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CRESSON -- Four wrestlers from the Mirror coverage area advanced to the semifinals of the 50-team Panther Holiday Classic on Friday at Mount Aloysius College.
Returning Panther Classic champion Trent Hoover advanced to the semifinals at 152 pounds, as did Tyrone's Braden Ewing at 285, Glendale's Daniel Williams at 285 and Huntingdon/Williamsburg's Andrew McMonagle at 189.
The quarterfinal round was a rough one for area wrestlers in the tournament. Eight other area wrestlers lost in the round, but are still alive in the consolations. Altoona, which had two champs last year in Luke Sipes and Braiden Weaver, isn't in the tournament.
The tournament starts today with a junior varsity and girls round at 9:15 a.m. The fifth round of consolations (the blood round) for the boys is set for 10 a.m. The semifinals and consolation quarterfinals are at 11:45. The consolation semifinals are at 1:45 p.m. - followed by the third, fifth and seventh-place bouts at 3:30.
The championship finals will follow the parade of champions at 5.
The second-seeded Hoover breezed to the semifinals with two technical falls and a pin of Quaker Valley's Jack Diemert in the quarterfinals. Hoover will now get Bedford's returning tournament champ Kross Cassidy, who had two pins and a technical fall.
The winner of that will likely face Penns Valley's top-seeded Ty Watson, a two-time finalist who won a title two years ago and lost to Sipes last season.
The fourth-seeded Ewing rolled with two pins in 32 seconds and 27 seconds and a 6-1 win over Somerset's Zane Hagans. Ewing will wrestle Spring Grove's top-seeded Michael Hershey in the semifinals.
On the other side of the weight class, the second-seeded Williams had a pin and two decisions, including a 6-3 win over Bedford's Ceaton Hale in the quarterfinals. Williams wrestles Twin Valley's third-seeded Ean Winchester in the semifinals.
So, a Ewing-Williams championship finals bout is possible.
The second-seeded McMonagle, who has helped his team move into fourth place in the team standings, rolled to the semifinals with three pins. He'll take on Selinsgrove's Tucker Teats in the semifinals.
Connellsville (144 points), Penns Valley (105), Corry (98.5) and Huntingdon (95.5) are the top four teams.