Chartiers Valley wrestling climbing new peaks
By Eleanor Bailey/The Almanac
Burgettstown’s Parker Sentipal has his eye on Brady Joling from Chartiers Valley as the two battle during the 121-pound championship match during the Chartiers-Houston wrestling tournament. Sentipal edged Joling for the title, 1-0.
Eleanor Bailey/The Almanac
Dylan Evans is one of the top returning wrestlers this season. The Chartiers Valley senior is a defending state champion, a member of the Century Club with more than 100 career victories and a University of Pittsburgh recruit.
Dylan Evans used a second-period pin against Chase Frameli of Jefferson-Morgan to capture the 160-pound weight class during the Chartiers-Houston wrestling tournament. The Chartiers Valley senior is a defending PIAA champion and a University of Pittsburgh recruit.
During 16 seasons as Chartiers Valley wrestling coach, Bill Evans has experienced plenty of peaks and valleys.
In his first year at the helm, he was blessed with some of the greatest wrestlers in the history of the program. Success flowed. So did Evans’ ego. “I thought I invented wrestling,” he said.
After an 0-11 sophomore season, his self-esteem flattened. Evans confronted a crossroads.
“I either needed to quit my job, maybe find another school to feed my ego or get to work,” he said.
Evans chose the latter. He decided he had to work just as hard as his wrestlers and he also had to have their same passion. Within three years, Evans and the Colts were back on top. They were section champions and bonded for life.
“It’s a group that I will never forget,” Evans said. “In fact, I still keep in touch with almost all of them today.
“What did I learn?” he continued. “You have to love everything about this — the sport, your kids, the families, the people that support you. You have to wake up every day and pray and be grateful for what you have.”
Evans has the makings of a very successful club this winter.
For starters, he returns three successful seniors.
His son, Dylan, is a reigning state champion. The University of Pittsburgh recruit owns a 102-24 career record that also includes section, WPIAL and Southwest Regional titles. At the amateur level, he is the 2022 national Greco-Roman runner-up and a U17 World Team Trials participant. He kicked off defense of his titles by winning the 160-pound title at the Chartiers-Houston Tournament.
Brady Joling also was a PIAA qualifier. He was a fourth-place finisher in the WPIAL and enjoyed a sixth-place showing in the King of the Mountain and a top-12 finish at the Powerade tournaments. The Davidson University recruit was the 121-pound runner-up at the C-H Tournament.
Anthony Trout is a WPIAL qualifier and Joseph Kochin is expected to lead by example along with other seniors Noah Shaffer, Ean Strimlan and Aubbek Muradov.
“The seniors bring a high level of dedication and hard work to the program,” Evans said. “Because we have such a talented group of young wrestlers, we expect this group of seniors to create an environment of hard work, discipline and demonstrate what success looks like, on an off the mat. I’ll miss them when they are gone next year, but I am hopeful that they create a ripple effect that lasts for a decade.”
Aside from junior Tyler Glover, the rest of the CV roster is comprised of sophomores and freshmen.
“I haven’t been more excited about a group of freshmen and sophomores like this in a long time,” Evans said.
Michael Lawrence leads the list. The freshman is a six-time PA Junior state medalist. Recently, he was named No. 30 among incoming state freshmen wrestlers by PA Power Wrestling.
A sophomore, Logan Connolly split time at 113 with Joling last season. He was one win away from the WPIAL championships while wrestling up a weight classification in 2022. “He is going to turn some heads,” Evans predicted.
Junior state qualifiers Morgan Siberman and Howard Clellan join Lawrence and Connolly in the lineup. Siberman is a freshman; Clellan, a sophomore. “They are two of the hardest workers and bright upcoming stars that regularly push the pace with our top seniors,” Evans said.
Sophomore Tamerlan Kapitonov moved into the district from Mt. Lebanon last summer while sophomore Travis Schoonover and Glover are returning to the mats after a hiatus.
“Tamerlan has been a bright spot. He is a workhorse that will improve every day,” Evans said. “Travis and Tyler have done fantastic things with our football program and will round out our upper weights with some much needed athleticism and a fantastic work ethic.”
Filling out the remaining roster slots are sophomores Niliaz Musaev, Tyler Tulowitzki and Gabriela Delacruz Perez and freshmen Eldar Aparov, Shirin Musaev and Ibtisam Ur Rehman Lone.
“We definitely have a balance of veteran powerhouses, and an amazing group of young wrestlers ready to take the reins for the future,” Evans said.
“We are going to be a fun team to watch this season. Our young guys feed off of the veterans, but they also are nipping at their heels. We have had our young guys challenge our veterans in the room regularly, both during live wrestling and conditioning. This group is OK with doing hard things, being uncomfortable, pushing themselves and finding new limits every day. We know what are veterans are capable of but now we want to see how the new guys show up and compete.”
After competing in the Central Mountain Tournament on Dec. 16, the Colts open Section 5 dual-meet competition at South Fayette on Dec. 20. In addition to the Lions and Colts, Moon, Trinity, Waynesburg and West Allegheny comprise the division.
Evans said wrestling needed a change in alignment. Instead of sub-divisions, there are now six distinct sections in Class AAA.
“The changes are definitely positive,” Evans said. “The WPIAL did a great job putting six section banners out there to be won. More schools getting those banners means more excitement in those districts and a great opportunity for momentum and growth. I love the creative approach that they have taken to create growth in the sport for the future.”
Although Evans admitted that his division is probably a littler stronger than the other side, the Colts are looking forward to competing with some of the best teams in the WPIAL to earn a playoff berth this season.
“We just need to control the controllables. Get better every day, grow and learn. Just keep doing the work, getting better at the little things, enjoying the process, finding joy in doing this together, and being grateful for the opportunity to be on the mats every day,” he said.
“As we move further and further throughout the season, our wrestlers will figure out where they are at — some will chase state titles, some will try to get there, some will fight their way through the WPIAL Tournament, and some will have a goal to get there. But each one of them is fighting the same internal battle — to be the best version of themselves that they can be — to get what they earned.”