Running the Gauntlet: 56 Survive Ohio’s Toughest District

            When I spoke with Northwestern Assistant Coach Drew Pariano a few weeks ago, he told me that he always thought of Sectionals, Districts, and State as a “three-week state tournament.”  Nowhere could that sentiment be more appropriate than for those who went through the grueling Division II Akron Firestone District, just as Coach Pariano once did.  Firestone is by far the toughest in Ohio, regardless of division.  Last year, a sparkling 60% of the wrestler who qualified out of this District placed at state.  Based on what I saw this weekend, look for that number to be even higher this year.  Here is a recap of what happened:

103- One of the biggest stories of the past two weeks has been Kyle Gilchrest of Jefferson Area. After Saturday Night, I can say without hesitation that the undefeated Gilchrest is the real deal.  He was pitted againt #3 ranked Dominic Crbari again (whom he had already beaten 6-0 at Sectionals) after Cribari pulled a huge upset with an 8-5 win over 2nd ranked, unbeaten Johnny Papesh.  In their District Fianls rematch, it was once again Gilchrest dominating.  Gilchrest struck quickly with a takedown plus two backpoints, which he immediately followed up with a nice cradle to go up 6-0.  Cribari reversed to close out the first period 6-2.  A great scramble early in the second off of Gilchrest’s shot saw Cribari come up with the takedown and nearly backpoints- to make the score 6-4.  That was as2 close as Cribari would come, as Gilchrest added a reversal and a 3rd period takedown to make it 10-4.  Gilchrest is very, very, good- and would look like a good bet to be state champion most years- however, with the phenomenal David Taylor in his weight, this is not “most years”.

112- This was a final of great interest since #4 ranked Travis Bernard had surprisingly beaten Dennis Roche in the Sectional Finals by a 7-2 score.  However, Roche simply put a beating on Travis Bernard in their District Finals rematch.  Roche immediately shot and got a quick single-leg takedown.  From there, he threw in the legs and cranked Bernard with the most brutal half I’ve seen from a wrestler not named Palmer.  With backpoints already secured and Roche working for a fall, the official inexplicably called it an illegal move and awarded Bernard a penalty point.  The next two periods were more of the same, with Roche easily scoring two takedowns and working him over on top with the legs, for a 10-1 final.   Watching the match, it was hard to conceive that Bernard had beaten him so easily the week before.  When I asked University School head coach Sean Grosz about this, he informed me that Roche was extremely ill last week- which is the oldest excuse in the book, but having known Coach Grosz for many years I can say for certain that he is not one to make excuses.

119- This was just a great match between two highly skilled wrestlers, but throughout the match you could see that Akron St. Vincent-St. Mary’s Brian Dean (ranked #5) was just  more skilled on his feet than University School’s #4 Jonathan Stone (though Stone “sort of” won the most takedowns award, more on that later).  Dean wracked up four takedowns on the way to a 10-7 final score.  Even more impressive was Dean’s run to the finals- three falls in three matches, including a pin of Lake Catholic’s MIT Champion Chris Romeo.  Coach Anthony Gary had this to say about Dean.  “Every week he has improved, his confidence has built.  He has a goal and he’s not settling until he reaches it, and that is to be on top of the podium.”  A tall order with Aaron Hart in the weight class, for certain, but clearly Dean was underrated in our rankings (and in the Brakeman, which also has him #5) and is a likely state finalist.

The real drama in the weight came in the consolation bracket.  #9 Chris Romeo met #10 Ricky King in the consolation semifinals.  The duo had lost to the two finalists, and were clearly the 3rd and 4th best guys in the weight, but due to the draw had to wrestle in the go-to-state match.  Romeo trailed 5-2 late in the second period but cut the lead to 5-4 with a spin behind takedown. King escaped quickly in the third to make it 6-4 leaving Romeo with two minutes to earn his first trip to Columbus.  It didn’t happen. Romeo worked every second of the two minutes and seemed to be on the verge of the getting behind King for the tying takedown the entire period, but King always managed to cling to a leg, or elbow while Romeo was trying to spin behind.  Romeo’s face was one of true heartbreak at the end of the match.  Luckily, he is a junior and will get another shot.  King is a sophomore with a very bright future, look for him to be on the podium in Columbus along with Stone and Dean. 

