2017-2018 Varsity Wrestling
2017-2018 Progressland Wrestling All-Stars
Updated on 06/10/2022
With nine wrestlers making the trip to the PIAA Championships in Hershey this year, the 2017-18 campaign was one of the better postseasons in recent memory in Progressland.
Clearfield’s Luke McGonigal and Hunter Wright, Curwensville’s Steven McClure and Blake Passarelli, Glendale’s Isaac Krause and Brock McMillen, Philipsburg-Osceola’s Matt Johnson and West Branch’s Kyle Myers and Derek Yingling all made the tip to Chocolatetown after strong district and regionals tournaments.
And five — McGonigal, McClure, Passarelli, McMillen and Yingling — found their way to the podium with McGonigal earning the ultimate prize of PIAA gold.
Several teams also enjoyed some success.
Clearfield (9-7), Philipsburg-Osceola (8-4) and West Branch (18-5) each had winning dual meet records, while Mo Valley was .500 (8-8) and Glendale put together a 10-win season and finished just below .500 (10-11).
A wrestler was eligible at any weight he wrestled at during the season. Postseason performance, regular season results, head-to-head matchups, strength of schedule and coaches comments all factored into the decision for making for the team.
Outstanding Wrestler: Luke McGonigal, senior, Clearfield — Coming off a 36-2 season that culminated with a PIAA silver medal, anything but gold probably would have been a disappointment for the Bison senior.
McGonigal, who took second at 170 at the PIAA Tournament last season, simply ran roughshod over his opponents on the way to gold at 195. He stampeded his way to the finals, winning by technical fall, major decision and pin before decking State College’s Cole Urbas in 1:37 in the gold medal match. That fall avenged McGonigal’s only loss of the season as he fell to Urbas 1-0 in Northwest Regional finals a week before states.
Also a Mountain League all-star, McGonigal won his fourth District 9 crown and picked up regular-season tournament titles at Top Hat, Tool City and the Ultimate Warrior Tournament.
McGonigal was 35-1 with 26 pins and a technical fall. He scored 93 team points in dual meets and finished his stellar career with a record of 135-20. The 135 wins tie him for second on the Bison’s all-time win list with Sean Owen (135-27) and puts him one behind program leader Matt Kyler (136-13).
Coach of the Year: Billy Dubler, Glendale — The fourth-year head coach has the Viking program on the rise and that was no better illustrated in the post season when Glendale picked up a sixth-place finish at the District 6 Class AA Tournament, tying the best finish ever for the program (which was achieved by the 1992 Vikings under head coach Blair Packer).
Glendale didn’t stop there, sending five to regionals and two to states. The last time Glendale had two representatives in the PIAA Tournament was 1994 when Brian McGarvey, who was fourth at 171 and Leroy Ross made the trip.
The Vikings also made just their third appearance in the District 6 Duals where they picked up their first ever win in the opening round against Central.
106 pounds: Nathan Graham, junior, West Branch — Despite a disappointing finish at the District 6 Class AA Tournament, Graham put together a strong junior campaign, going 25-9 and earning the third seed at 106 at districts.
Graham recorded 11 pins, including a pair of fast ones (0:15 and 0:24) at the D-6 Tournament. Eight of his 11 falls came in under 60 seconds. His sixth-place finish at the Ultimate Warrior Tournament was highest among Progressland entrants.
113 pounds: Brock McMillen, freshmen, Glendale — The Viking freshman burst on the scene by dominating the Penn Cambria Tournament in his first varsity action, securing three falls and a major decision on his way to a 6-0 weekend and first-place finish at 113 pounds. And he never looked back.
McMillen ended his season as the Class AA runner-up at 113 points, going 41-4 along the way. All four of his losses (including district, regional and PIAA finals) came to eventual state champion Josh Boozel of Mount Union.
On his way to the PIAA finals, McMillen knocked off returning state champion Beau Bayless (Reynolds) and returning fifth-place finisher Nate Smith (Bishop McDevitt).
McMillen’s 41 wins was tops in Progressland. His five technical falls were also the most in the area, while his 21 pins were second only to McGonigal.
120 pounds: Blake Passarelli, junior, Curwensville — After qualifying for the PIAA Tournament his first two years on varsity, but missing the podium each time, Passarelli made sure the third time was the charm in 2018.
Passarelli fought back from a quarterfinal round loss to make it to the medal rounds at 113 and bring home an eighth-place finish after a tough 3-1 loss to Smith in the placement round.
The Golden Tide junior won a District 9 title with an 11-2 major decision over Port Allegany’s Reese Vollmer and was second at Northwest Regionals after suffering a 5-2 defeat to Bayless.
Passarelli was 30-8 with 11 pins and four major decisions. He was third at 126 in the season-opening Mountaineer Tournament and third at 126 in the Fred Bell Tournament before placing first at 120 at the Garrett Scott Invitational at Juniata Valley. Passarelli takes an 88-26 career record into his senior season.
126 pounds: Matt Ryan, senior, Clearfield — A consistent performer for the Bison throughout his varsity career, Ryan had a strong senior season that fell one win short of a trip to states.
