FIRST TEAM
Weight Wrestler Record School Class
103 Anthony Cabrera 36-7 Liberty Jr.
112 Randy Cruz 37-6 Bethlehem Catholic So.
119 Anthony Marino 32-8 Liberty Sr.
125 Zach Horan 38-2 Nazareth Jr.
125 Bobby Stevely 40-4 Delaware Valley Sr.
130 Mitch Minotti 41-5 Easton So.
130 Mikey Racciato 45-5 Pen Argyl Fr.
135 Joey Rizzolino 32-13 Easton Jr.
140 Mark Hartenstine 44-3 Easton Sr.
145 Ryan Krecker 37-6 Nazareth Jr.
152 Austin Sommer 40-5 Northampton Sr.
160 Kyle Dehaut 37-7 Bethlehem Catholic Jr.
171 Luke DeLuise 38-5 Pius X Sr.
189 Ian Gimbar 41-7 Saucon Valley Jr.
215 Kyle ODonnell 27-3 Warren Hills Sr.
285 Jack Delia 37-1 North Hunterdon Jr.
second TEAM
Weight Wrestler Record School Class
103 Evan DiSora 35-11 Easton Fr.
112 Devon Lotito 27-8 Liberty So.
119 Franco Ferraina 30-9 Nazareth Jr.
125 Jordan Glykas 25-13 Northampton Sr.
130 Greg Noll 29-11 Nazareth Jr.
135 John Lynch 37-7 Saucon Valley Jr.
140 Tyler Torcivia 34-9 Nazareth Sr.
145 Phil Racciato 40-6 Pen Argyl Sr.
152 Kevin Brown 38-3 North Warren Sr.
160 Matt Artigliere 26-6 Warren Hills Sr.
171 Mike Hafke 35-5 Voorhees Sr.
189 Chris Pintado 29-9 Liberty Sr.
215 Jalal Paige 27-16 Easton Jr.
285 Jon Slack 34-5 Warren Hills Sr.
THIRD TEAM
Weight Wrestler Record School Class
103 Cody Barbiche 34-6 Delaware Valley Jr.
112 Jamie Welsh 39-12 Pen Argyl Jr.
119 Dylan Thorsen 25-4 Belvidere So.
125 Corey Kozimor 29-4 Hackettstown Sr.
130 Matt Schuebel 27-6 Warren Hills Jr.
135 Vinnie Peoni 28-7 Voorhees Sr.
140 Rex Lutz 33-11 Pen Argyl Jr.
145 Oliver Brukardt 37-5 Phillipsburg Sr.
152 Chris Cancelliere 32-4 North Hunterdon Jr.
160 Jon Blank 34-8 Notre Dame So.
171 Nick Edmonson 36-10 Saucon Valley Sr.
189 Aaron Bradley 25-10 Nazareth Fr.
215 Khalid Zubaydi 26-11 Hackettstown Sr.
285 D.J. King 27-9 Nazareth Sr.
HONORABLE MENTION
103 -- Anthony Bilotta, Pius X; Darian Cruz, Bethlehem
Catholic; Bryan Israel, Saucon Valley; Tyler Kozimor,
Hackettstown; Matty Williams, Pen Argyl.
112 -- Ryan Nicotra, Hackettstown; Mike Pongracz, Delaware
Valley; Greg Rinker, Northampton.
119 -- Lee Coleman, Bangor; Adam Phillippi, Saucon Valley;
Jaydon Rice, Bethlehem Catholic; Robbie Rizzolino, Easton.
125 -- Richie Cruz, Bethlehem Catholic; Tyrone Deschler,
Saucon Valley; Justin Mazza, Pius X; Rylan Watson,
Phillipsburg.
130 -- A.J. Chernaskey, Saucon Valley; Doug Cowley,
Belvidere; Ronnie Honickel, Voorhees; Adam Simon,
Phillipsburg; Ryan Todora, Bethlehem Catholic.
135 -- Luciano Burriesci, Pen Argyl; John Horak,
Phillipsburg; Matt Klacik, Freedom; Josh LaBar, Pius X.
140 -- Anthony Gaito, Warren Hills; Jake Giovannini, Pius
X; Garret Henning, Liberty; Erik Mitchell, Hackettstown.
145 -- Nathan Dow, Belvidere; Kyle Mesce, Delaware Valley;
Anthony Minotti, Easton; Elliot Riddick, Bethlehem
Catholic; Beau Vranken, North Hunterdon.
152 -- Greg Chrin, Notre Dame; Ryan Gellner, Delaware
Valley.
160 -- Zack Bambary, Easton; Mike Brown, Liberty; John
Lambert, Northampton; Mason McIntyre, Freedom.
171 -- Ben Bradley, Nazareth; Dylan Evans, Pen Argyl;
Tyler Marx, Northampton.
189 -- Tyler Horn, Pen Argyl; Brandon Hull, Phillipsburg;
Andrew Scudder, Hackettstown.
215 -- Dan Brereton, Voorhees; Martin LaLuz, Bethlehem
Catholic; Francis Roscioli, Wilson; Sam Tintle,
Phillipsburg; Nick Sharga, Northampton.
285 -- Ryan Fazzi, Phillipsburg; Steve Giraldo,
Hackettstown; Greg Ritter, Belvidere; Kenny Zurbano,
Saucon Valley.

