CLARION – In less than 30 minutes Saturday night, sophomore Jake Keller and senior Derek Brothers put a positive spin on what had been a disappointing 2009-10 season for the injury-plagued Curwensville Area High School wrestling team.
The two Golden Tide lightweights matched back-to-back shutout victories over tough opponents to claim hard-earned and well-deserved District 9 Class AA Tournament titles in Clarion University’s Tippin Gym.
Brothers joined an exclusive Golden Tide fraternity of three-time district champions when he nipped Redbank Valley’s Tyler McCauley 1-0 at 125 pounds just after Keller, a No. 4 seed who blanked defending champ Brett Smith of Brookville 4-0 in the semifinals, defeated Johnsonburg’s Jesse Wolfe 3-0 for the 119 crown.
Brothers is the seventh Curwensville matman to covet three district gold medals.
The others are Nick Sipes (Class of 2007), a teammate of Brothers when he became the school’s lone four-time champ, Nate Sipes (2005), Jason Clark (1991), Brian Irwin (1983), Randy Cathcart (1977) and Fred Irwin (1977).
No coach was happier than Duane Wriglesworth II, who had had watched his fifth Golden Tide squad struggle during the dual meet campaign because of injuries and illness and was never able to pencil in the lineup the staff had envisioned last fall.
And, then, the tourney’s first day proved to be a microcosm of the 2009-10 season with three regulars sidelined by injuries and two others late scratches due to personal reasons, leaving a nine-wrestler contingent that managed just four wins in 16 bouts.
But Keller (14-2) and Brothers (30-3) put all that in the rearview mirror with their gold medal efforts Saturday.
“It’s definitely very uplifting to everyone’s spirits, because both of those guys had worked hard,” Wriglesworth said. “To put two in the finals and have both of them come out as winners is very satisfying.”
The Golden Tide duo wrestled smart, technically-sound matches in the semis as well as the finals; Brothers advancing with a 7-1 win over Ridgway’s Kyle Caggiano in what many viewed as a virtual toss-up after Keller avenged his dual meet loss to Smith.
“That’s what impressed me most about both of them,” Wriglesworth said. “With the quality of opponents they were facing, they pretty much had to wrestle mistake-free matches.
“One mistake could have changed the outcome (in the finals). That’s how good I feel their opponents were.”
Brothers and McCauley have a history, with all of their matches very close, including a 3-0 duel in the 119 final last year.
Brothers frustrated the Bulldog senior for the second year in a row with a quick second-period escape and third-period cross-body ride.
“It was good match,” Wriglesworth proclaimed. “It wasn’t two guys doing nothing. McCauley is a very good athlete. It’s really tough to wrestle somebody three, four times and come out on top when they’re both that good.”
Action in the first period was highlighted by several Brothers slide-by takedown attempts and McCauley re-shots.
“Tyler has a good stance, and it was tough for Derek to penetrate,” Wriglesworth said. “Derek knows every time he shoots Tyler will come back with a re-shot. That’s just his style.”
In the second period, Brothers sat and turned in for the bout’s only point to hike his Curwensville all-time win record to 129.
In the semis, the two-time Northwest Region champ and two-time PIAA placewinner took down Caggiano with a fireman’s dump in the first period and a go-behind in the second period and then added two back points with a trap-arm tilt in the third period.
“Some people thought it would be a close match, but Derek was wrestling with a purpose,” said Wriglesworth, noting that Brothers was coming off a bout with the flu when he beat the Elker soph 4-3 on Jan. 21.
A single-to-double leg takedown midway through the first period was the key to Keller handing Wolfe only his second loss in 29 matches and atoning for a 3-1 loss in last year’s consolation finals.
He used legs to control the Johnsonburg junior in the middle two minutes and then broke free in the third period.
“Jake was very aggressive throughout his match,” Wriglesworth said. “He knew he had to be.
“Wolfe tried several Granby Rolls to get out in the second period, and Jake stayed right with him. And those are tough to roll through with, because one mistake could have cost him a reversal and back points.
“Jake didn’t let up after he escaped in the third period. He kept after Wolfe and was in on his legs several times. That was good to see. Some times a good offense is the best defense.”