125- This weight was all about Quentin Keyes.  I had thought that Drew Kapper of Northwest might provide some challenge for him since Kapper was 4th in the state last year at 119.  However, this match wasn’t even as close as the 7-0 score.  Keyes struck quickly with a single leg takedown and when he added a tilt late in the first it was 4-0.  From there, Keyes added another nice single and an escape- while Kapper was never even remotely close to scoring.  Keyes looks fast, powerful, and determined to stand on top of the podium.  Since he has already finished 3rd, 2nd,and 4th, I suppose that 1st would be the next logical number- however, defending state champion Ben Jordan awaits (stop back Tuesday for an analysis of this and the other nine biggest state matchups). 

130- Adam Kriwinsky and Chase Skoniecny are two fabulous wrestler, but seem reluctant to pull the trigger when they wrestle each other.  Frankly, this was the most disappointing bout of the night, and although Kriwinsky got the “W” Skonieczny may have outwrestled him.  Skonieczny was close to a takedown at the end of the first which Kriwinsky gallantly fought off, but Kriwinsky never got anything going on his feet.  Skonieczny rode Kriwinsky out hard the entire 2nd period, only to get reversed with ten seconds left.  Kriwinsky kicked him out for a 2-1 final, avenging a close loss at Ironman.  Both wrestler have a lot of weapons, but prefer not to show them when they wrestle each other.

The real story at this weight was #5 ranked Matt Reedy, but probably not in the way he would prefer.  The junior Reedy was a state qualifier as a freshman but failed to make it out of Firestone as a sophomore.  This year, he came in as a Sectional runner-up after losing to Skonieczny in double-overtime.  While he had lot to Kriwinsky twice before this season, he didn’t seem to know it in their semi-final bout as he converted a single leg takedown into a four-point move to take a 5-2 lead at the end of the first.  From there, Kriwinsky clawed his way back into the bout- trailing 8-7 he appeared to have the winning takedown on the edge of the mat.  However, the points were not awarded, and Reedy appeared to be going to state.  The officials then conferred, and in what seemed to be little more than a “compromise”, they split the difference and awarded Kriwinsky a point for fleeing the mat, which sent the bout into overtime.  Kriwinsky got another single leg takedown to win in overtime.  In his consolation semi-final, Reedy had returning state placewinner Chris Milner of Aurora, whom he had beaten by a point the previous week.  Reedy jumped out to a 4-0 lead with two takedowns and appeared to have the bout well in hand.   However, Milner escaped and converted a single leg takedown into backpoints to lead 6-4 after two periods.  A late takedown iced the win for Milner 9-6, and made Reedy a Firestone casualty for the 2nd year in a row.   Aurora Coach Dick Bliss stated “Both takedowns were huge. 130 is a helluva weight class here.”  Ironically, Reedy’s first round opponent, #13 John Cintron, whom he pinned in the first period- ended up qualifying with a 3rd place finish.

135- This was the first weight of the night where I really didn’t see anyone that I could forsee in the state finals.   #9 Greg Hilbert of Revere scored the only takedown of the match in a 3-2 win over #6 Brian Connelly.  Connelly was very close to the winning takedown in the closing seconds- but Hilbert fought it off.   Both should place at state.  Conelly will be making his fourth trip. 

140- Brian Teter put on a show in the finals, wracking up nine takedowns and a near-fall en route to a 21-8 domination of the sophomore Jerry Boso of Akron Springfield.  This margin of victory was surprising given that Teter beat Boso 7-3 at Bill Dies and 8-6 at Sectional Finals.  Teter avenged two prior February losses to #19 Thomas Windom of CVCA in he semifinals with a 5-2 win.  Windom is a guy I can’t figure out.  He has beaten Teter twice (by fall and 11-7) but failed to place at Solon or MIT.  He will be in Columbus, finishing 4th this weekend.