Tyler Buckman vs. Steve Spearman was the event's top match

-

(JOHN C. WHITEHEAD, The Patriot-News)

1.  WILDCATS REVENGE: After falling short in the team championships, it only seems fitting that Central Mountain win the team title in the PIAA Individual Wrestling Championships. The Wildcats were led by Andrew and Dylan Alton, who won titles at 145 and 152, but also had two other placers to break Central Dauphin’s streak of six straight team titles.

2.  CRAIG IS KING HOSS: When you look at Abington Heights’ Evan Craig, you see a big guy who looks like he doesn’t have much athletic ability. Ah, that is the first mistake. Craig has that and more, proving it by pinning every one of his opponents on the way to a second straight state title at 285.

3.  BEST IN SHOW: If the Class AAA and Class AA finals were the Westminster Kennel Club Dog Show, the match between Central Dauphin’s Tyler Buckman and McDowell’s Steve Spearman was the top entry — by far. It had twists, turns, suspense and drama all wrapped into one, and the crowd showed appreciation with a postmatch ovation.

4.  NICE GUYS FINISH FIRST: Boiling Springs’ Joe Spisak is a friendly and respectful kid that keeps his nose clean and works hard. He is the poster child for what this sport is really about, and it was good to see him get rewarded for his four years of tireless work with a state title.

5.  LEGACY CEMENTED: It isn’t often that you catch a glimpse of someone so developed and so accomplished at their craft that they are in a class of their own. But Central Dauphin’s Marshall Peppelman getting his arm raised after a pin in the finals for a third straight state title seemed like an appropriate ending.

