This column was originally published in the March 11, 2010 print edition of The Mercury.

HERSHEY – Rob D’Annunzio, Dan Cox and Brandan Clark all seemed to be heading in different directions this winter.

A.J. Maida didn’t need a GPS to find them, mind you. But the Methacton head coach would likely admit it sure was a bit of a dizzying experience keeping track of exactly where – and how far – they were going.

D’Annunzio didn’t just look unbeaten during the regular season, he won two tournaments (the Southeastern Classic and Buckskin Classic) and every one of his 27 bouts. And when he breezed through the Section Three tournament, no one would’ve have blamed him if he went ahead and reserved a room for states … until he lost twice and finished a shocking fifth at districts.

Cox, had some success but not a lot of it as a sophomore and junior … and was an anything but imposing 13-5 going into the last week of January.

Clark, as good as he’s been since stepping into the Warriors’ lineup as a freshman, always seemed to come up a point short here and there in the postseason … and this season, to make matters ever more difficult, he found himself locked in a 215-pound weight class that included two district rivals who were highly ranked nationally and five overall who were very highly ranked in the state.

Ironically, no one lost his way.

They crossed paths last weekend during the Southeastern Regional over at Council Rock North, where D’Annunzio was third at 103, Cox was fourth at 189, and Clark was third at 215 – finishes that earned all of them a trip to the PIAA Wrestling Championships in the Giant Center.

None of them, especially Maida, needed a map to get there for this afternoon’s opening round of the Class AAA spectacle, either.

“It’s kind of true how they all kind of took different ways getting to this point, too,” Maida said.


Especially D’Annunzio, who didn’t look at all like himself at districts and was oh so close to not even advancing to regionals.

“He just had a bad day, a bad weekend,” Maida explained. “And what he did at regionals, winning six times, was just amazing. You couldn’t do it any harder than he did. You can’t make it more difficult on yourself by doing what Rob did, by beating six other regional qualifiers.”

Most figured he wouldn’t be able to do it after getting decked by eventual champion Corey McQuistion of Rustin in the quarterfinals. But D’Annunzio marched through the consolations, first with a major and three straight one-point thrillers – the first over favored Alex Wait of Downingtown East, the second over District 1-North champion Dylan Steffenino of Upper Perkiomen, and the third over District 12 champion Mike McCall of Northeast Catholic.

“He went 4-0 on Saturday, and that says a lot about the kid,” Maida said. “He was a like a little ball of energy. He wrestled with a lot of confidence, and even though he finished up with three one-point wins he looked dominant.”

Cox, who wrestled every one of his bouts as a sophomore and junior at 285 – all 71 of them – worked a lot of pounds off his frame and was at 189. And his goal this season, to be a regional qualifier, wasn’t anything extraordinary.

“But something clicked with Dan after he (pinned) the Plymouth-Whitemarsh kid (Sam Morrison) in the section final,” Maida explained. “He began wrestling with a lot of confidence.”

That’s been evident the last month and a half. He hasn’t lost to anyone other than regional champion Council Rock North’s Jamie Callender, regional runner-up Andre Petroski of Springfield-Delco, and Pioneer Athletic Conference rival Zach Heffner of Boyertown – who defeated him in the third-place final last Saturday night.

“He hasn’t lost to anyone whose name isn’t Callender, Petroski or Heffner in a long time,” Maida said. “He’s had just a phenomenal season. It’s been masked a little bit. It’s been a quiet but amazing season for Dan.

“He’s truly an over-achiever. He’s taken his set of skills and applied them to his work ethic …and he has truly achieved because of it.”

Clark’s work ethic could never be questioned.

“Brandan’s motor never stops,” Maida said. “He eats, sleeps and breaths (wrestling). He’ll out-work anybody. He just has that unquenchable appetite. You put something in front of him and tell him it’s going to make him a better wrestler and he works on it, and works on it as hard as he possibly can.”

As a freshman, Clark was golden in Section Three but saw his postseason drive end the following week at districts. As a junior, was golden in Section Three and District 1-North but saw another postseason drive stall after just four bouts at the Southeast Regional.

“When Brandan first came up as a freshman I had a coach come up to me and say, ‘Clark looks like he could be a state champion someday,’ “ Maida recalled. “He may well be before he’s done. For two years we felt it was just a matter of time before he got to states, but when you get to be a junior you begin to ask yourself, ‘When, when, when?’

“This year, I just don’t think he felt he was going to be denied. Some people suggested he go up to 285, that he may have an easier time there because of all (the talent) at 215. But I never had that conversation with Brandan. There are a lot of great wrestlers at 215, but that’s his weight class, too. Those other guys have to contend with him, too. Brandan’s that talented.”

As talented as D’Annunzio and Cox proved as well.

TRIVIA TIME

Part 1: Name the District 1 wrestler who won sections three times and districts twice, but never won a regional title nor advanced to states only to go on and become an NCAA Division II national champion.

Part 2: Name the District 1 wrestler who won sections once – his only postseason title – and never qualified for states before going on to become an NCAA Division II national champion.

See the answers at the end of the column.

TODAY’S MATCHUPS

At 103, D’Annunzio (39-3) opens with Canon-McMillan freshman Connor Schram (38-4), the Southwest Regional runner-up. A win will likely get him a quarterfinal with New Oxford’s Jordan Conaway (38-1), the Southcentral Regional champion who has had a week’s rest.

At 119, Boyertown’s Matt Malfaro (38-5) starts with Indian Valley’s Kaleb Loht (31-6), who was third at last week’s Northwest Regional. A win could give him a quarterfinal bout with Liberty’s Anthony Marino (29-7), who dropped a 6-4 decision to Boyertown teammate Jeremy Minich in the season-opening Bear Duals. Another win there would likely mean a semifinal showdown with Meadville’s Shelton Mack (37-1), the Northwest Regional champion.

At 125, Minich (30-7) happens to draw Bellefonte’s unbeaten Mitchell Port (41-0), a two-time medalist and three-time qualifier who is picked by most to get to the final.

At 135, Boyertown’s Alex Pellicciotti (41-4) starts with Lewistown’s Jake Schultz (30-6) and, barring an upset, will likely see Derry’s Travis Shaffer (29-3) in the quarterfinals. And should he get past Shaffer, he’ll have a semifinal shootout with Cumberland Valley’s Shawn Greevy (20-2), the Southcentral Regional champion who was injured during the Beast of the East Classic and had to forfeit (medical) his final two bouts, one to Pellicciotti.

At 145, Pottsgrove’s T.J. Demetrio (29-6) makes his debut against Warren’s Curtis Delattre (34-7), who was third at the Northwest Regional. … Spring-Ford’s Kyle Duffy (28-8) goes up against West Allegheny’s Aaron McKinney (36-4), the Southwest Regional champion.

At 160, Spring-Ford’s Matt Krueger (31-9) meets Central Dauphin’s two-time defending state champion Peppelman (46-0), who hasn’t lost a bout in over two years and is ranked No. 1 in Pennsylvania and, believe it or not, in the nation as well.

At 189, Boyertown’s Zach Heffner (35-9) starts with Greater Latrobe’s Eric Shaffer (37-2), the Southwest Regional champion. If he can pull the upset, next in line will likely be Cory’s Mike Pollard (42-1), the Northwest Regional champion. … Cox (30-9) gets Crestwood’s Mike Mirra (37-6), the Northeast Regional champion who pulled out a 4-2 decision over Cox during the Buckskin Classic back in December.

At 215, arguably one of the most stacked brackets, Clark gets Connellsville’s defending state champion Nate Gaffney (40-2), who was stunned in the Beast of the East Classic final by Garnet Valley’s Matt Idelson (who was eliminated at districts two weeks ago). If Clark could pull a similar upset, he’d likely get East Pennsboro’s unbeaten Zach Nye (36-0) in the quarterfinals. … Owen J. Roberts’ Scott Syrek (32-5), who was sixth here last March but is battling an assortment of injuries, has to deal with St. Mary’s unbeaten Sean Sadosky (33-0), who was seventh here last season.

Also at 215 – in Class AA – St. Pius X senior Josh Rogers (27-5) will go for the first state-tournament win ever by a Pius qualifier when he opens against Forest Hills’ Jeff Meier (34-6), who was fifth in the Southwest Regional.

At 285, Pottstown’s Will Carter (30-4) makes his debut against Clearfield’s Andre Buck (27-8), who was third at the Northwest Regional. A win by Carter could mean a quarterfinal battle with Susquehanna Township’s Averee Robinson (34-2), the Southcentral Regional champion.

TRIVIA ANSWERS

Part 1: Pennsbury’s Roger Sanders won three Lower Bucks Section titles (two at 154 pounds, one at 145) from 1958 through 1960 and two District 1 titles in 1958 and 1960, then went on to capture the NCAA Division II title at 157 pounds in 1964 while attending the then West Chester State Teachers College.

Part 2: Upper Darby’s Ron Sheehan won the Section One title at 180 pounds in 1969, then went on to capture the NCAA Division II title at 167 pounds in 1974 while attending the then Bloomsburg State Teachers College.

This column was originally published in the March 5, 2010 edition of The Mercury.

NEWTOWN — It’s hard not to notice all those big brutes at 215, like Pennsbury’s Kevin Bree, Phoenixville’s Ken Cenci, Methacton’s Brandan Clark, Conestoga’s Greg Gruschow, Oxford’s Nick Ruggear, Souderton’s Joe Stolfi, and Owen J. Roberts’ Scott Syrek (listed alphabetically to not only be politically correct but to be out of harm’s way).

It’s hard not to notice all those mighty mites at 112, like Pennsbury’s Josh DiSanto, Tennent’s Kevin Flack, Haverford’s Joe Jones, Boyertown’s Adam Kolb, C.B. South’s Mike Mathis, Upper Perkiomen’s Wolfgang McStravick, and LaSalle’s Bryan Pflanz (listed alphabetically to not only be politically correct but to be out of harm’s way).

Actually it’s hard not to notice just how loaded up each and every one of the other 12 brackets are for tonight’s opening round of the AAA Southeast Regional here at Council Rock North High School.

Many of the 182 qualifiers have seen enough of each other in the past — during the off-season and regular season, as well as in the postseason — to know how one another’s minds and moves. In many instances, some of which may unfold this weekend, the only difference between them is who’s hot and who’s not.

There’s been no better example of that than the energized rivalry between Boyertown’s Matt Malfaro and Unionville’s Joe Bonaduce.

They met five times officially, and Malfaro owns what could easily be tagged as a misleading 4-1 advantage. Malfaro won their first meeting three years ago — 7-2 in the Section Four final — when both were 103-pound freshmen. Malfaro grew a wee bit and Bonaduce grew a whole lot the following year, so they never met. Then last year, Malfaro was in a whole heap of trouble before turning Bonaduce, who was hurt in the flurry and had to default their Section Four final at 119 pounds. The following week, Malfaro confirmed his win was no fluke, although it was by a narrow 10-9 margin in the District 1-South final.

