CURWENSVILLE — Once-beaten Clarion continued its best start in years with a convincing 43-18 victory over Curwensville in a dual meet between District 9 small school wrestling teams in Patton Hall Tuesday night.
Falls by 138-pounder Shae Bloom and 160-pounder Hunter Lancaster were the only wins in the 12 contested bouts for the Golden Tide, which fell to 2-3.
Jeremy Gardner received a forfeit at 120 for their other points.
“Very disappointing,” first-year coach Dean Swatsworth said. “I thought we would have wrestled a lot better. I don’t know why, but we didn’t come out fired up like we have been.
“I don’t know if it’s my fault because I didn’t have them ready or if it was their fault because they just didn’t have themselves ready.”
The Bobcats certainly were, though, and jumped off to a 19-0 lead.
Headlocks ended the first two bouts, Zach Sintobin exploding off the bottom to pin Jake Stiles 22 seconds into the second period at 195 and Zack Huet taking down Seth Connors to his back for a 41-second fall at 285.
Alex Struble turned Anthony Winebold three times for a 10-0 major decision at 106 and Riley McMaster edged Seth Woolcock 4-2 at 113 with a takedown in the first period and a two-point near fall at the second period buzzer. Woolcock was unable to score until reversing with two seconds left.
After Gardner had his hand raised, Caleb Bailey offset those points by locking up a cradle for the second time to pin Ethan Collins at 1:33 of the 132 match.
Then, Adrian Weber became the sixth Bobcat in a row to register the initial two points by double-legging Logan Charles and added two more takedowns for a 7-3 decision at 138 to make it 28-12.
“We stress first points are the most important in a match,” Swatsworth said. “You get that first takedown, you set that tempo, and we’re just not to that point yet. We’ve just gotta get a little more aggressive on our feet.”
Like two-time District 9 Class AAA champion Bloom was in recording his 12th victory.
The undefeated junior went on the attack early and often against Leo Aiello, racking up three of Curwensville’s seven takedowns and three near falls for a 15-1 bulge before running a bar arm to stack the Bobcat at 3:46.
In what appeared to be a pivotal bout at the time, Bobcat freshman 145-pounder Colton Rapp was awarded an escape at the buzzer for a 3-2 win over Sam Bressler. Rapp had spun behind the Golden Tide senior for the opening takedown, and Bressler rode the entire second period but couldn’t manage the equalizing points until reversing with 39 seconds remaining in the third period.
“It was a great match, and it could have gone either way,” Swatsworth said.
At 152, Prince Brooks clinched Clarion’s eighth victory with a 5-1 decision over Eli Jacobs, in the lineup because of an injury to former District 9 Class AA champ Jake Lancaster. A double-leg takedown at the edge of the mat gave the Bobcat a 3-0 advantage in the second period and he reversed early in the third period to put the visitors ahead 34-12.
“They were good and they were well prepared,” Swatsworth said in giving credit to the Bobcats, who have lost only to Redbank Valley. “They’ve got a lot of good wrestlers.”
Hunter Lancaster accounted for Curwensville’s final points with his fall at the 5:01 mark. He had Mike LaFay in big trouble with a second-period cradle and led 9-3 when he used a double-arm bar for the early finish.
Jacob Troutman, making his first appearance after suffering an injury during the football playoffs, headlocked Kaleb Witherite early and then parlayed three reversals and two near falls into a 14-8 decision at 170. Witherite rode the Bobcat the final two minutes but couldn’t turn him until the waning seconds.
Curwensville’s Ben Junod engineered the opening takedown at 182, but Alex Burkhart reversed and logged a 42-second fall with a reverse half nelson and body press.
Swatsworth expressed concern over Golden Tide matmen putting themselves in bad positions too often.
“We’re young, and I’m trying to teach these kids you don’t ever roll across your back to better your position,” he said. “That’s not what you do in this style of wrestling.
“We’ve got to get back in the room tomorrow and keep working on things we did wrong.
“We’re trying to build a program, and it takes a little bit. If we just keep working, I think we’ll get better.”
The Golden Tide will be on their home mat again Thursday against Glendale.
Clarion 43, Curwensville 18
195 – Zach Sintobin, Cl, pinned Jake Stiles, 2:22. (0-6)
220 – No match.
285 – Zack Huet, Cl, pinned Seth Connors, :41. (0-12)
106 – Alex Struble, Cl, major dec. Anthony Winebold, 10-0. (0-16)
113 – Riley McMaster, Cl, dec. Seth Woolcock, 4-2. (0-19)
120 – Jeremy Gardner, Cur, won by forfeit. (6-19)
126 – Caleb Bailey, Cl, pinned Ethan Collins, 1:33. (6-25)
132 – Adrian Weber, Cl, dec. Logan Charles, 7-3. (6-28)
138 – Shae Bloom, Cur, pinned Leo Aiello, 3:46. (12-28)
145 – Colton Rapp, Cl, dec. Sam Bressler, 3-2. (12-31)
152 – Prince Brooks, Cl, dec. Eli Jacobs, 5-1. (12-34)
160 – Hunter Lancaster, Cur, pinned Mike LaFay, 5:01. (18-34)
170 – Jacob Troutman, Cl, dec. Kaleb Witherite, 14-8. (18-37)
182 – Alex Burkhart, Cl, pinned Ben Junod, :42. (18-43)
Official – Nick Sipes.
Golden Tide Scoreboard:
| Date | Opponent | Score | Record |
| 12/06 | Mountaineer Tourney @ PO | 4th | 0 – 0 |
| 12/18 | @ Ridgway | 32 – 45 | 0 – 1 |
| 12/23 | JOHNSONBURG | 41 – 19 | 1 – 1 |
| 12/27&28 | Big Dog Tourney @ Brockway | 2nd | 1 – 1 |
| 01/06 | @ Punxsutawney | 48 – 27 | 2 – 1 |
| 01/08 | @ Redbank Valley | 31 – 42 | 2 – 2 |
| 01/13 | CLARION | 18 – 43 | 2 – 3 |
| 01/15 | GLENDALE | ||
| 01/17 | Bison Duals @ Clearfield | ||
| 01/21 | @ West Branch | ||
| 01/23&24 | Fred Bell Tourney @ Grove City | ||
| 01/27 | BROOKVILLE | ||
| 01/29 | MO VALLEY | ||
| 02/04 | CAMERON COUNTY | ||
| 02/12 | BROCKWAY | ||
| 02/20&21 | District 9 Champs @ Clarion | ||
| 02/27&28 | Nortwest Regionals @ Sharon | ||
| 03/05-07 | PIAA States @ Hershey |
