid up.”
So Upper Perkiomen (18-7 overall) didn’t mind the long bus ride home, and they were actually looking forward to the long bus ride Thursday out to Hershey for the remainder of the state duals tournament.
The Indians take on District 12 champion La Salle College High School at approximately 8 p.m. Thursday in a second-round showdown at the Giant Center.
“We just keep plugging along,” Hontz said. “We’re getting some breaks and making some things happen. It’s been a lot of fun so far.”

Spring Grove 37, Boyertown 24
Boyertown dropped seven of the first eight bouts before rallying back to within seven points, but it wasn’t quite enough as host Spring Grove took three of the remaining four bouts to capture the PIAA-Class AAA Team Duals opener.
The Bears, who finished third in last weekend’s district tournament, used Jordan Wertz (220) and Jordan Wood (285) pins and a decision by Lucas Miller (106) to sneak back to within 25-18. But Spring Grove, third in last weekend’s District 3 tournament, clinched it moments later when Zack Clingan — ranked second in the district — posted a 10-1 major.
“We had our opportunities, but we didn’t take advantage of them,” said Boyertown head coach Pete Ventresca. “We were right there, but just didn’t get the win.
‘We’re pleased the guys went out and fought well, though. (Spring Grove) has a lot of tough kids in certain weights, and they kind of put it on us in the first few matches.”
The Rockets (24-1), who fell to state power Central Dauphin for its only loss this season by a narrow 33-27 margin in their district semifinals, got off to a solid start with a major and pin. Boyertown’s Gregg Harvey halted the run with an 8-7 decision at 152, but the Rockets soared right back with four straight wins — an overtime decision, pin and two close 8-5 and 9-8 decisions.
Wertz needed just 43 seconds and Wood another 1:25 for their respective falls, and Miller recorded a 2-0 shutout. But after that the Bears’ only remaining points came from Eddie Kriczky’s pin at 126.
“A lot of those close matches could’ve gone either way,” Ventresca said. “We had our chances, but... and that’s on us.
“We obviously wanted to get out to Hershey (into the second round beginning Thursday), so the kids are disappointed. But we’re proud of them. This was a good start for our future. We only losing two seniors, and we have a good group of ninth- and 10th-graders coming up next year. Hopefully this will give them some motivation.”
Boyertown, now 17-8 overall, closes out its regular season Wednesday night at Pottsgrove.

Wrestlng: State Duals matchups

Compiled by Don Seeley


PIAA Team Duals
Class AAA
Monday, Feb. 4
First Round
(District - Place in parenthesis)
Taylor Allerdice (8-1) vs. North Allegheny (7-3) at Carrick High School, 6 p.m.
Wilson (3-4) vs. Parkland (11-2) at Whitehall, 7:30 p.m.
Upper Perkiomen (1-4) at Chambersburg, 7 p.m.
Boyertown (1-3) at Spring Grove (3-3), 7 p.m.
---
Thursday, Feb. 7
At Giant Arena, Hershey
Second Round
Central Dauphin (3-1) vs. Taylor Allerdice-North Allegheny Winner, 6 p.m.
Mifflin County (6-1) vs. Wilson-Parkland Winner, 6 p.m.
Jersey Shore (4-1) vs. Franklin Regional, 6 p.m.
Owen J. Roberts (1-1) vs. Delaware Valley (2-1), 6 p.m.
Easton (11-1) vs. DuBois (9-1), 8 p.m.
La Salle (12-1) vs. Upper Perkiomen-Chambersburg Winner, 8 p.m.
Erie McDowell (10-1) vs. Downingtown East (1-2), 8 p.m.
Canon McMillan (7-1) vs. Boyertown-Spring Grove Winner, 8 p.m.
---
Friday, Feb. 8
Consolations
First Round, 10 a.m.
Second Round, 6 p.m.
Championship Rounds


Quarterfinals, 2 p.m.
Semifinals, 8 p.m.
---
Saturday, Feb. 9
Consolations
Semifinals, 11 a.m.
Third-Place Final, 1 p.m.
Championship Round
Final, 1 p.m.

Wrestling: Senior Day a special day for Methacton

By Barry Sankey
bsankey@journalregister.com

FAIRVIEW VILLAGE — Host Methacton capitalized on five falls, two forfeits and two decisions to help celebrate Senior Day with a 48-16 Pioneer Athletic Conference wrestling victory over Phoenixville Saturday afternoon.
Eric Straup (120), Paul Russo (160), Devin Bradley (170), Tahar Ferradji (220) and Tracey Green (285) recorded falls for the Warriors (5-3, 15-6 overall), who will close out their PAC-10 regular season schedule Wednesday night against Spring-Ford.
Joe Staley (132) and Jack Ryan (152) added decisions for Methacton, while Stephen Stajnrajh (182) and Mike Baccaro (195) accepted forfeits as the Warriors won nine of the 13 bouts contested. There was a double forfeit at 113 pounds.
Methacton honored its three senior wrestlers — Baccaro, Russo and Danny Damato (145).
“It is always nice to get a win,” said Methacton coach A.J. Maida. “I would say there were a couple matches where I think we could have had and didn’t. They were close  ones. Their (Phantom) kids did a nice job. There were some things our guys could have done, but give Phoenixville credit. They came out ready to go. Their guys at 126, 132, 138 and 145 were ready to roll.”
Mark Cermanski put Phoenixville on the scoreboard with a 5-4 decision over fellow freshman Al Ciccitto at 126. Ciccitto took a 2-0 lead after the first period and made it 4-0 with a reversal to start the second period, but Cermanski countered with an escape, takedown and two-point near fall in the second period to take the one-point lead that held up with a scoreless third period.
At 132, Staley took on Trey Romance and the bout was tied at 2-2 after one period. After a scoreless second period, Stacley scored on a reversal and three-point near fall in the third period to seal the verdict.
Phoenixville’s Damien Davido scored a 15-1 major decision over Cody Rupp at 138 pounds. Davido opened a 5-0 lead after one period and upped it to 9-1 after two and then widened the gap with a six-point third period.
Henry Hancock gave the Phantoms their lone lead of the day at 10-9 after the 145-pound encounter. Hancock copped a 6-4 decision over Damato, who scored on a first-period takedown and third-period reversal. Hancock posted reversals in the first and second periods and a takedown out of the neutral position to start the third period.
The Warriors then strung together seven consecutive victories to take control of the meet.
Phoenixville’s Garrett Serwatka capped the action with a fall at 106 in 3:39.
“There are some things we have to work on to get ready for Spring-Ford as far as finishing the match, things like that,” said Maida.
Maida said Damato and Hancock will probably meet again during the PAC-10 Championships at Boyertown on Feb. 16, where only the top five wrestlers will earn berths in the following week’s District 1 North Tournament at Spring-Ford.
Baccaro is now 25-4 with 11 falls. However, Maida said most of his league victories have been by forfeit. That will change during upcoming meets against Spring-Ford and non-league rival Wissahickon and then during the postseason.
“Michael has only had two matches in our PAC-10 schedule,” said Maida. “He has had quite a bit of forfeits. We look to our seniors for leadership on the mats, and when you don’t have that (chance to wrestle), it takes something away. But he’ll have matches against Spring-Ford and Wissahickon. Then he will have a tough road to hoe in the PAC-10. There is no doubt about that.”
Phoenixville coach Joe Youngblook was pleased with certain aspects of the meet.
“We gave up two forfeits up top and we had a guy not making weight at 113 that hurt us,” said Youngblood. “But Henry Hancock had a great match. We hope he is peaking for the postseason.
“Damien Davido wrestled well. His record does not indicate it, but he is a tough, tough kid. Romance wrestled well against Staley, and Garrett went out and did what he was supposed to do. So there were some positive things to take away from this match.”
Youngblood feels the Phantoms must do a better job of hand-fighting when they are in the bottom position. But much of that was due to Methacton’s wrestling ability and execution at the same time, he said.

