By Lynn Saternow

Herald Sports Editor



HERSHEY — They say “Diamonds are forever.” So is gold if you collect it at the PIAA State AA Wrestling Championships.

Three local wrestlers will attempt to have their names forever etched in the record books as they seek gold medals this afternoon in the state finals that begin at 2:30. Eight other area matmen will be going for medals in the consolation rounds, prior to the championships at 12:30.

Sharon senior Jordan Moss already has that golden distinction after winning the title in 2008 and he eyes to return to the top of the medal stand one more time. Regardless of the outcome, he’ll finish as a 4-time place-winner, only the 6th in Mercer County history.

Joining Moss in the finals in quest of their first state crowns are Reynolds junior Mason Beckman (119) and Commodore Perry junior Stephen Ceremuga (189).

Vying in the consolations for 3rd place are: Reynolds’ Dylan D’Urso (125), Greenville’s Cody Copeland (140), Grove City’s Wes Phipps (160) and Sharon’s Lewendo Teague (171).

Competing for 5th is Commodore Perry’s Brian Hooks (215).

Trying for 7th are: Reynolds’ Austin Matthews (130) and Luke Taylor (145); Hickory’s Tyler Gargano (160).

Eliminated in the 2nd round of consolations, one match short of a medal, were: Jamestown brothers Tyler (112) and Aaron Roberts (119); and Commodore Perry’s Brandon Collins (152).

Moss has been shooting for the state finals since a close semifinal loss last season. He won in the semis this time, 8-5, against Shawn Perich of Portage, notching 4 takedowns and deliberately giving up all the points on escapes.

“We saw the kid wrestle earlier and we felt we were better on our feet,” said Sharon coach Dave Ciafre. “So decided to wrestle on our feet instead of down on the mat. He did exactly want we wanted to do.

“Jordan wanted to be a three-time state champ and was disappointed last year. That motivation to win another one has been driving him ever since.”

In the finals, Moss (45-0) will take on Nick Carr (31-2) of South Fayette, the runner-up from the Southwest Region.

Beckman (48-0) continued to dominate every opponent on the tourney trail Friday, beating Cory Thomas of Bedford, 11-3, in the quarterfinals and routing Tanner Hough of Westmont-Hilltop, 11-3, in the semifinals. In the finals today, the Raider junior will tangle with Benton senior Michael Rhone, (41-3).

Beckman is no stranger to the finals, finishing 2nd at 103 as a freshman. He was third last season. “Mason’s experience in the finals will definitely be a plus,” said Raider coach Brian Hills. “That overtime loss (in that 2008 final) is driving him. But this is just another tournament to Mason. He is deserving of where he’s at. He wants to prove how good he’s been and how good he is now.”

Ceremuga doesn’t have the state history of the other two, but is making some now. The unbeaten Panther (41-0) went 1-2 in his first trip here as a sophomore, but rolled through the weight class so far. In the semis he dominated Milton freshman Ryan Solomon, 9-2, notching 4 takedowns. Earlier in the quarters, he was in control the whole way for a 4-2 victory over Forest Hills’ Zack Glessner.

In the finals he’ll face Travis Chesla (37-1) of Towanda, who was 4th last year at 285, but dropped down two weights.

“We felt he was good enough to get to the finals,” said a happy CP coach Kevin Drew. “Now we’ll have to see if he has what it takes to be a champion. I’m looking forward to it. This other kid has been No. 1 all season.

At the start of the season, Drew admitted he wasn’t sure how good his ace was. “We knew he had the substance to be a great champion, but we didn’t know if he had the technique,” Drew said. “In the off-season he developed a great shot. We’ll see if the kid in the finals can stop it. I’m excited.” 

