For the majority, wrestling season will come to an end at this weekend’s District 3-3A Section 3 Championships.
But for a select few, the individual postseason journey is just beginning.
Two squads from the Local.News1 coverage area, Chambersburg and Greencastle-Antrim, will be aiming to make an impact when they take the mat at Mechanicsburg on Saturday. The Trojans and Blue Devils are both expected to contend for medals in this event, which we’ve selected as our Tournament of the Week.
Hopes are high for our area teams, but the going won’t be easy as the section tournament features 16 squads, including a couple of powerhouses in Northern and Boiling Springs. Only the Top 4 finishers from each weight class advance to next weekend’s District 3-3A/South Central Region Championships.
Buckle up.
In the weeks and months to come throughout the high school sports season, we plan on spotlighting multiple teams and sports with our Game of the Week. Any big upcoming contests we should know about? Send suggestions to Andy Sandrik via email at [email protected].
District 3-3A Section 3 Championships
Start time: Saturday, 10 a.m., in Mechanicsburg
Who: Area squads Chambersburg and Greencastle-Antrim will be joined at the section tourney by 14 other teams, a group that includes Boiling Springs, Carlisle, Cedar Cliff, CD East, Cumberland Valley, East Pennsboro, Harrisburg, James Buchanan, Lower Dauphin, Mechanicsburg, Northern, Red Land, Shippensburg, and West Perry.
What’s at stake: The Top 4 wrestlers from each weight class advance to the District 3-3A/South Central Region Championships next weekend.
Meet the Blue Devils: Coach Brandon Crouse’s Greencastle-Antrim squad is eager to test itself at the section tourney after going 12-7 this winter for its first winning campaign in decades … The Blue Devils are light on individual postseason accolades, but do return junior Aidan Crouse, a sixth-place section finisher at 127 pounds last season. Crouse is 18-4 with 10 falls this year, and is expected to compete at either 145 or 152 pounds … Sophomore Ben Jansen will be making his postseason debut at 215 pounds after leading the Blue Devils with a 25-9 record and 15 falls … Landon Hinkle has one last chance to make a run at sections. The 160-pound senior is 21-5 with 15 pins … Three standout freshmen — Damien Johns, Silas Robertson, and Carter Startzman — have the potential to land finishes on the medal stand … Johns is 23-11 with six falls at 172, while 107-pounder Startzman posted an 11-4 record with three falls this winter. Competing at 133 and 139, Robertson is 13-6 with six falls … Robertson may face a wrestle-off from teammates Jackson Polifka (133-139, 14-5, 3 falls) and Chance Zimmerman (139-145, 21-8, 14 falls) to determine his weight class for sections … Kahl Cordell, a junior, is expected to compete at the section tourney after going 18-15 with four falls at 114 this season … A number of other Blue Devils could see mat time this weekend, including Kevin Hoffpauer (121, 13-16, 2 falls), Mason Cummings (127, 1-5, 1 fall), Brody Shafer (145-, 1-8), and Myles Ingram (152, 2-13).
Meet the Trojans: After a dual season that saw Chambersburg go 5-5 overall and 2-4 in the Mid-Penn Commonwealth Division, coach Craig Hight’s boys are ready to give it a go at sections this weekend … The Trojans are projected to enter five returning section medalists, most notably heavyweight Frank Barrientos (20-5, 16 falls) … A two-time section podium finisher, Barrientos finished fourth in the region last year and qualified for states … Three seniors — Cody Seabolt, Isaiah Tasker, and Jaccob Stoner — are all two-time section medalists who will be seeking titles this weekend … Stoner is 17-8 with nine falls at 189 this season, while 121-pounder Seabolt is 9-14 with five falls. Tasker is 3-3 at 172 pounds … Sophomore Isaac Brambley was a section runner-up last winter, and after going 15-9 with 10 falls at 127 this season, he will be seeking gold this weekend … Freshmen Deakon Snavely (215, 20-9, 17 falls), Hunter Johnson (107, 10-8, 8 falls), and Aiden Yarnell (114, 8-13, 8 falls) will be aiming to make an impression in their section debuts … We could see a number of other Trojans on the mat Saturday, including Ethan Paszkowski (133, 4-10, 3 falls), Gabe Nolan (133, 3-4, 2 falls), Nathan Chambers (139, 3-9), Justin Deneen (145, 13-12, 3 falls), Alex Lozius (172, 4-6, 1 fall), and Omar Hanchey (215, 7-5, 2 falls).
Meet the contenders: Look for two teams that battled in the District 3-3A Dual Championships — Northern and Boiling Springs — to bring the heat on Saturday … The Polar Bears lineup is loaded with hammers, including Braden Wivell (121 pounds, 36-4, 18 falls), a two-time section runner-up, and another two-time section medalist in Jackson Lininger (145, 35-4, 17 technical falls). Northern has several other wrestlers that should be in contention for medals, including Tristin Cruz (121, 25-9, 7 falls), Braxton Gingerich (139, 27-11, 20 falls), Brayden Slugg (160, 31-10, 24 falls), Jake Adams (172, 23-6, 12 falls), and Jadon Niner (189, 23-8, 13 falls) … Boiling Springs has several monsters of its own, including Kutztown University recruit Ian Longengberger (35-1, 23 falls), a three-time sction medalist who took eighth in the state at 145 pounds last season. Longenberger is one win away from 150 for his career, and the same milestone is within reach for his 133-pound teammate Drew Scherer (31-5, 17 tech falls), a two-time state qualifier … The Bubblers’ Alex Mentzer (127, 27-10, 13 falls), a three-time section podium finisher, will be seeking his first title, while teammates Demetri White (189, 29-7, 13 falls) and freshman Wyatt Kiner (107, 34-5, 13 falls) are both expected to make some noise … Cedar Cliff brings a couple of highly-decorated grapplers to the mat in juniors Aiden Herndon and Kavin Muyleart. Herndon (138, 30-5, 13 falls) is a two-time section champ, two-time region champ, and two-time state medalist, while Muyleart (132, 27-4, 8 falls) has two section titles of his own and was the PIAA runner-up at 121 pounds last winter … Carlisle’s Steffon Urban-Lee (189, 24-5, 20 falls) is a two-time section runner-up and will be looking to take the next step this weekend … Cumberland Valley boasts a couple of two-time section medalists in Logan Maurer (145, 25-8, 11 falls) and Dominic Vogel (152, 27-8, 14 falls) … Lower Dauphin is led by a two-time section medalist in Tommy Oswald (121, 27-6, 8 falls), and bring two other contenders to the mat in Hunter Stoak (285, 31-8, 16 falls) and Christian Madden (24-4, 12 falls) … A number of others could make a splash at the section tournament, including CD East’s Enashay Gephart (215, 24-4, 12 falls) and Christopher Hershman (285, 24-3, 13 falls), Mechanicsburg’s Trey Olivetti (121, 24-7, 10 falls), East Pennsboro’s Josh Hamilton (107, 26-2, 12 falls), Shippensburg’s Braden Boardman (114, 26-3, 12 falls), Red Land’s MaClane Englert (139, 23-7, 9 falls) and Kyle Wonders (145, 24-9, 12 falls), and West Perry’s Ridge Casner (114, 23-7, 11 falls) and Evan Shepard (145, 27-6, 18 falls).
