Chestnut Ridge at Westmont Hilltop preview

   The biggest match of the local wrestling season is upon us, as Chestnut Ridge makes the trip to Westmont Hilltop tomorrow night, a battle of unbeatens facing off for the Laurel Highlands Athletic Conference championship.
   My breakdown on this title tilt is below:

Chestnut Ridge (9-0) at Westmont Hilltop (10-0)
PA Power State Class AA Rankings: Chestnut Ridge (6th); Westmont Hilltop (9th)

Tuesday night at WHHS

Probable Lineups (Chestnut Ridge wrestlers listed first)

106 - Kai Burkett or Simon Osman vs. Connor Lamantia
113 - Nathan Holderbaum, Burkett, or Osman vs. Tanner Kushner or Luke Benner
120 - Ross Dull or Holderbaum vs. Zane Blackburn or Kushner
126 - Gryphon Callihan or Taylor Claycomb vs. Connor Polacek or Blackburn
132 - Trevor Weyandt vs. Roy Dunn or Polacek
138 - Luke Moore vs. Ethan Kelly or Noah Korenoski
145 - Baltzer Bollman vs. Kelly or Korenoski
152 - Daniel Moore vs. Hudson Holbay
160 - Seth Holderbaum vs. Camden Moors
170 - Jared McGill or Mason McVicker vs. Mason Muto or Hunter Holbay
182 - McGill or McVicker vs. Muto or Holbay
195 - Austin Crouse vs. Tanner Dluhos or Noah Gresh
220 - Duane Knisely vs. Dluhos or Gresh
285 - Dalton Seace vs. Max Yonko

Analysis: Though websites such as Trackwrestling and PA-Wrestling.com are helpful with records, I didn't have time to track everything down for this preview. Based on this past weekend, Westmont's lineup at the Mercer Tournament went as this from 106 up: Lamantia, Kushner, Blackburn, Polacek, Dunn, Korenoski, Kelly, Holbay, Moors, Holbay, Dluhos, Gresh, and Yonko. The Ultimate Duals were cancelled due to weather, so Chestnut Ridge's last time out in last Tuesday's duals with Penn Cambria and Greater Johnstown went as this: Burkett, Holderbaum, Dull, Callihan, Weyandt, Moore, Bollman, Moore, Holderbaum, McVicker, McGill, Crouse, Knisely and Seace. McVicker, who competed for the Lions in junior high, joined the team recently and gives them another option in the upperweights.
   So straight up, Chestnut Ridge is favored at 106, 132 (slight), 182 (with McGill), 195, 220, and 285. Favor Westmont at 113, 120, 138, 145, and 152. That leaves 126, 160, and wherever McVicker may be at as toss-ups. In comparing each team's dual against Forest Hills, Chestnut Ridge will be heavily favored up top and that could be the difference as I feel the Lions have more chances at bonus points throughout the lineup. Of course, don't take that as gospel as I'm rarely right about much. Either way, this should be a good one.
Prediction: Chestnut Ridge, 33-25.

Review and Preview - January 16

   This week's review isn't all that much, as there was nothing on the weekend from a local perspective and just a few dual meets last night.
   Of note there is Chestnut Ridge's Jared McGill, who controlled the bulk of the 182-pound bout against Penn Cambria's Derek Brown in a 17-6 major decision that featured the No. 1 and No. 3 ranked wrestlers at 170 by PA Power Wrestling.
   On to the preview:

Lions looking to pounce
   Over the next six days, we should find out a lot about how Chestnut Ridge stacks up with many of the state's higher-ranked Class AA teams.
   Saturday, weather permitting as we're all awaiting a weekend snowstorm, is the annual Ultimate Duals at Brookville. As of PA Power's latest rankings, the event will feature No. 1 Reynolds, No. 4 Burrell, No. 6 Chestnut Ridge, No. 8 Brookville, and No. 17 Freedom.
   A link to the schedule: Ultimate Duals Schedule.
   Chestnut Ridge draws Brookville and Reynolds right out of the gate.
   Then on Tuesday night, the Lions travel to No. 9 Westmont-Hilltop for a dual that will determine the Laurel Highlands Athletic Conference championship.
   As I've stated before, the Hilltoppers might not have the names that jump off the page, but they're a pretty solid group from top to bottom. I'm hoping to do a bout-by-bout preview in time for Tuesday's showdown.
   Chestnut Ridge received a little reinforcement in the upperweights with the addition of senior Mason McVicker to the roster. McVicker, who wrestled in the junior high ranks for the Lions, has been in practice for a week or so and he picked up a first-period pin against Greater Johnstown yesterday. He gives Greg Lazor another option in the 170-182 area.

Long Range lookahead
   It's not so much long range, but the Thomas Tournament is fast approaching — next weekend.
   I'll certainly have more on this as it gets closer, on here and for the Bedford Gazette, but here's a quick glance at the team list. I was told last night that South Fayette was a late scratch, so it looks like a 26-school field.

   2019 Thomas Tournament - Athens, Bedford, Berlin, Beth-Center, Burrell, Cambria Heights, Central, Central Cambria, Chestnut Ridge, Claysburg-Kimmel, Conemaugh Township, Everett, Freedom, Greenville, Jefferson-Morgan, Newport, North Star, North Schuylkill, Northern Bedford, Northern Garrett (Md.), Meyersdale, Mount Pleasant, Penn Cambria, Somerset, Tri-Valley, Tussey Mountain.

Cheap Tilts - Gabriel carving his own path

   Nathan Gabriel isn't worried about his wrestling accomplishments being compared to that of his older brother.

   And Bedford's 145-pound senior says he's never been, instead staying focused on his own goals.

   About midway through his final season in a Bison singlet, Gabriel seems to be hitting the right stride at the right time.

   Gabriel put together one of his best varsity efforts to date with a dominant 16-2 major decision on Friday night over Northern Bedford's Ian Sherlock, who had been wrestling as well as anybody locally over the past few weeks.

   Gabriel had four takedowns, a reversal, and two nearfalls in the victory. In my match story for the Bedford Gazette, he told me he was looking forward to a potential meeting with Sherlock, who bumped up a weight.

   That win, and the manner in which it came, is certain to bolster Gabriel's mindset with events like the Thomas Tournament and the postseason on the horizon.

   "My season's going pretty well," he said. "It's just minor things I need to work on. I'm feeling a lot better and slicker on the mat."

   His 11-5 record going into tomorrow's tri-meet with Cambria Heights and Somerset might not blow anybody away, but if you look further, Gabriel's faced some very strong competition in the first month and a half.

   That list includes Caleb Dowling (St. Joseph's Academy), Erik Gibson (Forest Hills), Ethan Kelly (Westmont Hilltop) and Shane Kemper (Burgettstown). Dowling was last year's state runner-up at 138, Kemper is a returning state qualifier, Kelly was a previous state qualifier, and Gibson is among the top freshmen in the state.

   And inside his own family, Gabriel couldn't have asked for a better wrestler to work with than his older sibling Jonathan. 

   Jonathan Gabriel's story is of course well chronicled, as he won a state championship in 2015 and is one of only three wrestlers in history to win four Thomas Tournament titles before moving on to compete at the U.S. Naval Academy. Over the years, he's also served as a mentor.

   "About every single thing I do on the bottom now is from him," Nathan said. "It was always tough because he wrestled different styles than me. He would always have to change stuff and show me different things, but a lot of my wrestling has come from him.

   "I've never felt any pressure. I know I'm my own person, and he's always been really supportive. It's never been like I had to prove anything to anyone."

   Gabriel, who has also picked up a strong practice partner this winter in former state medalist Kaden Cassidy, is someone that Bedford coach Joel Easter can lean to, on and off the mat.