145- With all the great wrestlers that competed (Rella, Rohler, Keyes, Kriwinsky, Weakley, etc.) Andy LaMancusa of West Branch was perhaps the star of the night.  At first I wasn’t so sure, as #5 Phil Dukes took him down with an early single leg.  LaMancusa almost immediately answered right back, converting the an absolutely beautiful single.  After releasing Dukes, LaMancusa exploded through a double,  lifting Dukes to the mat and nearly taking him to his back. Somehow LaMancusa wound up with a cradle and Dukes appeared to be in serious trouble- but showed great power in staying off his back completely until time expired, with the first period ending 5-3 in favor of LaMancusa.  For the rest of the match it was more of the same, with Lamancusa showing an amazing ability to create beautiful shots and Dukes showing flashes of absolute brilliance- this was hands-down the best match of the night.  When the dust settled it was 16-10 Lamancusa, but six of Dukes’ point came from escapes.  LaMancusa won the takedown battle seven takedowns to two.  Those of you who go to state, be sure to make a point to watch both of these impressive wrestlers. 

152- At this weight, Josh Rohler did what he had to do to win.  Frankly, he seemed almost nonchalant thoughout the match.  Scoreless through two periods,  Rohler escaped early in the 3rd to take a 1-0 lead.  Kusar escalated his attack with about 45 seconds to go.  He took what seemed like a decent shot very late in the match, but Rohler simply manhandled him in the flurry that followed, cradling him up for a 6-0 final score, with a few more seconds it likely would have been a fall.  As everyone knows, Rohler will be matching up with state champion Colt Sponseller at state in the most anticipated bout of the finals- stop back Tuesday for an article about who experts throughout the state favor in this matchup.

Another noteworthy consolation semi-final took place here between two future stars of the sport, #9 Erik Schott and #13 Nick Mills.  Schott is a sophomore and Mills is a freshman.  In the early going, it looked to be all Mills as a couple of slick “schuck” type takedowns built him a 6-2 lead after two periods.  In the 3rd period, Schott chose down, and Mills cut him.  This proved to be a bad decision, as Schott turned up the physicalness of his attack, and the freshman Mills seemed rattled.  Schott scored two 3rd period takedowns that had a lot more to do with brawling and intensity that technique.  With about 15 seconds left, and the score tied 7-7, Mills evidently lined up with his knee on the line, and was given his 3rd caution by the official, which gave Schott the winning point an a trip to the state tournament.  From my view, I couldn’t even see that the knee was on the line, at any rate it was flagrant.  Such a call with 15 seconds left in such a big match was mind-boggling, but frankly, Schott had captured the momentum and almost certainly would have won in overtime anyway.  All four representatives of Firestone will have a very good chance to place at state. 

Mills has an extremely bright future.  Along the way this weekend he knocked off #10 Kyle Haddox and #16 Cody Cheatham, and neither bout was close.  Freshman who excel at a weight like 152 are rare, and most who do are physically early bloomers.  Mills is a freshman who still looks like a freshman, but is very slick and has outstanding technical skills.  As he adds more strength and physicality he should develop into a dominating upperweight.

160- Dave Rella is simply on another level than all wrestlers in this state- except of course for Lance Palmer.  On this nite, he settled for a 13-5 major decision (all points yielded were escapes) over #3 Nick McMullen after making the finals with two first period falls and a technical fall.  I asked Rella afterward how much of an impact Coaches Clint Musser and Sonny Marchette had made in his development, to which he responded:  “They made me who I am, they’ve molded me into the wrestler I am.  I’ve tried to combine their styles, the “machine” style of Musser and the “slick” style of Coach Marchette.  I then asked him if he was more focused on training for high school nationals than state right now, given that no 160 in Ohio can touch him.  “To me, it’s all one season.  I train and wrestle year round, and I train for all of them just the same. Whether it’s Mac Lewnes or just some kid here, I try to have the same mentality.  You take someone lightly and you’ll get caught”, offered Rella.  