Like Brothers, Keller posted a statement win in the semis.
On Jan. 26, he dropped a 7-6 decision to Smith after only one practice. He had suffered a broken leg in October.
The rematch was all Keller, as he took down the Raider sophomore in the first period, rolled through Smith’s leg ride for a reversal in the second period and worked his own leg ride to maintain control in the last two minutes.
“There was no point where Jake was not in control,” Wriglesworth stated. “They have wrestled several times over the years, so they know each other pretty well. Smith is pretty tough. Jake did a fine job.”
Keller was one of only two champs who were not No. 1 seeds.
The only was Port Allegany freshman Alex Gular. The coaches had rated him third at 145.
Brothers was one of five returning champs to add another title.
Three were Ridgway Elkers.
Garet Pisani (135) became just the eighth Class AA four-time champion, while Joe Chittester (285) ruled at heavyweight for he third consecutive year and Zack Zelcs (171) earned his second title.
Two-time state champ Dirk Cowburn (152) breezed to his third district gold and was selected for the Joseph J. Kata Award as the outstanding wrestler for the second year in a row.
Ridgway boasted a fourth titlist in soph Corey Bush (103) as the Elkers amassed 190.5 points to easily repeat as team champs.
Also climbing to the top of the medal were Smethport freshman Karl Lightner (112), Redbank Valley senior Trevor McCauley (130), Keystone soph Tanner Hannold (140), Port Allegany senior Adam Greenman (152), Brookville junior Jacob Shields (189) and Brockway junior Joel Yahner (215).
In addition to Smith, Clarion’s Mike Bauer (112) was a former champ who was unable to repeat. The Bobcat junior wound up fourth, missing a return trip to regionals.
The top three at each weight advance to the Northwest Region Tournament Friday and Saturday at Sharon High School.
Pairings will be delayed because two district (5 and 10) tournaments were postponed due to Friday’s snowstorms. District 5’s final round was pushed back to Monday night.
For two Curwensville underclassmen, the season ended in the consolation quarterfinals.
Soph 112-pounder Greg Koptchak, out of the lineup until January because of a broken wrist, was cradled by Ridgway’s Tad Pierce in 1:51, while freshman 135-pounder Hunter McCracken was edged 7-5 by Smethport’s Kyle Freer on a takedown with a minute left.
With 46.5 points, the Golden Tide wound up 12th in the 16-team field.
Team Scoring and Key
1. Ridgway (R), 190.5 points; 2. Port Allegany (PA), 117; 2. Redbank Valley (RV), 116; 4. Brockway (Bw), 111; 5. Brookville (Bv), 99.5; 6. Johnsonburg (J), 85.5; 7. Clarion (Cl), 78; 8. Smethport (Sm), 70; 9. Cameron County (CC), 63; 10. Coudersport (Cou), 60; 11. Keystone (Key), 58; 12. Curwensville (Cur), 46.5; Cranberry (Cran), 42; 14. Sheffield (Sh), 20; 15. Kane (K), 14; 16. Oswayo Valley (OV), 2.5.
Championships
(Seed, wrestler, grade, record)
103 – (1) Corey Bush, 10, (30-3), R, dec. (2) Nate Schwab, 10, (24-3), Sm, 7-2.
112 – (1) Karl Lightner, 9, (26-3), Sm, dec. (2) Cody Bova, 9, (32-5), Cou, 6-4.
119 – (4) Jake Keller, 10, (14-2), Cur, dec. (2) Jesse Wolfe, 11, (27-2), J, 3-0.
125 – (1) Derek Brothers, 12, (30-3), Cur, dec. (2) Tyler McCauley, 12, (33-6), RV, 1-0.
130 – (1) Trevor McCauley, 12, (37-2), RV, dec. (2) Ian Grecco, 12, (32-3), Bw, 3-1.
135 – (1) Garet Pisani, 12, (31-2), R, major dec. (2) Quinton O’Rourke, 12, (27-5), J, 9-0.
140 – (1) Tanner Hannold, 10, (33-6), Key, dec. (3) Trevor Hartless, 11, (30-10), Bw, 3-2.