   "He started out the season with a couple of state caliber kids, and we just told him to keep at it and his time will come," said Easter. "He never gets down on himself — he always has a good positive attitude in the room. He's our leader. When I need something, I go to Nathan. I'm proud of how he's come through the adversity in those tough matches."

   

Becahi drops Thompson midseason

   "Thompson out, Karam back as Bethlehem Catholic wrestling coach"
   That was the headline that first caught my eye when checking social media earlier this afternoon. Even though Rick Thompson has been let go from wrestling programs before, including three times in his beloved hometown, I was and am still so stunned by that news.
   Of course, the first thing I thought was: Is it because of the loss to Liberty last Friday night? A loss, 32-28, that was the first Becahi had suffered to a league opponent in a regular season match since February of 2011, so nearly eight years of dominating the Lehigh Valley and the state for that matter.
   In comments made to Tom Housenick of Allentown's Morning Call and Kyle Craig of The Express-Times (lehighvalleylive.com) (click links at left for story), Thompson says he told the school's administration last month that this would be his only season coaching the Golden Hawks, due to reasons he wouldn't disclose but apparently some differences in program views for the present and future.
   Then today, Thompson told Housenick that he received a text message from Bethlehem Catholic athletic director Chris Domyan requesting a meeting about the "direction of the program." During the meeting, reported to be about a half-hour later, Domyan informed him that he was being let go immediately and that Jeff Karam would be the new coach. Karam stepped down after 10 years this past spring, but was still on Thompson's staff this season as an assistant.
   Obviously, there are so many questions. And probably most of them, we'll never get the full answer since we're on the outside looking in. More on that later.
   If you're a regular follower of this blog (and why not if you're not, just kidding), you know that I have discussed the wrestling program at Phillipsburg, New Jersey before. It's where I went to school and first met Rick Thompson.
   In the fall of 1992, I was a high school freshman and had Thompson as a physical education teacher for the first marking period. Right before wrestling practices were to get underway, Thompson came to me and asked this probably 95-pound soaking wet goofy-looking kid to consider being a student manager for the team. I had been to a few matches before and knew Phillipsburg (or P'burg as we locals affectionally call it) had really good teams.
   So in short, a bulk of the wrestling knowledge that I have today and try to put to good use for the Bedford Gazette and this blog can be traced back to Rick, his coaching style, the way he molded his teams, and their success too. And I always felt like he treated me just like he did the wrestlers that went on to win state championships.
   He told Craig today: "My life is about helping kids...I've always done what I thought was best for the kids and I still will. I thought I was doing what's best for the Bethlehem Catholic program."
   I have no doubt that is true, because I witnessed it first hand for three years.
   Now back to those reasons why he is out, in no particular order:
  —  Was it really the loss to Liberty?
   The timing of this news is interesting to me. I had actually listened to PA Power Wrestling's latest podcast yesterday which was hosted by Jeff Upson and Jeremy Elliott, who used to cover the sport full-time for Pennlive and now is a contributor to PA Power.
   Of course, they discussed last Friday's loss by Becahi and what it meant to the Class AAA landscape this year. Elliott made some comments that I took as saying perhaps Becahi had lost a step or two on the rung after Karam stepped away from the head chair. I responded in a private message on Twitter to PA Power's account that I thought Becahi replaced a really good coach with another really good coach. I listed some of Thompson's background and said that I did have bias in that regard, but I thought with time given, Thompson could have just as much success there as Karam did. I also stated that I would give more credit to Liberty on this because teams in the Lehigh Valley have been long tired of losing to Bethlehem Catholic. A loss was bound to happen at some point, that's just the law of averages or whatever you want to call it.
   My intention wasn't to knock Jeremy Elliott. In all likelihood, he and Upson don't know Rick Thompson and I just wanted to give some opinion and background on who he is. So Jeremy was going off what he saw and covered in Karam's tenure, which is his right to do.
   So was losing to Liberty part, or all, of the reason? Probably not, but it could have been a sign to the administration (though I would never agree) that Karam's guidance was far superior, even in the small sample size they had up close with Thompson.
— Was there an incident that hasn't come to light?
   While you know my admiration for Thompson earlier in this blog and on one I wrote when he was hired at Becahi last year, he can be seen as a controversial figure and has sometimes been perhaps his own worst enemy. Remember, he had a ton of success (268-54-1 at Phillipsburg over three stints) but was still let go on all three occasions. I won't get into all of that here.
   Maybe even saying last month that he was likely leaving after the season because he didn't see eye-to-eye with some was enough for Domyan to pull the plug now. If he was already thinking that, perhaps it would have been better to stay quiet and coach out the year.
   And if there was some incident and Thompson did wrong enough for it to be a fireable offense a month into the season, so be it and I would agree with the school's decision.
— Was there outside pressure?
   Thompson said in his comments today that he didn't think parents, etc. may have been a reason for the sudden change. He also added in Housenick's story that some don't confront issues face to face though. Though he didn't believe so, I think it's entirely possible, maybe not from parents. To me, there's a lot of pressure there, even though they won the state team title last February. Again, the Lehigh Valley has a wealth of bigtime programs and all of them have been chomping at the bit to get a shot to dethrone the top dog. And despite Thompson's resume, the fan base will always be comparing him to the most recent teams from Karam.
Final Thought
   Like I said, if there is something that Thompson did that warranted him being let go, I would support the decision. If it's losing one match, then Becahi is way too short sighted. Every coach will tell you that losses, and how you respond to them, define your athletes and teams more than wins do.
   I hope it's not the former, because Rick Thompson deserves a fair shake to be a wrestling coach again.

