Hoover, McMonagle earn silver
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By Todd Irwin
sports@altoonamirror.com
Penn Cambria's Trent Hoover and Huntingdon/Williamsburg's Andrew McMonagle earned championship rematches with the opponents who beat them in their respective District 6 title bouts.
But again they lost frustratingly close bouts in the finals of the Southwest Regional Class 2A Tournament on Saturday night at a packed Altoona Fieldhouse.
Bishop McCort freshman Melvin Miller took Hoover, a two-time regional champ, down with 7 seconds remaining to win, 3-1, at 152 pounds.
"I need to get to my offense more," Hoover said. "He's going to keep it close and score a takedown at the end. I think that's his game plan. I kind of played right into it. I don't know. I've got to make the necessary adjustments moving forward. Life goes on. I've got to get ready for next week."
Bald Eagle Area's earned a 5-3 win over McMonagle in a battle of the top two ranked 189-pounders in the PA Power Wrestling rankings.
"I thought he wrestled a great match," Huntingdon coach Jon Mykut said. "It was a really smart match. He took what was given to him out there and was a little bit short."
Eight wrestlers from the Mirror coverage area placed in the top six and qualified for the PIAA Championships, set to begin on Thursday at Hershey's Giant Center.
Tyrone's Braden Ewing placed third at 285, while teammate Kyle Scott finished fifth at 172 to qualify for a second trip to the state tournament.
Northern Bedford also qualified two seniors in fifth-placer Rece Dibert at 215 and sixth-placer Eion Snider at 189.
"I feel great about that," Northern Bedford coach Brian Dutchcot said. "The Southwest Region is a tough region, and to get two pushed through is pretty impressive."
Glendale's Daniel Williams (285) was fifth, while George Campbell (172) placed sixth to advance to Hershey.
Northern Bedford's Wyatt Clouse (121), Tyrone's Remington Fleck (139) and Penn Cambria's Nick Summerville (215) finished eighth.
Cambria Heights' Marshall Eckenrode (160) posted a 2-2 record. Northern Bedford's Aiden Replogle (107) and Brock Beach (285), Central's Thaide Mickel (133), Penn Cambria's Andrew Mardula (160) and Tyrone's Andrew Weaver (189) went 1-2.
Penn Cambria's Layton Munyon (121) and Central Cambria's Jake Wilson (139) went 0-2, while Cambria Heights' Hunter Jones (114) had to forfeit his two bouts.
Hoover had two pins another come-from-behind 5-4 win over Penns Valley's Ty Watson in the semifinals. Hoover trailed Watson 4-2 entering the third, where Hover escaped and scored a takedown with 29 seconds left to go ahead for good.
"Those are always going to be barnburners," Hoover said. "I was believing in my attacks. I did a little better job of that in the semis than I did in the finals.
Hoover (40-5) and Miller (53-3) were tied, 1-1, and appeared headed to overtime, but the McCort freshman took Hoover down with 7 seconds left at the edge of the mat to win 3-1.
"I think we're getting better," Penn Cambria coach Todd Niebauer said. "I don't think we're taking the shots that we can take to be honest, but that's not saying something bad about my kid. The kid (Miller) has won 50-something matches. He's the real deal, but I know what my kid can do."
McMonagle reached the finals with his second fall of the tournament - a pin of Snider in 3:17 in the semifinals.
Close and McMonagle went to the second period scoreless, but Close escaped and got a takedown with 28 seconds left in the period. McMonagle escaped and took Close down with 1:18 remaining in the bout to tie the score.
Close (41-2) escaped soon after, but McMonagle (43-3), who suffered an injury above his left eye in practice, couldn't find an opening to get a takedown. Close received a caution point with 2 seconds left.
"The injury was non-existent in terms of how he wrestled," Mykut said. "He wrestled great."
Ewing's run to the finals ended with a 3-2 loss to Mount Pleasant's eventual runner-up Dylan Pitzer in the semifinals. He responded with a major decision and a 2-1 tiebreaker win over Burgettstown's Joseph Baronick.
"We learned a lot of lessons today that we'll be able to use for the state tournament," Tyrone coach Quentin Wright said. "We'll have a little bit of different strategy in these matches where we're wrestling different guys."
Scott was dropped into the consolations with a 4-0 loss to Belle Vernon's regional champ Elijah Brown. He lost to Bishop McCort rival, Owen McMullen, 4-2, before beating Campbell, 3-1.
After his loss to McMonagle in the semifinals, Snider dropped a couple decisions to Frazier's Jackson Angelo, 10-5, and Brady Brown, 7-2.
Dibert knocked off Summerville in an intense tiebreaker, 9-8, in the consolation quarterfinals to earn his trip to Hershey. Summerville released Dibert to begin the second tiebreaker period, but Dibert avoided being taken down.
"That was a crazy match," Dutchcot said. "It was right there in the round to punch your ticket. Summerville let us up to go neutral to try to take us down and Rece defended his offense pretty well. Rece is pretty savvy when it comes to that. Luckily, it was our shot to go."