This year? Well, a whole lot of people were itching to see the two go at it again. They did, two weeks ago in the Section Four final.

This time Bonaduce ended his frustration with a no-doubt-about-it, 10-5 decision — costing Malfaro a third section title and, perhaps, some confidence. Or so some would’ve thought, at least up until Malfaro responded with an equally no-doubt-about-it, 9-1 major in last Saturday night’s District 1-South final.

The big question this week has been whether Malfaro (35-5) and Bonaduce (28-6) will get it on for a sixth time in their respective careers … in the regional final, that is.

Of course, neither has an easy route to the final.

Especially Bonaduce. He opens with Upper Moreland’s Jake Ellis (28-8), absolutely no slouch. If he passes that test, then there’s Bonner’s Nick Bongard, who happens to be unbeaten with 20 pins among his 32 straight wins. And should he endure that challenge, Bonaduce would likely see Hatboro-Horsham’s Matt Harkins (33-4), the District 1-North champion, in the semifinals.

Malfaro, meanwhile, will wait to see who survives the pigtail and ensuing encounter with Council Rock North’s Shane Longstreth (30-11). In all likelihood, Malfaro should get Longstreth, and he’ll have an idea how to wrestle him because Boyertown teammate Jeremy Minich is a perfect 5-0 against the Council Rock North junior. That assures him nothing, of course, but a victory would likely earn him a semifinal showdown with C.B. West’s Bubba McGinley (33-3), who like Bonaduce, has something Malfaro doesn’t – a state medal.

* * *

Malfaro is tied with former teammate Jesse DeWan for second on Boyertown’s career win chart with 143 apiece. Alex Pellicciotti is the Bears’ all-time leader with 164, a total he hopes to add to this weekend. … Another interesting statistic in the Malfaro-Bonaduce rivalry reveals they have had 15 common opponents during their careers. Malfaro is 20-3 against them, while Bonaduce is 14-3.

FAMILIAR FACES

Qualifiers from the Pioneer Athletic Conference will go head-to-head in three of tonight’s pigtail round matches – Methacton’s Rob D’Annunzio and Spring-Ford’s Chase Brown at 103; Pottsgrove’s Denny Gibbons and Boyertown’s Peter Jones at 130; and Upper Perkiomen’s Dalton Fleming and Owen J. Roberts’ Jordan Moser at 152. None have previously met in their careers. Winners advance against their respective bracket’s top seed, while the losers’ seasons end.

There’s also one first-round match-up between PAC-10 qualifiers Tyler Mauger of Boyertown and Brandan Clark of Methacton. The two 215-pounders have never met before, either.

PAC PUNCH

The Pioneer Athletic Conference will have a total of 30 on the mats tonight. Boyertown accounts for exactly one-third of that total, with Pellicciotti (135), Jon Neiman (140), Adam Benfield (145), Brock Hallman (171) and Zach Heffner (189) joining Kolb, Malfaro, Minich, Jones and Mauger.

Upper Perkiomen and Spring-Ford have four each, with the Indians represented by freshmen Dylan Steffenino (103) and Wolfgang McStravick (112), Dan Rodenberger (125) and Fleming, and the Rams represented by Brown, Tom Boring (130), Kyle Duffy (145) and Matt Krueger (160). Methacton and Pottsgrove are next with three each, with D’Annunzio, Dan Cox (189) and Clark accounting for the Warriors’ threesome and Gibbons, Zach Robinson (140) and T.J. Demetrio (145) making up the Falcons’ threesome.

The remainder of the PAC-10 entourage includes Moser and Syrek from Owen J. Roberts; Gavin Milligan (135) and Lou Fioravanti (285) from Perkiomen Valley; Cenci from Phoenixville; and Will Carter (285) from Pottstown.

FAMILY TIES

Yes, there are still two more Rappos – junior Matt and sophomore Billy – rolling around on the Council Rock South mats. Combined with older brothers Mark (sophomore at University of Pennsylvania), Mike (junior at North Carolina) and Rick (graduate of Penn), the Rappos have combined for 567 wins (including 206 pins) and four state titles. Matt will be going for his 100th career win tonight against either Rodenberger or Conestoga’s Ben Hartshorn.at 125 pounds.

The Rappos’ four state titles matches the District 1 “family record“ set by North Penn brothers Jim and Chris Kwortnik back in the late 1980s.

FINAL APPEARANCE

Jared Robbins, Conor Myers, John Cherneski and Josh Rogers will represent St. Pius X in tonight’s opening round of the AA Southeast Regional at Wilson (West Lawn) High School. It will be the final appearance for Pius, which joins up with Kennedy-Kenrick next year at the new Pope John Paul High School.

Robbins (10-9) opens against Hamburg’s Jackson Stabile (39-3) at 145; Myers (25-3) gets either Northern Lehigh’s Craemer Hedash (26-6) or Boiling Springs’ John Riddle (29-15) at 152; Cherneskie (13-17) opens against Eastern York’s Robert Aaron Mackley (26-5) at 171; and Rogers (24-5) takes on either Panther Valley’s John Schaeffer (24-12) or Schuylkill Valley’s Mitch Moll (37-14) at 215.

Pius has never had a regional champion and, since starting its program in the early 1980s, has had just six regional medalists, or state qualifiers – Sean Prawecky (1985), Chris Elphick (1999), Mike Trahey (2000), Zach McCann (2002 and 2004), and Greg Care (2005).

HALL OF FAME

Seven men will be inducted into the District 1 Wrestling Coaches Association’s Hall of Fame prior to Saturday night’s AAA finals.

They are Lou Delmuto, a Pottsgrove graduate and former assistant coach to current Pottsgrove head coach Jeff Madden when the two teamed up for 17 years at Wissahickon; Tony DeMeno, an outstanding wrestler at Norristown who served 10 years as the junior high school head coach and another 17 as a high school assistant at Methacton; Rich Hahn, who coached at Hatboro-Horsham; Alray Johnson, a Pottstown graduate and longtime head coach at Downingtown; Jermaine Jones, a two-time state champion at Henderson; Joe Krammer, an assistant for 31 years under Chuck Grassano at Sun Valley; and John Lute, former longtime coach at Upper Merion.

No one will likely enjoy the festivities more than Downingtown graduate and 1997 inductee Glenn Koser, either.

Johnson coached Koser when was a state runner-up in 1980 and state champion in 1981. And Koser, shortly after taking over the Henderson program, coached Jones to his back-to-back state titles in 2000 and 2001.

This column was originally posted in the Feb. 26 edition of The Mercury.

Nowhere to run, nowhere to hide…

Odds are neither Methacton teammates Dan Cox or Brandan Clark, Boyertown’s Zach Heffner, nor Owen J. Roberts’ Scott Syrek ever heard Martha and the Vandellas’ lasting line from their signature song back in 1965. Heck, their own parents may not even be old enough to remember the classic.

But the four fellas sure could’ve hummed a few bars this week as they prepared for their respective District 1-AAA North and South tournaments on Saturday.

Cox and Heffner are two very good 189-pounders in stacked brackets on both the North and South dockets. Clark and Syrek are two very good 215-pounders in stacked brackets on both the North and South dockets.

In other words, or as ol’ Martha and the gals crooned, there’s nowhere to run, nowhere to hide … not if any of them hope to finish among the top five in their weight classes this weekend to strut into next weekend’s Southeast Regional.

“In a lot of your matches during the season, you can afford to make a mistake here and there and still manage to win,” Syrek explained. “Now, everyone is pretty tough. You can’t make even one mistake against these guys.”

Especially the guys Cox, Heffner, Clark and Syrek are going to go toe to toe with Saturday.


Cox (26-6) has, most notably, nationally ranked Jamie Callender (32-1) of Council Rock

North to deal with up North. And then there are, among others, Souderton’s Robert Smothers (27-3) and Plymouth-Whitemarsh’s Sam Morrison (29-4), who would like nothing than to avenge last week’s setback to Cox in the Section Three final.

“I’m right where I want to be, but I want to finish strong, too,” said Cox, who is 18-3 – with all three losses by a combined four points – since Jan. 1. “I’m not really intimidated (by the big names in his bracket). I just have to go out and do what I need to do. When everyone is this good it comes down to who wants it more, who is willing to go harder, who is going to wrestle all six minutes.

“I try to look at everything as a positive. I don’t look at everyone else and think I’m in a stacked weight class. I look at it as a great opportunity for me.”

Heffner (29-7) may not have to deal with as many distinguished dudes down South, but there is Springfield-Delco’s Andre Petroski (30-1), nationally ranked as well whose only loss was to Mike Evans, the brute from Blair.

“I’m just taking one match at a time,” said Heffner, who has swept 15 of his last 16 bouts. “I’m kind of looking ahead because it’s hard not to. But you really can’t do that.”

And if Heffner needed a late-season wake-up call to remind him of that he sure got one back on Jan. 27 … in a 6-5 loss to Clark during their teams’ Pioneer Athletic Conference dual.

“After that loss I came home, sat down at my computer and came up with a motivational thing (or two) for myself,” Heffner explained. “I look at it every morning and use it to motivate me, to remind me I have to finish every match; that I have to go the full six minutes every match.”

But even as good as most are at 189, the cast is even more distinguished at 215.

Up North, Clark (28-3) will have to contend with Souderton’s Joe Stolfi (28-2), Pennsbury’s undefeated Kevin Bree (25-0), and PAC-10 rival Ken Cenci (24-8) of Phoenixville, among others.

“Stolfi, Bree and everyone else are tough opponents,” said Clark, whose three losses have all come in overtime – two to Syrek and the other to state-ranked Brook Gosch of Blue Mountain. “It’s definitely more of a challenge. But I just have to take it one match at a time and wrestle my match.

“I’ve never seen Bree (wrestle). Stolfi is a quick 215-pounder. And Syrek is one of the best 215-pounders, so he’s been great preparation for this. But I’m not intimidated at all. I’m confident that as long as I don’t get ahead of myself, as long as I wrestle my match, I’m going to be very competitive and contend for a medal.”

Syrek (28-2) has every right to be confident when he steps onto the mats down South. The junior’s only losses this season have been to Callender (6-4 on opening day of the wrestling season) and state-ranked Zach Greenwald of Paulsboro, N.J., where he recently accepted a scholarship to play football at Sacred Heart University.

The Owen J. Roberts junior may have the most difficult crew to deal with, though. His bracket features Oxford’s Nick Ruggear (30-2) and Conestoga’s Greg Gruschow (30-3), both of whom are ranked in the state, and Garnet Valley’s Matt Idelson (23-2), who bolted into the Pennsylvania spotlight back in December when he defeated defending state champion Nate Gaffney of Connellsville during the finals of the Beast of the East Classic. He is also aware of once-beaten Renald Pierce (12-1) of Upper Darby and the undersized but truly energized Tyler Mauger (25-10) of Boyertown.

“It makes it all the more fun,” Syrek said of the all-star bracket. “But you can’t start off slow against anyone. There’s absolutely no room to start slow.