Wrestling: Giangiulio, PV defeat PJP

By Dennis C. Way
dway@journalregister.com

UPPER PROVIDENCE — When Nick Giangiulio sees a good thing, he sticks with it.
That’s the Perkiomen Valley junior’s philosophy when it comes to wrestling, and it has served him well.
Last year, he was a virtual unknown with an unorthodox style who ultimately came within a controversial call and an overtime loss from earning a state tournament berth.
This season, the Vikings middleweight is the top-ranked 152-pounder in District One, with but one blemish on his record (a loss to Central Dauphin returning state qualifier Austin Rose), and with a more-than-legitimate chance of becoming PV’s first state qualifier since 2004.
Giangiulio ran his record to 24-1 Saturday morning when he won by technical fall during Perkiomen Valley’s 65-12 romp over host Pope John Paul II. And afterwards he said while his style may be branded “unorthodox,” his approach is anything but.
“I just do what I do,” he said. “If people want to call it unorthodox, and if it works and I’m successful because of it, that’s great. But it just happens to be what I do.
“I approach every year the same. I work to improve, I wrestle during the summer and I lift. I try and determine what I need to do to get better, and sometimes develop new strategies for the coming year.”
Whatever the junior worked on this past offseason was worth the effort.
And it has turned him from a promising unknown to the guy with a target stenciled on his singlet.
“Last year I managed to fly under the radar,” Giangiulio said, “and now this year I’ve been able to come up with a good record, and I’m pretty happy about that.
“I really do try and wrestle each match at 100 percent, no matter who I’m wrestling. But I have noticed this year that some teams have tried to move away from me, or that our coaches are moving me to try (and gain an advantage) on others.”
Perk Valley head coach Tim Walsh said a large part of Giangiulio’s success is his knowledge of what works for him.
“He’s difficult to wrestle, and he keeps getting after it,” Walsh said. “He’ll go after something, and he’ll keep going after it until he gets it.
“He’s a real bright kid and he knows what he needs to do. Sometimes you get a little concerned because he’ll only do two or three things, and you’d like him to try something different. But he winds up getting what he goes after. He does his thing and sticks to it.”
“I don’t know whether that’s me being stubborn or what,” Giangiulio laughed when his coach’s comments were relayed to him. “I definitely can be stubborn.”
This season, the junior’s stubborness is focused on getting to the state tournament.
In last year’s regional semifinal, he led Spring-Ford’s Jason Dombrosky, 1-0, late in the third period when he was hit with two stalling calls in the final 24 seconds of regulation, forcing overtime, then was taken down in the extra stanza, ending his season.
“That’s something that’s stuck with me,” Giangiulio admitted. “And when it comes to this year, I don’t want to sound cocky, but I’m making it to states.
“I’ve looked around to see who’s going to be my toughest competition, but really, what it comes down to is that you can’t underestimate anybody.”
“He’s focused, and I know he’s anxious to get to the postseason,” Walsh said. “But he’s also been a good team player. We’ve moved him around in our lineup all year and he’s won some big matches for us.”
He’s no longer the guy known only by reputation and a funky style. Now, all he needs is a chocolate bar and some Hershey hardware.
“If I make it to states,” Giangiulio said, “I’m not going there expecting to lose. I want to medal.”

NOTES
The Vikings used six falls and four forfeits in pulling away to the win. “I was pleased with our effort,” Walsh said. “You could see the kids working on things we’ve been working on in practice the last couple of days, and it’s always good to see them responding to what we teach.” ... Brian Stouffer (171) and Steve Van Alstine (215) were PV’s last two state qualifiers, both in the 2004 season. Van Alstine went 1-2 while Stouffer was 0-2 on the state’s biggest stage.

