Five earn victory to get them into quarterfinal matchups

By Todd Irwin

sports@altoonamirror.com

HERSHEY -- Altoona's Braiden Weaver knew his first-round 114-pound bout against Bethlehem Catholic's Reef Dillard was going to be a tight on the first day of the PIAA Class 3A Championships.

Weaver, a returning fifth-placer, took a 1-0 lead into the third period, where he converted on a tilt for two points and won, 3-1, on Thursday night at Hershey's Giant Center.

"I wrestled him in the summer," Weaver said. "We kind of go back and forth. I beat him once. He beat me once. Other than that, he's a really tough kid. He's a Dillard."

Weaver's teammate, Luke Sipes, didn't have to worry about a close opener. The two-time state placewinner rolled to a 14-0 major decision over Pottsville's Parrish McFarland.

"It's a great day," Altoona coach Joel Gilbert said. "Our guys both wrestled well out there. They've been down here before and they proved it when they got out on the mat. Ideally, we're right where we need to be. Hopefully we can keep this momentum rolling into tomorrow."

Weaver and Sipes were two of the five Class 3A and 2A wrestlers in the Mirror coverage area to advance to the quarterfinals, set for 2:15 p.m. Quarterfinal winners in both classes will wrestle in the 7 p.m. semifinals.

Penn Cambria's Trent Hoover (152), Huntingdon/Williamsburg's Andrew McMonagle (189) and Tyrone's Braden Ewing (285) all won their first round bouts to reach today's 8 a.m. quarterfinals.

Altoona's Gavin Ciampoli (127) went 1-1 and is still alive in the 3A consolations. Hollidaysburg's Mitchell Baronner (172) and Wyatt Maines (285) went 0-2 and were eliminated.

Northern Bedford's Eion Snider (189) and Rece Dibert (215), Tyrone's Kyle Scott (172) and Glendale's Daniel Williams (285) are all still alive in Class 2A. Glendale's George Campbell (172) went 0-2 and was eliminated.

Here's a closer look at what happened in both classes:

After a scoreless first period, Weaver escaped 3 seconds into the second period and remained aggressive the entire period.

"I knew he was going to throw legs in, so I had to get out from bottom as fast as I could," Weaver said. "He's really good on top, so I'm glad I got out of there when I could."

In the third, Weaver nearly scored with the tilt early, but Dillard avoided going to his back. But Weaver did put him on his back with another tilt with 42 seconds left to get some cushion. Dillard escaped with 28 seconds left, but Weaver avoided any danger to win.

"That was big," Weaver said of scoring on the tilt. "If I didn't get that, it would have been an even closer match than it was. I got a little quick count. That's all I really needed."

"That was the difference in the match," Gilbert said. "(Dillard) kind of played into our favor. We were able to break him down. And once we got that breakdown, good things happened for us. Weav stayed in good position the whole match. He did not leave off the gas at all."

Weaver (34-5) will wrestle Ridley's giant killer Curtis Nelson (39-2), who pinned Manheim Township's previously unbeaten Kaedyn Williams, a three-time placer who won states as a freshman, sending a buzz through the crowd. Weaver beat Nelson, 5-4, at last year's tournament.

"Nothing is going to be easy here," Weaver said. "I'm going to keep working and mowing them down one by one. I don't care who it was. I'm going after everyone."

Sipes was highly effective in all positions in his first bout. In the first period, he took McFarland down and tilted him for three points and a 5-0 lead.

In the second, he escaped and got a takedown with a single-leg shot for an 8-0 lead. He converted on another single-leg shot in the third.

"In my high school room and in club, I drill that knee pull, sweep single all the time with a bunch of different reactions and finishes," Sipes said. "It's muscle memory out there."

He received a stalling point and tilted McFarland for the three final points - just missing a technical fall.

"That's the first time I've gotten bonus points at states," Sipes said. "That shows a lot of work is paying off that I've been doing the past year. The job is not finished yet, though. I'm head down, grinding, trying to get through this tournament with a W."

"He really did well," Gilbert said. "He was really aggressive in all positions. We're just happy with how he's wrestling. Hopefully he can keep that going throughout the tournament."

Sipes (34-5) will wrestle Harriton's Nadav Nafshi (35-7), a 7-2 winner in the first round.

Hoover rolled to a 12-3 major decision over Line Mountain's Dalton Schadel in the first round. Hoover, who suffered a broken hand in last year's first round and lost his next two, was up 9-3 in the third when he cradled Schadel for three points.

"I was looking to score the whole time," Hoover said. "That's how you win big matches. I think I did a pretty good job of that. I'm feeling good right now. Last year, I walked out and my hand was hurting pretty bad. I didn't know what was going on with that. Now I can just focus on tomorrow."

"He wrestled solid," Penn Cambria coach Todd Niebauer said. "He scored points. He was looking to score every toward the end of the match. There are a couple little things we can work on, but he's been here. I don't have to tell him anything."

Hoover gets Grove City's returning eighth-placer Cody Hamilton (44-2) in the quarterfinals. Hamilton rang up an 18-2 technical fall in 3:10. If he wins that bout, Hoover will earn his first medal in three state appearances.

"I'm ready to go," Hoover said. "I don't really care about the name. I don't care who he beat. I'm just focusing on what I need to do and score points."

McMonagle rebounded from his regional loss to Bald Eagle Area rival Caleb Close by building a 12-1 lead on Loyalsock's Kaden Rodarmel and pinning him in 4:19.

"That was very impressive," Huntingdon coach Jon Mykut said. "He just went out and got to his offense early and often. He got into a little scramble and got the fall. He's trained very hard all year and his sight is set on the top of the podium."

McMonagle (44-3), who injured his knee last year in the first round, will wrestle Clearfield's Carter Chamberlain (32-8), a 3-1 winner over Faith Christian Academy's Cody Wagner, in the quarterfinals. They didn't wrestle in the regular season.

"Obviously, as you get deeper in this, things get tougher and tougher," Mykut said. "You have to take it one match at a time and let it fly when you go out there, which is exactly what he just did."

Ewing advanced with a 9-3 decision over Towanda's Sawyer Robinson. Ewing hit a throw for five points in the first period.

"He wrestled with confidence, and that's what we're looking for," Tyrone coach Quentin Wright said. "He went out there and executed his game plan. He went out there and got a throw, got a shot."

In the second period, Ewing escaped and lifted the 195-pound Robinson in the air and down safely to the mat for a takedown and 8-3 lead.

"He was like lifting wood," Ewing joked.

"I was just praying that he wouldn't slam him," Wright said laughing. "You've got be very careful down here."

Ewing added an escape in the third and avoided any possible big move to win. He has a big quarterfinal against Port Allegany's 42-0 Carson Neely, who beat Ewing, 8-1, in the Ultimate Warrior finals.