HERSHEY, Pa. | If Liberty High School senior Anthony Marino
had one wish for his final day at the PIAA Class AAA
Wrestling Championships, it was to let it fly.
Marino did that in Saturdays night 119-pound
championship bout, matching Franklin Regional junior Nico
Megaludis point-for-point through the first two periods. It
was almost enough.
Anthony held nothing back, Liberty coach Jody
Karam said. I think he maybe got a little bit tired in
the third period because he went so hard in the first two
periods.
Megaludis took control with five points in the third and
went on to win his second consecutive state championship
with an 8-4 decision.
Marino joined Nazareth junior Zach Horan as the top two
finishers from The Express-Times region. Horan, who fell to
undefeated Bellefonte senior Mitchell Port in the 125 final,
won a state silver medal for the third consecutive year.
Blue Mountain senior Josh Kindig, who earned the 140-pound
title with an 8-3 decision over Pittsburgh Central
Catholics Lorenzo Thomas, was the only District 11
wrestler to win a PIAA Class AAA title for the second year
in a row.
Megaludis scored the first takedown against Marino but the
Hurricane reversed him in the second period and the two went
into the third tied at 3. Then Megaludis, who finished the
season at 36-0, seemed to find another gear.
We let it fly, Marino said. He was the
better wrestler tonight. I knew what he was coming in to
this. Im not going to run from anybody.
Marino ended his career at 128-22 overall a record that
includes a 2009 fifth-place medal at states. A District 11
and Northeast Regional champ this year, hes headed to
Bloomsburg.
I would say he progressed as the years and weeks went
by, Karam said. Thats all you can ask.
Hes a better wrestler than when he came in and
thats a credit to Libertys assistant coaches and
his partners in the room.
Coincidentally, Megaludis was the same wrestler who beat
Horan in overtime in last years 112 state final.
Horan has faced extremely tough competitors in the finals
ever since his freshman year when he ran into a senior
103-pounder, Council Rock Souths Mark Rappo. This
time, Horan took on Bellefonte senior Mitchell Port.
Horan took down Port 42 seconds into the first period but
Port escaped and added a takedown of his own with 10 seconds
left in the period. Port, who improved to 45-0 for the
season, added one last takedown at the edge of the mat with
four seconds remaining for a 6-3 decision.
Its just heartbreaking, Nazareth coach
Dave Crowell said. I just feel so bad for him. He puts
his life into it. But, like I told him, you are not defined
by the score of one wrestling match. Hes defined by
the person hes become.
Hes become a great team man. While we would
like to win every wrestling match, if its me, those
kinds of other things matter more.
In other Class AAA finals action, the Central Mountain
brother duo of Andrew Alton and Dylan Alton finished their
careers with a combined five state titles. Andrew, a
145-pounder, took his second title with a technical fall
over West Alleghenys Aaron McKinney. Dylan won his
third consecutive state gold medal with an 11-4 decision
over La Salles Shane Springer at 152.
Eleven other wrestlers from the Express-Times region earned
medals in Class AAA.
In the consolation rounds, Eastons Mark Hartenstine
and Northamptons Austin Sommer both closed their
careers with their best state finishes. Hartenstine, who
placed eighth last year, defeated Garnet Valleys
Joseph Marino 5-0 for the bronze medal at 140. Sommer, a
seventh-place finisher in 2009, beat Kiski Areas Zack
Shannon 5-2 for third at 152.
Nazareth 145-pounder Ryan Krecker won a fourth-place medal
for the second year in a row. Northampton senior Jordan
Glykas won his first state medal, a fourth at 125.
Easton sophomore Mitch Minotti, who decisioned Pleasant
Valleys Jordan Toledo in both the District 11 and
Northeast Regional finals, earned a 4-0 win over Toledo for
fifth at 130. Liberty junior Anthony Cabera beat
Eastons Evan DiSora 3-0 in the fifth-place match at
103; Cabrera defeated DiSora by that same score in both the
district and regional finals.
Libertys Devon Lotito (seventh at 112),
Parklands Tarik Haddad (eighth at 189) and Wade Rivera
(fifth at 160) and Whitehalls Taray Carey (sixth at
215) also claimed medals in Class AAA.
Beth Hudson can be reached at sports@express-times.com.

Penn State wrestling coach Cael Sanderson, center, watches the PIAA AAA preliminary matches from a suite at the Giant Center.

-

(JOE HERMITT, The Patriot-News)

With a week between the Big Ten championships and NCAA championships, Penn State head wrestling coach Cael Sanderson took a break from preparations to observe some of his prized recruits in action at the PIAA wrestling tournament.

Three defending state champs, Central Mountain's Andrew and Dylan Alton and Coudersport's Dirk Cowburn, are Penn State recruits for next season, and Franklin Regional junior 119-pounder Nico Megaludis has verbaled to PSU.

Central Mountain senior wrestlers Andrew and Dylan Alton turned in two of the most dominant performances of the PIAA Class AAA wrestling tournament. The twins accomplished their feats differently - one with a machine-like technical fall and one with a blink-and-you-missed-it pin.

Andrew Alton squared off with Mechanicsburg senior Rustin Barrick, who, to his credit, spent little time on his back in a 27-9 defeat. But, Barrick was no match for Alton on his feet during a match-long exchange of takedowns and escapes. Late in the second period, Alton put an end to the back-and-forth, sealing the tech fall with a takedown and adding three nearfall points for good measure.

The 27 points by Alton were part of a dominant effort by the big dogs in the top half of the 145-pound bracket. The four winners combined for 76 points, topped by Alton's tournament-best (AA and AAA) 27.

Dylan Alton eliminated the suspense early, countering a double-leg attempt by Neshaminy's Nick Russell with an impressive display of power and leverage. With one burst, Alton sprawled, cranked Russell to his back and got the whistle for a pin just 14 seconds into their preliminary bout.

The midstate is about to get a little more familiar with both of these defending state champs and prized Penn State recruits. Dylan Alton faces Carlisle's Jayshon Wilson, a 5-2 winner over Blue Mountain's Travis Moyer, in tomorrow's quarterfinals. And, if both take care of business tomorrow, Andrew Alton would face Middletown's Bo Candelaria in the semifinals of the 145-pound bracket.

Candelaria has some work ahead of him before meeting Andrew Alton. The senior has a quarterfinal date with Nazareth's Ryan Krecker, who beat Candelaria 7-2 at the Beast of the East tournament earlier this year.

