Lions continue to thrive on statewide stage

   A bunch of smiles stood out as Chestnut Ridge once again posed for team pictures following Saturday's conclusion of the PIAA state dual meet championships.
   That's become the norm with the Lions, who found themselves with another round of medals and a team trophy before they departed Hershey's Giant Center.
   Chestnut Ridge finished third in Class AA for the third straight season, and earned its fifth medal overall from the team tournament. The Lions have the three third places along with a runner-up finish in 2015 and a fourth-place effort in 2013.
   In eight short years, Chestnut Ridge has transformed itself from one of the stronger programs in the region to among the top two or three on the state's small school level. Only Reynolds, which won its fourth consecutive championship and has medaled in each of the past eight years, has more hardware than the Lions over this time period.
   Certainly, there are a number of factors for it that have been well-chronicled before.
   A really strong feeder program, a top-notch coaching staff, and a brutal regular season schedule are just a few of them.
   But some teams just know how to compete on the big stages, and Chestnut Ridge is one of them. The Lions have found themselves in several big situations in Hershey over the years, and have delivered on more occasions than not.
   That's why there's five team trophies sitting in the school right now, and that's why the top teams know when the Lions are standing on the other side of the mat, it's likely going to be a heavyweight fight for every team point available.
   It's no secret that success breeds success, and that rings true at Chestnut Ridge, where the wrestling bloodlines often run deeper than the family bloodlines.
   I spoke to Calan Bollman after he won the 106-pound title at the Thomas Chevrolet Tournament at Bedford two weeks ago. I asked the talented freshman what he may have learned or seen from previous wrestlers at Chestnut Ridge.
   Here was his response: "My (assistant) coach right there (was standing nearby), Tyler Dibert, the Buttry boys (Austin and Conner), they have all helped me. And even Jared (McGill) and Justin (McCoy). I remember watching all of them when I was like six or seven years old, and we would go to tournaments on the weekends. They've just helped a lot with the program and they're giving back to it now."
   In that answer, Bollman rattled off a who's who of some of Chestnut Ridge's most decorated wrestlers in its history. Among other things, all that group did was win 12 state medals collectively, including state titles for McCoy (2017) and McGill (2019).
   Like many of them, Bollman came to the varsity ranks highly decorated and expected to do big things. And whatever he may have picked up in the past, he's putting to good use with a 30-3 record to date as perhaps the next superstar for the Lions.
   That’s just one example of current wrestlers taking a page from those before them. It’s not exclusive to Chestnut Ridge at all, but in this day, the Lion program is taking full advantage of it.
   That said, in a team concept, you need everyone to contribute. And Chestnut Ridge gets that too, whether it's an upset win or just staying away from getting pinned or surrendering major bonus points.
   Just this weekend, look at Duane Knisely moving up to heavyweight twice and beating a pair of really good kids (Southern Columbia's Lear Quinton and Saucon Valley's Nick Warnke). Or how about Luke Moore's win over Saucon's Thomas Spirk, who was a state medalist last year.
   Those are the kind of things that have to happen to do what Chestnut Ridge is doing.
   That's what Reynolds does, and if you want to be where the Raiders are, that's what you do.
   Honestly, if I had to bet money this past weekend, I would have said I thought this was Southern Columbia's year. But yet again, Reynolds is Reynolds as I've heard so many say in the confines of the Giant Center.
   As for the near future, Reynolds will be of course there, Southern Columbia will have a strong group back, Saucon Valley is a mainstay in the medal hunt, Notre Dame wants what it doesn't have yet, and Forest Hills is coming on fast with a young group of high talent already with more on the way.
   But don't forget about Chestnut Ridge. Yes, I'd bet on that too.
 
 
 
 
 

Northern Bedford girls program continues to grow

 

Jared Mellott, left, discusses a drill during Monday's girls wrestling practice at Northern Bedford.

   The back of one shirt at a recent girls wrestling practice at Northern Bedford County High School read "Don't be fooled by the ponytail."

   These days, there's no fooling around about one of the fastest growing sports in the country. Girls wrestling continues to fly high, and it's thriving locally at Northern Bedford.