WRESTLING: OJR wins district duals title

By Don Seeley
dseeley@pottsmerc.com

FORT WASHINGTON — The little guys don’t often get an opportunity to throw their weight around, or what weight they have.
So, when Downingtown East crept back back to within 17 points of Owen J. Roberts and had a noticeable edge in most if not all of the five remaining bouts during Saturday afternoon’s District 1-Class AAA Team Duals final, Aston White kind of felt some additional weight fall on his shoulders ... especially when the Cougars crept even closer at 26-15 with three bouts left.
But the OJR senior nonetheless managed to carry his 106 pounds, and that hard-to-weigh pressure, when he stepped onto the mat and responded with an 11-0 clinic that put the match out of fiesty Downingtown East’s reach to help the Wildcats to a 30-24 win and, of course, their second straight duals title.
“We knew (Downingtown East) had some good guys at the top of their lineup,” White said. “After (Gordon) Bolig’s win at 195, I looked at the score (26-9) and knew it was going to be tough for us. I thought it may come down to me.”
It did.
The Cougars got back-to-back decisions at 220 and 285 from Matt Bartolotta and Sean Snodgrass to cut their deficit to that 11-point spread. White had to deal with Jude McDowell while knowing the Cougars had unbeaten Wade Cummings up next at 113 and 25-bout winner Jared Leonetti in the 120-pound finale.
“I knew if I’d win we’d win,” White said. “I don’t really like being in that position, but the pressure doesn’t bother me. I just look at it as another match, and when I go out I expect to win. And when I got that tilt in the second period I felt I had the win.”
White got the win all right, and so did the Wildcats, who remained undefeated (17-0) and takes the district’s No. 1 seed into next Thursday’s opening round of the state duals against the District 2 champion.
“We knew this was going to be close,” said Colby Frank, who got the Wildcats off to a strong start with a 60-second pin in the 126-pound opener. “Downingtown East is good, and that they matched up well with us. We got the points where we needed them, but I don’t think we expected it to be this close.”
Through the first half of the final, OJR distanced itself from Downingtown East (27-3) much like it has against opponents throughout the season.
Two bouts after Frank’s abbreviated debut, Demetrio D’Orsaneo rolled up a 15-2 major at 138; Peter Fratantoni — whose been battling the flu all week — added a 7-2 decision at 145; Adam Moser used a third-period escape and takedown to thwart highly touted Alex Wait, 3-1, at 152; and Kyle Shronk needed just 41 seconds for another pin at 160.
That created a 22-3 cushion before the Cougars countered with successive decisions at 170 and 182.
Bolig’s major curtailed the momentum, and White cut short the comeback.
“(Downingtown East) has a lot of depth,” OJR head coach Steve DeRafelo said. “It’s kind of hard to find spots in their lineup you can score on them because they’re so solid in every weight class.
“But we got some big wins from Fratantoni at 145, from Moser at 152, and from Bolig at 182. We almost got another at 285 (from Brad Trego), and we thought we’d have another at 113 that didn’t happen.”
Trego, who was giving up 67 pounds to Snodgrass, went ahead 4-3 with a takedown and had Snodgrass locked up in a cradle. But a split-second before Snodgrass went to his back he called for an injury timeout. Snodgrass outscored Trego 5-1 from that point on for the 8-5 nod. And at 113, the anticipated showdown between the unbeaten Cummings (34-0) and returning state medalist Derek Gulotta never unfolded because of Gulotta being held out of the lineup as a “precautionary measure” after suffering a head injury Friday night.
Ironically, Cummings was the only Cougar to produce bonus points among the seven wins. And because the Wildcats’ Dominick Petrucelli (132), Tyler Rogers (170), Evan Boaman (182), Nick DeAngelo (220), Trego and Alex Pupo (120) only fell by regular decisions — combined with their teammates’ two pins, two majors and two decisions — White was able to put it way.
And, of course, put the clamps on that second straight title.
“Last Wednesday’s match against Pottstown was like a wake-up call,” Frank said. “We realized how (bad) we wrestled and knew we had to step it up here. And I think, as a team, we did step it up. Everyone did.”
“I think we all kind of knew this was going to be tough today,” added D’Orsaneo. “We knew Downingtown East was good, and we kind of knew we didn’t have our full lineup with Derek (Gulotta) likely out and Pete (Fratantoni) being sick like he has. But we wanted this, wanted to keep the streak going, and it feels great going to Hershey again.”
DeRafelo sure felt great.
“This one definitely feels a little different, though,” he said. “We’ve done it before, so I think some of the guys wanted to get in here, get it done, and look ahead to next week (and the state duals).
“But I didn’t expect it to be this tight. We had difficulty opening it up, getting that big lead like we’ve gotten in blowing away some teams. We had to do some things a little different today. But don’t forget Downingtown East wrestled a good match, too.”
“Last year there was the excitement of winning it for the first time,” White added. “This year it was more about proving ourselves again. It was expected of us this year, so we still felt like we had something to prove.”

NOTES
The 24 points equaled the most scored against OJR this season. Dallas fell to the Wildcats 42-24 during the season-opening Bealer Memorial Bear Duals. The only other team to score 20 or more on OJR was Pottstown in the 42-20 loss last Wednesday night. ... The Wildcats won their first 19 matches last year before falling to Mechanicsburg in the second round of state duals and finishing up 20-2 overall.

WRESTLING: Boyertown, Upper Perkiomen head to state duals

By Dennis Weller
Special to The Mercury

FORT WASHINGTON ­— For Boyertown, this weekend’s District 1-Class AAA Team Duals at Upper Dublin High School turned out to be a series of four rematches against their toughest opponents ... all from the Pioneer Athletic Conference, all in less than 24 hours.
And the Bears did quite well as they won three out of four against teams they had lost to during the regular season — including consolation-round  victories over Spring-Ford and Upper Perkiomen on Saturday afternoon — to capture third place and earn a spot in the state duals.
Boyertown (17-7) began the day with a 44-19 elimination of Spring-Ford, a team it had lost to 28-24 just three days earlier, to clinch one of the district’s four berths in state play. Then won its second match in two days over Upper Perkiomen, 35-31.
Upper Perk (17-7), which finished 2-2 in the tournament, had clinched a state duals spot earlier in the day with a 42-21 win over Council Rock South.
“I don’t want to see any more PAC-10 teams ever,” Boyertown coach Pete Ventresca said with a laugh. “It’s insane. That’s a testimony to how tough our league is. The league (individual) tournament (in two weeks), we’ll battle it out again.”
Against Upper Perk, Eddie Kriczky started out with a win by technical fall for the Bears at 126 pounds. Then the Indians bounced back with a major decision by Dylan Steffenino, a pin by Wolfgang McStravick, and a 10-4 decision by Dan Jordan for a 13-5 advantage.
But Boyertown freshman Gregg Harvey tuned the tide with a 4-3 nod over senior standout Kyle Fellman at 152 pounds. That began a string of four straight wins that propelled the Bears into the lead, including a pin by Garrett Abare, a 5-1 win by Cody Richmond, and a 48-second fall by Gray Garber that made it 23-13.
“The key bouts were at 152 and 160,” said Upper Perk coach Tom Hontz. “We had the lead in both of those matches and ended up losing them, and getting pinned at 160. Other than that, we created the matchups we wanted and wrestled very well.”
Casey Cook got the Indians back on track with the pin, but the Bears — who had earned a 40-24 win over Upper Perk in the opening round Friday night — all but wrapped things up with a first-period pin by Jordan Wertz at 220 pounds and a forfeit win to Jordan Wood at heavyweight, then Lucas Miller officially clinched it when he held Dustin Steffenino to a 3-1 decision.
“That’s a good thing,” Ventresca said concerning his team’s two wins in two days over the Indians, who had beaten the Bears 36-33 in early January. “We definitely wanted another shot at them after the first match and our kids came out and performed. It’s always a heated rivalry. I was proud of them.”
“Definitely, it’s fun to get some revenge,” said Harvey, who went 3-1 in the tournament. “It makes us pretty happy as a team.”
Harvey thought the team’s better health was a key reason for the turnaround against the Indians and Rams.
“We had all our guys, we were pretty much healthy, and we were ready to go,” he added. “Keeping the team healthy and hard work in practice is keeping us going at full pace.”
Hontz enjoyed the tournament, despite the pair of setbacks to the Bears.
“It’s good to be part of this,” he said. “It’s disappointing to lose this last one. We just fell a little bit short. You’ve got to tip your cap to their kids.”
Upper Perk will travel to District 3 runner-up Chambersburg (17-5), a 50-6 loser to undefeated state power Central Dauphin in Saturday’s final, for a 7 p.m. match on Monday.
The Bears will open state play at the same time against Spring Grove (23-1), a 30-22 winner over Berks County champion Wilson in Saturday’s District 3 third-place match.
“We want to place,” said Harvey. “That’s our goal.”
“This year we definitely have some good young talent,” said Ventresca, who last took the Bears to the state duals in 2010, when they won the district title. “Those guys solidify our lineup. I’m excited about the next couple of years.”

