Hileman, Sipes ready to show why they’re tops
Trending
By Todd Irwin
sports@altoonamirror.com
Altoona 106-pound senior Luke Hileman (28-3) and 152-pound freshman star Luke Sipes (28-1) enter Saturday's District 6 Class 3A Tournament with a combined record of 56-4 and 31 pins.
The Lukes have been bulldozing their way through the high school season, and now they're the No. 1 seeds at their respective weight classes.
Of the two, Sipes, who is in a four-man weight class, could have the toughest road to a district title. Sipes will likely face Mifflin County's second-seeded Parker Kearns in the finals. Sipes beat Kearns, 2-0, in the Ultimate Warrior semifinals.
"Luke has been constant all year long," Altoona coach Joel Gilbert said of Sipes. "I've got to be honest. I would be shocked if he wasn't in the finals. He's definitely going to get a good match from the Kearns kid from Mifflin County. But Luke has looked really good this week in practice. If he performs the way he can, I think he can distance himself from that kid."
Juniata's Joey Bomberger, who Hileman pinned in 54 seconds in the dual meet, is the second seed at 106. Hileman finished second in the tournament at 106 as a freshman before not wrestling the last two years.
"Luke just has to get out there and perform and do his thing. I think he'll take care of business if he has the right mindset and is ready to go. He's a pinner. He's already pinned the second seed once this year. But you never know at the district tournament. There are a lot of factors involved. Hopefully he's healthy and ready to go."
Hollidaysburg senior Aaron Sleeth (21-11), a four-year starter, is the top seed at 172. Sleeth finished second at 152 as a sophomore and third at 172 last year in the tournament.
If he faces State College's second-seeded Braden Newby in the finals, expect a tight one. They've split two overtime bouts this season, with Sleeth winning in a tiebreaker, 6-5, in the last meeting.
"I expect Aaron to go out and hopefully bring home a district title," Hollidaysburg coach Christian Harr said. "He certainly has paid his dues. He's certainly capable of winning that tournament. In the last match, he beat Newby in overtime, so I think the confidence is going to be good."
The seven-team tournament begins at 10:30 a.m. Saturday at the Fieldhouse with the quarterfinals. The semifinals and consolations will follow at around 11:30 a.m. The 12:45 p.m. consolation semifinals will wrap up the first session.
The placing rounds, including the championship finals, third-place bouts and fifth-place bouts, begin at 3 p.m.
"We're pumped up. We're ready to go," Harr said. "This is what we look forward to all year. We're excited to go out and compete and end on a high note."
"I'm looking forward to the postseason starting," Gilbert said. "I think we have a lot of opportunities in this tournament to get out. I think that our guys are ready to wrestle."
There is no Blair County second or third seeds, but Altoona's Will Young (145) and Connor Reimer (189) are fourth seeds. Hollidaysburg's Carson Krupka (106) is also a fourth seed.
Seven other area wrestlers are seeded fifth. The top four wrestlers at each weight class qualify for the Northwest Regional Tournament, which returns next week to the Fieldhouse.
"I think the ultimate goal this week is let's get in the top four so we can move on to regionals," Gilbert said. "We have a lot of guys seeded between four and six. We're kind of looking to get a lot of our guys into that consolation finals match."
For many of the local wrestlers, this will be their first experience wrestling in the District 6 Tournament.
HIleman is the only Mountain Lion who has wrestled in the District 6 Tournament. The Golden Tigers will have six freshmen and three sophomores wrestling in the tournament. Only Sleeth and fifth-seeded senior 215-pounder Nicklas Eppihimer (23-11) have experience at districts.
"We have a lot of seniors, but they don't have that district experience," Gilbert said. "It was kind of a funny year. For a lot of these guys, it's their first district tournament. For some of them, maybe it's their last district tournament. It's their chance to kid of make a name for themselves and try to move on to next week."
One advantage for the Mountain Lions is they're at home. And Hollidaysburg has a short drive to the Fieldhouse.
"You get to sleep in your own bed," Gilbert said. "You get to eat a meal at night with your family. You know the surroundings. You know the atmosphere. You just feel comfortable. Hopefully that works in our advantage a little bit."
"We love it being close to home," Harr said. "We get to sleep in our beds, go to the school if we need to work out. It makes life a lot easier not having to travel. Hopefully that's what we're doing for the next two weekends."