Boys' Wrestling Game Summaries

The sterling high school career of North Allegheny senior Jon Hoover came to a conclusion on Friday in Hershey, PA. Competing at the PIAA Class AAA individual wrestling tournament, Hoover surpassed the 40-win plateau on the season with a pair of victories at the Giant Center.

The Virginia Military Institute commit opened the tournament on Thursday with an 8-3 loss to James Lledo of Lower Merion but rebounded for back-to-back wins in the consolation bracket.

Hoover collected a win by forfeit over Chase Smith of Spring Ford to end the day on Thursday and began Friday’s session with a tough 3-1 decision over Ricky McCutchen of Owen J. Roberts High School in the second round of the consolations. Hoover’s run at the state tournament ended with a 5-2 defeat to Angel Garcia of Mariana Bracetti High School in the consolation third round.

Hoover ends his senior season with a 41-4 record and wraps up his North Allegheny high school career with 115 victories.

PIAA Class AAA Wrestling Championships

North Allegheny senior Jon Hoover won WPIAL silver on Saturday in the final day of the WPIAL Class AAA individual wrestling tournament at Canon-McMillan High School.

Hoover reached the title bout at 170 pounds thanks to a 4-3 decision over Kiski Area’s Nick Delp in the semifinals, atoning for a loss to Delp in last year’s individual tournament. Delp was ranked No. 6 in the state. In the final at 170, Hoover was defeated by fall by Canon-McMillan’s Garrett Nijenhaus, who is ranked No. 2 in the state. With the second-place finish, Hoover qualifies for the PIAA individual tournament in Hershey next week.

At 113 pounds, Brad Stipetich earned a pair of consolation wins with an 11-1 major decision over Dustin Lenkner of Shaler and a 5-4 decision over Evan Whiteside of Gateway. Stipetich fell just shy of the third-place bout, losing by tech fall to Franklin Regional’s Finn Solomon the fourth-round consolation.  

Freddy Junko (126), Max Stedeford (132) and Ben Grafton (220) were all participants in the consolations in day two of the tournament for their respective weight classes but ultimately fell short of reaching the third-place bout. All of the North Allegheny results from Saturday are listed below.

Hoover will represent the NA wrestling team at the PIAA Class AAA individual wrestling tournament, which gets underway on Thursday at 4:00 p.m.

WPIAL Class AAA Wrestling Championships - Day Two

Five North Allegheny grapplers advanced into Saturday’s action following day one of the WPIAL Class AAA individual wrestling tournament at Canon-McMillan High School.

Three Tigers reached the quarterfinals in their respective weight class, including senior Jon Hoover, who posted a pair of wins at 170 pounds. Hoover opened the tournament with a win by fall over Logan Hoffman of Belle Vernon and followed that up with an 11-2 major decision over Grant Walnoha of Upper St. Clair in the quarterfinals. Hoover will take on Nick Delp of Kiski Area in the semifinals on Saturday.

Also reaching the quarterfinals were Ben Stipetich (113) and Ben Grafton (220). Stipetich posted a first round victory, an 8-6 decision against West Mifflin’s Jesse Galiato. Grafton opened with a 6-1 decision over Andy Mellinger of McKeesport. Stipetich and Grafton are still alive in the consolation bracket of their respective weight classes.

Along with Stipetich and Grafton, Freddy Junko (126) and Max Stedeford (132) remain alive in the consolation bracket. Following a first round loss, Junko rebounded with a 9-4 decision over Will Kail of Peters Township in consolations. In similar fashion, Stedeford bounced back from a first-round defeat with a win by fall over Remington Ross of Canon-McMillan.

At 138 pounds, Ian Branstetter also participated for the Tigers and picked up a pig-tail win before dropping the next two bouts.

Day two of the WPIAL Class AAA individual tournament gets underway on Saturday at 9:50 a.m. with the semifinals, 2^nd/3^rd/4^th-round consolations.  

WPIAL Class AAA Wrestling Championships - Day One

After capturing second, third and fourth-place finishes the last three seasons, senior Jon Hoover captured the elusive gold at the Section 3-AAA individual wrestling tournament on Saturday at Fox Chapel High School. The Virginia Military Institute commit claimed the section crown at 170 pounds with a 9-1 major decision over A.J. Ryan of Indiana in the championship bout.

Hoover was one of six North Allegheny wrestlers who placed at the section tournament, earning a spot in the WPIAL individual tournament this week.

Along with Hoover, juniors Freddy Junko (126) and Ben Grafton (220) both reached the title bouts their respective weight classes. Junko and Grafton each earned second-place medals for the second straight section tournament.  

Other medalists included sophomores Brad Stipetich (113) and Max Stedeford (132) who each won bronze. Stipetich defeated Dustin Lenker of Shaler by a 6-2 decision and Stedeford earned a 10-0 major decision in their respective third-place bouts. Junior Ian Branstetter reached the consolation bout at 138 pounds but fell in a tech fall defeated to Ian Scarberry of Shaler. For a look at the Section 3-AAA tournament results, click here.

Hoover, Junko, Grafton, Stipetich, Stedeford and Branstetter will all prepare for the WPIAL individual tournament on Friday, March 1 at Canon-McMillan.  

In the final dual meet of the season, the North Allegheny wrestling team fell to the Thomas Jefferson Jaguars on Wednesday night, 51-27.

The Tigers received a pair of wins by fall courtesy of sophomore Max Stedeford and senior Jon Hoover. Stedeford pinned Ridge Viha at 132 pounds and Hoover pinned Andy Kalup at 170 pounds in just 42 seconds.

At 220 pounds, junior Ben Grafton earned a 9-2 decision over Austin Sobek. Freshman Dylan Coy and sophomore Massima Curry both collected wins by forfeit at 106 and 113 pounds, respectively.

Next up is the individual portion of the wrestling schedule as the NA grapplers will participate in the Section 3-AAA tournament on Saturday, February 23.

Wrestling Match Summary: NA vs. Thomas Jefferson