   According to the National Wrestling Coaches Association (NWCA) website, there were well over 16,000 girls wrestling in American high schools in 2018, compared to about only 800 in 1994.

   Girls from across Bedford County and even as far away as West Virginia have attended practices this season at Northern Bedford. 

   This isn't the first year for the program, as it was started a few years ago by the Fouse family. Currently, it is run by former Northern Bedford standout Jared Mellott, who won 101 bouts and was a two-time regional qualifier. One of his main assistants is Shane Suter, who was a district champion with the Black Panthers. Both Mellott and Suter have daughters that are wrestling in the program.

   The girls practice during the week and will also compete in tournaments. This past weekend, they took part in the Christmas Tree Capital Round Robin at IUP's Kovalchick Center, where eight girls finished fourth or higher in their respective weight classes. 

   There were over 25 girls at practice on Monday night, and local wrestling fans can expect more and more female names to show up in box scores alongside their boys counterparts. 

             Girls work on wrestling drills during their practice at Northern Bedford earlier this week.

   One of the products of Northern Bedford's program, Jordyn Fouse, is a starter on the Panthers' junior high team. She won on Tuesday by riding out her opponent in the ultimate tiebreaker, and received as much of an ovation in the Northern Bedford gym as some of the varsity wrestlers did for their efforts later on in the night.

   Fouse also finished fifth against the boys at 101 pounds in Saturday's Bearcat Classic.

   Around the nation in recent years, a number of states have sanctioned an official high school state championship event in girls wrestling. Pennsylvania, long regarded as one of the top states for boys wrestling, does not have an official girls state championship as of yet. 

   But the Pennsylvania Interscholastic Athletic Association (PIAA), which presides over state championships in all sports, continues to face mounting pressure from the outside to join with bordering states Maryland, New Jersey, and more than a dozen others around the country in holding an official state event for the female contingent.

   While that is the eventual hope, opportunities elsewhere for girls who wrestle are becoming more available. Over 60 colleges sponsor varsity women's programs, while women's wrestling became a recognized Olympic sport in 2004.

   Another local opportunity recently opened as well, with Chestnut Ridge varsity coach Josh Deputy teaming with Young Guns leader Jody Strittmatter to form the The Orchard Girls Wrestling Club. Practices for that club will be based out of Deputy's The Compound Ridge near his home in New Paris.

   

   

 

2019-20 Season Preview

   Yes, another wrestling season is upon us.
   A few dual meets and tournaments dot the calendar for this Friday and Saturday, while the new year gets underway for everyone by sometime next week.
   I wrote season previews for the six teams in the Bedford Gazette's coverage area, which releases its overall winter issue for Friday's edition.
   The Altoona Mirror's "Winter Heat" came out today, and there are capsule previews of all of its area squads in those pages.
   Aside from that, here's what I'm looking at as the first whistle gets closer.

The Big Three
   While there is plenty of returning talent across Bedford County, there are three state placewinners from March back on the local mats — Bedford's Kaden Cassidy, and Chestnut Ridge teammates Kai Burkett and Nate Holderbaum.
   Cassidy is a two-time medalist in Hershey, taking third in both his freshman and junior years. The George Mason recruit would enjoy nothing more than to climb that final step to the top of the podium this season, likely at either 132 or 138 pounds. Cassidy posted a 37-2 mark last winter. He has the most wins from a season ago of any returning wrestler in the county.
   Burkett turned a solid freshman year at 106 into a better one at the same weight as a sophomore. He posted a 35-6 record and finished fifth in the state tournament after reaching the Class AA semifinals.
   Holderbaum closed out last season as one of the strongest performers in the area, gaining fourth-place honors at the Giant Center following three straight wins from a pigtail spot in the 113-pound bracket.