NOTES
Boyertown led by just a 16-15 score after eight bouts against the Rams before Garber, Mike Fretz, Jordan Wertz, and Wood pinned the Bears into the lead. … Reuben Maldonado came up with a big win against Spring-Ford when he pinned his man at 138 pounds to wipe out the Rams’ last lead and put the Bears up, 9-6. … Against Council Rock South, Dante Steffenino and Dylan Steffenino got the Indians started with major decisions, and McStravick followed with a pin for a 14-0 advantage. Upper Perk was never challenged after that. … Garber and Wood both went 4-0 in the tournament and Harvey, Richmond and Jordan Wertz were all 3-1. … Dustin Steffenino, Dante Steffenino, McStravick, and Cook all finished 4-0 for the Indians.

WRESTLING: Rams ousted from District 1-AAA Duals

By Dennis Weller
Special to The Mercury

FORT WASHINGTON — One minute, Spring-Ford was involved in its second intense wrestling match against Boyertown in four days. The next minute, or so it seemed, the chances for another win over the Bears and a return trip to the PIAA state duals were gone.
The Rams, trailing by just a point with six bouts to go, dropped four straight by pin in the upper weights and wound up on the very short end of a 44-19 loss Saturday afternoon in their District 1-Class AAA Team Duals consolation semifinal at Upper Dublin High School ... one win short of the top-four finish needed to advance to states.
Sean Hennessey, Adam Dombrosky and Frankie Krauss took close decisions, Tyler McGuigan won by a fall, and Ryan Hayes finished up with a pin for second-seeded Spring-Ford (19-4), which had advanced to the state duals n each of the last two seasons but dropped two of three matches during this weekend’s grind.
Even before the string of pins, the Rams knew they weren’t doing as well as on Wednesday night when they swept six matches in the lighter weights for a come-from-behind 28-24 Pioneer Athletic Conference win at Boyertown.
“We knew we were in trouble,” said Spring-Ford coach Tim Seislove. “We tried to gamble there a little bit at the end. We had nothing to lose. We knew the swing matches. We won them the other night. Today, (Boyertown) won them.”
“We didn’t wrestle too well,” added the 126-pound Hennessey, who pulled off a takedown with 33 seconds left for a 2-1 decision over Eddie Kriczky in a battle featuring two 26-match winners coming into the day. “We didn’t look good. It happens.”
Dombrosky followed Hennessey with a 4-2 overtime decision for a 6-3 Ram lead. Two bouts later, the 145-pound Krauss pulled off a reversal just before the buzzer to create a tie and wound up with an 11-7 win in double overtime to tie the score at 9-9. The 170-pound McGuigan’s pin in 1:52 brought his team to within 16-15 before the Bears rattled off three consecutive falls to clinch the match and added a fourth for good measure.
“We didn’t wrestle well,” said Seislove. “Sean had a nice win. That was a good win for Sean as a senior.”
That Rams have one dual meet remaining, a PAC-10 match at home against Methacton on Wednesday.
“That’s going to be a tough one, too,” Seislove added.
After that, it will be the first-ever Pioneer Athletic Conference Tournament in two weeks to begin the individual post-season grind.
“We didn’t wrestle well, but that’s one thing to look forward to,” said Hennessey.

NOTES
Hennessey has now won two straight over Kriczky after losing their first meeting.  … The Rams finished third in districts last year, fourth the season before, but fell in the first round of states each time. … Hennessey (27-3), Krauss (18-11), and McGuigan (24-5) all went 3-0 in the tournament, with all of McGuigan’s wins coming by pins. ... Boyertown’s four straight pins came in a total time of just 10:25.

WRESTLING NOTEBOOK: Pottstown celebrating 50th anniversary

Pottstown longtime assistant coach John Armato, center, has led the organizational efforts on a 50th anniversary celebration of the Trojans wrestling program to be held Wednesday night. Head coach Brad Bechtel will lead this year’s Pottstown team against Pope John Paul II where they will go for their 20th win of the season. (Photo by Tom Kelly III)

By Don Seeley
dseeley@pottsmerc.com

POTTSTOWN — Some of Pottstown’s older fellas will meet some youngsters Wednesday night. And they aren’t just any older wrestlers, mind you, but some of the best who ever competed in the program.

Prior to their Pioneer Athletic Conference match with visiting Pope John Paul II, the Trojans will officially celebrate the 50th anniversary of their wrestling program with a get-together of alumni and coaches in the Culinary Arts room.

The irony of the entire evening is that the older folks will be treated to refreshments and beverages prepared by current members of the high school’s Culinary Arts program, then they’ll sit in on the match to watch current members of the Trojans team try to pin down their 20th win of the season, which would tie the school’s single-season record set by the 1988-89 gang — which is being recognized for its perfect 20-0 run that included PAC-10, Section Four, District 1-South and Southeast Regional titles.

Longtime assistant John Armato, who has been around “almost” as long as the program — which started in 1963 under the guidance of Lee Bohner — has been the mover and shaker behind Wednesday’s special night of events.

( To read the complete story, click here )

 

WRESTLING: Bolig's career-long point to improve pays off

Owen J. Roberts senior Gordon Bolig recorded his 100th career win last week.

By Don Seeley

dseeley@pottsmerc.com

BUCKTOWN — It didn’t take long for Gordon Bolig to learn he wasn’t quite as good as he thought he was.

On a wrestling mat, that is.
“I came in here a little cocky as a freshman,” the now Owen J. Roberts senior admitted last week. “But I wasn’t that strong, I wasn’t that physical.”

Bolig actually won his debut that season. He also lost his last two at sectionals, so he wasn’t around long for the postseason.

But the quick exit motivated him and, instead of moping or sulking over the fact he wasn’t as good as he thought he was, Bolig chose a work regimen to help him become as good as he always wanted to be.

That meant getting into the weight room, getting into a lot of tournaments, getting a little more aggressive … or, dare he say it, getting a little nastier when he stepped on the mat.

The commitment paid off.

( To read the complete story, click here )

WRESTLING: MERCURY RANKINGS

Team Rankings

1. Owen J. Roberts (10-0) … second at ETR

2. Spring-Ford (14-2) … solid win at Manheim

3. Upper Perkiomen (12-4) … has won eight in a row

4. Boyertown (12-5) … impressive 6-1 week

5. Methacton (11-4) … hosts OJR on Wednesday

* * *

Individual Rankings

106

1. Lucas Miller, Bt (27-3)

2. Dustin Steffenino, UP (20-5)

3. Aston White, OJR (14-9)

HM: Logan Pennypacker, Pt (21-4); Garrett Serwatka, Px (18-7).