“(The talent) makes is better for everyone. You know you have to step it up right away, get that mentality (to win) going right from the start. No question all these guys are good wrestlers, but I’m confident. There’s no question I’m confident I can win.”

* * *

Cox is the lone senior among the foursome. Heffner, Clark and Syrek are all juniors. … Syrek needs two victories to reach the 100-win career mark. Clark is seven from the milestone. … Petroski (147) and Calender (146) are second and third behind Boyertown’s Alex Pellicciotti (161) in career wins among active wrestlers in District 1. Ruggear (110) and Gruschow (101) also topped the 100-win mark earlier this season. … Twenty-seven area wrestlers will be in the North tournament, while 26 will compete in the South showdown.

SPOTLESS

Only five unbeaten wrestlers remain in the district – Interboro’s Vince Knowles (31-0 with 24 pins) at 140; Methacton’s Rob D’Annunzio (30-0) at 103; Haverford’s Luke Bilyeu (26-0) at 130; and Bree along with Pennsbury teammate Josh DiSanto (25-0) at 112.

HERSHEY TIME

Daniel Boone will have five wrestlers on the mats for tonight’s opening round of the District 3-AAA championships in the hallowed Hersheypark Arena. The Blazer hopefuls are Eddie Lockowitz (24-8) at 103; Colin Martucci (27-4) at 145; Justin Williams (20-11) at 152; Ken Bock (26-11) at 189; and Sam Batchelor (26-11) at 215.

The top three finishers in each weight class not only advance to states, but get next week off to freshen up for the PIAA Championships (Mar. 11-13) back out in Hershey in the Giant Center.

NATIONAL PREPS

Hill School head coach Jesse Young will accompany five of his wrestlers to the National Prep Championships, which get under way this afternoon at Lehigh University. Representing the Blues, who had a turnaround regular season before finishing seventh at states last week, will be Jack Sullivan (15-5) at 130; Colin Saunders (20-5) at 135; Karl Wiszumerski (14-8) at 140; Bob Dougherty (13-9) at 171; and Jay Knighton (14-7) at 285.

* * *

Saunders, a sophomore, is the lone Hill entry with a Top 12 seeding, going in at No. 7. … More than 140 schools will be represented at tournament, which began in 1935. … Hill won 11 consecutive national prep team titles (1949-1959) and owns 17 overall, its last coming in 1971. … Blair Academy is seeking its 30th straight team championship.

CLASS AA OPENS

The District 1-AA postseason opens Saturday as well with the annual individual championships at Harriton. St. Pius X is the only local team in the 12-team field, which is headlined by Octorara.

Seedings were not available at press time Thursday. However, the Lions will be led by returning runner-up Josh Rogers at 215. Teammate A.J. Ebersole is the only returning medalist – third a year ago – for the Lions.

The Pioneer Athletic Conference had a pretty darn good weekend of wrestling. Not bad at all when considering nine of the league’s teams – three each in three different sectionals, to be exact – accounted for exactly one-third of the individual titles. Heck, in one section, they went one-two-three in the final team standings. And the one big number that had to hit even the most optimistic fan like an unexpected cross-face was 56, the number of qualifiers the PAC-10 will send into this week’s district tournaments.

And if area wrestling needed an additional stamp of satisfaction, it got as much with Daniel Boone up in District 3 and The Hill School at the state prep tournament.

The PAC-10 provided more than its share of surprises.

Individually, none bigger perhaps than Owen J. Roberts sophomore Andrew Kinney’s golden effort at 125 pounds in Section Four. Team-wise, it was Upper Perkiomen – lacking its usual punch throughout the regular season because of a wave of injuries that at one point left head coach Tom Hontz with just over a dozen bodies in the practice room – putting out as close to a healthy lineup as it had all winter, finishing second behind Quakertown in Section Two, and advancing 10 to districts – which matched the best anyone did in any of the sections.

There were many inspiring efforts as well.

Like the climb up to the top rung of the postseason awards podium for the first time in their high school careers by Upper Perkiomen’s Dylan Steffenino, Pottsgrove’s Denny Gibbons and Pottstown’s Will Carter in Section Two; by Perkiomen Valley’s Gavin Milligan and Methacton’s Dan Cox in Section Three; and by Boyertown’s Adam Kolb, Kinney and Spring-Ford’s Matt Krueger in Section Four.

And while inspiration came from a slew of others, none perhaps as much as from the undersized Tyler Mauger of Boyertown and Lou Fioravanti of Perkiomen Valley – both of whom moved up, not down, in their lineups, went toe-to-toe with heavily favored opponents, and came within a move or two of a gold medal, too. And if there was a David vs. Goliath (without David’s heroics, though), it was Spring-Ford’s Jason Dombrosky, winless in just two bouts all season, working his way through the 135-pound bracket to the Section Four final, and not backing down against Boyertown’s Alex Pellicciotti before getting caught by the four-time champion and becoming his 29th victim via the pin this year.

Fifteen area wrestlers, to be exact, battled their way to the final rounds only to come up short. But they, along with everyone else who survived Week One of Mat Madness, have an opportunity to redeem themselves this weekend at the district’s North and South showdowns.

* * *

Daniel Boone may not have gotten the number of District 3-AAA entries head coach Matt Shutt was looking for, but some of his five qualifiers came a long, long way from a year ago to earn a trip to Hershey this week.

Justin Williams, a junior transfer from Conrad Weiser, finished second to Wilson’s rugged Jordan Rosa (38-3) at 152; Ken Bock, just 17-16 as a sophomore last season, is 23-9 heading into districts at 189; and junior Sam Batchelor bowed out of sections in a hurry a year ago and finished 8-23, but has more than tripled his win total (26) since his runner-up finish last Saturday.

* * *

Hill School had five medalists in the state prep tournament down at Westtown. Head coach Jesse Young didn’t get a champion, but seventh place among more than 20 teams was a step in the right direction for the Blues.

At 130, Jack Sullivan lost to highly-regarded Shawn Amato of Germantown Academy; and at 135, Colin Saunders lost an 8-4 final to Beast of the East champion Simon Kitzis from nationally ranked Wyoming Seminary. Heavyweight Jay Knighton got knocked into the consolations by another of Wyoming Seminary’s big boys – eventual champion Mike McMullan (who had two second-period technical falls and an 11-second pin) – and settled for fourth.

But what had Young beaming was a fourth at 140 by Karl Wiszumerski, who was slowed significantly by a nagging injury; and a sixth at 171 by unsung Bob Dougherty, who Young said, “Wrestled the best tournament of his career.”

Perkiomen School’s Zach Sell, literally the only member of his team with any experience on the mat, came within a win of the medal rounds at 140.

SECTION NOTES

Section Two: Zach Robinson became Pottsgrove’s first three-time section champion after his run through the 140-pound bracket. Gibbons, meanwhile, atoned for a pair of 1-2 showings as a sophomore and junior with his golden performance at 130, capped by an overtime decision of defending champion Steve Ferrara of C.B. West. Robinson and Gibbons will be accompanied to districts by T.J. Demetrio (145) and Chris Nester (215)… Carter became Pottstown’s first AAA section champion in 21 years, and he’ll be joined at districts by Zane Bechtel, who sure got rid of that 0-2 nightmare of a year ago with his third-place effort in the loaded 112-pound bracket. … Upper Perkiomen may not pack the punch it did a few years back, but… of the Indians’ 10 district qualifiers only two are seniors, and of the remaining eight exactly half are freshmen.

Section Three: Think anyone should be happier than Perkiomen Valley head coach Tim Walsh? The Vikings, behind the first place from Milligan and two seconds by Vaughn Gehman and Fioravanti, will have eight representatives at districts this week. … Methacton is advancing its lowest number of district qualifiers (three) in 37 years, but all three – unbeaten Rob D’Annunzio, Dan Cox and Brandan Clark – were section champions. D’Annunzio is unbeaten through 30 bouts. The 189-pound Cox, who was at 285 for the postseason a year ago, has won 14 of his last 15 bouts. Clark won his third straight title that, combined with older brother Brad’s three, gives his family six consecutive section titles. … Phoenixville’s Matt Cermanski has bounced back from a three-bout skid late last month. The junior 140-pounder was second to Norristown’s top-seeded Brett Harner on Saturday, and teammate Ken Cenci had to settle for runner-up honors – again, and again by an identical 5-2 score – to Clark at 215.

Section Four: Boyertown may have had 10 medalists and another section team title, but there was a little disappointment in the Bears’ den. The day began with senior Ryan Schwager, a legitimate 215-pounder, missing weight at 285 by a mere tenth-of-a-pound. In the finals, Matt Malfaro was denied his third title when Unionville’s Joe Bonaduce avenged three setbacks to the Boyertown 119-pounder with a rough-and-tumble 10-5 decision in the most exciting final of the section. Jeremy Minich was also denied a third section title when Kinney avenged last year’s two postseason losses to the Boyertown junior with an impressive 7-2 decision at 125. Jon Neiman was denied a chance for gold at 140 when he became ill Saturday afternoon and had to forfeit his final. Pellicciotti is Boyertown’s first four-time section medalist in District 1. … OJR is taking nine to districts, the most Wildcats to make that trip in recent memory, and eight of them are underclassmen. … Spring-Ford, which finished third behind OJR and Boyertown in the team standings, also has a young look. Of the Rams’ seven district qualifiers, five are underclassmen.

JUNIOR HIGH BASH

Pioneer Athletic Conference schools Spring-Ford, Owen J. Roberts and Upper Perkiomen finished first through third, respectively, at the annual District 1 Junior High/Middle School Tournament last weekend at Quakertown. Pottsgrove (9th) and Perkiomen Valley (12th) also had strong showings in the 26-team field.

Spring-Ford (311.5 points) had three individual champions – Tyler McGuigan (147), Trevor Conover (157) and Mason Romano (252) – and four runners-up and 12 medalists overall. The Rams also had at least two wins each from its remaining four entries. Owen J. Roberts (302) had three individual champions in Derrick Gulotta (102), Colby Frank (117) and Demetri D’Orsaneo (124), with Matt Lenge (140) adding a second among the Wildcats’ 14 medalists. Upper Perkiomen’s lone champion was Eric Miller (82), but the Indians had eight medalists and got wins from all but two of its wrestlers.

Other area champions were Pottsgrove’s Patrick Finn (167) and Perkiomen Valley’s Luke DiElsi (187).

BY THE NUMBERS

Pellicciotti’s three-bout sweep – all by pins – moved him up to into a tie for fifth place on The Mercury’s career win chart with Upper Perkiomen graduate Mark Smith. Both have 161 wins. Malfaro is currently 15th with 139. … Syrek needs three wins this weekend to reach the 100-win milestone.

This column was originally published in the Feb. 20 edition of The Mercury.

Wrestling is unique in that it has three seasons. Yep, three … count ’m. Better yet, they’re all crammed into a little over three months.

First there’s the regular season, when everyone competes as a team in hopes of pinning down a league championship. Then there are the team duals, when the elite go head to head as they shoot for district and state titles.