Others to Watch
   Aside from that trio, Chestnut Ridge's Duane Knisely and Northern Bedford's Ian Sherlock are also returning district champions. Also to keep an eye on, in no particular order, are Bedford's Mathew Emerick, Chestnut Ridge's Ross Dull, Gryphon Callihan, and Trevor Weyandt, Claysburg-Kimmel's Kobe Harr, Everett's Lane Younker and Logan Propst, Northern Bedford's Colby Imler, and Tussey Mountain's Trevor Husick and Matthew Watkins.
   One of those I'll single out is Callihan, who was 22-16 last season but lost some close bouts against a number of top-notch wrestlers from around the state.
   The Lions held an open intrasquad scrimmage last night, which I attended. Yes, it's a scrimmage, but from seeing him in person and a brief chat with Ridge coach Josh Deputy on the subject, Callihan looks like he could be a tough out this season.

New Faces
   There's always a few newcomers, whether they are freshmen or others who are on rosters. Two that jump out right away are Chestnut Ridge freshman Calan Bollman, and Claysburg-Kimmel freshman Cole Claycomb.
   Bollman headlines a crop of young talented Lions ready to keep them at the top of the district's pecking order. A Mountain Conference junior high champion last year and a Pennsylvania Junior Wrestling (PJW) fifth-place state medalist two seasons ago, Bollman drew my eye on Tuesday night.
   Again, it's a preseason scrimmage, but Bollman gave Holderbaum (three years his senior and a high school state medalist as mentioned) everything he wanted in a tight six-plus minute battle.

   Chestnut Ridge teammates Nate Holderbaum, left, and Calan Bollman work for position during Tuesday's intrasquad scrimmage.

   Claysburg will have lower numbers this year overall, but Claycomb is likely to make an impact in his first varsity season. Claycomb finished seventh in the state at PJW's last winter and should team with Harr to give the Bulldogs cheering options well into the postseason.

Chasing the Lions

  Chestnut Ridge is once again a prohibitive favorite to lay claim to top billing in District 5. Outside of that, who can knock the Lions off? The biggest challenges in the Laurel Highlands Athletic Conference should come from Forest Hills and Westmont Hilltop. 

   The Rangers have a strong core of talent returning, including state champ Jackson Arrington and high placer Erik Gibson. And Westmont may not have a lot of "jump off the page" names on its roster, but the Hilltoppers have almost everyone back from a year ago.

   In terms of the Lions, there won't be very many "weak" spots from 106 to the 170-182 range. Throw in Knisely up top, and beating Chestnut Ridge is going to take a strong effort from anybody. Forest Hills came close last December (35-28). The Rangers host the Lions on December 17.

The Men in Stripes

   This is a shoutout to local officials Mike Eichelberger and Randy Jarrett, who worked Chestnut Ridge's scrimmage. 

   While there are understandable reasons that many officials in all sports are getting out of the business, Eichelberger and Jarrett showed why they're two of the best and most respected (in my opinion) among wrestling referees in both the area and state. 

   Before the scrimmage started, the pair took a good 10-15 minutes to explain, and demonstrate, to the wrestlers the new rules and points of emphasis regarding stalling and the penalty point structure. They're not just looking to collect some extra money, they have a genuine interest in the athletes.

   Often times, officials are on the other end of things in regards to negative attention, whether it may be warranted or not. 

   Myself included, I think we can all do a little better in giving these men and women a hand and a thank you for allowing us to keep enjoying high school athletics.

   

 

Top wrestling talent ready for The Surge

Press Release per Eric Knopsnyder of PA Power Wrestling

   More than 200 of Pennsylvania’s top wrestlers will come together in Johnstown on Sunday (Nov. 3) for The Surge preseason tournament.

   The tournament, which is produced by PA Power Wrestling, had a star-studded field in its debut a year ago. Last year’s event featured 74 wrestlers who qualified for the PIAA tournament in 2019, 35 who won state medals and four PIAA champions. Franklin Regional’s Carter Dibert, Forest Hills’ Jackson Arrington, Seneca Valley’s Alejandro Herrera-Rondon and Hopewell’s Jacob Ealy each took to the mats at the University of Pittsburgh four months before finding PIAA glory in Hershey.    Amazingly, only two of those – Herrera-Rondon and Ealy – took home the hammer as The Surge champion.

