AA championship notes
It's time to take notice of Jefferson-Morgan's wrestling program. The Rockets put three wrestlers into the finals of the WPIAL Class AA Championshps Saturday night. Brian Scritchfield and Ty Basinger finished second and Ethan Virgili won the 189-pound title. Todd Sibert is doing a great job since taking over this season. The Rockets nearly made the team tournament, too. It's nice to see them successful after they struggled for so long.
Charlie Wonsettler was a fan favorite in the 171-pound finals. The senior from Bentworth has been through a lot over the past few years. He lost his mother a couple years ago and went through an injury-plagued junior season. Wonsettler nearly defeated top-seed Damian Majocha of Burrel in the finals but a takedown at the buzzer cost him a 6-4 decision in overtime.
I know Kory Bissett wears a harness to help protect his shoulder but anyone who watched the 140-pound finals has to feel the shoulder is 100 percent. Bissett, a senior from West Greene, was locked up with Devon Maloney of Burrell for much of the match. The two wrenched, cranked, twisted, bent, and basically beat on each other's shoulders for eight minutes. Bissett muscled his way to a 2-1 overtime victory.
Give credit to Mitch Spencer of Avella in his 119-pound final against Troy Dolan of Derry. The Avella wrestler suffered a cut on his nose, a busted lip and a nose bleed that nearly ate up four minutes of blood time. The easy way out for Spencer would have been to say he couldn't continue and default. But he battled through the match. Dolan didn't ease up in a 10-2 victory.
I keep beating the drum for John Prezzia but strange things keep happening to him. The defending state champion from South Side Beaver had an unusual tournament. Despite last year's success, he was seeded third in the weight class at 112. He wrestled four times and allowed only one bout point and . . . . finished third. The point he gave up cost him a 1-0 decision to Anthony Zanetta of Keystone Oaks in the semifinals. Prezzia's three wins came via shutouts.
Without naming names, because sometimes coaches don't reveal problems or injuries to me, I thought there were a few wrestlers out there who simply went through the motions. And some of them will wrestle next week in Johnstown. That's what happens when half the bracket advances.
Finally, let's all wish Ron Garrison a speedy recovery from some medical problems. The man who is the Brotherhood of Wrestling is invaluable to the sport in this area.
Charlie Wonsettler was a fan favorite in the 171-pound finals. The senior from Bentworth has been through a lot over the past few years. He lost his mother a couple years ago and went through an injury-plagued junior season. Wonsettler nearly defeated top-seed Damian Majocha of Burrel in the finals but a takedown at the buzzer cost him a 6-4 decision in overtime.
I know Kory Bissett wears a harness to help protect his shoulder but anyone who watched the 140-pound finals has to feel the shoulder is 100 percent. Bissett, a senior from West Greene, was locked up with Devon Maloney of Burrell for much of the match. The two wrenched, cranked, twisted, bent, and basically beat on each other's shoulders for eight minutes. Bissett muscled his way to a 2-1 overtime victory.
Give credit to Mitch Spencer of Avella in his 119-pound final against Troy Dolan of Derry. The Avella wrestler suffered a cut on his nose, a busted lip and a nose bleed that nearly ate up four minutes of blood time. The easy way out for Spencer would have been to say he couldn't continue and default. But he battled through the match. Dolan didn't ease up in a 10-2 victory.
I keep beating the drum for John Prezzia but strange things keep happening to him. The defending state champion from South Side Beaver had an unusual tournament. Despite last year's success, he was seeded third in the weight class at 112. He wrestled four times and allowed only one bout point and . . . . finished third. The point he gave up cost him a 1-0 decision to Anthony Zanetta of Keystone Oaks in the semifinals. Prezzia's three wins came via shutouts.
Without naming names, because sometimes coaches don't reveal problems or injuries to me, I thought there were a few wrestlers out there who simply went through the motions. And some of them will wrestle next week in Johnstown. That's what happens when half the bracket advances.
Finally, let's all wish Ron Garrison a speedy recovery from some medical problems. The man who is the Brotherhood of Wrestling is invaluable to the sport in this area.
posted by Joe Tuscano at
12:31 AM
1 Comments:
I agreee with you about Prezzia, I met him at local Jr. High matches and he has always been a very pleasant and respectable young man.Even then there were times when I was sure he would be voted Outstanding wrestler only to come up short. I was glad to see him win at the state tournament last year. I would not be surprised if he does it again this year. In an age of wrestling when too few athletes care about it Prezzia gives it his all....Good luck to him and all the local wrestlers in the next few weeks....this sport in this area may just be counting on you!!!!!!!!!
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