The Penn Cambria coaches questioned the referee at the scoring table during the bout and after the bout.
"The referee was not very clear when he put his hand up in the first period," Niebauer said. "I think he gave a stall call (to Dibert) on the way out of bounds. I can tell you the table workers were super confused because all weekend that guy had been doing that."
Deputy claims second title
Chestnut Ridge's Dominic Deputy (46-0) captured his second 107-pound regional title with a hard-fought 1-0 win over Bald Eagle Area's Tanner Guenot.
Deputy, a returning state runner-up, rode Guenot the entire third period. With about 12 seconds left, it appeared Guenot might have broken away, but Deputy regained control of him. A BEA coach disputed the non escape, but the no escape was ruled.
"It feels great," Deputy said. "It's not the dominant fashion it was last year, but it was the next step, winning the match and getting to Hershey."
"I'm proud of him," Ridge coach and dad Josh Deputy said. "Dom is very savvy. He knows how to win. He can win 1-0 matches and he can win high scoring matches. I think they have a chance to maybe do it again."
Ridge teammate Easton Mull finished second at 114 with a 5-3 loss to Chartiers-Houston's Jorden Williams. Mull and Deputy are the only Ridge wrestlers who qualified.
Vargo knocks off Forrest
Bishop McCort set records for points with 237.5 and champions with six and tied the mark for state qualifiers with nine.
But Jax Forrest, the No. 2-ranked wrestler in the nation at 127, wasn't among the McCort champions.
Bentworth's four-time regional champ Chris Vargo (38-2) headlocked the previously undefeated Forrest to his back for five points in the first period, and the huge crowd made it louder in the Fieldhouse than arguably any tournament crowd had ever been.
Vargo put Forrest (49-1) on his back again in the second period, but Forrest again got off his back and even got two takedowns in the third period. When time expired, the crowd gave a very loud ovation.
"You have nothing to lose when you go out and wrestle any of the Bishop McCort guys," Vargo said. "Everyone hates on them. I have a lot of respect for them. I was having fun. It helped with the crowd. The crowd was awesome."
KEY, TEAM STANDINGS
TEAM KEY
AG--Albert Gallatin; AVON–Avonworth; BEA--Bald Eagle Area; BED–Bedford; BELL--Bellefonte; BENT–Bentworth; BB–Berlin Brothersvalley; BC–Beth-Center; BURG–Burgettstown; BURR–Burrell; CH–Cambria Heights; CAR–Carlynton; C–Central; CC-Central Cambria; CV--Central Valley; CHART–Chartiers Houston; CR–Chestnut Ridge; CT--Conemaugh Township; DA–Derry Area; EF–Elizabeth Forward; E–Everett; FC–Fort Cherry; FH–Forest Hills; FRA--Frazier; FA–Freedom Area; G–Glendale; HAM--Hampton; HIGH–Highlands; HOPE--Hopewell; H–Huntingdon; I--Indiana; JM–Jefferson Morgan; J--Juniata; KO--Keystone Oaks; L–Laurel; LV--Ligonier Valley; MC–Marion Center; MCG–McGuffey; M–Meyersdale; MON--Montour; MV--Moshannon Valley; MP–Mount Pleasant; MU–Mount Union; NB–Northern Bedford; NS–North Star; PC–Penn Cambria; PO--Philipsburg-Osceola; PV–Penns Valley; QV--Quaker Valley; RIVER—Riverview; RV--River Valley; S--Somerset; SOUTH–Southmoreland; SSB–South Side Beaver; TM–Tussey Mountain; T–Tyrone; U--United; V–Valley; W–Washington; WB–West Branch; WH–Westmont Hilltop
TOP 21 TEAM STANDINGS
1. Bishop McCort 237.5; 2. Bentworth 84; 3. Frazier 82; 4. Chestnut Ridge 76.5; 5. Bald Eagle Area 75.5; 6. Burgettstown 74.5; 7. Burrell 67.5; 8. United 66.5; 9. Penns Valley 65.5; 10. Central Valley 60; 11. Derry Area 53; 12. Belle Vernon 48; 13. Mount Pleasant 47; 14. Tyrone 40; 15. Northern Bedford, Bellefonte, McGuffey and Quaker Valley 38; 19. Huntingdon 37; 20. Philipsburg-Osceola 36; 21. Penn Cambria 34.
SEMIFINALS
107--Deputy, CR, dec. Hummel, PO, 6-0; Guenot, BEA, dec. Baker, BURR, 5-1; 114--Williams, CHART, dec. McClure, BENT, 2-1; Mull, CR, dec. Mucci, DA, 6-3; 121--Bainey, WB, tech. fall Wright, BC, 16-0, 5:51; Sledzianowski, BM, dec. Boni, CV, 6-5; 127--Vargo, BENT, dec. Bracken, U, 7-6; Forrest, BM, pinned Barr, MCG, 1:35; 133--Kazalas, QV, dec. Shunk, PV, 8-3; Gibson, BM, tech. fall Sentipal, BURG, 19-4, 4:55; 139--Hornack, BURR, dec. Gable, PO, 4-2; Bassett, BM, pinned Suica, BURG, 1:17; 145--Ivcic, BENT, dec. Horwat, DA, 4-3; Ja. Butler, BM, dec. Doppelheuer, BV, 5-3 OT.
