Holiday Odds and Ends

   There were plenty of wrestling goings on this week as we get closer to the new year. Here's what I'm looking at:

Cornell's Excellence
  It was a mere formality going into the season that Everett's Garret Cornell would become his school's all-time wins leader, as he only needed 10 more to do so. But the way he accomplished the feat was impressive to say the least.
  On Saturday at the Panther Holiday Classic, Cornell used a strong first period to beat Bedford's Kaden Cassidy, 4-2, for the 132-pound title in a battle of high state placewinners (Cornell - 3rd at 126 last season; Cassidy - 3rd at 106 in 2017).
  Then on Tuesday night, Cornell handed Glendale's Brock McMillen a 13-0 defeat. McMillen was the 113-pound state runner-up in March. The loss was by far the most lopsided in McMillen's short varsity career to date. And it gave Cornell the school record, eclipsing Tom Brambley's mark of 112 victories set in the early years of this century.
  I wasn't at Mount Aloysius on the weekend or at Glendale on Tuesday, but I caught up with Cornell last night as the Warriors routed Claysburg-Kimmel. My feature on Cornell's achievement is in today's edition of the Bedford Gazette. And until the end of February, the website is completely free access to anyone, as we have undergone updates to our writing and page design systems.

Lions pass test from Rangers
  I also wasn't able to attend Tuesday's Forest Hills at Chestnut Ridge dual meet due to my son's Christmas concert at his school, so I'll leave my thoughts brief as I didn't cover it. The Lions used their heavy advantage on paper in the upperweights to build a lead, then got enough points down low to secure a victory before the Ranger middleweights could have a chance at the upset. I say upset just because of Chestnut Ridge's recent history, but surely the tide in the area could certainly shift to Forest Hills in the near future.

Dropping names
   During his heralded youth and scholastic wrestling career, former Bedford standout Ryan Easter had the chance to compete against wrestlers such as Jason Nolf, Darian Cruz, Vincenzo Joseph and many other high-profile names.
   In a Q & A piece with Barstool Sports that was published on Thursday afternoon, two-time NCAA champion Joseph was asked a series of 21 questions, ranging from his plans after college to more lighter topics like thoughts about his current Penn State teammates and if he has any superstitions.
   Back to Easter, who was brought up in Joseph's answer to the final question. Joseph mentions that Easter pinned him with a spladle in the North Hills Open 12 and under event back in their days as youth wrestlers. He jokes that Easter had an unfair advantage because he was a year older. I took a photo of the question and the answer in its entirety, which you can view below.

Q&A with Vincenzo Joseph on barstoolsports.com

Holiday Tournament Time
   Two big events at the end of next week will close out the 2018 portion of the wrestling schedule. Three county teams — Bedford, Northern Bedford, and Tussey Mountain — are entered in the Southmoreland Holiday Classic. And Chestnut Ridge will again be competing at the Powerade Tournament.
   Below are tournament fields for each event:
Southmoreland Holiday Classic - Bedford, Bethel Park, Burgettstown, Butler, Beth-Center, Chartiers Houston, Ellwood City, Frazier, Fort Cherry, Greensburg Salem, Hermitage, Indian Land (SC), Jefferson-Morgan, Lee Davis (VA), Ligonier Valley, Marion Center, Mount Pleasant, Meyersdale, Northern Bedford, North Star, Somerset, Southmoreland, South Park, South Side, Tussey Mountain, United, Union City, Upper St. Clair, Valley

Powerade Tournament - Belle Vernon, Benton, Burrell, Camden Catholic (NJ), Canon-McMillan, Cedar Cliff, Chestnut Ridge, Connellsville, Council Rock North, DePaul Catholic (NJ), Derry, DuBois, Erie Prep, Franklin Regional, Freedom, Hampton, Hempfield, Howell (NJ), Kiski Area, Latrobe, Malvern Prep, Mason (OH), McGuffey, Mifflin County, Moeller (OH), Montoursville, Mount Lebanon, North Hills, Norwin, Oak Park-River Forest (IL), Palisades, Parkersburg (WV), Parkersburg South (WV), Penfield (NY), Penn Trafford, Pine Richland, Pottsville, Quaker Valley, Trinity, Pope John Paul II, Reynolds, Saegertown, Seneca Valley, Shaler, St. Albans (WV), St. Joseph's Academy, St. Pauls Prep (MD), Stroudsburg, Thomas Jefferson, Waynesburg, West Allegheny