Statewide Review and Preview - January 7

   There were a few major doings around Pennsylvania this past week in wrestling, and there's plenty to look forward to in the near future. Below is some reviewing and previewing.

Still the One
   In a widely anticipated matchup last Thursday, Westmont Hilltop rallied late to beat Forest Hills, 39-29. The Hilltoppers scored a huge pin in the next-to-last bout to secure the team victory. If you didn't see Eric Knopsnyder's recap with video, you can at this link — Westmont stages dramatic rally: Tribune-Democrat.
   While Westmont may not have the names that jump right off the page, the reigning league and district champions have a solid group up and down the lineup. And barring something really surprising, the win by the Hilltoppers sets up a de-facto Laurel Highlands Athletic Conference title match two weeks from tomorrow (January 22 at WH) between unbeatens Westmont and Chestnut Ridge.

Hurricane Force
   I'm guessing not many people had a better night on Friday than Jody Karam, as his up-and-coming Liberty team scored a dramatic 32-30 win over Bethlehem Catholic. The Hurricanes were down 30-17 but won the final four bouts to celebrate.
   There's been no love lost between the Bethlehem schools on the wrestling mat, and even though Jeff Karam is no longer the head coach at Bethlehem Catholic, Jody coming coming out on top this year against a team he couldn't beat when his brother was there has to be extremely satisfying, especially in the manner in which it happened.
   Not only did Liberty stun Becahi, it's been a great week or so for the Hurricanes as they won the team title at their own Bethlehem Holiday Classic, and then also rallied to beat Northampton 32-28 two nights before the dual with their city rivals.
   Prior to those duals last week, Liberty was ranked 45th in the nation by Intermat. Bethlehem Catholic was ninth, while Northampton was listed 38th.
   This will also make for a very interesting District 11-AAA Duals early next month. Only two teams will make the state duals field the following weekend. With Bethlehem Catholic coming back to the pack a little this season and perhaps not as good of a Nazareth team as we've seen in recent years, the re-emergence of both Liberty and Northampton has created a lot of intrigue in the Lehigh Valley.

