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Multiple goals left for Waynesburg wrestlers

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The Waynesburg wrestling team has more than just individual goals set for this weekend’s PIAA Class 3A Tournament, which begins Thursday at the Giant Center in Hershey.

The Raiders also have their sites set on defending the PIAA team title they won last year. However, that will be a very tough task, as first-year coach Kyle Szewczyk has only six entries in the three-day, double-elimination tournament. District 11 powers Nazareth and Bethlehem Catholic have 12 and 11 entries respectively.

“Our goal is to win the state team title again,” said Raiders junior Rocco Welsh. “If everybody prepares the right way these next couple days, I think we can peak at the right time and win the state title.”

Waynesburg’s PIAA lineup includes three individuals who have placed in at least one previous state tournament, and three who are making their individual tournament debut.

The three placewinners are: Mac Church, Colton Stoneking, and Rocco Welsh.

“Mac and Rocco are really peaking at the right time,” Szewczyk said. “Both were dominant in the WPIAL tournament. Colton is also hitting his stride at the right time.”

Church (34-2), a two-time PIAA medalist, is the top seed at 132. He placed third in the state as a 106-pound freshman, then claimed a gold medal at 120 last year.

Church will face the winner of the pigtail match between Sun Valley’s Daniel Kearney (34-9) and Bethlehem Liberty’s Javien DeLeon (31-5). Both placed fourth in their region.

“I’ve worked hard all year with winning a second state title as my ultimate goal,” Church said. “Anything can happen at Hershey. I’m excited to put it on the line again. I just have to keep doing what I’ve been doing all season.”

Stoneking (38-10) is making his second appearance in the state tournament after placing second in the WPIAL at 138 pounds. He placed fifth in the state at 132 last year. Stoneking’s opponent in the first round is Perkiomen Valley’s Kelly Kakos (37-4), the Southeast Region runner-up.

Stoneking has the misfortune of being in the only weight class that features two returning PIAA champs. Bethlehem Catholic’s Tyler Kasak (40-0) is the top seed, while Hempfield’s Briar Priest (35-2) is seeded No. 2. If Stoneking wins in the first round, he will most likely face Kasak in the quarterfinals.

Welsh (42-1) is a two-time runner-up. He has since moved to 172 and is the top seed. He will face the winner of the pigtail match between Overbrook’s Souleymane Diarra (17-6) and Quakertown’s Calvin Lachman (36-9). Diarra is a fourth-place finisher from the Northeast Region. Lachman was a Southest Region fifth-place finisher.

“Maturity has played a big part in my success this year,” Welsh said. “I’m one of the older guys now. I have the attitude now that I deserve it. I’m not the underdog any more. I have a different mentality now. I’m not the prey anymore. I’m the hunter.”

Waynesburg’s three newcomers are Noah Tustin, Brody Evans, and Zander Phaturos.

Tustin (39-13), the WPIAL runner-up at heavyweight, will face Quakertown’s Frederick Retter (36-4) in the first round. Retter is the Southeast Region runner-up.

Evans (37-10), the WPIAL runner-up at 189 pounds, is matched up with East Stroudsburg North’s Wayne McIntyre (29-5) in the first round. McIntyre is a Northeast Region runner-up.

“Brody was an unknown coming into the season,” Szewczyk said. “He was a backup until this year. He really came on like gangbusters this year as a junior.”

Phaturos (33-8), the WPIAL third-place finisher at 126, opens with a pigtail match against Dallastown’s Zach Luckenbaugh (34-8), the fourth-place finisher from the Southcentral Region.

Church, Kasak, and Priest are among seven entries in the Class 3A tournament who have won a previous PIAA title. The others are: Manheim Township’s Kaedyn Williams (24-1), who is entered at 113; Latrobe’s Vinny Kilkeary (42-2), at 120; Erie Cathedral Prep’s Jacob Van Dee (17-1), at 126; and Franklin Regional’s Finn Solomon (37-2), at 145.

Canon-McMillan has five entries for the first time since 2013, when the Big Macs had eight entries, all of whom placed. All five entries are making their first appearance at the individual championships.

Matt Furman (31-8), the WPIAL runner-up at 172 pounds, will face Kelyn Blossey (21-7) of Erie Cathedral Prep, the Northwest third-place finisher, in the first round.

Jacob Haupt (34-5), a WPIAL third-place finisher at 120, is matched up with State College’s Asher Cunningham (32-6), the Northwest champion, in the opening round.

Brandon Dami (27-8), a WPIAL bronze medalist at 113, will face Warwick’s Nico Tocci (38-3), the Southcentral runner-up, in the first round.

Gabriel Stafford (31-9), a WPIAL third-place finisher at 189, opens with a pigtail match against Phoenixville’s Owen Koch (29-4), a fourth-place finisher from the Southest Region.

Tanner Mizenko (31-12), a fourth-place finisher in the WPIAL at 106, will also start in the pigtail round. His opponent is Dean Houser (37-5) of Daniel Boone, the Southcentral third-place finisher.

Belle Vernon has two entries, including Cole Weightman, a two-time PIAA placewinner who finished sixth at 220 in 2020 and eighth at 215 in 2021.

The only other area qualifiers are: Peters Township’s Darius McMillon and Trinity’s Blake Reihner.

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