Gaels go three-for-three in the finals, place eight total, Gilman puts seven on the podium
The Penn Manor Holiday Tournament at Penn Manor High School in Pennsylvania is an early season challenge that Mt. St. Joe has been taking on the last few seasons. While there are no national powerhouses in the field it is a deep tournament comprised of mostly Pennsylvania teams with a few out of state squads thrown in.
The Gaels hauled the team trophy back to Maryland despite being missing several starters.
“Early season success is just a steppingstone to late season championships,” Barnabae said. “This team is very young, and their development will be crucial if we expect to repeat as Maryland's No. 1 Team. I am happy with where we currently are, yet there is a lot of room for improvement. I certainly anticipate that our senior leadership of Nogle, Lewis, and Santangelo will continue to lead us in the right direction."
No. 1 Carter Nogle paced his team with an 8-1 decision of Braden Rozanski (Upper Perkiomen, PA) in the 139lb final (PA uses their own weight classes, which are different than most states). For Nogle, it was his second title in a row at the event.
"I felt pretty good about our performance this past weekend,” Nogle added. “Some of our guys were a little rusty on the first day but everyone came back and helped contribute to a team victory. I 100% feel comfortable moving up from 120lbs last year. I felt better than I ever have wrestling 132 at Fargo. "
“I focused heavily in the weight room and continued to wrestle as much as I could which has helped me prepare for 138. Next fall I will be wrestling at the Air Force Academy and could not be more thrilled to be a part of the outstanding program in Colorado Springs."
No. 3 Cameron Cannaday (152) decked Andrew Huesgen (Governor Mifflin, PA) 35 seconds into the third frame, 4:35. Cannaday defeated Gilman’s No. 6 John Jurkovic, 8-3, in the semis. Cannaday was third here last year.
"The difference between last year and this year is that I did a lot of training and competing over the summer as well as staying active in the room as the season progressed,” Cannaday offered. “Overall, I think I performed well but there is still a lot of room for improvement throughout the remainder of the year. The team performed well, and I am hopeful that we can continue this success into the remainder of the season as well."
No. 1 Austin Lewis posted a solid 7-1 victory over Nathan Stuckey (Lower Dauphin, PA) for the 189lb gold. Lewis also improved upon a third-place finish from a year ago.
"The difference this year is that I feel a great deal more confident in going into my matches,” said Lewis. “I feel the team placing first shows the attitude of "Team First". Our team is working very hard together and putting in the work both on and off the mat.”
Other Gaels securing awards were Tyler Stephens (3rd at 133), No. 3 Joseph Cooper (4th at 114), No. 4 Bryan Santangelo (4th at 127), No. 2 Jake Tamai (5th at 121), and No. 11 Jaden Diggs (6th at 145).
Stephens is a highly touted freshman, who will be entering the Legacy Wrestling Rankings after his performance here. In the consolation final, Stephens pinned Jude Reynolds (St. Joseph’s Prep, PA). Reynolds pinned Jackson Orrell (Red Lion, PA) in the consolation semis. A match before that, Orrell beat No. 9 Zac Glory (Gilman), 6-4.
Gilman took the wrestlers who didn’t compete at Ironman up north to this affair and saw seven wrestlers achieve success. Placing fourth was Jurkovic, landing in the fifth spot were Arthur Konshak (160) and No. 14 Nick Haughey (172). Working to sixth place finishes were No. 11 JD Vassar (114) and Sebastian Chaney (189). Finishing seventh were Glory and Isaiah Trusty (215).
Next up for the Gaels and Greyhounds is the Prestigious Beast of the East Wrestling Tournament in Delaware, considered one of the toughest in the country.
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