171- This weight held to form with #6 Justin Tripp winning a 2-1 final over #8 William Poyser of Louisville.  The one surprise was #14 Evan Meaney of Chagrin Falls not qualifying. Unranked sophomore Bryce Griffin took 4th and looks to have a bright future. 

189- In a loaded District, this was the big one.  The top four ranked wrestler all were lined up for battle here. #2  Jamey Srock of Wadsworth must have enemies at the OHSAA- as his draw pitted him against the #4, #3, and #1 wrestler in order. After surviving an 8-6 war with #4 Knopick.  Srock fell behind in the early going against #3 Bill Schindel- but then turned a Peterson Roll into a reveral and backpoints. However, trailing 7-4 in the second period, Schindel hit a blast double that took Srock right to his back, and scored the fall.  The move really came out of nowhere.  As Bob Preusse of Amateur Wrestling News said afterward, seemingly amazed, “he just ran over of him”.

Schindel’s luck ran out in the finals, however- as the explosive John Weakley powered through him with three big double legs.  Schindel injury defaulted late in the 2nd period, trailing 6-2.  It was not apparent how serious his injury was.  If you have not seen Weakley wrestle yet, make sure to watch him at state.

215- #5 ranked Aaron Griffin established himself as one of the favorites for the state title at this weight (especially with the top two guys losing this weekend) by dominating the field.  His closest match was a 6-0 win over #6 ranked Marco Caponi. 

However, the real story at 215 was a guy that didn’t even qualify, Ryan Oddo of CVCA.  Oddo (#14 ranked by OWS and #23 in the Brakeman) shocked the oddsmakers by knocking off #2 ranked Matt Walker of Alliance 4-2 in the first round.  Oddo’s momentum ran out in the semifinals, where he was dismantled 25-8 by Marco Caponi.  However, just in case you thought the first match was a fluke, he took Matt Walker into double overtime in the go-to-state match, losing on a controversial (but in my view, correct) escape point with ten seconds left. 

275- Nathan Sharp won here as expected and will be looking for a state finals rematch with Matt Guhn.  The guy who should have been the big story of this weight was Andy Horvath of Geneva, but he was inexplicably pinned in the consolation semifinals- after having beaten #10 Scott Weber, the eventual 3rd place finisher, and lost to Sharp by only a point.   

Awards Shenanigans

A rare comical moment in the evening was the awarding of the Most Takedowns Award to Jonathan Stone after his 119 lb. final.  While it was apparently missed by the tournament directors, everyone around me in the stands could see the problem- there were still many finals weight classes to be wrestled.  Sure enough, I later walked by the tournament scoreboard and noted that Triway’s Brian Teter had surpassed Stone’s total 22 to 21.  Coincidentally, the tournament directors had just noticed their gaffe while I was walking by, and were discussing the fact that Teter had just passed Stone.  I heard one tournament official comment, and I quote, “we screwed up.”  I wondered if they might make Stone give back the award, however, I was informed that they were just going to give another coveted “Most Takedowns” award to Teter.   

Yet, the situation soon turned even more bizarre when a “Most Reversals” award was given.   To me this seems a rather dubious honor, as whoever got the most reversals would have had to spend a fair amount of time on bottom- you sort of knew that it was not going to be, say, Dave Rella who won this award.   I was anticipating a “most escapes” award to be given next.  Thankfully, that didn’t happen, but on the board they did have recorded “Team with Most Stalling Calls Against” statistic posted (“Winner”: Canal Fulton Northwest).  I am really not making this up.  I bolted out of the gym after the last match- but hopefully no official award was given in this category either.

Next Stop: Columbus

When then dust settled, the field of 224 wrestler had narrowed to a mere 56, with many great wrestlers falling victim to the treacherous Firestone District.  Those who qualified can rest assured that they belong.  Stop back Tuesday for a complete State Preview of all divisions!

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