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Top 10 wrestlers want more

02/16/19 By Gary M. Baranec Glendales coach Bill Dubler hugs his son Suds who defeated Forest Hills Easton Toth at 106lbs Saturday at the AAHS Fieldhouse.

By Todd Irwin

tirwin@altoonamirror.com

The Southwest Regional Class 2A Tournament has always served as a launching pad to state titles and medals. If wrestlers win a title there or qualify for the PIAA Championships, they’ve done something special.

This year should be no different.

There are a bunch of wrestlers ranked in the top 10 of the PA Power Wrestling rankings attempting to survive and advance from the tournament. In some cases, there are multiple wrestlers ranked in the top five at the same weight.

“It’s always one of the premier regionals, especially in double A,” Ridge coach Greg Lazor said. “Usually a lot of state placers and state champs come from this region. It’s a tough tournament when you get the WPIAL thrown in with District 6. I know District 5 is a little smaller, but we always bring our share of studs to the table.”

“The Southwest Regional Tournament has got to be if not the toughest, it’s got to be up there with all of the toughest tournaments,” Glendale coach Billy Dubler said. “I think if you can place at the Southwest Regional Tournament, from what I’ve seen, you have a great shot at being on the podium at states. I tell the guys it doesn’t matter if you finish first or sixth at this point. The name of the game is to advance.”

The tournament, which returns to IUP’s Ed Frey Arena at the Kovalchick Convention Center & Athletic Complex, begins at 1 p.m. Friday on four mats. The quarterfinals and a round of consolations follow at 5 p.m. The tournament resumes at 10 a.m. Saturday with the second round of consolations, and the semifinals and third round of consys will follow at noon.

The championship finals and the fifth and third-place bouts are set for 5:45. The top six at each weight class qualify for states again this year. There are 16 wrestlers at every weight, with the top seven from District 7, the top six from District 6 and the top three from District 5 at those weights.

There are 53 area wrestlers who are wrestling in the tournament, and 13 of them enter is district champions.

Chestnut Ridge leads the way with six District 5 champions in Kai Burkett (106), Nathan Holderbaum (113), returning regional champion Jared McGill (170), returning sixth-placer Austin Crouse (182), Duane Knisely (220) and Dalton Seace (285).

The Lions, who qualified 12 for the tournament, are the defending team champions and have come in first or second four straight seasons. Saint Joseph’s Catholic Academy and Burrell are among those looking to unseat Ridge.

“It’s the regionals, so it’s the final step to get to the show,” Lazor said. “Obviously the boys are excited. The coaches are excited. It’s time to see what we can do.”

McGill, who just collected his fourth District 5 title, is the only area returning regional champ. The three-time state placewinner is 32-0 and ranked No. 1, but he could face a serious challenge in the finals from whoever advances out of the bottom bracket.

On the other side are Penn Cambria’s third-ranked Derek Brown and McGuffey’s second-ranked Christian Clutter. Brown (30-3) is District 6 champ and returning regional runner-up who is aiming for his third regional medal. McGill beat Brown, 17-6, earlier in the season.

McGill’s toughest bout this year came against Clutter (37-2), the District 7 champion. McGill took Clutter down in overtime of the Powerade finals to win, 4-2.

“They had a real close match, and we worked on some things,” Lazor said. “I feel confident in McGill. I think things got away from him a little bit. He gave up a first takedown when he was the aggressor and made a silly mistake. It’s going to be exciting to see where they’re at this point, and then maybe one more time at states.”

Glendale enters with three District 6 champs in Suds Dubler (106), returning regional and state runner-up Brock McMillen (126) and Cory Johnston (220) and five qualifiers.

“It’s the end of the year, and we want to see how far these guys can climb,” Coach Dubler said. “This is why they lift all the weights and do all of the offseason workouts. This is really exciting for me as a coach to watch how high these guys can climb, but the kids are really excited too.”

The sixth-ranked Burkett and the 10th-ranked Dubler could meet in the semifinals.

Burkett and Dubler have been ranked No. 1 and No. 2 in the Mirror rankings all season. South Park’s returning regional runner-up Joey Fischer, 31-0 and ranked fifth, is in the other bracket.

“That’s going to be interesting because Suds is a young man who came up through, is fairly local and we’ve known each other,” Lazor said. “They’ve wrestled each other in practices and clubs through the years. Hopefully those two meet in the semis, and we’ll see how that turns out.”

“I would really love to see that match,” Billy Dubler said. “I think the fans would like to see that match. I think he’s prepared for that match. I think he’s prepared to go six hard minutes. Burkett is a heck of a wrestler, and Suds is a heck of a wrestler. We’ve got a lot of tough guys to beat before we get there. We have to stay focused and not get ahead of ourselves too much.”

Tussey Mountain’s returning fifth-placer Brady Villa (126), Bedford’s 2017 champion Kaden Cassidy (132) and Northern Bedford’s Ian Sherlock (138) – all District 5 champs – are looking to continue their momentum.

The other returning regional placers are third-placers Garret Cornell (132) of Everett and Cole Sossong (160) of Portage, Huntingdon fourth-placer Ryder Kocik (182) and Penn Cambria sixth-placer and two-time state qualifier Chase Proudfit (126).

The expected finals bout between Cassidy, who won a regional title for Bishop McCort as a freshman 106-pounder, and Cornell, a three-time regional placer, will be highly anticipated. The third-ranked Cassidy (28-1) has a 2-1 edge on the fourth-ranked Cornell (28-2) this season.

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