Class AA Showdown
   A huge match is on tap for tomorrow night as Southern Columbia hosts Muncy in a battle of top three teams in the state according to PA Power Wrestling. Southern, ranked No. 2, hasn't been tested in a dual and also won the Trojan Wars Tournament over the holidays. But the Tigers have been missing a few top-notch regulars from their lineup so that could make this match more interesting. Muncy is ranked No. 3 and has had a couple of closer matchups against Class AAA competition.
   Both teams were state duals medalists last year and looking for more this time around. Southern Columbia was the state runner-up to Reynolds, while Muncy placed fourth.
 
 
 

Cheap Tilts - Sherlock hitting his stride

   Wrestling is as much mental as it is anything else.
   Ian Sherlock is staying focused on that side of the sport. And his physical aspect of wrestling hasn't been too bad, either, as the Northern Bedford junior is rolling into the new year on a wave of momentum.
   His latest result was last night's 8-6 overtime win at 138 pounds over Tussey Mountain's Brady Villa in the headline bout of the dual between the county rivals.
   Sherlock had lost to Villa twice before in varsity competition, and neither bout was all that close. Two years ago, Villa won by a 9-1 major decision in the third place bout at the District 5 Tournament, which ended Sherlock's season. In last year's dual meet, Villa was victorious by a 9-2 decision. The Tussey Mountain wrestler went on to reach the state tournament, while Sherlock had his season end early due to injury.
   This latest one was hard-fought on both wrestlers' parts. Villa's double leg shot moments into the sudden victory period appeared like it might be the winning move, but Sherlock quickly got into a funk and won the scramble to claim the two points.
   "I just tried to stay calm the whole match, and not lose myself and stay focused," said Sherlock. "I wanted to go out and win the match, and that's what I tried to do."
   That focus has produced 12 wins in his last 13 bouts after an opening night loss. Of those dozen victories, he has 10 pins, which included one over Ellwood City's Donavin Chambers in the semifinals of the Southmoreland Holiday Classic last Friday. Starting the second period in the top position, Sherlock locked up a tight cradle and decked Chambers, who was the Southwest Regional runner-up at 132 last winter.
   "His confidence level is definitely on the way up," Northern Bedford coach Brian Dutchcot said of Sherlock. "He had a huge win against Chambers, and followed that up with a win over Villa. He's getting more confident on his feet — that opening takedown tonight was huge. He battled back to force overtime and won the scramble. That's showing a lot of heart."
   Sherlock is also coming off a strong cross country season in the fall. He was an individual state qualifier and was one of the key runners that led the Black Panthers to an unbeaten record in duals and a district team championship.
   "It helped build up good endurance and mental toughness," he said. "It helps a lot with being on the wrestling mat by yourself, because you're out on the (cross country) course by yourself. It's whether you want it or not — that's what it comes down to."

Lights, Camera, Action
   Last night's match at Northern Bedford provided a fun and exciting atmosphere. Just about any time that these two schools get together in any sport, both fan bases come out in numbers. But the addition of Northern Bedford taking the mat through a smoke machine with the lights out and music blaring ramped the electricity up.
   I knew that Tussey Mountain had the edge on paper given three forfeits, but I also wasn't sure if the pro-Panther additions to the atmosphere might affect the Titans, who start a number of sophomores and freshmen. That wasn't the case for Mason Replogle's team. Replogle should know, as he once competed well in the Northern Bedford colors. He told me afterward, which you can read in today's Bedford Gazette, that he made sure to have his group focused on the wrestling match and not the extra-curricular activities surrounding it. That's surely what occurred in Tussey's 58-18 victory.
 
 

Holiday Wrapup and More

   Happy New Year to all you wrestling fans!
   The 2018 portion of the season ended with strong efforts from a number wrestlers in the holiday tournaments. I have some analysis and recapping below in this week's notebook:

Cassidy in Control
   One of the big local stories from the past week was the performance of Bedford's Kaden Cassidy at the Southmoreland Holiday Classic. The 132-pound junior thoroughly dominated the bracket on his way to the title.
   Cassidy put together four consecutive technical falls, and didn't give up a point in the entire event. He won twice by 15-0 scores, and twice by 16-0 counts.
   Yes, the weight may not have been as strong in terms of highly ranked wrestlers, but you can only do what's put in front of you, and Cassidy was razor sharp in my opinion. He consistently overmatched opponents with his tilt series and threw in a cradle or two as well.
   After the finals, he told me that he put himself at about 75-80 percent in his technique right now, especially from the top position. Considering how he looked at Southmoreland, that's bad news for his upcoming competition.