Then there’s the postseason. The real postseason, that is.

Individual sport at its very best.

Mat Madness, if you will.

It’s a four-week grind – sections, districts, regionals and states. Four successive weekends that, slowly but surely, separates the best from the rest.

And it all gets under way this morning when 134 area wrestlers representing 10 schools step on the mats to compete in three of District 1-AAA’s six sections and one of District 3-AAA’s five sections.

Actually, the postseason drama began unfolding Thursday night, soon after the seedings for all the sections were compiled and released to the media. As expected, a few (or more) of the 14 individual weight classes are loaded. So packed, as a matter of fact, a number of high-profile wrestlers – with their collection of medals from here and there and those hundredsome career wins – could conceivably see their seasons end prematurely, if not today perhaps next weekend.

Truth is, nothing comes easy at this point in the season (oops, postseason). There are no shortcuts.

No one discovered that more this past week than Boyertown’s Brock Hallman, Tyler Mauger, Zach Heffner and Ryan Schwager, who shared their team’s upperweight responsibilities throughout the regular season.

But surprise, surprise – perhaps even more than Lou Fioravanti’s big surprise down at Perkiomen Valley – the Bears’ fearless foursome are settled in for the postseason.

Hallman, unquestionably the most underrated of the group, will be at 171; Heffner will be at 189; Mauger will shoot all the way up to 215; and Schwager will do his thing at 285.

A senior, the versatile Hallman is 20-14 after competing anywhere from 171 up to 215 this season. Eleven of those losses were against either state and/or nationally ranked opponents – among them defending state champion Marshall Peppelman of Central Dauphin; returning state-runnerup Clint Morrison of Cedar Cliff; state bronze medalist Andre Petroski of Springfield-Delco; returning state qualifiers Tristan Warner of Cumberland Valley and Wade Rivera (twice) of Parkland; a couple of out-of-state studly types like Wayne Young of Camden Catholic and Scott Patrick of McDonough; and Council Rock South’s Bobby Lavelle, Plymouth-Whitemarsh’s John Staudenmayer and Upper Moreland’s John Bolich, three state-ranked rivals from around the District 1 neighborhood.

Mauger (24-9), who has been on a roll since the calendar rolled over in January, was reportedly going to drop to 171. However, he fell to Hallman in wrestle-offs and, with the rugged Heffner (26-7) locked at 189, he had to move up to 215. Needless to say, the junior won’t be watching his diet the rest of the winter. Neither will Schwager, who missed a good part of the season because of an injury and could have squeezed into the 215-pound slot but opted to stay up at heavyweight.

But no matter how the foursome lines up, they complement a Boyertown lineup that features 112-pound Adam Kolb; 119-pound Matt Malfaro (30-4) and 125-pound Jeremy Minich (22-4), both of whom are after their third section titles; 130-pound Peter Jones, situated where he should be after being bumped up three weight classes a year ago; 135-pound Alex Pellicciotti (33-3), who should cruise to his fourth straight sectional title; and the overlooked tandem of Jon Neiman and Adam Benfield at 140 and 145, respectively.

Fioravanti, meanwhile, spent his entire sophomore year at 215 and was there again for 22 of his 28 bouts this year. But with 215 literally bursting at the seams with proven talent this winter – like returning state-medalist Scott Syrek of Owen J. Roberts and highly regarded Brandan Clark of Methacton, both of whom dealt Fioravanti losses this season – the junior opted to move up to 285.

Some other local notes of interest heading into this morning’s opening rounds:

SECTION TWO

Pottsgrove picked up two top seeds in Zach Robinson, who is trying to become the school’s first three-time section champion, and Danny Michaels, both juniors at 140 and 160, respectively. Robinson (25-3) is currently tied with Mike Meko (1973-74) and Chris Beasley (1991-92) as the only Falcons with two section gold medals. Gold has eluded Michaels, who has battled back to be a two-time regional qualifier. … Teammates Denny Gibbons (19-5) and T.J. Demetrio (19-4) are both second seeds at 130 and 145.

Pottstown’s Will Carter (22-3) is the second seed at 285. Among the other Trojan hopefuls are fourth seeds Zane Bechtel at 112, Trent Clifford at 125, and Dan Yauger at 171. Ricardo Gonzalez, one of the area’s most improved wrestlers from a year ago, is seeded fifth at 160, as is James McKinney at 140. … Pottstown, which spent more than 15 years in Class AA, hasn’t had an AAA section champion since 1989, when Chris Ruyak, Larry Wallace, Frank Stebman, Tom Medvetz, Brian Campbell and Job Price were golden in leading the Trojans to the Section Four team title.

Host Upper Perkiomen is the healthiest it’s been all year, according to head coach Tom Hontz. The Indians have a formidable foursome of their own from 103 through 125 with freshmen Dylan Steffenino (23-5), Wolfgang McStravick (25-4) and a fresh Avery Scripture (3-2), along with junior Dan Rodenberger (16-5) – the team’s lone No. 1 seed today. Martin McStravick (4-2) has also returned to the lineup at 135, and Nick Hale, who was fourth as a freshman and sophomore, is determined to add to that total after missing last year’s postseason.

SECTION THREE

Host Methacton is bottom and top heavy, its only No. 1 seeds coming from unbeaten Rob D’Annunzio (27-0) at 103 and Clark (25-3) up at 215. Two others, Pat Carr (24-7) and Eliot Reisz (22-8), drew the second seeds at 145 and 171, while Dan Cox (22-6) is third at 189. … The Warriors will go without a heavyweight.

Perkiomen Valley’s lone top seed is 135-pound Gavin Milligan (18-5), who finished second at both sections and districts a year ago and came oh so close to qualifying for states before splitting his four regional bouts. Fioravanti is a second seed, while Vaughn Gehman (22-8), another section runner-up a year ago, is third at 145. … Sophomore Justin Beitler (8-5), who was hurt in the semifinals of the season-opening Southeast Classic and didn’t return until Jan. 22, is a very dangerous fifth seed at 112.

Phoenixville’s Matt Cermanski (140) and Ken Cenci (215) are both looking to settle a score after finishing second at least year’s sectional. Cenci eventually worked his way to regionals. … The Phantoms, with no one at 160, feature five freshmen, three sophomores and five juniors in their lineup.

SECTION FOUR

Boyertown had eight medalists last season, but for the second straight year finished second in the sectional team standings. Prior to that, the Bears had won an incredible eight straight section titles – the previous five in Section Four, and the three before them in District 3 (Section 3).

Owen J. Roberts, coming off its best regular season in recent memory, have six of last year’s medalists back – runners-up Jonathan Dempsey (at 112) and Andrew Kinney (125); third-place finishers Sam Funk (189) and Syrek (215); and fourth-place finishers Jacob Schell (135) and Jordan Moser (152). Syrek was second and Moser fourth as freshmen two years ago. … OJR will be without a heavyweight today.

Spring-Ford’s Matt Krueger (22-6) dropped to 160 and picked up the No. 1 seed. Krueger was third a year ago, matching the finishes of teammates Tom Boring and Kyle Duffy, who drew the second and third seeds, respectively, at 130 and 145. … The Rams will be without a 119-pounder today.

DISTRICT 3, SECTION FOUR

Daniel Boone will have its collective hands full at Governor Mifflin today. The Blazers, in a field highlighted by District 3-AAA Team Duals qualifiers Cocalico and Wilson, should also get a challenge from a few of the host Mustangs.

The Blazers’ hopefuls include No. 1 seed Sam Batchelor (24-10) at 215, as well as second seeds Eddie Lockowitz (23-7) at 103 and Colin Martucci (25-3) at 145, and third seed Kenny Bock (23-10) at 189. … Martucci is the son of former St. Pius X head coach John Martucci.

BLAST FROM PAST

Fifty years ago, or back in 1960, North Penn’s Pat Frederick, Pennsbury’s Roger Sanders and Upper Darby’s Dick Hamilton became District 1’s first three-time section champions. … Frederick actually never made it to states. Sanders didn’t qualify for states, either, but was an NCAA Division II national champion at 157 pounds for then West Chester State Teachers College in 1964. Hamilton won three district and two regional titles and was the state runner-up in 1960.

SECTION HISTORY

District 1’s section format began in 1957 and ran through 1960 as a two-section (Suburban and Lower Bucks) alignment. Upper Darby and Lower Merion, with 11 and seven gold medalists, respectively, dominated the Suburban Section during that period. Pennsbury had 16 as the power in the Lower Bucks Section. … Upper Darby and Pennsbury, along with Lansdowne-Aldan, were the only schools to have at least one section champion in each of those first four sectionals. … From 1961-1970, the district had four sections, expanded to eight sections from 1971-1973, then adopted the current six-section format in 1974. … District 1 actually had to go to two sections in Class AA on eight occasions (1974-77, 1980-82, and 1991). Pottstown (six), Pottsgrove, Perkiomen Valley and St. Pius X accounted for all but two of the gold medals in one 1991 sectional, while Oxford (10), Avon Grove (two) and Octorara (one) grabbed all the gold to themselves in the other 1991 sectional. … The Top Five schools with the most sectional champions in District 1 are Upper Darby (145), Springfield-Delco (140), Ridley (130), and Conestoga and Pennsbury with 127 each. Neshaminy actually has had 139, but 36 of them were split between Maple Point (22) and Langhorne (14).

This column was originally published in the Feb. 5 edition of The Mercury.


POTTSTOWN — First up is Upper Moreland. Then, of course, either Council Rock North or Henderson.

Boyertown absolutely has an imposing challenge (or two) when the 17th annual District 1-Class AAA Team Duals Tournament resumes tonight at Strom Gymnasium.

Then again, Mother Nature may weigh in with her own lineup of snow — and a lot of it — sometime today and bury the Bears, Owen J. Roberts, as well as everyone else in the field. And that may force district officials to dig out (or dig up) an amended schedule that could possibly lead to the elimination of all wrestle-backs.

A decision will be made 2 p.m. today to proceed with or postpone tonight’s card of quarterfinals, semifinals and first-round consolations. If officials are forced to postpone, which they’ll likely have to do again on Saturday if the white stuff piles up as forecasted, the entire schedule will be condensed – no wrestle-backs at all – and pushed back to Monday.

In other words, if there is no wrestling tonight or over the weekend at all, Monday’s competition will get under way with quarterfinals at 4 p.m., semifinals at 5:30 p.m., and the championship final as well as consolation final (between the semifinal losers) at 7 p.m. Along side those mats will be the Class AA semifinals and final.

And the reason for the hurry-up?

It’s called district deadlines. The PIAA state duals begin Tuesday.

Now, if all those fearless forecasters are wrong, Mother Nature takes a twist or turn here and there and only burps instead of blasts the area with another version of winter wonder, they’re going to wrestle … and it should be great wrestling.

Boyertown has to be concerned about its quarterfinal meeting with Upper Moreland – a team the Bears defeated 43-25 during the Brian Bealer Memorial Bear Duals on Dec. 12, the opening day of the season — and not look ahead for yet another possible showdown with Council Rock North (which has to deal with Henderson first).

