Gilman senior Emmit Sherlock won a 175-pound-clash of nationally-ranked wrestlers, 1-0, over Bullis sophomore Salah Tsarni for the title in Saturday’s 30-team Raymond Oliver Tournament at McDonogh.
Named Outstanding Wrestler after winning his second straight Ray Oliver title in four championship berths at the event, Sherlock is a returning National Preps runner-up who is after his third straight titles in both the Maryland Interscholastic Athletic Association and Maryland Private Schools State tournaments.
“This tournament is always a tough one,” said Sherlock, a 6-foot-3, University of Virginia-bound standout. “I’ve always had really tough competition here throughout my wrestling career, so this really feels great.”
Sherlock was joined on the victory podium by senior Gabriel Smith (190) among four finalists and five top three place-winners for Legacy Wrestling’s No. 1-ranked Greyhounds (162.5 points), who were runners-up to New Jersey’s St. Peter’s Prep (312 points), the nation’s 24th-ranked program according to SB Live.
Finishing second for the Greyhounds were sophomore Liam McGettigan (113) and senior John Jurkovic (157), who, like Sherlock, are top-ranked by Legacy Wrestling.
The Greyhounds also received a third-place effort from 10th-ranked sophomore Arthur Konschak (165), a returning MIAA runner-up for a squad which dethroned Mount St. Joseph for MIAA dual meet and tournament titles as well as the Maryland Private Schools State championship.
St. Peter’s Prep crowned six champions in seniors Caedyn Ricciardi (138) and Max Nevlin (157), juniors Anthony (120) and Sal Borometti (126) and Laudan Henry (144), and sophomore Josh Piparo (165). Ricciardi and Sal Bormetti are ranked fourth and 20th nationally, with Nevlin being an honorable mention.
Sherlock is ranked seventh by SB Live’s National Rankings, while Tsarni is top-ranked by Legacy Wrestling and 13th nationally at 165 pounds.
“I really didn’t expect Salah to be here because he’s a 165-pounder as well,” Sherlock said. “So, he’s sort of moving in between the two weights. I thought he was going to go 165, but he came up to 175.”
Sherlock’s path to the finals comprised falls in 22 and 64 seconds along with another in 1:47 of his semfinal victory over Gonzaga junior Bojan Sulk, who finished third as the No. 1-ranked 190-pounder in Legacy’s Washington, D.C. ratings. Tsarni reached the championship bout following a 48-second pin and consecutive technical falls of 19-4 and 16-1.
Sherlock’s first-period takedown attempts were countered, defended or parried several times by the shorter Tsarni.
“I knew that I had good defense and positioning, I just tried to remain patient,” Tsarni said. “I wanted to gradually apply pressure and to turn it up near the end of the match.”
Sherlock chose the bottom referee’s position for the second period, securing the one-point escape for what was ultimately the difference in the match. But after having shifted the momentum in his favor midway through the third period, Tsarni followed coach Drew Robertson’s directions, choosing neutral and nearly securing a three-point takedown as time elapsed.
“My strategy was to be patient and to get in a good, low shot,” Tsarni said. “That happened twice, but I didn’t manage to score off of it. I just wanted to wrestle Emmitt and have some fun. At least I tried.”
A 1999 DeMatha graduate, Robertson is a four-time WCAC champion, winner of three state titles in four final appearances, and two National Preps crowns after having placed fifth and third.
“I felt like we could have had a takedown earlier in the match, and it was close, but we didn’t get it. Emmit’s got a long body, he’s nasty, he’s physical and he’s a great rider from the top position,” said Robertson, whose 24th-ranked Bulldogs placed 11th in the tournament. “Emmit’s also great with the scrambling and funk wrestling, so I felt like our best strategy for success was from the neutral position. I’ll have to review the match to see how I felt about the way it ended, because Salah got in on a couple of really nice shots.”
Sherlock won last year’s McDonogh tournament in similar fashion, his second-period escape earning a 1-0 decision over then-junior Lane Foard of Benedictine College Preparatory in Virginia, who was seventh in the previous season’s NHSCAs and eighth at National Preps. The victory was Sherlock’s third over Foard.
“This was an awesome opportunity for me to be tested by another great wrestler in the state,” Sherlock said. “You know that people are going to be coming after you when you’ve got a name in the state and in the country, so you have to put the work in every week.”
A returning MIAA runner-up and private schools state champion, Smith won a close title bout, 10-8, over Rudy Wagner, a junior from Virginia’s Frank W. Cox. Smith reached the finals following a 36-second pin, a 14-7 decision and a fall in 3:11 over Good Counsel’s George Tate, an 11th-ranked junior who finished third.
“It was a really tough match,” said Smith, ranked second by Legacy Wrestling. “I just had to push myself through it, and this feels great.”
An MIAA runner-up last season, Jurkovic earned falls in 94- and 54-seconds before winning his semifinal bout, 6-2, over fourth-ranked sophomore Noah Tucker of Bullis. But Jurkovic lost his title bout, 10-5, to Nevlin, being out-scored, 7-0, in the second period after leading 3-0, in the first.