113

1. Derek Gulotta, OJR (14-4)

2. Ryan Hayes, SF (18-5)

3. Eddie McCarthy, Px (8-3)

HM: Eric Miller, UP (14-9).

120

1. Dante Steffenino, UP (23-3)

2. Matt Kriebel, SF (14-5)

3. Mason Pennypacker, Pt (17-8)

HM: Eric Straup, Meth (15-9).

126

1. Sean Hennessey, SF (20-3)

2. Eddie Kriczky, Bt (16-4) 23-4

3. Colby Frank, OJR (11-3)

HM: Dylan Steffenino (3-1); Bryant Wise, Pt (23-2).

132

1. Chad Saunders, Hill (27-4)

2. Joe Staley, Meth (21-2)

3. Dominic Petrucelli, OJR (18-7)

HM: Nico Demetrio, Pottsgrove (12-5).

138

1. Wolfgang McStravick, UP (26-3)

2. Demetri D’Orsaneo, OJR (15-8)

3. Adam Dombrosky, SF (16-8)

HM: Patrick Bohn, Pt (20-5); Tyler Richard, DB (19-7).

145

1. Kyle Fellman, UP (21-4)

2. Adam Moser, OJR (20-6)

3. Nick Flanigan, Hill (25-6)

HM: Christian Fernandez, DB (24-11).

152

1. Nick Giangiulio, PV (21-1)

2. Jasheel Brown, Pt (24-2)

3. Peter Fratantoni, OJR (12-6)

HM: Gregg Harvey, Bt (15-8); Jordan LaHaise, DB (24-8).

160

1. Kyle Shronk, OJR (16-3)

2. Darien Hain, Pt (23-2)

3. Nick Limone, DB (21-12)

HM: Jonathan Cooper, SF (13-8).

170

1. Tyler McGuigan, SF (18-4)

2. Devin Bradley, Meth (19-6)

3. Tyler Rogers, OJR (18-10)

HM: Gray Garber, Bt (12-7 – injured); Sebastian Shiffler, Pt (13-4).

182

1. Gordon Bolig, OJR (25-4)

2. Cody Richmond, Bt (20-9)

3. Johnny Cherneskie, Hill (14-4)

HM: Kirk Cherneskie, PJP (15-3); Alec Della Donna, PV (19-7)

195

1. Mike Baccaro, Meth (20-3)

2. Jordan Wertz, Bt (21-7)

3. Jordan Valenteen, Px (20-4)

HM: Kirk Cherneskie, PJP (11-2).

220

1. Jordan Wood, Bt (25-1)

2. Pat Finn, Pg (16-2)

3. Mason Romano, SF (20-4)

HM: Tahar Ferradji, Meth (13-3); Ryan Patrick, PV (14-5); Josh Slody, Pt (15-5).

285

1. Tracey Green, Meth (20-2)

2. Luke DiElsi, PV (20-6)

3. Brad Trego, OJR (16-9)

HM: Josh Boyer, SF (16-5); Kostya Golobokov, Hill (21-9).

WRESTLING: OJR second at Escape the Rock

By Don Seeley

HOLLAND — There was no gold, but plenty of medals.
Although Owen J. Roberts head coach Steve DeRafelo didn’t get a matside seat for Sunday evening’s championship finals of the Escape the Rock Tournament, he was quite busy throughout the day when eight of his wrestlers worked their way through the consolations to pick up a combined eight medals.
Junior Colby Frank and senior Brad Trego led the group with third-place finishes at 126 and 285 pounds, respectively, while Kyle Shronk and Gordon Bolig settled for fourths at 160 and 182. Teammtes Adam Moser (fifth at 145), Tyler Rogers (sixth at 170), Dominic Petrucelli (seventh at 132), and Aston White (eighth at 106).
The Hill School also had three medalists. Chad Saunders led the way with a fourth at 132, with Kostya Golobokov taking sixth at 285 and Nick Flanigan adding an eighth at 145.
Overall, Owen J. Roberts finished second in the 32-team field with 172.5 points. District 11 power Parkland (189.5) won the title, with Solanco third (144.5) and Delawarer Valley and Forest Park (Va.) tying for fourth with 138 points each. District 1’s Norristown and host Council Rock South were ninth and 13th, respectively, in the final standings. The Hill School was 28th.
“I’m very happy,” DeRafelo said. “This is one tough tournament, a meat grinder. Some of our kids suffered some tough losses in the quarterfinals, but they battled all the way back. To do what we did ... yes, I’m very happy.”
The Wildcats’ previous-best showing at the ETR was a seventh-place finish last year.
Frank had an exceptional weekend. He won his first two bouts before dropping a 2-0 decision to Big Spring’s Dustin Rook. However, he stormed back with four straight wins — including an 11-2 major over Pennsbury’s highly touted Josh DiSanto in the consolation finals. His final victory was a 4-3 decision of Dallastown’s Rodney Sunday for the bronze medal.
Trego followed nearly the same path as Frank, using a bye, major and decision to reach the semifinals. He was pinned by Central Mountain’s Caleb Stover, but regrouped and finished with two wins, including a pin of Shaheed Hill of Norristown – who he blanked earlier, 3-0, in the quarterfinals — for the bronze medal.
“Frank just wrestled out of his mind here,” DeRafelo said. “He was just beating up on kids. He look real good, pretty impressive. And Brad did great job, too. He beat a very good kid from Norristown (Hill) twice.”
Shronk defaulted his third-place bout, while Rodgers — who reached the semifinals — defaulted his next two bouts. DeRafelo didn’t feel as though either injury was too serious, but opted not to risk further damage with key Pioneer Athletic Conference and District 1-AAA Team Duals meets coming up.
Bolig’s only two losses were to Parkland’s Nezar Haddad in the quarterfinals and third-place final.
“We have to heal up a little bit because we did get beat up,” DeRafelo said. “Going hard match after hard match is tough. We just tried to balance it out a little bit without killing our guys.”
For Hill, Saunders bounced back from a 9-5 quarterfinal loss to Manheim Township’s Cortlandt Schuyler with three straight wins only to fall to Schuyler again, 6-1, in the third-place final. Flanigan advanced to the quarterfinals as well only to come up short against Norristown’s Mike Springer, 6-3. He won his next bout, but dropped his ensuing two to take eighth. And Golobokov rolled into the semifinals only to get pinned, then dropped his next two bouts and settled for sixth place.