   Waynesburg Central’s Rocco Welsh, who wrestled in The Surge as an eighth-grader before going on to claim a Pennsylvania Junior Wrestling title in Johnstown four months later, is scheduled to return, as is Malvern Prep’s Dayton Delviscio, who was a National Preps finalist.

   “We all know that Pennsylvania is regarded as one of the best, if not the best, state for wrestling in the country,” said PA Power Wrestling founder Jeff Upson. “And who wouldn’t want to be known as the best in the Keystone State? That’s why we’re thrilled to have so many of them ready to come prove it at The Surge.”

   In addition to wrestlers from acorss Pennsylvania, athletes from Ohio and Maryland have registered to compete.

   The tournament is open to wrestlers in grades 8 through 12, with varsity weight classes plus 4 pounds. Wrestling begins at 9 a.m. Registration is open at arena.flowrestling.org.

McCoy ready for college wrestling's big show

   While returning from a recruiting visit to another school, Justin McCoy decided that the University of Virginia was where he wanted to chase his collegiate wrestling dreams.

   Now with a year of open competition as a redshirt under his belt, McCoy feels he's ready to begin that pursuit in earnest. 

   McCoy, the former Chestnut Ridge star and Bedford County's all-time leader in high school victories, recently won the starting spot at 157 pounds for the Cavaliers. He's coming off a broken hand at the end of last season, but that has healed and also kept him focused.

   "I'm very excited for the upcoming season," said McCoy. "I feel like I put a lot of work in throughout the summer. (The broken hand) was disappointing because I didn't get to wrestle for a while, but I feel like it made me more hungrier to compete. And I feel that I've made a lot of progress since I came back."

   McCoy's accomplishments in high school are well chronicled. He was 167-18 at Chestnut Ridge with four district championships, two regional titles, and a state championship at 145 pounds in 2017. He's one of only four county wrestlers in history to be a four-time state medalist (Jan Clark, Ryan Easter, Jared McGill). 

   That said, when he walked into his first practice last fall at Virginia, McCoy was just another wrestler in the room.

   "For the first couple of months, I got beat up by everybody," he said. "It was hard to stay positive when was getting my butt kicked every day. But I had to just keep being persistent and try to get one-percent better every day."

   When he stepped onto the mat for real last season, McCoy was awfully strong, going 25-3 in open tournaments. He won titles at the Hokie Open, Wolfpack Open, and Patriots Open, and was a placewinner in three other events. Overall, he had five technical falls, three pins, and three major decisions. McCoy was also named to the Atlantic Coast Conference Academic Honor Roll.

   McCoy has been working on his offense in preparation for the season.

   "Everyone is always looking to score points," he said. "It doesn't matter what position they're in, everyone's always trying to better their position to score more points. 

   "There is so much technique that I never learned before that is so helpful in college wrestling. And there is so much attention to detail. I think those are big differences from high school."

   McCoy is ranked 33rd at 157 pounds by TrackWrestling. Many of the other collegiate ranking services do not include freshmen or redshirt freshmen until the season begins.

   None of that matters to McCoy, who eyes the top of the NCAA Division I podium in Minneapolis in March.

   "My biggest goal is to be a national champion. Many people might think that's crazy, but my belief in myself is the only thing that matters. 

   "Another goal of mine is to 'compete in such a way' for every match. That's one of the pillars of UVA wrestling. It means that when I go out on the mat, I want to compete in a way that I give everything I have for seven minutes or however long the match is. And when I walk off the mat, I know I gave it all I got no matter if I win or lose."

   Virginia's season begins on November 2 with the Cavalier Duals. McCoy could compete three times in Pennsylvania. The Keystone Classic in Philadelphia is on November 24, while the University of Pittsburgh will host the Cavaliers on February 8 in a dual meet and also hold the ACC Championships on March 8.