Boiling Springs' Joe Spisak

-

(The Patriot-News)

PIAA Class AA brackets can also be found in bracket form at
http://highschoolsports.pennlive.com/tournament/4629/

103 POUNDS: SW-1 Nick Roberts, North Star so 35-0 vs. SE-5 Anthony Bilotta, Pius X jr 32-7; NW-3 Nate Schwab, Smethport so 27-4 vs. SE-2 Joseph Byers, Delone Catholic so 32-9; NW-2 Tyler Pier, Harbor Creek sr 36-8 vs. SE-3 Robert Ritschard, Oley Valley fr 36-6; SW-4 Ryan Wilson, Mt. Union so 37-3 vs. NE-1 Zain Retherford, Line Mountain fr 36-1.

NW-1 Corey Bush, Ridgeway so 33-3 vs. SE-4 Matt Williams, Pen Argyl fr 39-6; SW-3 Joshua Patrick, Ligonier Valley fr 31-5 vs. NE-2 David Sheesley, Mifflinburg so 30-7; SW-2 Nick Hough, Mt. Pleasant jr 26-7 vs. NE-3 Matt Welliver, Benton fr 27-11; SW-5 Zach Swarrow, Beth-Center fr 35-8 vs. SE-1 Brad Farley, Bermudian Springs so 35-1.

112 POUNDS: SE-1 Randy Cruz, Bethlehem Catholic so 34-5 vs. SW-5 Aaron Toth, Charlerol so 30-4; NW-3 Tyler Roberts, Jamestown jr 39-8 vs. NE-2 Cody Wheeler, Towanda jr 35-3; NW-2 Matt Spragale, Mercer jr 37-16 vs. NE-3 Colt Cotton, Benton fr 32-6; SE-4 Jamie Welsh, Pen Argyl jr 37-9 vs. SW-1 Phillip Elias, Shady Side Academy jr 29-6.

NE-1 David White, Athens sr 41-3 vs. SE-5 Dylan Long, Northwestern Lehigh sr 29-5; SW-3 Evan Link, Penn Cambria jr 34-4 vs. SE-2 Nick Lamoreaux, Milton Hershey sr 31-3; SW-2 Josh Polacek, Westmont Hilltop jr 32-7 vs. SE-3 Nate Giorgio, Schuylkill Valley jr 43-5; SW-4 Kie Brown, Huntingdon Area jr 40-5 vs. NW-1 Shane Rankin, Union City jr 43-2.

119 POUNDS: SW-1 Geoff Alexander, Shady Side Academy jr 31-3 vs. SE-5 Brandon Arnsberger, Octorara so 33-5; NW-3 Sean Byham, Saegertown jr 37-6 vs. SE-2 Pete Renda, Brandywine Heights fr 36-8; NW-2 Aaron Roberts, Jamestown so 34-9 vs. SE-3 Adam Phillippi, Saucon Valley sr 38-9; SW-4 Ty Dively, Claysburg-Kimmel so 33-6 vs. NE-1 Michael Rhone, Benton sr 38-3.

NW-1 Mason Beckman, Reynolds jr 45-0 vs. SE-4 Kody Rittenbaugh, Pine Grove jr 36-6; SW-3 Cory Thomas, Bedford sr 37-3 vs. NE-2 Ben Carey, Montoursville sr 34-5; SW-2 Tanner Hough, Westmont-Hilltop jr 35-5 vs. NE-3 Tyler Watts, South Williamsport sr 30-5; SW-5 Adam Weinell, Blairsville sr 39-5 vs. SE-1 Arty Walsh, Juniata so 43-0.

125 POUNDS: NW-1 Dylan D’Urso, Reynolds so 38-6 vs. SE-4 Justin Mazza, Pius X sr 34-5; SW-3 Joe Lascari, North Star sr 34-4 vs. NE-2 Ben Knecht, Athens sr 36-8; SW-2 Anthony Elias, Shady Side Academy jr 36-9 vs. NE-3 Ethan Midkiff, Mifflinburg sr 31-3; SW-5 Tanner Cahill, Conemaugh Twp. Fr 32-5 vs. SE-1 Tyler Small, Delone Catholic sr 36-4.

SW-1 Dave Makara, Burrell jr 41-5 vs. SE-5 Ty Shoffstall, Tri Valley fr 36-9; NW-3 Matt Bryer, Cochranton so 38-7 vs. SE-2 Laike Gardner, Biglerville so 36-6; NW-2 Dylan Simmer, Iroquois sr 19-3 vs. SE-3 Zac Beitz, Juniata so 46-2; SW-4 Taylor Boyd, Juniata Valley sr 37-5 vs. NE-1 Coltin Fought, Benton jr 38-6.