WRESTLING: PAC-10 gets four of top five seeds for duals

By Don Seeley
dseeley@pottsmerc.com

ROYERSFORD — If there was one thing representatives from every league in District 1 agreed on Sunday afternoon it was that the Pioneer Athletic Conference has been carrying its weight, if not more, this wrestling season.
When all the deliberations and discussions were over and done with during the seedings for this week’s opening rounds of the 19th annual District 1-Class AAA Team Duals, four PAC-10 teams accounted for five of the top seeds, five of the top 10, and six overall.
Defending champion Owen J. Roberts, which owns a 26-match winning streak against district rivals, was the unanimous No. 1 seed. The undefeated Wildcats (10-0) haven’t lost to anyone within the district since a duals semifinal setback to Council Rock South two years ago.
The Wildcats were followed in the seedings by No. 2 Spring-Ford (14-2); No. 3 Downingtown East (17-2) from the Ches-Mont League; No. 4 Upper Perkiomen (12-4); and No. 5 Boyertown (12-5).
All earned first-round byes, but will be on the mats immediately following the openers on Tuesday night.
The PAC-10 will have two other teams — No. 10 Methacton (11-4) and No. 16 Pottstown (19-7), the runner-up in last year’s Class AA bracket — in the 5:30 p.m. openers, though. Methacton, which hopes to benefit from competing on its home mat in Fairview Village, takes on No. 23 West Chester East (10-3). Pottstown meets No. 17 Interboro (21-3) at West Chester Rustin.
Four different sites overall will be used to host the opening rounds … and the PAC-10 teams will be spread out among them.
The winner of the Pottstown-Interboro match at West Chester Rustin will take on Owen J. Roberts; Spring-Ford meets the winner of No. 15 Central Bucks East (11-7) and No. 18 Central Bucks South (9-3) at C.B. East; Upper Perkiomen meets the winner of No. 13 Garnet Valley (11-3) and No. 20 Pennridge (11-4) at Wissahickon; and Boyertown meets the winner of No. 12 Council Rock North (9-3) and No. 21 Ridley (16-5) at Methacton.
The quarterfinals (6 p.m.) as well as both the semifinals and first round of consolations (7:30 p.m.) are scheduled for Friday, Feb. 1 at Upper Dublin High School, which will also host the consolation semifinals (1 p.m.) and and both consolation and championship finals (4 p.m.) the following day.
In Class AA, defending champion Lower Moreland (14-5) was the unanimous No. 1 seed. New Hope-Solebury (9-6), Bishop McDevitt (6-10) and Springfield-Montco (3-13) are the second through fourth seeds, respectively. Both the Class AA semifinals (1 p.m.) and final (4 p.m.) will be held Saturday, Feb. 2 at Upper Dublin.

NOTES
Seven of the 24 teams in the field have previously won the district’s Class AAA team duals title. Upper Perkiomen leads the group with five, followed by No. 7 seed Council Rock South and No. 6 seed Pennsbury with three each; No. 8 seed Norristown with two; and Boyertown, Methacton, Owen J. Roberts with one apiece. … Upper Perkiomen is the only District 1 team to go on to win the state duals title (2006). … The Indians’ Tom Hontz and Rams’ Tim Seislove were the head coaches representing the PAC-10 during Sunday’s meeting at Spring-Ford High School. ... The top four teams from District 1 advance to the state AAA team duals tournament, which opens Monday, Feb. 4 before shifting out to Hershey on Thursday, Friday and Saturday.

WRESTLING: Complete Saturday Roundup

By Mercury Staff

KENNETT SQUARE ­— Pottstown is thriving on hefty workloads.
The Trojans competed in another “duals” wrestling tournament Saturday, traveling to the Kennett Duals along with Daniel Boone. It was the fourth time this season the Trojans competed in a duals-format tourney; and as was the case previously, they made a strong showing — a sweep of their five matches to come away in first place.
With three wrestlers sweeping the competition, and a fourth also perfect, Pottstown (19-7) went one better than its previous “duals” outings, where it was a combined 10-3. Its team victories came against Glen Mills (57-21), Ridley (38-28), Academy Park 52-24), Kennett (54-19) and Boone (48-14).
The Blazers, for their part, went 3-2 and placed second on the strength of a head-to-head tiebreaker with Ridley. Alongside the verdicts against Pottstown and Ridley (34-33), they prevailed over Kennett (44-30) and Academy Park (32-27) but lost to Glen Mills (41-27).
Logan Pennypacker, Jasheel Brown and Darien Hain all went 5-0 to head Pottstown’s showing, which included a 4-0 run by Bryant Wise. Bubba Gephart, Sebastian Shiffler and Josh Slody chipped in with 4-1 records on the day, with Pat Bohn adding a 3-1.
T.J. Richard headed Boone’s outing with a 5-0 mark. Christian Fernandez and Shayne Bookwalter followed at 4-1.
Escape the Rock: Owen J. Roberts’ Kyle Shronk (160), Tyler Rogers (170) and Brad Trego (285) all advanced into into this morning’s semifinals of the Escape the Rock Invitational at Council Rock South, while 10 teammates remained alive in the consolations. The impressive effort helped the Wildcats finish the opening day of wrestling in second place (108.5 points) behind Parkland (123.5).
The Hill School also advanced 285-pound Kostya Golobokov into the semifinals, while two others — Chad Saunders (132) and Nick Flanigan (145) — were dropped into the consolations following losses in the quarterfinals.
Shronk had two pins and a 3-2 decision; Rogers took a bye and back-to-back 5-4 and 5-1 decisions; and Trego also followed a bye with a 10-1 major and 3-0 shutout. The Wildcats had six others in the quarterfinals who came up short, including returning state medalist Derek Gulotta, who fell 3-0 to state-ranked Tanner Shoap of Chambersburg. Gulotta, along with Aston White (106), Colby Frank (126), Dominick Petrucelli (132), Demetri D’Orsaneo (138), Adam Moser (145), Peter Fratantoni (152), Gordon Bolig (182), Evan Boaman (195) and Nick D’Angelo (220) will return to the mats in this morning’s consolations.
Golobokov had a bye, first-period pin and 3-2 decision for the Blues, who were 29th in the 32-team field.
Ultimate Duals: Boyertown got perfect showings from Eddie Kriczky, Cody Richmond, Jordan Wertz and Jordan Wood to take four of five bouts in the Ultimate Duals at Brookville High School.
The Bears, who improved to 12-5 overall, defeated Hanover (56-18), Mifflinburg (46-18), Saegertown (31-20) and Reynolds (33-25), with a narrow 34-31 setback to host Brookville spoiling an otherwise perfect day. Kriczky (126), Richmond (160), Wertz (195) and Wood (220) were all 5-0. Teammates Lucas Miller (106) and Gregg Harvey (160) were both 4-1, while Garrett Mauger (113) added three wins.
Garden Spot Duals: Luke DiElsi’s sweep of his opponents headed Perkiomen Valley’s showing in the duals competition at Garden Spot. The Vikings (9-6) went 3-2 as a team, wins against Pennridge (39-33), Avon Grove (51-16) and North Penn (48-31) balanced against losses to Central Dauphin (68-6) and Garden Spot (46-22).
The DiElsi’s 5-0 run was the best for PV, which also got a 4-1 outing from Nick Giangiulio — who dropped his first bout of the season.
Spartan Clash: Kirk Cherneskie (183) was the lone winner for Pope John Paul II, going undefeated at 3-0 to captured first place at the Springfield-Montco Clash.
Cherneskie was trailing Ian Kennedy from Central Bucks West 5-4 in the first place bout but got a takedown with two seconds left in the bout to win 6-5
Pope John Paul’s Vinnie Togno (138) finished with three wins and two losses for third place. Josh Bildstein (220) also took third with three wins and one loss. Jared Sahakian (145) finished 2-3, while Aaron Cusatis (160) was 3-2.
Jersey Shore Duals: Phoenixville’s Garrett Serwatka, Trey Romance and Jordan Valenteen all won four of their five individual bouts, but the Phantoms went 1-4 on the day at the Jersey Shore Duals.
The Phantoms defeated Clarion (41-27), but fell to Warrior Run (60-9), Wallenpaupack (58-14), Cedar Cliff (57-17), and Canton (45-26).
Mark Cermanski picked up two wins for the Phantoms, and teammates Henry Hancock, Tim Labik and Dave Rosati added one apiece.
Upper Perkiomen 43, C.B. East 30: Kyle Fellman stalled a Patriots’ drive to erase the Indians’ early lead, and the locals won three of the five final bouts in the non-league victory.
Fellman’s third-period pin at 152 prevented East from continuing a roll that saw it close to 28-24 with help from two pins and a forfeit. Ray Young (160) and Dylan Steffenino (106) kicked in with a decision and pin, respectively, to offset the Pats’ two decisions down the stretch.
Casey Cook (182) and Wolfgang McStravick (145) scored early pins to help the Indians (12-4) build a 28-6 lead through the first six weights. Dante Steffenino (120) kicked in with a major decision, and the locals also cashed in on two forfeits by East.
Spring-Ford 33, Manheim Central 32: Jimmy Frank’s decision at 106 proved big for the Rams, giving them enough points to secure a close non-league victory over the Barons.
Frank’s 10-3 verdict over MC’s Caleb Enck staked Spring-Ford (14-2) to a 33-27 lead that survived a technical fall in the final bout. The Rams were paced by four pins on the night — successive match-opening falls from Ryan hayes (120 and Sean Hennessey (126), and back-to-back drops by Mason Romano (220) and Josh Boyer (285) preceding Frank’s match clincher.
Valley Forge Invitational: Zach Coffey and Austin Mortimer scored medals for West-Mont Christian during the Cadet Invitational at Valley Forge Military Academy.Coffey won the 126-pound title, going 2-0 on the day. Mortimer was second at 120, going 2-1.