“I wish the finals match could have gone a little bit differently for me, but even though it didn’t go my way, I was here to have fun, and this tournament was a blast,” Jurkovic said. “We still have some guys we’re going to be counting on to get into their proper weights, so our lineup still isn’t completely set. I’m really looking forward to how our team does when we’re in the right spots.”
A winner of last year’s McDonogh Tournament, McGettigan demonstrated why he was named Lowerweight Wrestler Of The Year last season after winning states and placing third at National Preps.
McGettigan rolled through his first three opponents by falls in 56, 67 and 40 seconds before winning his semfinal bout, 7-3, over third-ranked junior Eli Chesla of fourth-ranked Archbishop Spalding.
But McGettigan lost his title bout, 4-1, to Carter Shin, a junior from Virginia’s Chantilly High who won his semfinal, 5-2, over nationally 19th-ranked senior Malachi Stratton of Delaware’s Sussex Central.
“We didn’t have a 106- or a 215-pounder, so obviously, this weekend wasn’t our best\ performance,” Sherlock said. “But we had five guys who reached the semifinals and we were able to rally and finish first among the teams from Maryland.”
Third-ranked Loyola (122.5 points) finished sixth after crowning top-ranked senior Luke Randazzo (285) and second-ranked freshman Tyler Verceles (106). The Dons also received a third-place finish from second-ranked junior Jayden Jackson (120), a returning MIAA title-winner who lost his semifinal bout, 8-0, to Borometti.
Randazzo used falls in 49 seconds, 3:12 and 3:34 to reach the finals, where his 15-5 major decision vanquished Delaware Military Academy senior Cael DeNigris, who is ranked 23rd nationally.
“I felt good going into the match,” said Randazzo, who improved to 12-0 with 11 pins, has placed second once and third at MIAAs, and fourth and second at private school states. “I knew that my sweep-singles and ankle picks were going to work. I knew he was going to be very aggressive. I just had to stay in position, so I think that I did my job.”
Verceles used pins in 90 and 92 seconds as well as a third in 3:12 to reach his title bout, where an escape in with final 30 seconds secured a 5-4 victory over sophomore Royce Wetzler of
Benedictine College Preparatory School.
“Props to him, because I had taken a bad shot and he was able to take me down with about a minute left,” said Verceles, who improved to 11-0 with 10 pins. “That made the score 4-4 with about a minute left, and I was in danger of losing. But I was able to get out in about 10 seconds and hold him off for the final 50 seconds to win, 5-4.”
St. Mary’s Ryken crowned senior Evan Boblits (150), who won his second straight McDonogh tournament. Boblits pinned his first opponent in 1:48, earned consecutive technical falls of 19-2 and 15-0, won his semifinal by 10-1 major decision, and ground out a 5-3 championship decision against junior Joseph Ruiz of St. Peter’s Prep.
“He was a great leg-rider but I’ve worked my entire life on countering the legs, and I feel pretty confident riding legs or defending against someone using legs on me. “I wasn’t able to get out, but I felt confident that he wouldn’t be able to turn me,” said Boblits, who is top-ranked by Legacy Wrestling and rated 30th nationally.
“I had gotten a really easy first takedown and I thought about cutting him when I was up, 5-1, in the third period, but he felt like he was really slick, so I wasn’t sure I could score another takedown. I tried to reswitch when he got the reversal to come within, 5-3, but he had my ankle. But that was pretty late in the match, so I felt as if I had won the match at that point.”
The Naval Academy-bound Boblits is after his fourth title in the Washington Catholic Athletic Conference, has placed second and first in the past two private schools state tournaments, and fifth and fourth at the National Preps Tournaments.
Boblits’ first-year coach is 27-year-old Austin Kraisser, who won four each in Howard County and regional crowns as well as three Class 4A-3A state titles in four championship berths before graduating from Centennial High in 2016.
“Evan was really good on his feet, getting that first takedown and maybe we could have gotten one more. He was good on top with his riding against a slick guy,” Kraisser said. “We’ll always have some things to improve on, but we’re really happy with the win. We have another big tournament next weekend, so we always have to strive for improvement, and we’re excited to go back into the room and make the necessary adjustments.”
Fourth-ranked Archbishop Spalding (158.5 points) was fourth in the tournament after receiving third-place efforts from senior Sean Garretson (132) and junior Zane Leitzel (138), each of whom is top-ranked by Legacy Wrestling.
A two-time MIAA champion, Garretson scored a 20-4 technical fall over McDonogh’s ninth-ranked freshman Mason Comegys. Garretson wrestled back after being pinned in 56 seconds of his semifinal by eventual runner-up junior Gino Schinina of St. Peter’s Prep. Ranked 23rd nationally, Schinina lost his title bout to Chantilly’s sixth-ranked Tyler DeKraker by 17-2 technical fall.