130 POUNDS: SE-1 Joe Spisak, Boiling Springs sr 43-1 vs. SW-5 Francis Mizia, Bentworth so 34-8; NW-3 Levi Morton, North East sr 29-5 vs. NE-2 Adam Kritzer, Line Mountain so 31-13; NW-2 Trevor McCauley, Redbank Valley sr 39-3 vs. NE-3 Ben Emmett, Central Columbia jr 30-4; SE-4 Derek Goodwin, Hamburg sr 40-7 vs. SW-1 Ronnie Garbinsky, Tyrone jr 38-0.

NE-1 Brandon Pesarchick, Shamokin jr 35-5 vs. SE-5 Dakota Davis, Schuylkill Valley sr 34-10; SW-3 Michael DePalma, Jeannette jr 31-4 vs. SE-2 Mikey Racciato, Pen Argyl fr 41-4; SW-2 Frank Martellotti, Shady Side Academy sr 45-2 vs. SE-3 Kolby Mashack, Tamaqua jr 35-5; SW-4 Jeremy Landowski, Burrell jr 22-9 vs. NW-1 Austin Matthews, Reynolds fr 41-6.

135 POUNDS: SW-1 A.J. Schopp, Tyrone sr 38-0 vs. SE-4 John Lynch, Saucon Valley jr 36-5; NE-3 Garth Mahosky, Canton sr 32-6 vs. NW-2 Quinton O’Rourke, Johnsonburg sr 29-6; NE-2 Josh Lahr, Shamokin jr 17-7 vs. NW-3 Tim Clark, Saegertown sr 35-7; SW-5 Trey Easter, Bedford sr 33-8 vs. SE-1, Nick Hodgkins, Wyomissing jr 33-1.

NW-1 Garet Pisani, Rideway sr 34-2 vs. SW-4 Noah Tarr, Blairsville fr 32-12; SE-3 Nikko Stevens, Northern Lehigh jr 30-7 vs. SW-2 Trevor Kushner, Westmont-Hilltop sr 32-6; SE-2 Mike Giorgio, Schuylkill Valley sr 40-11 vs. SW-3 Cole Claar, Claysburg-Kimmel jr 36-5; SE-5 Luciano Burriesci, Pen Argyl jr 32-16 vs. NE-1 Luke Frey, Montoursville jr 30-0.

140 POUNDS: SE-1 Colin Shober, Schuylkill Valley sr 49-0 vs. SW-4 Josh Shane, Chestnut Ridge sr 32-5; SW-3 Luke Lohr, Somerset sr 32-5 vs. NW-2 Ian Chiesa, Northwestern sr 27-6; SW-2 Michael Imnes, Chartiers-Houston jr 30-2 vs. NW-3 Herbie Hennegan, Mercer sr 36-13; SE-5 Elisha Gaylor, Wyomissing sr 30-14 vs. NE-1 Alex Stanton, Blue Ridge sr 36-1.

SW-1 Phillip Steinberg, Central Cambria sr 33-1 vs. SE-4 Seth Beitz, Juniata sr 41-7; NE-3 Alec Eggerton, Loyalsock sr 26-5 vs. SE-2 Dylan Killian, Annville Cleona jr 35-8; NE-2 Derek Shingara, Shamokin sr 31-7 vs. SE-3 Anthony Dalton, Bermudian Springs sr 33-8; SW-5 Richard Baker, North Star sr 33-7 vs. NW-1 Cody Copeland, Greenville so 37-1.

145 POUNDS: SE-1 Philip Racciato, Pen Argyl sr 38-3 vs. SW-4 Anthony Risaliti, Central Cambria so 32-7; SW-3 Corey Aungst, Claysburg-Kimmel jr 38-3 vs. NW-2 Luke Taylor, Reynolds sr 38-12; SW-2 Nick Carr, South Fayette jr 28-2 vs. NW-3 Mikel Boughner, Cochranton sr 39-10; SE-5 Sam Scheib, Tri-Valley so 35-13 vs. NE-1 Aaron Fry, Muncy sr 40-0.

SW-1 Shawn Perich, Portage sr 37-1 vs. SE-4 Dillon Smith, Jim Thorpe sr 34-10; NE-3 Garrett Russell, Athens sr 36-8 vs. SE-2 Noah Horst, Schuylkill Valley jr 39-11; NE-2 Elias Biddle, Warrior Run sr 33-5 vs. SE-3 Jackson Stabile, Hamburg jr 44-4; SW-5 Chris Nagel, Southern Huntingdon sr 62-4 vs. NW-1 Jordan Moss, Sharon sr 42-0.

