Day one of the PIAA wrestling tournament for both Class AA and AAA is now in the books. Earlier we took a look back at the first day of the Class AA tournament, now we will take a look back, while also looking ahead at the Class AAA tournament.
Here are 5 things we learned in Class AAA
1. Franklin Regional has the best ensemble of individual talent in the state. The Panthers advanced six wrestlers to the quarterfinals and at least 4 of them are the favorites to win their weight class.
2. Bethlehem Catholic can sure hang with the AAA teams. In their first year in class AAA, the Golden Hawks pushed six kids into the quarterfinals, qualifying 11 kids total.
3. Solanco’s Bo Spiller is the favorite in 285 pounds. When Bethlehem Catholic’s Andrew Dunn jumped up to 285 pounds, many felt he became the favorite. Spiller’s fall in 31 seconds showed that he’s the top dog.
4. Preliminary match participants make splash. 9 preliminary participants shook up the tournament with first round victories, including South Western’s Derek Wilson at 120.
5. East Pennsboro’s Alex Klucker is Day 1 darling. Klucker pinned Canon-McMillan’s Micah Kusturiss in 38 seconds in the preliminary then decked unbeaten Riley Barth of Central Bucks West in 48 seconds. Not bad for a District 3 fourth seed.
Now that we took a look back, let’s take a look at five things to watch in Day 2.
1. A pair of quarterfinals between Exeter and Franklin Regional wrestlers. At 113 pounds we will see Exeter’s Austin DeSanto and Franklin Regional’s Devin Brown and then at 120 we will see Exeter’s Brett Kulp and Franklin Regional’s Spencer Lee.
2. How will day 1 darlings fare? Now that they downed a regional champ, how will those preliminary upstarts fare in day two.
3. Quarterfinals at 138-pounds. Hempfield Area’s Sam Krivus vs. Central York’s Dylan Chatterton, Chambersburg’s David Rump against Bethlehem Catholic’s Stephen Maloney and Penn Trafford’s Cameron Coy against Central Dauphin’s Zach Elvin. Talk about must-see matches.
4. Battle of Nations best: Cumberland Valley’s Patrick Duggan (4th nationally according to InterMat) will face Belle Vernon’s Jarod Verkleeren (11th nationally) in a 145-pound quarterfinal.
5. South Western’s Seth Janney: Will he go 9-for-9 this postseason in falls when he faces Selinsgrove’s Andrew Boob?
Stay tuned to GameTimePA.com and follow me on twitter @ameaseYDR for updates the rest of the PIAA tournament.
Here are some videos from YAIAA competitors in AAA action.