145 – (3) Alex Gular, 9, (27-8), PA, dec. (4) Zach Baughman, 12, (27-13), Key, 8-3.
152 – (1) Adam Greenman, 12, (32-6), PA, dec. (3) Nathan Hartless, 11, (36-8), Bw, 3-0.
160 – (1) Dirk Cowburn, 12, (42-1), Cou, pinned (2) Danny Walters, 11 (33-6), Cl, 1:03.
171 – (1) Zack Zelcs, 12, (31-5), R, pinned (2) Hunter Bardo, 12, (24-7), CC, 4:38.
189 – (1) Jacob Shields, 11, (8-0), Bv, dec. (2) Justin Loll, 12, (25-6), Cran, 6-2.
215 – (1) Joel Yahner, 11, (37-5), Bw, dec. (2) James Hahn, 12, (25-3), Sh, 2-1.
285 – (1) Joe Chittester, 12, (34-0), R, dec. (3) Zach Manning, 11, (21-17), PA, 8-1.
Consolation Finals
103 – (3) Trey Constable, 10, (4-4), Bv, tech fall (5) Lucas Manning, 9, (24-15), PA, 19-4 (4:19).
112 – (3) Nick Schrecengost, 10, (20-10), RV, dec. (4) Mike Bauer, 11, (26-14), Cl, 3-2 (OT-Ult TB Rideout).
119 – (1) Brett Smith, 10, (24-8), Bv, dec. (5) Slade Horner, 10, (17-16), R, 2-0.
125 – (4) Kyle Caggiano, 10, (24-13), R, dec. (3) Chet Tanner, 11, (36-4), PA, 10-6.
130 – (3) Max Zimmerman, 11, (32-2), J, won by disqualification over (4) Jeff Slattery, 12, (18-19), R, 4:58.
135 – (3) Dylan Reinsel, 12, (32-6), Cl, dec. (6) Kyle Freer, 11, (29-6), Sm, 3-0.
140 – (7) Brandon Bailey, 9, (21-14), RV, dec. (5) Dominic Manginell, 12, (28-7), CC, 8-6 (OT-SV).
145 – (1) Alex Gunter, 12, (29-10), Cl, dec. (5) Nate Dornisch, 12, (17-19), R, 10-5.
152 – (2) D.J. Skraba, 11, (26-12), R, dec. (4) Justin Radaker, 12, (22-12), RV, 7-4.
160 – (3) Sam Skraba, 12, (31-7), R, major dec. (4) Michael Paladino, 12, (24-9), J, 13-0.
171 – (6) Jacob Cieleski, 10, (19-10), Bv, pinned (3) Shiloh Buchleitner, 12, (28-10), RV, 4:08.
189 – (3) Zachery Brinkley, 10, (22-17), Bw, dec. (6) Nick Budd, 9, (4-2), 3-0.
215 – (3) Braden Bowser, 10, (28-7), RV, pinned (6) Jesse Sheasley, 11, (21-11), R, 1:11.
285 – (2) Lee Russell, 10, (22-7), Cran, dec. (4) Aaron Burnside, 10, (21-11), CC, 5-4.
Consolation Semifinals
103 – Constable, Bv, pinned (4) Dustin Young, 12, (17-11), Cl, 2:46; L. Manning, PA, pinned (6) Chris Crosby, 9, (12-11), CC, :57.
112 – Bauer, Cl, tech fall (7) Tad Pierce, 10, (6-4), R, 18-2 (4:34); Schrecengost, RV, pinned (8) Caleb Garvey, 9, (11-13), J, :40.
119 – B. Smith, Bv, dec. (6) Garrett Hildebrand, 10, (21-15), RV, 2-0; Horner, R, dec. (3) Kyle Lightner, 11, (21-10), Sm, 4-0.
125 – Caggiano, R, tech fall Joey Beck, 10, (15-20), Cl, 16-1 (4:18); Tanner dec. (5) John Stiglitz, 11, (35-7), Key, 8-4.
130 – Slattery, R, dec. (7) Brandon Goodreau, 12, (18-17), PA, 9-3; Zimmerman, J, pinned (5) Ricki Elliot, 11 (23-14, Cl, 2:41.