Upper Moreland, seeded 11th, stormed through the first two rounds by defeating Pottsgrove and surprising No. 6 seed Spring-Ford. The Golden Bears are 19-7 overall and the earlier

loss to Boyertown is their only setback to a District 1 opponent this season. They have well-balanced lineup, with seven — Bob Harmon (20-8), Jake Ellis (23-6) and Tim Santry (27-2) down low, Will Dill (22-5) and Max Agasar (21-4) in the middle, and John Bolich (28-1) and James Nicholson (26-2) up top — capable of beating anyone, and putting up big points in the process.

Ellis and Dill were kept in check by Boyertown’s Jeremy Minich and Alex Pellicciotti, respectively, during the first meeting, which saw the hosts sweep five of the first six bouts. Upper Moreland would get back in it behind Agasar and both Dan and John Bolich, but Boyertown took three of the final five to secure the win.

“(Upper Moreland) was a good team the first time we saw them, and they’re a whole lot better now,” Boyertown head coach Pete Ventresca said after last week’s first-round rout of Neshaminy.

What Ventresca is hoping for, of course (actually what most district fans are hoping for), is yet another Boyertown-Council Rock North match. Since 2005, when the duals went to a double-elimination format, the Bears and Indians have gone up against each other eight times. Boyertown won the first seven, including a pair in the 2007 and 2009 duals, before Council Rock North ended the frustration with a 34-33 thriller in this season’s Bear Duals.

Despite the Bears’ domination in the won-loss column against Council Rock North, the average margin of victory in the eight-match series is only six points – a mere move or two.

Owen J. Roberts, meanwhile, will have an even mightier task in its quarterfinal against top-seeded Council Rock South.

The Golden Hawks are 5-2, losing only to District 11’s twin towers of power Easton and Northampton. They kept busy in between competing in four very tough tournaments – the Ironman, King of the Mountain, Bethlehem Holiday Classic and their own Escape the Rock. When healthy, head coach Brad Silemperi’s lineup has very few weak spots. It features two more Rappos – Billy and Matt – down low; Iowa-bound Josh Dziewa and Matt Martoccio in the middle; and Bobby Lavelle up top.

OJR head coach Steve DeRafelo and the Wildcats got a first-hand look at the Golden Hawks during the Escape the Rock Tournament back on Jan. 8-9.

DeRafelo could only smile when asked how good Council Rock South is … but neither he nor anyone else will be throwing in the towel tonight. The Wildcats (12-6) have their share of headliners in Jonathan Dempsey (112) and Scott Syrek (215). But a large segment of the very young lineup has not only matured of late but shown considerable improvement, notably down low with Peter Fratantoni, Kyle Shronk and Andrew Kinney, in the middle with Adam Moser, Mike Lenge and Jordan Moser, and up top with Sam Funk.

Like DeRafelo said following Wednesday night’s win over Pottstown, “This team has exceeded my expectations.”

Tonight’s other quarterfinals include No. 5 Rustin (8-0), arguably the surprise team of the season, against No. 13 Norristown (12-2), unquestionably the surprise team of the duals, as well as No. 7 Henderson (10-6) against No. 2 Council Rock North (8-2).

Rustin, in just its fourth year of wrestling, is coming off a huge 36-27 decision of Octorara, which opens the District 1-AA semifinals Saturday morning against St. Pius X. The Knights also defeated Henderson, 31-23, two weeks ago. Norristown, under head coach Mark Harner – whose brother Steve led the Eagles to back-to-back AAA duals titles in the late 90s – held off Plymouth-Whitemarsh in its opener and upset No. 4 Quakertown in the second round.

Henderson debuted with a 33-28 win over Ches-Mont League rival Downingtown East, that coming 24 hours after a edge-of-your-seat 29-28 win over the Cougars in their regular-season dual. And Council Rock North, remember, has lost only to nationally ranked St. Mark’s (Del.) and its crosstown rival Council Rock South and had very respectable showings in the Powerade, Beast of the East and Escape The Rock tournaments.

Now, if only Mother Nature whimps out, and slips and slides south or out to the Atlantic…

DUAL NOTES

The only two teams remaining in the District 1-AAA field with previous titles are Council Rock South (2007-08) and Norristown (1996-97). … Since the double-elimination format was adopted in 2005, of this year’s remaining teams Council Rock South (17-5), Council Rock North (16-6) and Boyertown (13-6) own the best overall records in duals competition.

STATE DUALS

Methacton High School will host two PIAA duals on Tuesday. District 12-AAA champion La Salle, led by ageless head coach Vic Stanley, meets the District 1 runner-up in one, while the District 1-AA champion takes on the District 3 runner-up in the other. Both bouts begin at 7 p.m. … The District 1-AAA champion gets a bye into the state quarterfinals, set for 3 p.m. Friday at the Giant Center in Hershey.

This column originally ran in the Jan. 12 edition of The Mercury.

There was a time not so awfully long ago when 100 wins were unthinkable, perhaps because such a number was unreachable. Schedules, which featured upwards of a handful or two of league matches, a few non-league challenges, maybe some sort of holiday tournament, and a single-elimination postseason, often limited wrestlers to just 20 bouts the entire winter.

The evolution of wrestling changed all that, of course.

At first, quantity – expanding the schedules and piling up all those wins – was all that mattered (pardon the pun). Forget quality. By the mid-1980s, a lot of individuals from schools of all sizes throughout Pennsylvania were arriving at states with gaudy 50-win records.

The PIAA stepped in soon after with a rule or two limiting the maximum number of matches. Those figures have since been amended once or twice, too.

Nonetheless, as the list of tournaments, invitationals and classic this and classic that got longer and longer – obviously to maximize the PIAA’s guideline of team competitions – the list of wrestlers with 100 career wins got longer and longer, too.

This season alone, the area’s 13 schools with wrestling programs have already participated in a combined 18 individual and 16 team-duals tournaments. Four others — all team duals — were snowed out. The bustling schedules don’t make getting 100 career wins any easier, mind you, but they sure do provide the opportunity to reach the coveted mark that so many before them never had.

Take a trip around the state, or peruse whatever web site available, and you’ll find the list of wrestlers with 100 or more career wins is bursting at the seams. You’d need a calculator to add up the total in Pennsylvania.

There are 82 in this area alone – from Pottstown graduate Brian Campbell’s 100, which he pinned down in the 1989 state semifinals, all the way up to Upper Perkiomen graduate Zack Kemmerer’s state-record 199, which he put in the books by winning his second state title three years ago.

Winning 100 matches is the goal of most if not all high school wrestlers, and is unquestionably a mark of achievement. But all those wins don’t necessarily epitomize success, or even serve as a measure for the real who’s who of high school wrestling.

In other words, congratulations are in order for anyone who reaches the milestone. A spot in the record book, or history book, is in order for anyone who reaches the milestone.

But a declaration, or distinction, of being hyped as among the best there was, is, or ever will be?

No … absolutely not.

Kemmerer amassed 199 wins against some of the best competition in the entire nation, wrestling in the best or highest-rated scholastic tournaments like the Beast of the East, Ironman, Konkrete Duals, and Reno Tournament of Champions. And he not only had two state titles, but four state medals. The Hill School’s David Hoffman finished with 195, which included five state prep titles and one national prep title. Upper Perkiomen’s Chris Sheetz had 189 with a state title and three other state medals, and Derek Zinck had 159 with three state medals. Former teammate Mark Smith, unfairly tagged the “one-move wonder“ with his headlock, had 161 wins that included a state record for career pins and three state medals. Move further down the local list to Pottstown’s Joey Allen and Seth Ecker, both with 130-plus wins and both with three state medals, to Spring-Ford’s Matt Moley and his 131 wins and three state medals.

That’s only eight of the many who were great wrestlers … great not only for their 100-plus wins, but for what they won

And before all is said and done this season, barring injury or any other unforeseen misfortune, Alex Pellicciotti should be added to the list. The Boyertown senior has been on the 100-win chart since last year, and Saturday afternoon he became the Bears’ all-time leader when he pinned Josh Hengen of McDonough (Md.) during the Cumberland Valley Duals for No. 144, passing former teammate Jesse DeWan. He added two more, moving ahead of Methacton graduate Dan Covatta – a state champion and three-time state medalist – into the ninth spot on The Mercury’s all-time list. The 135-pound Pellicciotti, an exceptional talent who has finished off exactly half of his career wins with pins (73) and amassed both against some heady competition from around Pennsylvania, already has two state medals and will likely add a third to his collection in March.

It’s those smaller numbers – the pins and the state medals – that will help Pellicciotti, like so many others, be looked at, respected and remembered as more than just a 100 career wins wrestler.

MOVING UP

Boyertown teammate Matt Malfaro is now up to 126 wins and is likely to pass DeWan and finish his career second behind Pellicciotti on the Bears’ chart. Malfaro and older brother Tony Malfaro (114 wins) are one of eight sets of brothers on The Mercury’s all-time win list. The others are Zack (199) and Ryan (152) Kemmerer; Hill School’s Zach (142) and Orion (130) Doll and Ty (142) and Dave (102) Willman; Spring-Ford’s Matt (131) and Mike (123) Moley; Upper Perkiomen’s Jared (121) and Derek (111) Bennett; and Pottstown’s Jared and Jordon Haring (103 apiece).

Closing in on 100 wins is Daniel Boone senior Eddie Lockowitz (90), Boyertown junior Jeremy Minich (87), and Owen J. Roberts junior Scott Syrek (82).

MOST IMPROVED

A short list of the area’s most improved wrestlers from a year ago: Daniel Boone’s Nate Solo and Sam Batchelor; Hill School’s Byron Muhlenberg; Methacton’s Pat Carr and Dan Cox; Owen J. Roberts’ Michael Lenge; Perkiomen Valley’s Blair Heaps and Lou Fioravanti; Phoenixville’s Sam LaPorte; Pottstown’s Ricardo Gonzalez and Dan Yauger; Spring-Ford’s Chase Brown, Matt Stipa and Aaron Cummins; St. Pius’ Anthony Yerger, John Anuszewski, Conor Myers, A.J. Ebersole and Patrick Stone; and Upper Perkiomen’s Cody Ambrose, Nick Hale and Dan Wolfram.

TEAMING UP

Spring-Ford’s third-place finish at last weekend’s Biglerville Duals enabled the school to edge past Methacton as the area’s winningest public school program. Spring-Ford now has 510 all-time wins, one more than Methacton. Pottstown is third with 490.

*

Owen J. Roberts have two matches this week – at St. Pius X on Wednesday and Pottsgrove at home on Thursday – needing two victories to become the fifth school in the Pioneer Athletic Conference’s 24-year history to reach 100 league wins.

OFF THE MAT

When Spring-Ford hosts Methacton on Wednesday, it will be Rams head coach Tim Seislove’s 200th career match. … Pottsgrove’s Jeff Madden (420) and Upper Perkiomen’s Tom Hontz (415) are the area’s active leaders in that department.