Following is a look at the locals who competed on Friday:

Vying in 3rd-place consys

Raider D’Urso suffered a heart-breaking overtime loss in the semifinals, 10-5, to Tyler Small of Delone Catholic. Regulation ended at 5-5 and after no takedown in the first OT period, D’Urso was reversed and put on his back which resulted in the final score. “Dylan wrestled a great match,” said coach Hills. “That’s a tough one to lose. But that Small kid was one of the favorites coming in.” In the consolations against Zac Beitz of Juniata, D’Urso came back with a vengeance for a 9-1 rout. The Raider sophomore, a 4th place winner last year, is back in the consy match for 3rd against Joe Lascari of North Star, who D’Urso pinned in 3:36 earlier Friday in the quarterfinals.

ä Greenville sophomore Copeland needed only 37 seconds to pin Luke Lohr of Somerset Area — following a 19-second fall in the consys Thursday — to move into medal rounds Friday. In his next bout against Phillip Steinberg of Central Cambria, the Trojans’ ace won a tight 3-1 decision. He then took on North Star’s Richard Baker, who defeated Copeland, 4-3, on opening night with a 4-point rally in the final minute. This time Copeland led 4-0 entering the final frame and won 6-0. For 3rd today, Copeland (41-2) will meet Alex Stanton (39-2) of Blue Ridge.

ä Grove City’s Phipps bowed in the quarterfinals, 9-4, against Benton’s Eric Hess, the 145-pound state champ last season. Phipps came back with a 5-3 triumph over Nolan Greenwald of Burrell, 5-3, to set up a rematch with rival Gargano of Hickory. Phipps lifted his mark to 3-1 against Gargano with a 10-0 major decision. In the next round, the GC junior faced Ryan Maurer of Schuylkill Valley. Phipps jumped to an early 5-0 lead and romped 11-2. The Eagle (37-3) earned a 5th-place medal last year and will go for a 3rd today against Sam Guidi (30-3) of Fort Cherry.

ä Sharon senior Teague ran into a buzzsaw in the semifinals against undefeated Nathaniel Brown of Lewisburg. Brown took down Teague, clamped in a half-nelson, and pinned the Tiger in 1:43. Teague, who won 2-1 in overtime in the semis over Dakota Deslauriers, dropped into the consys against Colin Hedash of Northern Lehigh. Teague (44-2) bounced back from his semis disappointment to win a 3-2 decision. Today he’ll for a 2nd straight 3rd-place medal when he meets Shane Stark (37-6) of Lake Lehman. “That’s the mark of a champion to come back like he did,” said Sharon coach Ciafre.

Vying in 5th-place consys

Commodore Perry senior Hooks fell into the consys with a 5-2 loss to Catasauqua’s Curtis Garner, 5-2. But the Panther came back in the consys, scoring a takedown in overtime to edge Todd Hall of Athens, 4-2. In Round 3 of the consys, Hooks met Nick Dawson of Montourville and came away with a 4-2 victory in regulation. He then faced familiar foe Jared Burger of Union City. Hooks fell behind early 5-0 and couldn’t catch up, bowing 13-7. For 5th today, Hooks (40-4) will face will again meet Garner.

Vying in 7th-place consys

Raider freshman Matthews lost a tough 3-2 decision in the quarterfinals Friday morning to Shady Side Academy’s Frank Martellotti, 3-2, on a couple of controversial referee calls that stopped the action as Matthews appeared ready to score. But Matthews bounced back to pin Francis Mizia of Bentworth in 2:08 to move into the medal rounds. In the 3rd round consys against Brandon Pesarchick of Shamokin, Matthews lost 10-4. Today he’ll meet Jeremy Landowski of Burrell, who Matthews beat in the opening round, 6-1.

ä Reynolds senior Taylor dropped a hard-fought 11-9 decision to Pen Argyl’s Philip Racciato in the quarterfinals, a bout that Taylor led midway through the final period. In the consys, Taylor roared back against Chris Nagel of Huntingdon for a 10-2 major decision. In his next match, the Raider faced Aaron Fry of Muncy who controlled Taylor the whole way for a 20-4 tech fall in 5:00. Taylor (40-14) will take on Garrett Russell (38-10) for 7th place.