Ryan was 27-9 on the season with eight pins, three technical falls and three major decisions. He won his first District 9 title in style with a 19-9 major decision over Shikellamy’s Frank Quinones before going 3-2 at the Northwest Regional tournament where he fell 3-2 in the third-place bout with a trip to states on the line.
Ryan led the Bison in takedowns with 80 and earned 60 team points in dual meets. He finished his Clearfield career with 87 wins.
132 pounds: Alex Richner, sophomore, Moshannon Valley — After making the trip to states as a freshman, Richner had his return trip to Hershey derailed at the Southwest Regional Tournament in a loaded 126-pound weight class that saw no District 6 wrestler make it out.
But Richner still put together a season to be proud of. He went 26-8 with nine pins and four major decisions and placed fifth in the District 6 Class AA Tournament. Two of Richner’s wins during the season came against Philipsburg-Osceola’s Hunter Weitoish, who was the D-6 Class AAA champ.
Also a first-team selection last season, Richner added a second-place finish at 126 at the Ultimate Warrior Tournament and was third at 132 at the Sheetz Holiday Classic.
138 pounds: Tristan Rutter, sophomore, Glendale — The Viking sophomore had a solid second season on varsity and came up big when it mattered most, placing second at the District 6 AA Tournament after coming into the weekend as the sixth seed. He also won a match at Southwest Regionals and was 25-10 with seven pins, four major decisions and three technical falls.
Rutter had a big 7-6 win over District 9 runner-up Hunter Martz of Redbank Valley in the Fred Bell Tournament and went 4-2 in the rugged Panther Holiday Classic.
145 pounds: Caleb Freeland, junior, Clearfield — Midway through his junior campaign, Freeland found himself with just a 6-6 record. But he put together a solid second half for the Bison, winning 14 of his next 20 bouts to go 20-12 and fall just two wins shy of going to states.
Freeland finished second at districts before putting together a 3-2 weekend at regionals, advancing farther in the tournament than D-4/9 champ Noah Supsic of Shikellamy. Freeland reached the consolation semifinals before losing 7-1 to Philipsburg-Osceola senior Johnson, who went on to finish third to qualify for states.
152 pounds: Matt Johnson, senior, Philipsburg-Osceola — After suffering a season-ending injury as a junior, Johnson overcame another one in his senior year and made it all the way to the state tournament, where he went 1-2. To get there, Johnson needed to rebound from a regional semifinal loss and win two matches in the consolation rounds. He topped Freeland 7-1 in the consy semis before dominating Meadville’s Nick Rinella 11-2 to earn his trip to states.Johnson, who finished his senior season with a record of 21-6 with a Progressland-best five major decisions, also picked up a third-place finish in the District 6 Tournament, was fifth in the Conestoga Valley Holiday Classic and won the title at the season-opening Mountaineer Tournament.
160 pounds: Derek Yingling, junior, West Branch — It was a memorable season for the Warrior junior, who collected his 100th career win on the grandest of stages when he beat Mifflinburg’s Tyler Stoltzfus, 9-4, in the quarterfinals before going on to a sixth-place finish at PIAAs, bettering his eighth-place medal from the season before.
Yingling gave eventual state champ Caleb Clymer of Northwestern Lehigh all he wanted in a 1-0 semifinal round loss and dropped his fifth-place bout by an identical 1-0 score in a rematch with Stoltzfus.
Also an Ultimate Warrior Tournament and District 6 champ, Yingling did not suffer a loss until the finals of the Southwest Regional Tournament where he fell to 2017 PIAA champ Jared McGill of Chestnu
Vikings excited for 2017-18 season
Updated on 06/10/2022
FLINTON — The Glendale wrestling team returns nine letterwinners for the 2017-18 season and have a total of 20 kids on the roster, making it one of the larger groups the program has had in some time.
Unfortunately for the Vikings, they will be without letterwinners Isaac Krause and Cory Johnston for a chunk of the season after each suffered injuries in football.
Still, fourth-year head coach Billy Dubler has some big goals for his team.
“Our team goals are to finish in the top 12 and qualify for the District 6 Duals,” Dubler said. “We have some individuals on this team that want to go to Hershey and be state championship contenders. To do that we need to stay healthy. We lost two tremendous wrestlers already before the season started in returning regional qualifier Isaac Krause and 17-match winner Cory Johnston.
“But its nice to have a bigger roster this year. Having 20 kids out for the team is great and we hope that those kids come together and accomplish some of these goals.”
Joining Krause, who was 26-10 and a sixth-place finisher at districts, and Johnston as returning lettewinners are seniors Doug Beeny, Dalton Gondek and Mark Haigh, junior Brent Kuhn and sophomores Seth Dudurich, Dustin Hockenberry and Tristan Rutter.
Rutter was 24-13 last season and placed sixth at the District 6 Tournament, Dudurich picked up 19 wins and Kuhn had eight. Dubler expects big things from them as well as seniors Gondek and Garret Vereshack, who saw limited action a season ago.