152 POUNDS: NW-1 Brandon Collins, Commodore Perry sr 33-4 vs. SW-5 Gus Mizia, Bentworth jr 36-7; SE-3 Jordan Knaub, York Suburban sr 26-2 vs. NE-2 Mike Testen, Athens sr 35-7; SE-2 Craemer Hedash, Northern Lehigh sr 29-7 vs. NE-3 Tyler Hain, Warrior Run sr 33-4; SE-4 Guliano Caloiero, Schuylkill Valley jr 36-10 vs. SW-1 Cody Wiercioch, Charleroi fr 34-1.

NE-1 Zach Strickland, Muncy jr 29-1 vs. SE-5 Kyle Flohr, Fairfield jr 27-6; NW-3 Kyle Mariacher, Mercer so 45-8 vs. SW-2 Travis McKillop, Burrell jr 41-5; NW-2 Jeremy King, Ft. LeBoeuf sr 37-1 vs. SW-3 Montana Trombetta, Carlynton jr 36-4; SW-4 Brian Gibbons, Bedford jr 32-5 vs. SE-1 Kyle Dehaut, Bethlehem Catholic jr 34-6.

160 POUNDS: SW-1 Sam Guidi, Fort Cherry jr 27-2 vs. SE-5 Bryn Bowman, Tri Valley sr 32-7; NW-3 Tyler Gargano, Hickory jr 46-3 vs. SE-2 Dylan Treaster, Juniata jr 37-10; NW-2 Wes Phipps, Grove City so 33-2 vs. SE-3 John Blank, Notre Dame-Green Pond so 34-6; SW-4 Dylan Demain, Bentworth jr 34-6 vs. NE-1 Eric Hess, Benton sr 37-2.

NW-1 Dirk Cowburn, Coudersport sr 45-1 vs. SE-4 Cody Breiner, Fleetwood sr 39-6; SW-3 Nolan Greenwald, Burrell sr 30-13 vs. NE-2 Caleb Lomax, Montoursville sr 33-3; SW-2 Christopher Gallaher, Forest Hills jr 35-1 vs. NE-3 Mike Cobb, Wyalusing jr 39-2; SW-5 John George, Richland sr 22-7 vs. SE-1 Ryan Maurer, Schuylkill Valley sr 46-6.

171 POUNDS: NE-1 Nathaniel Brown, Lewisburg jr 37-0 vs. SE-5 Nick Edmonson, Saucon Valley sr 35-8; SW-3 Ryan Burnheimer, Westmont-Hilltop so 31-4 vs. SE-2 Luke DeLuise, Pius X sr 35-3; SW-2 Dakota DesLauriers, Burrell fr 21-4 vs. SE-3 Colin Hedash, Northern Lehigh jr 32-3; SW-4 David Kephart, Portage jr 36-4 vs. NW-1 Lewendo Teague, Sharon sr 41-1.

SE-1 Riccardo Plummer, York Suburban sr 31-3 vs. SW-5 Michael Kazalas, Keystone Oaks jr 26-7; NW-3 Greg Baptists, Reynolds sr 34-13 vs. NE-2 Shane Stark, Lake Lehman sr 34-5; NW-2 Zack Zelcs, Ridgeway sr 33-6 vs. NE-3 Mike Clark, Wyalusing sr 30-9; SE-4 Glenn Miller, Hamburg sr 42-2 vs. SW-1 Matthew Cunningham, Shady Side Academy sr 44-4.

189 POUNDS: NW-1 Stephan Ceremuga, Commodore Perry jr 38-0 vs. SE-4 Tyler Horn, Pen Argyl jr 29-14; SW-3 Zack Glessner, Forest Hills sr 35-4 vs. NE-2 Ryan Hembury, Muncy jr 36-4; SW-2 Kyle Dudley, Valley sr 33-3 vs. NE-3 Ryan Solomon, Milton fr 31-7; SW-5 Nicholas Baer, Somerset jr 27-12 vs. SE-1 Ian Gimbar, Saucon Valley jr 40-5.

SW-1 Zak Newton, Penn Cambria sr 35-6 vs. SE-5 Nate Ronan, Octorara sr 31-5; NW-3 R.J. Malson, Greenville sr 33-7 vs. SE-2 Garth Lakitsky, Tamaqua jr 35-3; NW-2 Jacob Shields, Brookville jr 10-1 vs. SE-3 Dylan Scheidt, Schuylkill Valley jr 41-4; SW-4 Gary Kiefer, Fort Cherry jr 28-3 vs. NE-1 Travis Chesla, Towanda sr 37-1.