ä Hickory’s Gargano bounced back from his 4-2 quarterfinals loss to Fort Cherry’s Sam Guidi to win his consy opener. The Hornet junior dominated Chris Gallaher of Forest Hills for an 8-2 victory. That set up a match with local rival Phipps of Grove City, but Phipps prevailed 10-0. Gargano (48-5) will take on Bryan Bowan (34-9) for 7th.

Eliminated in consys

Jamestown junior Tyler Roberts for a second straight year fell one match short of the medal stand. Roberts lost to Josh Polacek of Westmont-Hilltop, 12-2. Roberts finished the season at 40-10.

ä Roberts’ sophomore brother Aaron dropped into the consys after bowing in the quarterfinals, 9-4, against Michael Rhone of Benton Friday. Then in the losers’ bracket, Roberts (35-11) lost a heart-breaker, 3-1 in overtime to Ben Carey of Montourville. While Jamestown coach Michael Menold saw his Muskies fall short, they’ll be back for another shot next season.

ä Commodore Perry senior Collins saw his career end on a tough 2-1 overtime tie-breaker loss against Montana Trombetta of Carlynton. Collins (34-6) won section and region titles this year and finished second at districts.

Notes: The attendance at the AA quarterfinals round Friday morning was 6,290, while the AAA rounds in the afternoon drew 7,793. The night session drew 6,692 … Three AA state champs fell on Friday. Arty Walsh (119) of Juniata actually lost twice and won’t even medal. North Stars’ Nick Roberts (103) and Nick Hodgkins (135) of Wyomissing bowed in the semis and fell to the medal rounds. Another will bow today in the 160 finals as 2-time champ Dirk Cowburn of Cowdersport faces Benton’s Eric Hess, who won last year … The Giant Center suffered a power outage during the semifinals and lights ran on generator power for about 20 minutes, making for some dim lighting for the wrestling. … Reynolds will finish well in the team race, but has no shot at the title. … One of the most amazing performances at state was that of  Seneca’s Matt Mongera who beat Union City’s Burger in the 215 semis. Mongera was 5th at sections and 5th at the D-10 meet, while placing 3rd at regions. Last qualifier at every level. And he’s in the finals! Do you believe in miracles?

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Semifinals

103 - Zain Retherford, Line Mountain dec. Nick Roberts, North Star, 4-3; Brad Farley, Bermudian Springs dec. Matt Williams, Pen Argyl, 11-5.

112 - Randy Cruz, Bethlehem Catholic dec. Colt Cotton, Benton, 9-2; David White, Athens dec. Shane Rankin, Union City, 1-0.

119 - Michael Rhone, Benton dec. Geoff Alexander, Shady Side Academy, 3-0; Mason Beckman, Reynolds major dec. Tanner Hough, Westmont Hilltop, 11-3.

125 - Tyler Small, Delone Catholic dec. Dylan D’Urso, Reynolds, 10-5 TB; Coltin Fought, Benton dec. Dave Makara, Burrell, 5-2.

130 - Joe Spisak, Boiling Springs dec. Ronnie Garbinsky, Tyrone, 6-3; Frank Martellotti, Shady Side Academy dec. Mikey Racciato, Pen Argyl, 9-8.

135 - A.J. Schopp, Tyrone dec. Nick Hodgkins, Wyomissing, 4-2; Luke Frey, Montoursville dec. Garet Pisani, Ridgway, 5-2.

140 - Colin Shober, Schuylkill Valley tech. fall Alex Stanton, Blue Ridge, 17-2, 5:26; Seth Beitz, Juniata dec. Richard Baker, North Star, 8-2.

145 - Nick Carr, South Fayette dec. Philip Racciato, Pen Argyl, 11-4; Jordan Moss, Sharon dec. Shawn Perich, Portage, 8-5.

