Tigers Reach PIAA Team Tournament With Win Over Latrobe

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For the fourth consecutive season, the North Allegheny wrestling team is headed to the PIAA Team Tournament.  The Tigers nearly defeated the reigning WPIAL champion Franklin Regional Panthers in the semifinals but fell by a narrow 32-30 decision.  In the WPIAL consolations, the Tigers topped Latrobe, 35-29, to earn a berth in the state tournament.

With a trip to the PIAA Team Tournament on the line, North Allegheny won the first four bouts to take a 15-0 lead in the WPIAL concolations.  Latrobe won three in a row to cut the team score to 15-12, but the Tigers claimed three straight to balloon the lead to 32-12. While Latrobe won four of the last five bouts, it wasn’t enough as NA prevailed, 35-29.

The difference in the matchup with Latrobe was NA’s ability to pick up bonus points, earning three pin falls, a technical fall, and a win by injury default. Luke Landefeld pinned Trey Carr at 126 pounds, Clay Byerly pinned Colton Thompson at 182 pounds, and Zach Smith pinned Dylan Davis at 220 pounds.  At 120 pounds, Zach Stedeford picked up a tech fall over Joe Russo by a 15-0 decision. NA’s injury default victory came at 132 pounds where Jake Hinkson earned the victory over Joel Cawoski.

In the preceding match against Franklin Regional in the WPIAL semifinals, the Tigers earned three falls courtesy of Hinkson (132), Jeff Clemens (195) and Smith (220), but ultimately it wasn’t enough as the Panthers edged NA by two points, 32-30.

Last season, North Allegheny beat Canon-McMillan in the third place consolation and ultimately reached the PIAA semifinals before falling to Cumberland Valley, 31-28.  The PIAA Team Tournament begins on Monday night as the Tigers will compete in the Preliminary Round against the champions from District 8.  For the PIAA Class AAA wrestling bracket, click here.

Wrestling Match Summary: NA vs. Latrobe

WPIAL Class AAA Consolations
WeightWrestlersScore
106Brady Shields (L) pinned Jake Downing (NA)5:09
113Tyler Hughes (L) dec. Gabe Falo (NA)4-0
120Zach Stedeford (NA) tech fall Joe Russo (L)15-0
126Luke Landefeld (NA) pinned Trey Carr (L)1:38
132Jake Hinkson (NA) inj. default Joel Cawoski (L)2:53
138Luke Pletcher (L) maj. dec. A.J. Boeh (NA)18-8
145Jake Willochell (L) dec. Sean Kalmeyer (NA) 6-2
152Ethan Smith (L) maj. dec. Sean Hoover (NA)18-8
160Jake Woodley (NA) dec. Ethan Stas (L)6-2
170Jake Shaffer (L) wbf
182Clay Byerly (NA) pinned Colton Thompson (L)1:14
195Jeff Clemens (NA) dec. Travis Schmeling (L)11-7
220Zach Smith (NA) pinned Dylan Davis (L)3:47
285Tyler Means (L) dec. Layne Skundrich (NA)3-2

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Wrestling Match Summary: NA vs. Franklin Regional

WPIAL Class AAA Semifinals
WeightWrestlersScore
106Gabe Falo (NA) dec. Mark Prucnal (FR)5-4
113Devin Brown (FR) wbf
120Spencer Lee (FR) pinned Zack Stedeford (NA) 4:25
126Gus Solomon (FR) dec. Luke Landefeld (NA)2-0
132Jake Hinkson (NA) pinned Ryan Krause (FR)3:21
138Dom Giannangeli (FR) dec. A.J. Boeh (NA)6-3
145Sean Kalmeyer (NA) dec. Danny Contraguerro (FR)4-0
152Michael Kemerer (FR) maj. dec. Sean Hoover (NA)13-5
160Josh Macura (FR) maj. dec. Jake Woodley (NA)19-7
170Josh Shields (FR) pinned Jacob Fritch (NA)1:22
182Clay Byerly (NA) dec. Max Kubas (FR)3-2
195Jeff Clemens (NA) pinned Ted Wohlin (FR)2:00
220Zach Smith (NA) pinned Jeremy Nestor (FR)0:50
285Layne Skundrich (NA) dec. Jake Pickup (FR)3-1