Wildcats Blitz Top Hat, Midd-West
CM Now Preps for K-o-M
BALD EAGLE TOWNSHIP – So far so good for the Central Mountain wrestling team. Coming off a run-away showing at last weekend’s annual Tom Best Jr. Top Hat Tournament, the Wildcats made their first venture into the Heartland Conference Tuesday night and came away a 72-6 winner over outmanned Midd-West High School.
The Wildcats took 13 of the bouts, including seven falls and four forfeits.
The home dual meet started at 132 pounds where Colton Weaver (5-2) picked up a fall in 4:52 over Daulton Klinger. Emery Watson (5-1) picked up a forfeit to make it 12-0 before Midd-West got on the scoreboard, Michael Ettinger reversing and pinning Brandon Miller (1-3) after Miller had taken a 4-3 lead.
The Wildcats rolled through the remainder of the dual meet. Caleb Turner (2-2) received a forfeit and Demetri Probst (5-1) followed with a first period pin. Teammate Gavin Caprio (5-0) followed with another first period deck job, then Isaac Porter (4-1) settled for a 9-1 major.
Loc Long (5-1) resumed the first period pin parade, time of the fall 0:56; Hunter Weaver (4-2) was given a forfeit and heavyweight Bryce Hanley (5-1 picked up a second period pin.
Sophomore Geo Barzona (4-0) stayed perfect on the year with a second period 18-2 bout termination; Seth Andrus (5-2) got a forfeit and Keanan Bottorf (4-1) edged Corey Stauffer 3-2 in a matchup of state ranked wrestlers, Bottorf number 13 and Stauffer number 21 at 120 pounds, according to the Pennsylvania Power rankings.
Chris Confer finished the dual with a fall in 1:09, putting the final at 72-6 in a tune-up for this weekend:
It’s show time at the Central Mountain High School gymnasium this Friday and Saturday, the annual King of the Mountain wrestling tournament, director Norm Pavlosick’s annual grappling extravaganza attracting 34 teams from all over the state.
How good is this year’s event? Competing Triple A teams will include six of the state’s Top 10 in Tom Elling’s Pennsylvania Wrestling Handbook. They are #1 Bethlehem Catholic (moving up to AAA after winning the K o M and the PIAA Double-A title again last year), #3 Greater Latrobe, #7 Mifflin County, #8 Boyertown, #9 tourney host Central Mountain and #10 Owen J. Roberts.
26 of the teams competing are ranked somewhere in the Top 50 in the state at either the AAA or AA level. They include #3 Double-A team Boiling Springs and these Triple-A area entries: # 22 Jersey Shore and #25 Bellefonte.
Five individual state champions will be in the field: Jack Riegel (106 pounds last March) and Luke Karam (113) from Bethlehem Catholic, Luke Pletcher (120 – AAA) from Greater Latrobe, Korbin Myers (120 -AA) from Boiling Springs and Cameron Coy (132) from Penn Trafford; all are underclassmen except the senior Myers.
Central Mountain will enter coming off a run-away title at last week-end’s Tom Best Memorial. Top Hat tournament, placing eleven wrestlers between first and fifth place. And District 6 nemesis Mifflin County checks in after a 4-0 dual meet start in winning the Ephrata Duals.
Wildcat coach Doug Buckwalter said his team better be ready for the K of M after romping in Williamsport and dusting first-time opponent Midd-West Tuesday night. “We need to get them mentally prepared; to expect tough matches every time they step on the mat.”
Central Mountain placed three wrestlers a year ago, including returning starter Gavin Caprio who finished fourth. Other places, and since graduated, were Chad Reese, fourth, and Cameron Porter, seventh.
Wrestling action begins Friday at 2 p.m. and concludes with the championship and consolation finals at 5 p.m. Saturday.
