Grapplers advance for SF, CH
Ten proved the lucky number for South Fayette and Chartiers-Houston as both advanced that many wrestlers through section competition and on to the WPIAL Class AA wrestling championships set for Feb. 22-23 at Chartiers Valley.
Each school crowned two champions during the Section 1-AA finals held at Chartiers-Houston.
Tanner Sutton claimed his fourth consecutive crown when he won by injury default against Laurel’s Shane King in the 145-pound finals. The CH senior pinned his other two opponents on the way to this title. Sutton is 36-5 on the season.
Garrett Vulcano joined Sutton in the winner’s circle. The 195-pound grappler pinned SF’s Zack Walker in 2:40 for his third section title. Vulcano is 37-2 on the season and he is the school’s all-time winningest wrestler.
For the Lions, Seth Carr won the 113-pound division with a major decision over John Dennis of Burgettstown, 16-5. Ranked No. 1 in the district, Carr is 29-3 this season.
Michael Fetchet was another repeat section winner for the Lions. The senior, who has only one loss in 34 bouts this winter, pinned CH’s David Kincaid in 1:30 for the 170-pound crown.
Among the runners-up for the Bucs were: Ben Hritsko at 106, Kincaid and Josh Kraushaar at 220. Other qualifiers included: Rich McGinnis at 120, Jake Jones at 126, Alvaro Luna at 132, Derek Hull at 160 and Nick Grady at 285.
CH’s Tyrone Wormsley at 113 and Garrett Grimm at 152 finished sixth in the sectional.
Among the runners-up for the Lions were: Mike Carr at 120, Shane Ging at 126, Grant Fetchet at 152 and J.J. Walker at 160. Other qualifiers included: Jason Wolfe at 106, Brandon Keck at 145, Brad Haney at 182.
SF’s Mike Shildt at 220 finished sixth in the sectional.
In the Section 3-AA championships held at Avonworth, Joey Kazalas captured the 220-pound title with a 3-1 decision against Kittanning’s Logan Robb to become the lone winner from Keystone Oaks.
The Golden Eagles walked away with two runners-up, including Nick Zannetta and Drew Trybus at 132 and 145 respectively. Camden Anderson at 106, Gavin Shelow at 120 and heavyweight Brett Templeton will also represent KO in the WPIAL tournament this weekend.
Section tournaments commence at the Class AAA division this weekend. Wrestlers will battle for spots in the WPIAL championships set for Feb. 28-March 2 at Norwin. The top five finishers in each weight class from each sectional advance to the district tournament.
Canon-McMillan’s Connor Schram and Cody Wiercioch each have won three section titles each.
A Stanford recruit, Schram has won at 103, 112 and 120. A former state champion, he is entered in the 126-pound weight class this year.
A Pitt recruit, Wiercioch won two Class AA section titles when he wrestled at Charleroi and won the 170-pound division last year for the Big Macs. Wiercioch, who boasts a 157-5 career record was recently selected to participate in the Dapper Dan Wrestling Classic for the Pennsylvania all-star team. The event will be held March 17 at the Fitzgerald Fieldhouse on the Pitt campus.