215 POUNDS: NE-1 Eric Laytos, Lackawanna Trail so 37-6 vs. SE-5 Joseph Kreiner, Delone Catholic sr 28-11; SW-3 Ray Campbell, Charleroi sr 28-8 vs. SE-2 Stan Williams, York Suburban sr 30-4; SW-2 Jamel Fortson, Mt. Union sr 36-3 vs. SE-3 Curtis Gardner, Catasauqua sr 27-2; SW-4 Joel Suter, Northern Bedford jr 30-4 vs. NW-1 Brian Hooks, Commodore Perry sr 37-2.

SE-1 Josh Rogers, St. Pius X sr 27-5 vs. SW-5 Jeff Meier, Forest Hills jr 34-6; NW-3 Matt Mongera, Seneca so 38-13 vs. NE-2 Todd Hall, Athens sr 37-7; NW-2 Jared Burger, Union City sr 44-1 vs. NE-3 Nick Dawson, Montoursville sr 31-5; SE-4 Dylan Ferguson, Fairfield sr 14-4 vs. SW-1 Brian Beattie, Burrell jr 42-4.

285 POUNDS: SE-1 Ben Ancheff, Williams Valley jr 23-1 vs. SW-4 Robert Oshaben, Forest Hills sr 31-9; SW-3 Josh Duplin, Westmont-Hilltop so 33-9 vs. NW-2 Greg Reinke, Union City jr 27-1; SW-2 John Rizzo, Richland so 37-1 vs. NW-3 Dillon Sarcinella, Greenville sr 36-5; SE-5 Cris Ramirez, Milton Hershey sr 24-8 vs. NE-1 Wes Tillett, Shamokin jr 34-4.

SW-1 Jeff Tarley, Beth-Center jr 35-1 vs. SE-4 Briar Stern, Lehighton sr 25-11; NE-3 Pete Champluvier, Wyalusing sr 31-8 vs. SE-2 Tylor Unger, Boiling Springs jr 32-15; NE-2 Tyler DeMott, Benton sr 36-2 vs. SE-3 Dan Fultz, Juniata sr 46-4; SW-5 Jake Linn, Charleroi sr 29-10 vs. NW-1 Joe Chittester, Ridgeway sr 37-0.                

There aren’t too many people on the wrestling scene who don’t remember Craig Corbin, the former Steel-High wrestler that placed second and third at states in 1983 and 1984.

After Saturday’s District 3-AAA Section II tournament at CD East High School, everyone now knows his son Ashton. And no doubt he will be revered more than Pop in the immediate future.

Especially around Harrisburg High.

The younger Corbin wrestled for his school, for his family heritage and for himself, climbing out from any preconceived shadow to defeat CD East’s Matthew Zdradzinksi 11-6 in the 189-pound finals to give the Cougars their first sectional champion since 2004.

“There are a lot of people that expect me to do better then what I’ve been tabbed to do,” Ashton Corbin said. “It just feels good to go out and do something when it counts and represent my school.

“All I want to do is go to districts, have a good showing and make states. I want to represent Harrisburg and set an example for younger kids.”

Here’s the impressive part: Corbin is just a freshman.

But things weren’t always so easy for this newcomer to the high school wrestling ranks. There were times this season he lacked focus, and he also had to sit out a week with an infection on his face.

Yet, Corbin never pulled the “poor me” card. He listened to his mentors George Hartwick, Jesse Rawls and of course, his father, and was able to become a champion.

“They just told me to get my head in the game,” said Corbin, who improved to 17-3. “Once I got focused, I knew I could be a pretty good wrestler.”

It showed in the finals against Zdradzinksi, who was riding a wave of confidence after knocking off top seeded Tate Moore-Jacobs of Cedar Cliff in the semifinals.

Zdradzinski hit a takedown early and carried a 2-1 lead to the second period. But the aggressive Corbin bided his time and turned a reversal into two nearfall points to grab a 6-4 lead after two.

The third period belonged to the new Cougars star. Zdradzinski charged Corbin, who caught him and dumped the Panthers junior, scoring two nearfall points to essentially put this one out of reach.

“My style is more like a lightweight,” Corbin said. “After I went down 2-1, I didn’t panic and just tried to pace myself.