Down in Chester County, Oxford veteran Scott Gold has 396 career wins and will become the 16th coach in Pennsylvania history to hit 400 in the next week or two. Gold has sat in on 674 matches with his Red Devils … which, if you think about it, translates into a little over 8,800 individual bouts (and that doesn’t even include all those postseason thrillers).

OUCH

Think Brock Hallman enjoyed the Cumberland Valley Duals on Saturday?

The Boyertown senior began the day getting pinned by the host’s Tristan Warner – ranked No. 2 in the state. After decking his rival from Shikellamy, he lost by technical fall to McDonough’s Scott Patrick – ranked No. 3 in Maryland. Then came a 19-7 loss to Plymouth-Whitemarsh’s John Staudenmayer – ranked No. 3 in the state (right behind Warner). And the finish? Hallman got pinned by Central Dauphin’s Marshall Peppelman – a two-time state champion (and a runner-up in between) who is ranked No. 1 in the state and No. 1 in the nation.

There wasn’t a whole heck of a lot to talk about when wrestling – area wrestling, that is – entered the new millennium.

Spring-Ford had won or shared eight of the previous 10 Pioneer Athletic Conference titles; Methacton had won six of the previous 10 Suburban One Freedom Division titles and was right near the top in the other four; and The Hill School was beating up nearly everyone except for Blair. And just three lightweights – Hill’s David Hoffman, Upper Perkiomen’s Brad Rozanski and Methacton’s Dan Covatta – managed to pin down a gold medal in March.

In other words, there wasn’t all that much drama or that many notable individual achievements in and around the area’s wrestling neighborhoods … just not a lot to hoot and holler about.

But that all changed, and changed in a hurry, too.

So much so that today – or three days before the clock runs out on the first decade of the new century – is as good a time as any to look back at some of the most memorable moments, or the big stories, of the past 10 years.

No program was as successful – or jeered – as Upper Perkiomen’s, of course. The Indians, except for their annual scraps with Spring-Ford and the more recent brawls with Boyertown, were rarely ever challenged. They swept their first 60 league matches and the first seven PAC-10 championships of the decade. It would’ve been 68 in a row and an eighth straight league title, but months after the 2007 season had been completed Upper Perkiomen officials revealed a wrestler had resided illegally in the school district. The Indians forfeited all but two of their PAC-10 wins, and relinquished what would have been a record fourth straight (and sixth overall) District 1-AAA Team Duals title.

Despite the controversy, there was no overlooking Upper Perkiomen’s run. Head coach Tom Hontz produced 16 Southeast Regional champions – which we prefer to call genuine District 1 champions (not those North, Central or South champions) – four state champions, and 19 state medalists overall during the decade. The 16 regional champions are more than twice the total of their nearest rival (Boyertown); only one other team – (Boyertown) had a state champion; and the 19 state medalists are just one shy of doubling the total of, you guessed it, Boyertown.

But the Bears have had the upper hand the past three years. And, if not for coming up short against Spring-Ford – who they shared the 2008 title with – the Bears would have owned a spotless league mark the last three seasons.

Upper Perkiomen’s and Boyertown’s respective runs aside, here’s just one opinion of the decade’s Top 10 area wrestling stories:

1. Upper Perkiomen wins duals title: Upper Perkiomen won the 2006 PIAA-Class AAA Team Duals title by defeating Easton, 46-19, at the Giant Center in Hershey. Despite splitting the first 10 individual bouts, the Indians owned a 27-19 lead on the strength of four pins. They put the match out of reach when Shane Smith and Chris Sheetz recorded back-to-back pins at 112 and 119 pounds, respectively. The Indians also set a district record for total wins in a season after finishing 29-1 overall.

2. Spaid pins way to state title: Mike Spaid became Boyertown’s first state champion and the first District 1 wrestler to record a pin in every one of his postseason bouts en route to the PIAA-Class AAA gold medal in 2004. The 285-pound Spaid had two falls and a medical forfeit at the Section Four Tournament; three each at the District 1-South and Southeast Regional tournaments, and four more at the PIAA championships.

3. Kemmerer’s perfect season: Upper Perkiomen junior Zack Kemmerer set the standard for excellence in 2005-06. He won gold medals at both the nationally recognized Ironman and Beast of the East tournaments, the first District 1 wrestler to achieve the double; won the first of his two PIAA-Class AAA state titles; and set both Mercury area and district records for the most wins without a loss in a season (54). Kemmerer added his second state title the following year and graduated with the area, district and state records for career wins (199).

4. Jeff Green dies: Pottstown graduate Jeff Green, an outstanding wrestler at Pottstown and Morgan State University – and hailed as a “real American hero” during the 2003 Summit Awards – died three months after receiving his Career Achievement Award at the age of 41. Green was a two-time state runner-up at heavyweight for the Trojans; a two-time NCAA qualifier for Morgan State University; and a member of the U.S. World and Olympic teams, earning a berth on the U.S. Greco-Roman squad as an alternate for the 1996 Summer Olympics in Atlanta. Green was a captain in the Army and fought on the front lines in Kuwait and Iraq during the Gulf War in 1991. John Armato, his former coach at Pottstown: “Jeff Green was an excellent example of what you hope your son grows up to be. He was a good student, a good athlete, a true gentleman and a good citizen. If Pottstown is ever looking for someone from the community to be proud of, then Jeff Green will be the one we should always hold up to our young people as an example of what you can become and what you can do in your life.”

5. Smith sets pin record: Upper Perkiomen senior and three-time state medalist Mark Smith closes out the 2002 season with a District 1 and Pennsylvania career record 124 pins. Smith, one of the state’s most popular wrestlers for his endless energy on the mats, also broke former teammate Derek Zinck’s district record for career wins (161).

6. Hoffman wins national prep title: The Hill School’s David Hoffman decisioned Blair Academy’s Mark Perry, 10-5, in the 130-pound final of the 2001 National Prep Championships at Lehigh University. It was Hoffman’s second national title and the fifth time he finished among the top eight for All-American prep honors. Hoffman also set school and Mercury-area records for career wins (195), the latter of which would be broken six years later by Zack Kemmerer.

7. Upper Perkiomen stripped of titles: In 2006-07, Upper Perkiomen ran the table in the PAC-10 and in the District 1-Class AAA Team Duals. However, soon after the conclusion of the season, school officials revealed a wrestler had resided illegally in the district. The Indians were forced to forfeit all matches he had participated in and surrendered all team championships.

8. Meister a four-time All-American: Baptist Bible College senior Jason Meister, a two-time state medalist before graduating from Phoenixville, became The Mercury area’s first four-time college All-American after capturing the 133-pound title during the 2003 National Collegiate Wrestling Association Championships at Lafayette College. Meister, who won his first national title as a freshman and was third as both a sophomore and junior, rolled up a 17-7 major decision over defending national champion Camilo Gonzales of Nevada-Reno to close out his senior year at 32-0.

9. Perkiomen Valley stuns Spring-Ford: In 2008, a win by injury default helped Perkiomen Valley defeat Spring-Ford, 30-26 – the first time the Vikings had ever defeated their neighboring rivals. The Rams later made up for the loss with a narrow decision of Boyertown, which left both teams tied for the PAC-10 title.

10. Racich reaches milestone: Ursinus head coach Bill Racich, a graduate of Plymouth-Whitemarsh and longtime teacher in the Spring-Ford School District, went over the 400 career win mark a couple of years ago and ranks among the Top 10 of winningest coaches in all of college wrestling. Racich guided the Bears to a record four straight Centennial Conference championships from 2003 through 2006.

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Falling into the honorable mention category would be Upper Perkiomen’s Derek Zinck, the area’s first four-time sectional champion who would finish second in the state and own a District 1-record 158 career wins before graduating in 2001; the addition of a 14th weight class (215 pounds) in 2003; Zack Kemmerer and Brent Fiorito becoming the first teammates from an area team to win state titles in the same year when both were golden in 2006; Hontz being named the Pennsylvania Class AAA Coach of the Year in 2006; and Racich and Pottstown’s Jim Tsakonas (2003), Phoenixville’s Lonny Moore (2005) and Boyertown’s Bruce Hallman (2006) being inducted.into the Pennsylvania Wrestling Coaches Association’s Hall of Fame.

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Did someone mention an All-Decade Team? Despite the recent holiday frenzy and not a whole lot of time to research the who’s who of the soon-to-be past decade, I’ll take these 14 fellas (and will gladly accept any constructive criticism, too):

103: Seth Ecker (Pottstown) – three-time state medalist and 1321 career wins; 112: Aaron Brown (Owen J. Roberts) – state medalist and 134 career wins; 119: Chris Sheetz (Upper Perkiomen) – state champion, four-time state medalist and 189 career wins; 125: Matt Moley (Spring-Ford) – two-time state runner-up, three-time state medalist and 131 career wins; 130: David Hoffman (Hill School) – two-time national prep champion, five-time national prep medalist and 195 career wins; 135: Mark Smith (Upper Perkiomen) – three-time state medalist, 124 career pins and 161 career wins; 140: Zack Kemmerer (Upper Perkiomen) – two-time state champion, four-time state medalist and 199 career wins; 145: Derek Zinck (Upper Perkiomen) – three-time state medalist and 159 career wins; 152: Brent Fiorito (Upper Perkiomen) – state champion, two-time state medalist and 176 career wins; 160: Zach Doll (Hill School) – three-time national prep medalist and 142 career wins; 171: Jason Shivak (Spring-Ford) – state runner-up and 134 career wins; 189: Orion Doll (Hill School) – two-time national prep medalist and 130 career wins; 215: Josh White (Boyertown) – state runner-up and 112 career wins; 285: Mike Spaid (Boyertown) – state champion, two-time state medalist and 116 career wins.

Backups? The welcome mat is out for Boyertown’s Fred Rodgers, Jesse DeWan, Alex Pellicciotti (who is still on the mats for the Bears) and 2009 graduate Ryan Kemmerer; Methacton’s Brad Clark; Owen J. Roberts’ Nick Fuschino and Scott Syrek (just a junior this year); Spring-Ford’s Mike Moley; and Upper Perkiomen’s Darren Kern and Derek Bennett.

Two full weeks into another wrestling season and, well, it doesn’t appear as though much may change locally – in the Pioneer Athletic Conference, that is – or throughout District 1 this winter.

Hopefully it will, because no one would enjoy being wrong more than you know who.

But for now, after a slew of individual and team tournaments, even a handful of dual meets here and there, the cast of contenders seems to be the same ol’ gang.

In the PAC-10, there’s no doubt Boyertown, Spring-Ford and Upper Perkiomen – three teams that have won or shared the last 15 titles, and 19 of the league’s 23 championships overall – are the frontrunners once again. If Methacton and Owen J. Roberts can fill some holes in their respective lineups before the ball drops in Times Square, they could create some congestion among the contenders when they all start wrestling for real, or against one another, in January.

