Mt. Lebanon making strides on the mats

Mt. Lebanon’s seventh-place showing in the Allegheny County Championship was anything but so-so. It’s an indication of where the wrestling program is headed.
The Blue Devils, who boast 10 sophomores on their varsity roster, put five grapplers on the podium. Three reached the finals and one captured a championship.
Thomas Jefferson won the team title with 292.5 points. Bethel Park claimed runner-up laurels with a 231.5 score. Fox Chapel (220) followed in third place, Lebo finished with 164 points.
“Going into the tournament we talked about getting off to a good start and getting as many guys as possible through that first round with a win. For the most part, we were able to do that. We had a fair amount of pins as well,” explained Lebo mat boss Marc Allemang.
Additionally the Blue Devils discussed placement and how critical wrestle backs would be.
“Generally, teams that are able to keep most of their guys churning through the wrestle backs towards individual placements will be happy with their team placement at the end of the tournament. I felt like while we wrestled pretty well on the first day, although there were a few guys we would have loved to see get through to day two,” Allemang said.
Jon Emma, Evan Sala and Cole Gibbons all reached the finals while Ben Lloyd and Devin McCauley ended up place winners in fifth and seventh place.
Allemang pointed out that Emma and Sala are sophomore while Gibbons is a junior along with Marcus Rojas and Ben Mares. He noted that Rojas “keeps getting better” and McCauley is “easily one of the hardest workers in the room.”
“We have a fairly young group,” Allemang said. “When you look at the top 5-6 teams they are loaded with senior talent.
“TJ has an incredibly strong senior class, Bethel Park has an incredibly strong senior class mixed with some really talented sophomores, Fox Chapel has a loaded senior group,’ he continued.
“We are not as deep in senior leadership, but there are good years ahead for Mt. Lebanon wrestling as we continue to move up guys from the junior high and the current group gets a little more mature in their wrestling.”
Sala has blossomed into a strong 127-pound grappler. He started the season by taking third at the Charters-Houston Tournament.
He improved to 11-1 overall after edging Bethel Park’s Colton Fisher, 1-0, to win the Allegheny County crown.
During the county championships Allemang said that “Evan showed what a talent he is and what he is capable of doing on a regular basis and on a big stage.”
Allemang predicts Sala and Fisher will meet again during individual competition, which commences with sectionals on Feb. 15 at South Fayette.
“Colton is a great wrestler and a really good competitor. I think everyone was looking forward to that match up,” Allemang said of the county championship. “They will likely run into each other again at some point, but it is good for Evan to know what he is capable of.”
To reach the finals, Sala won two matches with pins and two by tech falls. He won 3-2 in an ultimate tiebreaker against Fox Chapel’s Landon Funk to advance to the championship bout.
“His run to the finals was not an easy one. His semi finals match was a gritty, patient win,” Allemang said.
“Evan just stayed calm and composed. He never let his emotions get the better of him during that match and the same was true in the finals. He just kept wrestling through all positions.
“Evan is extremely quick and has great balance. His wrestling IQ is very high,” Allemang continued. “I am excited to see him wrestle down the stretch.”
Emma opened eyes at the county championships. At 121, he gives the Blue Devils a solid 1-2 punch in the line-up. He was 27-9 as a freshman with a second-place showing in sectionals and a fifth-place finish at regionals.
Individually, Emma finished runner-up in the county championships to improve to 19-4 overall.
“Jon is a fast paced wrestler and has a ton of talent,” Allemang said. “He is quick and aggressive. He has the ability to put a lot of points on the scoreboard in a very short amount of time.”
Emma did just that in the county championships. He rolled up three straight pins before posting a major decision against Brock Dennison of South Fayette to reach the semifinals. Emma dispatched North Allegheny’s Evan Schomburg, 8-6, before being pinned by BP’s Pierce Reinhart in the 121-pound finals.
“I was excited to see how he did at counties with a talented bracket,” Allemang said. “Pierce is a great competitor and I know they will run into each other again before the year is over. My hope is that Jon continues to wrestle him hard and open up a little more so he can get to his offense.”
Emma has not been a life-long wrestler. He began taking the sport seriously in eighth grade and has become a year-round competitor. According to Allemang, Emma has made up a lot of wrestling in a few years, noting his dominance in the Burgettstown Tournament, in which he won his weight class.