“I was really nervous about wrestling Matt because I faced him twice this year. I didn’t think I would be in as good a shape as he was after that layoff, but I was able to hold up.”

East Pennsboro’s Zachary Nye also held up.

Nye avenged last year’s close loss to Kyle Wolfe by beating the Central Dauphin senior 6-3 in an entertaining title bout at 215.

The Panthers junior, now 32-0, was the aggressor in the third period, escaping twice and taking down Wolfe late to secure the decision.

“I was real worried that he would be in better shape,” said Nye, East Pennsboro’s second champion since joining Class AAA a year ago. “He is on one of the best teams in the country, and you know they practice hard.

“Last year, I was more worried about losing than I was about winning. This is real satisfying, especially knowing I’m in as good a shape as he is.”

Despite Wolfe’s loss, the Rams managed to take top honors in five of the 14 weight classes to earn the team championship. The most impressive and important came at 160.

Marshall Peppelman (42-0), the defending state champion at 152, did what he does, pinning Cedar Cliff’s Dan Schreffler in 38 seconds. The win was his 173rd overall, breaking the District 3 Class AAA win record, which was set in 2008 by his brother Walter, who was in attendance.

“I didn’t know until this year that I would be able to catch him,” said Marshall Peppelman, a three-time section champion. “It is a fun, family rivalry, and I’m just glad that he was here to share it with me.

“There is a lot of pressure to repeat, but all I can do is do what I do best and winning will take care of itself.”

Other Rams champions were freshman Tyson Dippery (103), Kevin Gooding (125), Tyler Buckman (130) and Kenny Courts (171), who received a forfeit due to a stomach illness by Cedar Cliff’s Clint Morrison.

Middletown’s Bo Candelaria was a monster on top at 145, scoring back points on three separate occasions to major Cedar Cliff junior Dylan Carmichael 12-0 and score his second straight championship at the weight.

“Dylan is a really good wrestler, but I was able to do a couple of good things on top,” Candelaria said. “He couldn’t stop the tilt.

“I feel a lot stronger at 145. The plan was to wrestle at 152 and then drop to 145 at the end of the season. I think it has been a big advantage for me.”

Lower Dauphin had two champions with Robbie Higgins (112) and Blaine Shutt (119). Cedar Cliff’s Marcus Clement (140) and Grant Dickey (152) also secured titles. Tre Miller-Scott (135) gave CD East a first-place finish and Susquehanna Twp.’s Averee Robinson outlasted Nick Stewart 3-1 in overtime at 285.

A quick scan of Central Mountain High School’s wrestling roster and individual records were enough to foreshadow this one: Easton Area High School needed to win early and often and, preferably, by large margins in order to upset the undefeated Wildcats.

The Red Rovers succeeded with the first two parts, winning the first five weight classes and six of the first seven. In the end, though, they learned some leads just aren’t sizeable enough — especially against a team that’s loaded from 135 pounds to 285.

Central Mountain won the last seven matches — including five by fall — to beat Easton 40-24 on Friday afternoon in the PIAA Class AAA Team Wrestling Championships quarterfinals.

Easton bounced back with a 32-28 victory over Connellsville in the consolation bracket and still has a chance to place as high as third. The District 11 champion Red Rovers (15-7) will wrestle Kiski Area at 9 a.m. today in the second round of consolations at the Giant Center.

“They were extremely tough at the top,” Easton coach Steve Powell said of Central Mountain. “We needed at least two more wins and maybe three out of that lineup. That’s a good, experienced team.”

The District 6 champion improved to 16-0 and will take on another undefeated team, Central Dauphin, in the 11 a.m. semifinals. District 11 runner-up Parkland will face District 7 champ Canon-McMillan in the other semifinal.

Central Dauphin is attempting to win its third consecutive state dual-meet title. The final and consolation final are scheduled for 3 p.m.

Easton’s Evan Disora and Michael Fleck gave their team a promising start with back-to-back falls at 103 and 112. Robbie Rizzolino, Calvin Daly and Mitch Minotti pushed the Rovers’ advantage to 21-0 with decisions. And, after Mark Hartenstine posted a 7-0 victory over Brian Brill at 140, Easton owned a 24-4 lead over Central Mountain.

That’s when the Wildcats’ heft started to show.

Andrew and Dylan Alton — the Penn State-bound brothers who are ranked No. 1 nationally at their weights — responded with first-period pins at 145 and 152, respectively. Dylan Caprio (171) and Zach Corl (285) needed just 32 seconds combined to pin their opponents. Central Mountain’s Cody Dolan added a second-period fall at 215.