152--Hoover, PC, dec. Watson, PV, 5-4; Miller, BM, dec. Michaels, EF, 12-8; 160--Pisano, HOPE, maj. dec. Barnhart, RV, 12-2; Magro, BM, tech. fall Celaschi, FRA, 20-4, 5:07; 172--Brown, BV, dec. Scott, T, 4-0; Welsh, FC, maj. dec. Perkins, V, 10-2; 189--Close, BEA, tech. fall Daniels, BENT, 15-0, 2:26; McMonagle, H, pinned Snider, NB, 3:17; 215--Lawrence, FRA, pinned Jo. Butler, BM, 1:19; Ryan, MU, dec. Holmes, S, 8-6 OT; 285--Morgan, CV, tech. fall Williams, G, 17-2, 5:14; Pitzer, MP, dec. Ewing, T, 3-2.
CHAMPIONSHIP FINALS
107--Deputy, CR, dec. Guenot, BEA, 1-0; 114--Williams, CHART, dec. Mull, CR, 5-3; 121--Sledzianowski, BM, dec. Bainey, WB, 7-1; 127--Vargo, BENT, dec. Forrest, BM, 13-7; 133--Gibson, BM, maj. dec. Kazalas, QV, 13-5; 139--Bassett, BM, pinned Hornack, BURR, 2:24; 145--Ja. Butler, BM, dec. Ivcic, BENT, 11-5.
152--Miller, BM, dec. Hoover, PC, 3-1; 160--Magro, BM, maj. dec. Pisano, HOPE, 19-7; 172--Brown, BV, dec. Welsh, FC, 3-2; 189--Close, BEA, dec. McMonagle, H, 5-3; 215--Lawrence, FRA, pinned Ryan, MU, :41; 285--Morgan, CV, tech. fall Pitzer, MP, 18-3, 4:28.
THIRD PLACE
107--Baker, BURR, dec. Hummell, PO, 9-3; 114--Judice, BEA, dec. McClure, BENT, 2-0; 121--Garshnick, U, pinned Boni, CV, 2:45; 127--Fanella, I, dec. Barr, MCG, 7-5; 133--Shunk, PV, dec. Sentipal, BURG, 3-2; 139--Suica, BURG, dec. Gable, PO, 4-2; 145--Horwat, DA, dec. Doppelheuer, BV, 3-1.
152--Watson, PV, dec. Michaels, EF, 9-4 OT; 160--Frameli, JM, won by medical forfeit over Celaschi, FRA; 172--McMullen, BM, dec. Perkins, V, 6-5; 189--Angelo, FRA, dec. Daniels, BENT, 10-5; 215--Holmes, S, dec. Whyte, WG, 7-0; 285--Ewing, T, dec. Baronick, BURG, 2-1 TB.
FIFTH PLACE
107--Santamaria, TM, dec. Anderchak, QV, 5-3 OT; 114--Carlisle, PV, dec. Mucci, DA, 5-2; 121--Wright, BC, dec. Wolfe, MCG, 4-1 TB; 127--Bracken, U, pinned Lindsey, CV, 1:37; 133--Clark, FRA, dec. Orlandini, MON, 5-1; 139--Swisher, BELL, dec. Boyer, EF, 4-2 O; 145--Smith, MON, won by injury default over Poklembo, MP, 3:40.
152--Brown, BURG, maj. dec. Shaulis, MP, 11-3; 160--Barnhart, RV, maj. dec. Fetterolf, PV, 11-1; 172--Scott, T, dec. Campbell, G, 3-1; 189--Brown, DA, dec. Snider, NB, 7-2; 215--Dibert, NB, dec. Jo. Butler, BM, 5-3; 285--Williams, G, pinned McCoy, WH, 1:22.
SEVENTH PLACE
107--Chambers, HIGH, dec. Main, MCG, 3-2; 114--Sombronski, U, dec. Kosanovic, AVON, 3-0; 121--Beatrice, DA, dec. Clouse, NB, 5-0; 127--Slovick, BURG, dec. Bertucci, BURR, 2-1; 133--Forcellini, FH, dec. Kerr, HAM, 7-6; 139--Weightman, BV, tech. fall Fleck, TT, 18-2, 4:38; 145--Imler, CR, won by injury default over Lisowski, PV.
152--J. Long, Bell, dec. Dannner, HAM, 3-0; 160--Clark, H, dec. Baker, S, 8-7; 172--Marsalko, FH, pinned Stephens, U, 3:59; 189--Layhue, BC, won by medical forfeit over Pensiero, BM; 215--Boylan, BURR, pinned Summerville, PC, 6:27 TB; 285--Brambley, E, dec. Hale, B, 3-1.