“Tristan Rutter is a returning Southwest regional qualifier and is looking to take one more step to advance to Hershey,” Dubler said. “Seth Dudurich had 19 wins last year and wants to join his cousin Tristan in making the trip to IUP (regionals) this year.
“Guys like Garret Vereshack and Dalton Gondek have great opportunities to finish their career with a bang and notch at least 20 wins. Junior Brent Kuhn wants to continue to take the next step and be someone who will hit the 20-win mark.”
Also expected to make an impact are freshmen Brock McMillen, who is a decorated PJW champion, and Garret Misura.
“There are new faces that are young and new faces in the upper class and I’m super excited to see what they can do,” Dubler said. “An example of a young guy who is expected to make a splash is Brock McMillen. He is probably the best wrestler that Glendale has ever had and he hasn’t even started his high school career yet.
“He has 2 PJW state titles along with a resume that is a mile long of accomplishments. Pa Power has ranked him No. 3 statewide of incoming freshmen, which is very exiting for him and our program.
“Garret Misiura is another talented freshman who I think can turn some heads this season. He has been a state medalist on the youth level and he will continue to look for that same success on the high school level.”
With the returning talent and influx of young, but decorated wrestlers, Dubler has set the bar high.
“We are a young energetic team with hopes of surprising people this year,” he said. “We want to contend for an ICC championship and a district championship, but a lot of hard work will need to be put in to come close to these lofty goals.
“The guys are working very hard at this point and we are building from each practice.”
But Dubler said a lot hinges on weight control, injuries and academics.
“Our biggest weaknesses at this point are getting people to the right weight class where they can be very effective wrestlers and key injuries to Isaac and Cory,” Dubler said. “Next ... our grades. We have three to five wrestlers that are on the verge of being ineligible academically, so we must focus on being good students first.
“Lastly, inexperience at the varsity level is a concern. Nine out of our 14 starters are either freshmen or sophomores, so there is a slight fear of the unknown. But I feel we will be a really good team from what I see at practice.”
Misiura will get the start at 106, followed by McMillen at 113. Hockenberry will be a key backup in the lightweights.
There is no one currently at 120, but Rutter and Baine Seilhamer are both at 126 and 132.
Gondek is slated to start at 138 with senior Joel McClellan backing him up. Kuhn will go at 145 with freshman Cameron Fyock following at 152. Haigh is also in the mix.
Beeny will start the season at 160, while Krause could see time there later in the season depending on his recovery.
Senior Quentin Ulrich will man 170 with Vereshack going at 182. Dudurich looks to compete at 195 with sophomore Connor Smith backing him up.
The 220-pound weight class features freshman Logan Keith and sophomore Austin Fuller with Johnston waiting in the wings if he is able to return. Sophomore Kyle Jasper anchors the team at heavyweight.
Dubler’s assistants are Dan Dudurich, Ed Rutter, Kody Ness and Matt Yeckley, who was a fourth-place finisher at districts last season. He and Bradon Hughes are key losses to graduation.
“They both placed in the District 6 tournament and were two seniors that we could count on for leadership, and they will be missed,” Dubler said. “Fortunately Matt has joined our coaching staff in his free time while he is working on becoming a doctor at PSU.”
Junior high coaches are Brian Storm and Ryan Jacoby, while elementary coaches are led by Thad Francisco and Jesse Weld.
“Everyone is ready to get the season started and have as much fun as possible while trying to reach our goals,” Dubler said. “I’m very blessed to be part of this program and continue on this journey. I look forward to every practice and the positive development of these young athletes.
“I can’t say enough about the work ethic of our team,” Dubler said. “Everyone is pumped to get competition going and see what we can do.”
Glendale begins the season Dec. 15 at the Sheetz Tournament at Mount Aloysius.
Roster
Seniors
*Doug Beeny, *Dalton Gondek, *Mark Haigh, Joel McClellan, Quinten Ulrich, Garret Vereshack.
Juniors
*Isaac Krause, *Brent Kuhn.
Sophomores
*Seth Dudurich, Austin Fuller, *Dustin Hockenberry, Kyle Jasper, *Cory Johnston, *Tristan Rutter, Connor Smith.
Freshmen
Garret Misiura, Brock McMillen, Baine Seilhamer, Cameron Fyock, Logan Keith.
*Returning letterwinners
Schedule
December
15—at Sheetz Tournament (Mt. Aloysius), 11:30 a.m. 16—at Sheetz Tournament (Mt. Aloysius), 8:45 a.m. 19—at Everett. 21—Juniata Valley.
January
2—Moshannon Valley. 4—at Mount Union. 6—at Juniata Duals, 9 a.m. 9—Claysburg-Kimmel. 11—Curwensville. 16—at Bellwood-Antis. 18—at Northern Bedford. 20—at Claysburg-Kimmel Duals, 9 a.m. 24—at West Branch. 26—at Grove City Fred Bell Tournament, 4:30 p.m. 27—at Grove City Fred Bell Tournament, TBA. 30—Tussey Mountain.
Matches begin at 7 p.m. unless noted