MEN’S WRESTLING
Mount St. Vincent: The Ursinus wrestling team competed in its final regular-season tournament at the College of Mount Saint Vincent Invitational in Riverdale, N.Y., just outside of New York City.
Christopher Donaldson continued his strong start as he won the 125-pound bracket with a pin and two major decisions. Kevin Hoogheem finished second at 125. Donaldson defeated Chase Andrew of AIC by fall in 4:28, then ran up a 17-8 major on Janik Santana-Quintana of NYU. In the title bout, he defeated teammate Keven Hoogheem, 16-5.
The Bears had five third-place finishes in Christian Hoogheem (126), John Morrison (133), Curtis Watkins (149), Gnoleba Seri (165) and Gabriel Gordon (174).

WRESTLING: Pottstown takes Upper Perkiomen to the limit

By Don Seeley
dseeley@pottsmerc.com

POTTSTOWN — For a long, long time, Upper Perkiomen never had to circle any wrestling date with Pottstown. For a long, long time, Upper Perkiomen never had to be overly concerned with Pottstown.
But due to the influx of promising underclassmen, not to mention the across-the-board improvement of their upperclassmen, the Trojans certainly have gotten the attention of Upper Perkiomen and everyone else in the Pioneer Athletic Conference.
“We saw (the improvement) in the beginning of the season,” Upper Perkiomen head coach Tom Hontz said. “They have some good kids, a quality group of wrestlers, and good coaches.”
All of which added up to quite a contest Thursday night.
Or a close enough one that the visiting Indians couldn’t put away until Kyle Fellman’s narrow 3-1 decision over Jasheel Brown at 152 pounds — in the second-to-last bout of the evening — clinched what would end at 33-28.
One would have to scour the record books, or go back into the very early years of the PAC-10, to find as close a bout between the longtime rivals.
Upper Perkiomen (4-1, 11-4 overall), still in the chase for a league title, never trailed after Owen Leister and Casey Cook opened the match with a decision and second-period pin at 182 and 195, respectively. But Pottstown (2-4, 14-7) didn’t exactly roll over, either, battling back to create three ties, including a 15-15 draw at the halfway mark and another at 21-21.
However, unsung Mike Felix broke that up with a 6-2 decision at 138, then the Indians’ formidable one-two punch — Wolfgang McStravick and Kyle Fellman, bumped up to 145 and 152 — followed with a pin and decision over two of Pottstown’s potent punch of Patrick Bohn and Brown. The 12-point spread, which Pottstown could’ve offset with two pins to end it at 33-33 wouldn’t have mattered, though, because Upper Perkiomen had already won eight of the 14 bouts (the first tie-breaking criteria).
“We’re missing a lot of guys with injuries and sickness,” Fellman said after improving to 20-4. “That always hurts. And it did tonight because Pottstown’s a good team. Of all the years I’ve been wrestling, that’s the best team they’ve had.
“I’m disappointed because I at least wanted to get some bonus points. I’m expected to get bonus points and I didn’t get them. I felt we needed them so (Pottstown) couldn’t come back on us.”
Fellman’s win was enough — being the eighth overall for the Indians.
And it was enough even without the criteria because Pottstown — despite two closing wins from Sebastian Shiffler (a 14-5 major at 160) and Darien Hain (a 5-3 decision at 170) — couldn’t erase the entire deficit anyway.
“The key was us getting lucky with the coin toss,” Hontz said. “We knew if we had to send out first at 138 they’d probably forfeit to (McStravick). The key for us was to get our two studs on two of their better guys. Hey, there were a lot of close matches out there.”
Pottstown and head coach Brad Bechtel sure knew that.
“The effort’s there,” he said. “We’re never happy with a loss, but we’re pleased we’re competing with the top teams in the PAC-10. It was just like (Wednesday night) at Methacton; one or two of those matches goes our way and...  Tonight, Upper Perkiomen battled, we battled. We’re getting there.”
The Trojans were really there going into the pivotal 138 through 152 brackets, too.
Mason Weber (220) got the hosts on the board with a 9-2 decision at 220, then Josh Slody evened it up at 9-9 with a 41-second pin at 285. Logan Pennypacker lost a thrilling 3-2 decision to highly regarded Dustin Steffenino at 106, and Robbie McCoy dropped a 5-1 encounter to Eric Miller at 113 that left the Trojans trailing by a 15-9 count. But Mason Pennypacker quickly evened it up at 120 with a pin. And after Upper Perkiomen regained the lead 1:46 later on Dante Steffenino’s pin, Pottstown evened it up yet again with Bryant Wise’s pin at 132.
Then...
“We saw it coming,” Bechtel said of the Indians’ Felix-McStravick-Fellman flurry. “We looked at the matchups and knew (Upper Perkiomen would) want to do what they did, wanted to go with those matchups.
“We talked to our guys about it, but they were up for the challenge. They knew who they had to go against, but they didn’t want to duck the challenge. That’s two nights in a row we’ve been in it. We’d just like to see it turn our way soon.”