New play clock rule will be put to the test

   With the kickoff of the high school football season less than 24 hours away, the most noticeable change to rules will be the implementation of a 40-second play clock for most in-game situations.
   In the past, the play clock was 25 seconds after the ball was officially set for the next snap. Now, the 40-second rundown will begin as soon as a play is whistled dead. It was approved by the National Federation of State High Schools' (NFHS) board of directors earlier this year.
   The 25-second clock will still be used prior to a conversion attempt, for starting a quarter or overtime series, following charged timeouts and when officials stop the clock for inadvertent whistles or their own timeouts.
   So in instances where there's a long incomplete pass, players will have to move quickly back to the line of scrimmage. It could also affect quarterbacks who go to the sideline to get their next play call or substitutions throughout a game.
   There are many fields that do not have play clocks behind their end zones, so players and coaches will still have to watch the back judge who raises his hand at the five-second mark.
   Many coaches are taking a wait-and-see approach to the new rule.
   "I'm not sure how I feel because I haven't seen it live yet," said Northern Bedford coach Garry Black. "I do think it could change some substitutions for teams with a lack of depth. If there's an incompletion 40-45 yards downfield and players end up on the ground, it could be tough to get them back to the huddle to be involved in the next play. I guess we will see how it plays out."
   And with most teams going to a 10-game and one scrimmage setup a few years ago, they've perhaps had less time to prepare for the play clock change in a live setting.
   "I always like our scrimmage to be game-like," said Chestnut Ridge coach Max Shoemaker. "We're always making our guys aware of things like getting plays in and out of the huddle. I'm not expecting it to have a drastic effect on the game, but it is something that you need to keep in mind."
   One thing the 40-second clock could allow for is more continuity from game to game involving officials.
   "I think it will create consistency," said Black. "Some officials work faster than others, and this will make it the same each and every week. One time at an away game, the pace was faster than anything I've been around and it was very different to be operating that quickly."
   Most of the other rule changes are minor and involve tackling, blocking and formations. The NFHS is also allowing states to implement instant replay for postseason games. The Pennsylvania Interscholastic Athletic Association (PIAA) did not approve replay for this fall.

 

Deputy is the right choice to lead Lions

   When Greg Lazor stepped down as Chestnut Ridge's head wrestling coach two months ago, it created an opening that surprised many and left one of the state's best Class AA programs in recent years searching for a new leader.
   The school's administration didn't have to look very far to find him, as Josh Deputy, one of Lazor's longtime assistants, was named to the position on Tuesday night.
   With all due respect to those that applied or showed interest in the job, Chestnut Ridge made the right choice.
   It's really that simple to me.
   After Lazor's first few years in Fishertown, the Lions turned the corner by winning their first District 5 Duals championship in 2013, and went on to finish fourth in the state team tournament. Since then, they've captured six more D5 Duals crowns, eight straight District 5 Tournament team titles, and placed three more times in the top four of the Class AA state duals.
   During that time span, Chestnut Ridge also has 11 different individual state medalists.
   Deputy has been a big part of that success — Lazor will tell you that himself.
   His hiring, if nothing else, does this: It keeps continuity in the program.
   One of the first things Deputy told me when I reached him for comments last night for my story for the Bedford Gazette (see today's edition for that story) was about the closeness between the coaches and the coaching staff to the wrestlers.
   Deputy also told me that the remainder of the coaching staff from last season — Pat Berzonski, Scott McGill, Brian Gibbons, Tyler Dibert, and Dan Albright — is expected to return. That's a huge plus in itself. American Flag fanny packs anyone? Expect Gibbons, Dibert, and Albright to once again be sporting them on the Lions' bench.
   I know keeping that kind of continuity together is something Lazor wished for the program upon his departure.
   Hire someone from the outside and perhaps that doesn't happen. Or some return and some don't, which can cause friction. Remember what happened at Bethlehem Catholic. The Golden Hawks still won a state team title in February but it wasn't smooth for a good bit of the regular season.
   Chestnut Ridge wrestles a very strong schedule, something that Lazor really got the ball rolling with. That won't change under Deputy.
   And while the Lions will be without either Justin McCoy or Jared McGill, who basically have rewritten the school's record books, for the first time in five years, don't expect a sharp dropoff in the overall strength of the team.
   Deputy's appointment to the head chair only helps to ensure that.