152 - Cody Wiercioch, Charleroi major dec. Mike Testen, Athens, 10-0; Kyle Dehaut, Bethlehem Catholic dec. Travis McKillop, Burrell, 7-6.

160 - Eric Hess, Benton pinned Sam Guidi, Fort Cherry, 1:30; Dirk Cowburn, Coudersport pinned Ryan Maurer, Schuylkill Valley, 1:18.

171 - Nathaniel Brown, Lewisburg pinned Lewendo Teague, Sharon, 1:43; Matthew Cunningham, Shady Side Academy dec. Shane Stark, Lake Lehman, 3-0.

189 - Stephen Ceremuga, Commodore Perry dec. Ryan Solomon, Milton, 9-2; Travis Chesla, Towanda dec. Garth Lakitsky, Tamaqua, 7-2.

215 - Eric Laytos, Lackawanna Trail dec. Curtis Gardner, Catasauqua, 8-4; Matt Mongera, Seneca dec. Jared Burger, Union City, 3-1.

285 - John Rizzo, Richland dec. Josh Duplin, Westmont Hilltop, 3-2 rideout; Joe Chittester, Ridgway dec. Jeff Tarley, Beth-Center, 4-2 UTB.

Third Round Consolations

103 - Anthony Bilotta, Pius X dec. David Sheesley, Mifflinburg, 8-5; Corey Bush, Ridgway tech. fall Nate Schwab, Smethport, 15-0, 3:14.

112 - Josh Polacek, Westmont-Hilltop dec. Evan Link, Penn Cambria, 3-2; Cody Wheeler, Towanda major dec. Jamie Welsh, Pen Argyl, 13-2.

119 - Cory Thomas, Bedford dec. Brandon Arnsberger, Octorara, 3-2; Ben Carey, Montoursville dec. Pete Renda, Brandywine Heights, 5-3.

125 - Zac Beitz, Juniata dec. Laike Gardner, Biglerville, 9-6; Joe Lascari, North Star dec. Matt Bryer, Cochranton, 3-0.

130 - Brandon Pesarchick, Shamokin dec. Austin Matthews, Reynolds, 10-4; Michael DePalma, Jeannette dec. Jeremy Landowski, Burrell, 7-3.

135 - Mike Giorgio, Schuylkill Valley dec. Trey Easter, Bedford, 1-0; Nikko Stevens, Northern Lehigh by injury default over Garth Mahosky, Canton, 2:25.

140 - Ian Chiesa, Northwestern dec. Alec Eggerton, Loyalsock, 1-0; Cody Copeland, Greenville dec. Phillip Steinberg, Central Cambria, 3-1.

145 - Elias Biddle, Warrior Run dec. Garrett Russell, Athens, 3-2; Aaron Fry, Muncy tech. fall Luke Taylor, Reynolds, 20-4, 5:00.

152 - Craemer Hedash, Northern Lehigh dec. Montana Trombetta, Carlynton, 3-2; Jeremy King, Fort LeBoeuf dec. Tyler Hain, Warrior Run, 11-5.

160 - Caleb Lomax, Montoursville dec. Bryn Bowman, Tri-Valley, 11-5; Wes Phipps, Grove City major dec. Tyler Gargano, Hickory, 10-0.

171 - Colin Hedash, Northern Lehigh dec. Zack Zelcs, Ridgway, 5-4; Dakota DesLauriers, Burrell dec. Luke DeLuise, Pius X, 5-2.

189 - Dylan Scheidt, Schuylkill Valley dec. Kyle Dudley, Valley, 8-6; Zak Newton, Penn Cambria dec. Gary Kiefer, Fort Cherry, 5-3.

215 - Josh Rogers, St. Pius X dec. Brian Beattie, Burrell, 3-2; Brian Hooks, Commodore Perry dec. Nick Dawson, Montoursville, 4-2.

285 - Tyler DeMott, Benton dec. Wes Tillett, Shamokin, 3-1; Dan Fultz, Juniata dec. Cris Ramirez, Milton Hershey, 5-0.