           Kaden Cassidy gets ready for the 132-pound final at the Southmoreland Holiday Classic.   

                                                                        - Photo by Ryan Spring

   Cassidy, who finished third in the state at 106 pounds two years ago, also told me he isn't worried about the outside distractions that can come with being such a highly-regarded wrestler.
   "I feel no pressure," he said. "I don't even look at rankings anymore. My freshman year, I was all about that stuff. I'm just going to go out there and compete at my best at all times."
   And a tough loss to Everett's Garret Cornell in last month's final at the Panther Holiday Classic is that little extra fuel Cassidy says he can use to get better.
   "It will help me in the long run. That's definitely not the best I can wrestle. No excuses, but I'm ready to get back on the mat against him or any opponent that has beaten me before."

Southmoreland Shuffle
   I've always enjoyed attending the Southmoreland Holiday Classic because it, combined with the upcoming Thomas Tournament, gives a good feel for a bulk of the Class AA Southwest Region. And you can see some Class AAA teams and wrestlers that I don't normally cover that closely.
   Locally, I thought it was a nice performance by all three teams from the county. Tussey Mountain had six placewinners and finished seventh. Bedford, led by Cassidy's title, and Northern Bedford, which featured 138-pound runner-up Ian Sherlock, were ninth and tenth with five medalists each.

McGill checks off another box
   Chestnut Ridge's Jared McGill won his second straight Powerade championship on Saturday night. This one wasn't easy, as he needed an overtime takedown of McGuffey's Christian Clutter for a 4-2 victory between the top two wrestlers in Class AA at 170 pounds.
   Nonetheless, it's another piece of history in McGill's closet as he keeps his eye on a state title that he so desperately wants before he departs the Lions' program.
   McGill's teammate Duane Knisely also had a nice tournament with a fifth-place showing at 220 after coming in as the No. 7 seed.

Living Legends
   The coaching staff at Bedford this season includes some of the most decorated wrestlers in county history. When Joel Easter (a three-time PIAA placer) was hired this spring to take the reigns, two former standouts that came in as assistants were his son Ryan, and Jan Clark.
   Clark and the younger Easter make up two-thirds of the county's four-time state medalists. The other is Justin McCoy, who accomplished the feat last year, while McGill can join that exclusive group in March.

               Ryan Easter and Jan Clark coach Bedford wrestlers at the Southmoreland Holiday Classic. 

                                                                        - Photo by Ryan Spring

   And it's the second consecutive posting that I've been able to give Ryan Easter a shoutout. In my last posting, which you can scroll down to or click the link here - Holiday Odds and Ends - Dec. 21, Easter's name came up when Penn State's Vincenzo Joseph was giving a Q & A piece for Barstool Sports. Joseph said that Easter used a spladle to pin him during a youth tournament in the Pittsburgh area, and he was hoping for a rematch someday.
   On Friday, I jokingly asked Easter if he had the spladle ready and we shared a laugh about it.

New Year, New Gear
   As January comes in, the regular season heats up with key duals and tournaments. And we'll start finding out where everyone will be at as the two-pound growth allowance kicks in.
   On Thursday night, Tussey Mountain visits neighbor Northern Bedford in what could be a key result down the road when it comes to district duals ratings. As I said before, both teams showed solid at Southmoreland, and the Black Panthers hope to have Alex Fouse back in the lineup. Fouse missed the tournament due to sickness.
   Everett hosts its annual dual-meet tournament on Saturday, where Forest Hills appears to be the strong favorite.