NOTES
A moment of silence was observed prior to the match in memory of former Pottstown and St. Pius X head football coach Bill Rogers, who passed away earlier in the day following a battle with cancer. Rogers, a graduate of the former Royersford High School, served as an assistant to Pottstown’s Brett Myers this past fall — his 55th year of coaching in the area. ... Upper Perkiomen host C.B. East on Saturday and Phoenixville next Wednesday before heading over to Bucktown to take on unbeaten two-time defending champion Owen J. Roberts. ... “Coach (Hontz) puts the pressure on us for the next match, that’s all,” Fellman. “Owen J. is good, but that (match) isn’t until next week.”

WRESTLING: Milestone night for Bolig, DeRafelo, Wildcats

By Don Seeley
dseeley@pottsmerc.com

ROYERSFORD — Nothing like being in the right place at the right time.
That’s how Gordon Bolig looked at it and, for that matter, how his teammates looked at it for ailing head coach Steve DeRafelo when the Owen J. Roberts entourage marched into Spring-Ford’s gym Wednesday evening.
Aside of the fact the Wildcats and Rams were ranked No. 1 and No. 2 in the area as well as in the entire district, and aside of the fact they were the lone remaining unbeatens in the Pioneer Athletic Conference, Bolig was looking for his 100th career win and his teammates were looking to present DeRafelo with his 100th career win with the OJR program.
Forget there’s no place like home, too, because after both reached the respective milestones — Bolig with a clinic-like technical fall at 195 pounds and DeRafelo with a convincing final score of 38-18 — both admitted pulling it off the same night against Spring-Ford, and at Spring-Ford, added meaning to the accomplishments.
“It certainly feels good getting (the 100th win) in this gym against a very good team,” Bolig said
“It sure took a long time to get to this point,” added DeRafelo. “It’s something I certainly never thought of. But it does mean something to get (the 100th win) here against Spring-Ford, one of the premier teams in District 1.”
The Wildcats, now a perfect 5-0 (10-0 overall) in their drive for a third straight PAC-10 title, took the lead at the outset when Kyle Shronk moved up to 170 and put together a solid 8-1 decision of a very good Tyler McGuigan. Tyler Rogers, also up a bracket, followed with a 3-2 decision at 182, then Bolig added his very impressive technical fall that finished up at the 5:23 mark and made it 11-0.
Spring-Ford (4-1, 13-2) got its first takedown and win from Mason Romano at 220, but it took an escape in the waning seconds for the junior to edge a relentless Nick DeAngelo, 7-6.
However, the hosts would manage to win just three more bouts the rest of the way. They did trail 23-3 at the halfway mark, but got back into it at 23-15 when Matt Krieble and Sean Hennessey posted back-to-back pins at 120 and 126, respectively. But the Wildcats responded with a hat trick — Dominick Petrucelli’s pin, Colby Frank’s 5-2 decision and Demetri D’Orsaneo’s 8-5 decision at 132 through 145 — to rebuild the lead to 35-15 and, with just two bouts remaining, the outcome was simply out of the Rams’ reach.
“We felt there would be a lot of toss-up matches,” Bolig said. “(Spring-Ford) has a lot of guys who hit the big moves, so we knew we had to avoid them.”
That was never more evident than at 106, where the Rams’ Jimmy Frank took OJR veteran Aston White down to his back for a 5-0 lead soon after the opening whistle. But White recovered with a reversal by the end of the first period, then tacked on five more unanswered points en route to a 7-6 decision.
And what Bolig and DeRafelo also saw, as did most of the large crowd, was OJR scoring in the waning moments of periods.
“This is the time of the year we start our morning runs,” Bolig explained. “We’re getting our bodies adjusted, and the stamina kicks in. We want to be able to go out there and be offensive, and be aggressive.”
A lot of that credit goes to my assistants for working these kids hard in the room while I’ve been out (following shoulder surgery),” DeRafelo said. “At some point, those morning runs help. Tonight, Spring-Ford wrestled hard, but we found a way to win a few of those matches.
“Even some of our guys who lost wrestled well. They’re fighting back, finding ways to win.”
And despite the end result, Rams head coach Tim Seislove wasn’t totally disappointed with the setback.
“We were able to get some good matchups, wrestle some good close matches,” Seislove noted. “But we were the underdogs in a lot of the weight classes. Our kids kept some of the matches close, but when it gets down near the end you have to open it up. The only problem when you do that is you open yourself up to a lot of mistakes, and against a good team like Owen J. you can’t do that.”
Seislove also felt OJR’s senior leadership was a key.
Shronk, Rogers and Bolig did lead the way with a 3-for-3 to start it off; DeAngelo limited Romano to a regular decision; then Brad Trego — despite giving up 26 pounds — pinned at 285; and White contributed his come-from-behind thriller. All seniors, incidentally, before sophomore Derek Gulotta finished the first half of the showdown with his 7-1 decision.
Petrucelli, Frank and D’Orsaneo, all underclassmen clinched it. But after Spring-Ford got its final points from Mike Collins’ decision at 152, senior Adam Moser closed it out with his 5-3 nod in the finale at 160.
“There was a lot on the line here,” Bolig said. “We knew we couldn’t relax.”
They didn’t.

NOTES
DeRafelo, in his 11th season, is the 16th area coach to reach 100 overall wins. ... OJR finished with an 18-6 advantage in takedowns. ... The Wildcats travel to the Escape The Rock on Saturday and Sunday at Council Rock South, then visit Methacton next Wednesday night and host Upper Perkiomen on Saturday morning. ... Spring-Ford travels to Manheim Central this Saturday night.