“Jon is fun to watch,” Allemang said. “He believes in himself. Everything starts with that. Because of his work ethic and self believe I know he can go with anyone. Jon will be prepared both physically and mentally to wrestle at a high level and I think he is going to continue to open some eyes as we move towards March.”
Though he adopts a different style than Emma and Sala, Gibbons matches their prowess on the mats. He secured runner-up honors at the Charters-Houston and Allegheny County Championships and tacked on a third-place showing at the Burgettstown Tournament this winter.
Gibbons opened with two pins at county championships. After back-to-back decisions, he dropped his 160-pound final, 10-2, to Brayden White to move to 23-7 on the year and 82-30 for his career, which has included third-place finishes in the section and region last winter.
“Cole is an amazing athlete but with a different style than Jonathan and Evan,” Allemang said. “He is a little more calculated in terms of when he attacks, but he has great set ups and is so fast and powerful that when he does shoot he is more often than not securing the takedown.
“Cole is no stranger to having to wrestle hard in big matches. Last year, he worked his way through a very talented section and WPIAL bracket.”
Work ethic will determine the success Gibbons enjoys in the postseason.
“The only expectation for Cole is to work hard every day and keep improving each day,” Allemang said. “He will be fine if he puts in the effort and allows himself to wrestle without any reservations.”
Such is the case for Ben Lloyd. The senior finished fifth at heavyweight in the county championships and moved closer to entering the Century Club by improving his career record to 96-58.
Lloyd was a bronze medalist in the WPIAL last year and a PIAA qualifier. According to Allemang, he has been a steadying force in the line-up. He finished second at the Charters-Houston Tournament and eighth in the prestigious Powerade Tournament.
Lloyd has also wrestled on the other big stages, including nationals in Fargo, N.D. as well as the Super 32 this past fall. Additionally, he has competed on dual teams all over the country.
“There has been a lot of ups and downs for Ben this season, but make no mistake about it, he is a good wrestler and someone who has demonstrated that he can overcome adversity,” Allemang said.
Lloyd should be ready to make a run at individual titles when the postseason commences. After sectionals, the WPIAL and Southwest Regionals will be held at Canon-McMillan with the top performers advancing to the PIAA championships set for March 6-8 at the Giant Center in Hershey.
“Ben is never someone to count out of any tournament,” Allemang said. “There is a lot of parity at heavyweight this year and he has to pull confidence knowing he has wins over just about everyone that he will wrestle.
“At the end of the day, Ben cannot focus on the matches he lost this season, rather he has to just be himself and wrestle like he knows he can. I believe in Ben Lloyd and he is someone that has grown so much in four years that I want him to free himself of doubt and just go compete and compete hard.”
Finally, Devin McCauley wrestled hard enough during the county championships to reach the podium. He scored seventh-place honors.
DUNLAP 2ND
In other results from the Allegheny County Championships, Luke Dunlap from South Fayette claimed runner-up honors at 152.
A senior, Dunlap picked up a pair of pins and two tech falls before winning by forfeit in the semifinals. He dropped a 17-2 decision to TJ’s Maddox Shaw in the championship bout.
Dunlap improved to 16-5 on the season with his tournament showing. He was 33-9 last winter with a section runner-up medal and a fourth-place showing in the regional to earn a berth in the PIAA tournament.
Also for the Lions, Talan Mizenko finished fourth at 139 while Brock Dennison secured sixth place at 121. Peter Leventis added seventh at 133.
South Fayette finished 17th in the team standings while Upper St. Clair and Chartiers Valley placed 13th and 15th respectively.
Top finishers for the Panthers included: Spencer Hills, eighth at 107; Alex Tucker, eighth at 127; and Derek Worstell, fifth at 152;
Top finishers for the Colts were: Cooper Knorr, sixth at 107 and Logan Connolly, sixth at 133,

Mt. Lebanon placed five wrestlers on the podium and finished seventh in the team standings during the Allegheny County Championships held at Fox Chapel. Top finishers pictured included: Devin McCauley (seventh), Ben Lloyd (fifth), Evan Sala (first) Cole Gibbons (runner-up) and Jonathan Emma (runner-up).