And in District 1, despite the noticeable rise (or actual resurrection) of a few programs in the early going, there doesn’t seem to be anyone other than Boyertown or

Council Rock North ready to present a legitimate challenge to Council Rock South or Quakertown – who have accounted for the last three AAA team duals titles. Council Rock South, without Josh Dziewa on the mat, performed rather admirably at the Ironman and King of the Mountain tournaments, unquestionably two of the top high school features in the entire country, and beat Council Rock North in last week’s Suburban One National showdown. A move here or a move there was all that separated Boyertown and Council Rock North during the season-opening Brian Bealer Memorial Bear Duals two weeks ago, and there was little that separated those two and Quakertown during this past weekend’s Beast of the East. It’s hard to imagine anyone in the district faring any better at the Ironman, King of the Mountain, or Beast of the East.

That’s for now.

Things can change, and change in a hurry … and, if only for the sake of firing up the competitive juices and creating a bit more drama, here’s hoping they do.

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Individual match-ups, which don’t really carry any substantial weight until the postseason, nonetheless could be quite entertaining over the next month and a half.

For starters, there isn’t a weight class anywhere – perhaps in any district in Pennsylvania – near as loaded as the 189 bracket. Go pound-for-pound, up and down the docket, and none packs a punch like Council Rock North’s Jamie Callender, Springfield-Delco’s Andre Petroski, Oxford’s Nick Ruggear and Council Rock South’s Bobby Lavelle. Callender, Petroski and Ruggear were second, third and fifth, respectively, at the Beast, and Lavelle collected two medals at the Ironman and King of the Mountain.

The district should also get a boost from a solid group of freshmen. Plymouth-Whitemarsh may have the best in Justin Staudenmayer. Among the many others to keep an eye on throughout the regular season are Norristown’s Brett Harner, Downingtown East’s Alex Wait, Quakertown’s Tyler Seislove, and Upper Perkiomen’s Wolfgang McStravick.

BEAST NOTES

Boyertown had just one medalist – 135-pound senior Alex Pellicciotti (fourth) – at the Beast. Both of Pellicciotti’s setbacks – 5-3 in the quarterfinals and 11-2 in the third-place final – were to No. 5 seed Scott Festejo of Long Branch (N.J.). Matt Malfaro (119) and Zach Heffner (189) both came within a win of the medal rounds for the Bears, who were 30-26 overall in individual bouts. If it’s any consolation to head coach Pete Ventresca, 18 of those 26 losses were to seeded opponents. … The Hill School had three entries – Colin Saunders (2-2 at 135), Karl Wiszumerski (1-2 at 140) and Jay Knighton (3-2 at 285) – who combined for a 6-6 mark.

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District 1 had nine medalists overall at the Beast, led by the aforementioned threesome at 189. District rivals went up against each other in the seventh-place final at both 125 and 145.

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Blair Academy won its 11th straight Beast of the East team title on Sunday. The Bucs had five individual champions. Blair’s Chris Villalonga (140) and Central Dauphin’s Marshall Peppelman (160), both of whom have already committed to Cornell, won their third straight gold medals at the Beast. … Wyoming Seminary heavyweight Mike McMullan was named the Outstanding Wrestler, an honor that could’ve (if not should’ve) easily gone to Garnet Valley’s 215-pound Matt Idelson. McMullan was seeded second, so his effort wasn’t all that surprising. Idelson, on the other hand, wasn’t seeded. But the junior put up three pins and a pair of shutout decisions to get to his final, where he knocked off No. 1 seed and nationally ranked Nate Gaffney of Connellsville, 6-4.

BERKS BATTLE

The Daniel Boone-Conrad Weiser match has decided the Berks Conference Section Two title the last two years. Their match on Jan. 23 is expected to decide this year’s championship, even though the Blazers may have the upper-hand for now considering they crushed the Scouts, 69-9, at the Ephrata Duals two weeks ago.

This past weekend, Daniel Boone was sixth among 17 teams at the Thundering Herd Tournament in Carlisle. Colin Martucci (145), son of former St. Pius X head coach John Martucci, was second, while Sam Batchelor (215) was third. Eddie Lockowitz (103), Liam Gibbons (119) and Nick McGlauflin (171) were all fifth, and Zach Mitchell (125) contributed a sixth for rookie head coach Matt Shutt.

SPECIAL GUEST

Andy Kaul, a 1951 graduate of The Hill School and one of its most successful wrestlers, watched the Blues during the Mercersburg Duals two weeks ago. A three-time national prep champion while at the Hill, Kaul went on to Michigan and led the Wolverines to two Big 10 Conference championships and a 29-6-1 overall record in his four seasons in the program. He was a two-time NCAA All-American, placing four at 137 pounds in 1954 and second at the same weight in 1955.

Thanks to computers, and the multitude of programs the creative minds have written or created for them, we’re capable of breaking down just about anything any way we choose … including wrestlers, their teams, the tournaments they compete in, even entire seasons.

Thanks to Brian Burychka and Mike Leister, the geniuses behind the local end of the NHSCA Web site, we’ve been able to grasp just how good, bad or indifferent things have been in the area and throughout District 1 (as well as the state, in some instances) for a number of years now. And combine what they’ve offered with years and years of old-fashioned research — that’s a lot of trips to libraries, a lot of reading and a lot of written notes — and we’ve been able to grasp just how good, bad or indifferent things have been in the area and throughout District 1 since wrestling became a sanctioned scholastic sport 75 years ago.

All the numbers can be a bit misleading, too.

Depending on what figures you look at, or what figures you choose to ignore, they can and will dictate the criticism, albeit it a good or bad analysis.

Which is why some of the most avid fans from the Philadelphia region were quick to hail last weekend’s showing at the PIAA Championships as another good year for District 1.

But was it?

If you count up the medals — all 22 of them — well, that’s not bad at all. Only in 2005, when the final count was 28, and the following year, when the total was 24, has the district fared better. And realizing there were only 13 medalists last year, it shows the district did pretty well overall in recovering from the 2008 fiasco in Hershey.

Looking inside those numbers provides a bit of a different evaluation, though.

For one, 22 medalists was the third-best total behind District 7 (25) and District 3 (24), both of which had six less qualifiers when wrestling began last Thursday afternoon, and just ahead of District 11 (18), which had 16 less qualifiers. Also, of the 22 medalists, there were no state champions and just two runners-up, and less than half — nine, to be exact — finished in the top half of their respective weight classes. As a matter of fact, more than half of them — 12, to be exact — finished sixth, seventh or eighth.

How one defines success at the state tournament — as a district overall — is one question that seems to get a variety of answers.

Just two finalists and no champions isn’t good, naturally. Not when you realize District 7 had 11 finalists and seven champions, District 3 had six finalists and three champions, and District 11 had three finalists and one champion. And 22 medalists, good when recognizing they represent the district’s third-highest total ever, lose a little value when realizing less than a third — just six — were second or third in their weight classes.

But the one glaring statistic that seems to jump out at anyone willing to add up the numbers (or check the NHSCA Web site), is the overall won-loss record at states. And while it’s a number few use to evaluate or define success at the state tournament, it’s a number that shows just how competitive a district is against the rest of the state.

District 1’s 48 state qualifiers last week were a combined 84-99, a winning percentage of .459 — the worst of nine other districts represented in the AAA bracket (not including District 12’s eight qualifiers who were 4-17). Of those 48 qualifiers, 10 went two-and-out, failing to win a match. Sixteen others won one match before being eliminated. Add those together, and you get more than half of the qualifiers, 26 in all, with a combined 16-52 mark.

District 1 wrestlers have been over the .500 mark just three times in 35 state tournaments, or since the PIAA split the championship into the current set-up of two enrollment classifications way back in 1974. The district’s best year, without a doubt, was 2005, with the record five AAA state champions, record 28 medalists and .507 overall winning percentage (104-101) from its 55 qualifiers. The only other two years the district finished above .500 was back in 1977 and 1978, when just 36 qualifiers in the win-or-be-gone, single-elimination format went a combined 35-35 (.500) and 39-38 (.506), respectively.

So, after digesting all those numbers, from past and present, how did District 1 do last weekend?

Not bad. Not bad at all.

District 1 has made significant strides in going toe-to-toe with the rest of the state since those single-digit and 10, 11, and 12 state-medalist counts back in the 1980s and early 1990s. Schedules have been beefed up, and the coaching staffs have gotten considerably better, two particulars most critics felt kept District 1 pinned down in mediocrity for so long. And, most important, the dedication — or commitment — to the sport by the wrestlers themselves, has improved dramatically.

So, yes, even though District 1 has more steps to climb to get completely out of the shadows of other districts and to firmly establish itself as the best in all of Pennsylvania, it’s at least making the effort, at least heading in that direction.

District 1’s top-seeds, or Southeast Regional champions, went 37-24 with 10 medals; regional runners-up went 18-27 with three medals; third-place qualifiers went 14-23 with five medals; and the overlooked fourth-place entries out of the region went 15-25 with four medals.

CHARTING THE PROGRESS

Owen J. Roberts’ Nick Fuschino, who was fifth at 152 pounds, closed with 130 career wins and in third place at OJR behind only Robert Hoffman (131) and Aaron Brown (134). … Boyertown’s Alex Pellicciotti, seventh at 130, broke his school’s single-season record for wins — 47, set in 2006 by Fred Rodgers and equaled the following year by Jesse DeWan. He will begin next season with 125 career wins, tied for fourth (with Jamie Soupik) on the school’s leaderboard. Barring injuries, he’ll likely pass Derick Schoenly (130), Tom Kniezewski (133), and DeWan (143) and into the top spot on the chart. Also, another 40-plus victories will put him in the Top Five on the area’s all-time career win chart. Teammate Tim Feroe (117) closed in a tie for 10th, while Matt Malfaro (108) has another year to move up from No. 16 at Boyertown. … Upper Perkiomen’s Jared Bennett, the area’s other senior state qualifier, closed his career with 121 wins.

ALL IN THE FAMILY

It’s hard not to hail the Rappos as the First Family of Council Rock South wrestling. Three brothers — Rick (2004), Mike (2005-06), and Mark (2008) — combined for four state titles. Matt, a sophomore, went 1-2 at 125 pounds during last week’s PIAA Championships and returns next season. So does youngest brother Billy, whose freshman season ended last month during sectionals.

While Matt was wrestling Saturday in Hershey, both Rick and Mike were doing the same on the college mats … and qualifying for the NCAA Championships. Rick, a senior at Penn, was third at 141 pounds in the Eastern Intercollegiate Wrestling Association Championships. Mike, sophomore at North Carolina, was third at 133 pounds in the Atlantic Coast Conference Championships. Mike will be accompanied to nationals by head coach C.D. Mock, a state champion at Council Rock High School and later an NCAA champion himself for the Tar Heels.

STATELY NUMBERS

For those who may still not be convinced 145 was the toughest bracket of the AAA tournament, catch this: Crestwood’s Jake O’Hara (36-1), Central Mountain’s Dylan Alton (45-0), Cumberland Valley’s Joey Napoli (44-0), and Butler’s Cole Baxter (44-0) went into Saturday morning with a combined 169-1 record, and two of them (Alton and Napoli) were defending state champions. … Alton, who dumped Napoli for the title, goes for the hat trick as a senior next year. Baxter has two more seasons on his wrestling calendar.