135 – Freer, Sm, dec. (4) Evan Shirey, 11, (21-12), RV, 7-5 (OT-SV); Reinsel, Cl, dec. (5) Ryan Kio, 11, (12-27), PA, 6-0.
140 – Bailey, RV, dec. (4) Steve Mitchell, 10, (23-12), R, 5-1; Manginell, CC, pinned (2) Zac Wolfe, 12, (25-7), J, 2:02.
145 – Gunter, Cl, dec. (6) Ron Clark, 11, (11-6), Bv, 12-5; Dornisch, R, injury default over (2) Preston Mahoney, 12, (26-6), J, :01.
152 – Radaker, RV, dec. Mitch Minich, 10, (5-24), Bv, 5-4; D.J. Skraba, R, pinned (5) Caleb Spring, 11, (12-9), Cou, 2:10.
160 – Paladino, J, dec. (7) Brandon Ferringer, 11, (15-15), Cran, 5-3; S. Skraba dec. (6) Josh Fox, 12, (19-16), PA, 4-2.
171 – Cieleski, Bv, dec. (4) Ryan Terwilliger, 12, (23-14), Bw, 5-0; Buchleitner, RV, dec. (5) Marcus Smerker, 10, (21-15, Cl, 7-1.
189 – Budd, PA, dec. (5) Chad Quail, 10, (4-9), R, 3-1; Brinkley, Bw, pinned (4) Creighton Hayes, 11, (9-15), Cou, 3:14.
215 – Bowser, RV, pinned (4) Madison Shobert, 11, (9-18), Bv, 2:06; Sheasley, R, injury default over (8) Devin Van Pelt, 11, (15-23), 3:13.
285 – Burnside, CC, pinned (6) Eric Lundberg, 12, (9-7), Bw, :59; Russell pinned Mike Crane, 11, (11-14), Bv, 4:00.
Championship Semifinals
103 – Bush, R, pinned L. Manning :32; Schwab, Sm, dec. Constable, Bv, 5-3.
112 – Karl Lightner, S, dec. Bauer, Cl, 5-1; Bova, Cou, dec. Schrecengost, RV, 1-0.
119 – Keller, Cur, dec. B. Smith, Bv, 4-0; J. Wolfe, J, major dec. Kyle Lightner, Sm, 10-2.
125 – Brothers, Cur, dec. Caggiano, R, 7-1; Tyler McCauley, RV, dec. Tanner, PA, 4-2.
130 – Trevor McCauley, RV, dec. Slattery, R, 1:44; Grecco, Bw, dec. Zimmerman, J, 4-2 (OT-SV).
135 – Pisani, R, pinned Shirey, RV, 1:07; O’Rourke, J, pinned Reinsel, 5:56.
140 – Hannold, Key, major dec. Mitchell, R, 9-1; T. Hartless, Bw, dec. Z. Wolfe, J, 10-5.
145 – Baughman, Key, dec. Gunter, Cl, 6-5; Gular, PA, dec. Mahoney, J, 5-3 (OT-SV).
152 – Greenman, PA, pinned Radaker, RV, 1:30; N. Hartless, Bw, dec. D.J. Skraba, R, 3-1 (OT-SV).
160 – Cowburn, Cou, pinned Paladino, J, :32; Walters, Cl, dec. S. Skraba, R, 4-1.
171 – Zelcs, R, major dec. Terwilliger, Bw, 14-1; Bardo, CC, dec. Buchleitner, RV, 8-7.
189 – Shields, Bv, pinned Quail, R, 2:11; Loll, Cran, dec. Brinkley, Bw, 6-5.
215 – Yahner, Bw, pinned Shobert, Bv, 1:46; Hahn, Sh, pinned Sheasley, RV, 2:36.
285 – Chittester, R, pinned Burnside, CC, 2:27; Z. Manning, PA, dec. Russell, Cran, 3-2.
Consolation Quarterfinals
112 – Pierce, R, pinned (6) Greg Koptchak, 11, (6-7), Cur, 1:51.
135 – Freer, Sm, dec. (7) Hunter McCracken, 9, (9-20), Cur, 7-5.