Derry freshman Jimmy Gulibon won’t by overlooked by anyone next year, either. The relative unknown swept the gold medal at 103 and finished the season without surrendering a takedown … not one. He was 39-1, his lone setback coming by disqualification when his knee struck a rival’s head, and the opponent was unable to continue.

Penn-Trafford’s Shane Young became Pennsylvania’s 34th three-time state champion … and got booed after his ho-hum 5-3 overtime win in the 119-pound final.

Central Dauphin’s Tony Dallago finished eighth, fifth, and second in three previous appearances in the PIAA Championships. He finally got the elusive gold medal by pinning Council Rock North’s Jamie Callender in the 189-pound final on Saturday — his 18th birthday. Dallago finished with a 171-28 career mark.

Blue Mountain’s Josh Kindig won the 135-pound title, extending District 11’s streak of at least one state champion to 43 consecutive years. But for the first time since the PIAA split the competition into two enrollment brackets back in 1974, no team from the Lehigh Valley — that includes Easton, Nazareth, and Northampton — pinned down a gold medal. The Big Three didn’t exactly disappear, though, because Easton had four medalists, Nazareth had two, and Northampton had six.

Octorara’s Josh Smith finished second at 171 pounds to join Pottstown’s Joey Allen (1990-92) and Octorara’s Josh Smith (1999-2001) as District 1’s only three-time state medalists I nthe Class AA bracket. … The Berks Conference produced a record three state champions for the first time in the history of the PIAA Championships. Schuylkill Valley’s Wyomissing teammates Arty Walsh (112) and Nick Hodgkins (130) and Schuylkill Valley’s Colin Shober (135) were all golden in Class AA.

WILL BE MISSED

Earlier this month, the area lost one of its wrestling pioneers with the passing of Dick Hoover, who was very instrumental in helping start Spring-Ford’s program. Hoover spent the early part of his career guiding the junior high school teams throughout the 60s, then moved up to assist Mike Fabel in the early 70s and was on the staff when the Rams won their first wrestling title — the 1973 Ches-Mont League championship. Hoover returned to coach the junior high school teams and played a major role in organizing the district’s youth wrestling program before retiring as a coach as well as a teacher in the Spring-Ford School District. Hoover, because of his love of the sport and unwavering dedication to those who wrestled, was often credited as being a big part in Spring-Ford’s success through the years.

BOYERTOWN – The second season, the postseason that is, has arrived … individual sport at its very best. And it isn’t just who does this and who does that. It’s who wins, or who wins often enough to survive the first week of a month-long grind that eventually separates the good from the not-as-good in a state with as storied a wrestling history as any anywhere.

In other words, there are usually no remaining team goals to pin down.

Usually, that is.

But you can bet your headgear, singlet and shoes – and a don’t-count-the-calories-lunch – that Great Valley has a team title on its mind going into today’s District 1-Class AAA Section Four Tournament.

The Patriots, considered one of the district’s premier teams from the very beginning of the season, and arguably one of the top three, didn’t get the opportunity to prove it. Great Valley officials had to shut down the program because of a skin infection that affected a number of the Patriots.

Because of the outbreak, Great Valley was forced to withdraw from the district duals, and because of the accompanying panic from around the district, saw its bid for an outright – and undisputed – Ches-Mont League championship get erased. The Patriots didn’t get to strut their collective stuff for 23 days, or until they finally returned to the mats for the Pequea Valley Duals last weekend and a non-league match with Brandywine Heights on Wednesday.

“The kids feel like they need to go out and prove themselves,” said head coach Joe Tornetta, a Phoenixville graduate who at the end of the season is stepping down after a long and very successful career at Great Valley. “They feel there are people out there who still think they are still overrated. They want to prove they are as good as publicized.”

Boyertown head coach Pete Ventresca was impressed with the Patriots well over a month ago, when they met up at the Cedar Cliff Duals. The Bears had a five-point lead going into the final bout, but Tornetta

opted to forfeit than send out one of his aces who was nursing an injured shoulder, giving Boyertown a bit of a deceiving 36-25 win.

“(Great Valley) is good, very good,” Ventresca said recently. “It’s a team that doesn’t really have many holes in its lineup.”

If the seedings for today’s brawl are any indication, yes, the Patriots are indeed good. They picked up 11 top-four seedings. The top draws went to Kyle Liberato (26-2 at 125 pounds), Domenic DeRobertis (27-2 at 145), Justin Schellenger (26-2 at 160), Myles Tornetta (26-3 at 189), and Carl Buchholz (28-2 at 215). Three teammates are No. 2 seeds.

“The kids have worked extremely hard and have had to overcome some serious obstacles in the process of getting here (today),” Tornetta said. “But sectional wrestling, postseason wrestling, is a bit different than dual meet competition. We will have to wrestle our best.”

Boyertown has been at its best – or close to it – in recent weeks. The Bears finished second to Quakertown in the district duals, avenged that loss to the Panthers to finish among the top six at the state duals, then capped the regular season with a rout of Phoenixville for its third straight Pioneer Athletic Conference championship.

The Bears have just two No. 1 seeds in Jeremy Minich (31-4 at 112) and Alex Pellicciotti (35-3 at 130). But three others – 2007 section champion Matt Malfaro (119), defending champion Tim Feroe (152) and a healthy Zach Heffner (189) – are situated No. 2 in their respective weight classes, and Trevor MacMinn (125) is a No. 3 seed.

Boyertown also has senior Charles Jones back at 171. Jones won nine of his first 11 bouts – losing just two close decisions – before suffering an injury at the Beast of the East Classic in Delaware..

The area’s two other teams in the section – Owen J. Roberts and Spring-Ford – each has a No. 1 seed. For the Wildcats, it’s Nick Fuschino (25-1) at 152. For the Rams, it’s Justin Franiak (21-8) at 285. Both are defending champions.

If there is one weight class in particular that could be the headliner today, it’s 152 – with two returning champions in Fuschino and Feroe (33-5), and very good rivals in Great Valley’s Travis Donnor (19-4) and Bishop Shanahan’s Evan Duffy (23-5).

If Fuschino and Feroe meet up in the final, Feroe will be looking for a little revenge considering he was 0-4 against Fuschino back in 2006-07, the last time the two met. In their respective high school careers, the pair have wrestled 29 common opponents, and Feroe has gone 30-7 against that group while Fuschino has gone 28-5.

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Boyertown, which returned to District 1 in 2004, has had more champions (22) the past five years than any other team in the Section Four field. Owen J. Roberts (10), Spring-Ford (9), Downingtown West (8) and Great Valley (7) are a distant second through fifth, respectively. … The only teams in all of District 1 with at least one section champion in each of the previous 10 seasons (1999-2008) are Neshaminy (Section One); Upper Perkiomen (Section Two); Methacton and Norristown (Section Three); and Upper Darby (Section Five). Henderson has also accomplished the feat while competing in Sections Four and Six during that span.

SECTION THREE

Phoenixville, back up in the AAA bracket for the first time in six years, picked up a pair of No. 1 seeds in Matt Cermanski (20-10) and Ken Cenci (25-5) for the Section Three Tournament at Methacton. Cermanski will be at 125, while Cenci is at 215 for the Phantoms, who also saw Chris Onder (16-8) draw the No. 2 spot at 112 and teammate Dan Giannone (15-13) get No. 3 at 125.

Perkiomen Valley has six top-three seeds. The Vikings’ No. 2 seeds are Gavin Milligan (28-4) at 130 and Jordan Deane (22-9) at 135, while the No. 3 seeds are Justin Beitler (18-8) at 103, Vaughn Gehman (12-13) at 145, Brett Petriello (22-11) at 189, and Chase Godfrey (28-4) at 285.

Host Methacton, meanwhile, didn’t get a No. 1 seed for the first time in recent memory. The hosts’ favorites are No. 2 seeds Rob D’Annunzio (22-6) at 103 and Brandan Clark (24-4) at 215, and No. 3 seed Kyle Kovalsky (21-7) at 160.

Justin Andrews, a section champion two years ago, is a contender at 119.

* * *

Phoenixville hasn’t had a Class AAA section champ since Ed Bearden, the third member of his family – joining Paul (1978) and Tom (1981 and 1982) – to capture a gold medal at sectionals. … Norristown’s David Irwin, who wrestled at Upper Perkiomen two years ago and was a Section Two champion, is 21-2 and seeded second at 112 pounds. … The Phantoms’ Sam LaPorte (3-23) opens against Plymouth-Whitemarsh’s John Staudenmayer (31-0), the only unbeaten wrestler in the entire sectional.

SECTION TWO

Upper Perkiomen drew five No. 1 seeds for the Section Two Tournament in its own gym. The Indians, who will have to deal with District 1-AAA Team Duals champion and defending section champion Quakertown, hope to get a lift from Marty McStravick (23-8) at 119, Garrett Fellman (21-11) at 125, Mike McStravick (27-5) at 140, Nick Edmonson (18-4) at 171, and Jared Bennett (32-2) at 285.

Pottsgrove’s Zach Robinson (25-5) is the No. 1 seed at 130. Falcon teammates D.J. Ludy (20-9), Danny Michaels (15-6) and T.J. Demetrio (23-7) all drew No. 3 seeds at 125, 135 and 145, respectively.

Pottstown, back up in the AAA bracket for the first time since 1990, got a No. 3 seed in Will Carter (15-9) at 285.

* * *

Unfortunately, either Pottsgrove’s Anthony Martin or Pottstown’s Rashaad Lighty will see their season end this morning when the two meet in a pigtail at 152 pounds. … Last season, Robinson became Pottsgrove’s first section champion since Brian Shallcross was a gold medalist in 1993. … Because of its long run in AA, Pottstown hasn’t had a Class AAA section champion since the memorable 1989 postseason run saw Chris Ruyak, Larry Wallace, Frank Stehman, Tom Medvetz, Brian Campbell and Job Price pin down gold for the Trojans. When the Class AA field expanded and forced officials to go with a two-section format in 1991, Pottstown’s Mike Johnson, Ron McCalicher, Shawn Schmidt, Dave McDonnell, Joey Allen and Rich Fagley were all District 1-Class AA Section One champions. The Pioneer Athletic Conference – Pottstown, along with Pottsgrove (three), Perkiomen Valley (one) and St. Pius X (one) – accounted for all but two of the individual gold medals in that sectional. … In the last 10 years, Upper Perkiomen has had a District 1-high 52 section champions – including a district-record eight in 2006.

NOTES

Pellicciotti owns the most wins (35) of anyone in today’s six sectionals. Norristown’s Marcus Robbins is next with 34, while teammates Brandon Parker and Joe Kent, along with Feroe, are next with 33 apiece. … Feroe, Chichester’s Bob Scheivert and Robbins share the District 1 lead in pins with 22 each.