Leitzel dominated sophomore Noah Cuic of New Kent, Virginia, by 19-3 technical fall for third place after losing his semifinal, 7-5, to eventual runner-up senior Trevor Copes of Delaware’s Caesar Rodney.
Tucker rebounded for third place with a 16-1 technical fall over Calvert Hall senior Aidan Kammer for Bullis. Tucker’s sixth-ranked senior teammate, Rohan Bucknor (144), also placed third. Bucknor split bouts with fifth-ranked senior Nick Melfi of Severn, losing their quarterfinal, 8-4, before winning their third-place bout, 4-1.
Landon’s third-ranked senior Tiller Smith (215) was a runner-up for the 23rd-ranked Bears, losing by 17-2 technical fall in his title bout against Cash Colbert of St. Paul VI Catholic. Colbert is an honorable mention in the national rankings.
A returning MIAA runner-up, St. Paul’s junior Haden Myers (165) placed fourth.
Team Results
1) St, Peter’s Prep, N.J. 312
2) Gilman 162.5
3) Chantilly, Va. 162
4) Archbishop Spalding 158.5
5) Caesar Rodney, Del. 142
6) Loyola 122.5
7) Delaware Military Academy 115
8) St. Paul VI Catholic, Va 112
9) New Kent, Va. 108.5
10) Frank W. Cox, Va. 106.5
11) Bullis School 94.5
12) St. Mary’s Ryken 88
13) Sussex Central, Del 86.5
14) Smyrna, Del. 77
15) Calvert Hall 74.5
16) McDonogh 73
17) Benedictine College Prepary 72
18) Cape Henry Collegiate, Va. 52.5
19) James W. Robinson, Va. 48
20) Good Counsel, 47
21) Saint John Paul The Great, Va. 40
22) Landon School 37.5
23) Severn School 34.5
24) Alexandria City, Va. 34
25) Gonzaga College High, D.C. 29.5
26) DeMatha Catholic 27
27) Georgetown Prep, Md. 26.5
28) Georgetown Day School, D.C. 24
29) The Heights School, Md. 22.5
30) Our Lady Of Mt. Carmel, 20
Individual Results
106
1st Place Match
Tyler Verceles (Loyola-Blakefield) 4-0, Fr. over Royce Wetzler (Benedictine College Prep) 45-2, So. (Dec 5-4)
3rd Place Match
Michael Santos (Chantilly) 29-8, So. over Benjamin Donato (Caesar Rodney) 37-18, Jr. (MD 10-0)
5th Place Match
Cole Perrin (Delaware Military Academy) 42-17, So. over Charlie Mutschler (Archbishop Spalding) 4-3, Fr. (Dec 3-2)
7th Place Match
Jacob Naylor (McDonogh School) 4-2, Fr. over Aiden Dougherty (Frank W. Cox) 23-16, Sr. (Dec 11-4)
113
1st Place Match
Carter Shin (Chantilly) 38-7, Jr. over Liam McGettigan (Gilman School) 48-6, So. (Dec 4-1)
3rd Place Match
Malachi Stratton (Sussex Central) 53-8, Sr. over Robert Rodriguez (St Peter`s Prep) 5-2, Fr. (Dec 6-4)
5th Place Match
Eli Chesla (Archbishop Spalding) 4-2, Jr. over Becket Geary (St. Mary`s Ryken) 5-3, So. (TF-1.5 3:48 (17-1))
7th Place Match
Isaac Cicchetti (Archbishop Spalding) 5-2, Fr. over Ansar Kmt (Dematha Catholic) 41-13, So. (Fall 0:27)
120
1st Place Match
Anthony Borometti (St Peter`s Prep) 17-11, Jr. over John Barron (St Peter`s Prep) 26-17, Jr. (Dec 4-0)
3rd Place Match
Jayden Jackson (Loyola-Blakefield) 40-8, Jr. over Tristan Carter (New Kent) 41-11, Jr. (Dec 14-11)
5th Place Match
Quentin Bailey (Archbishop Spalding) 32-9, So. over Carson Miller (Frank W. Cox) 22-21, Jr. (Fall 3:00)
7th Place Match
Henry Jones (Benedictine College Prep) 4-2, Fr. over Tyler Delcollo (Delaware Military Academy) 30-21, Jr. (TF-1.5 2:24 (15-0))
126
1st Place Match
Sal Borometti (St Peter`s Prep) 31-10, Jr. over Gavin Mundy (Delaware Military Academy) 46-9, Sr. (Dec 1-0)
3rd Place Match
Ezekiel Keel (Chantilly) 33-8, Sr. over Isaac Slayter (Saint John Paul the Great) 53-12, Jr. (MD 14-1)
5th Place Match
Wes Baumgartner (McDonogh School) 5-2, Fr. over Rock Zang (Archbishop Spalding) 29-13, Sr. (SV-1 7-4)
7th Place Match
Tony William (Sussex Central) 15-7, Sr. over Gabe Crenshaw (Smyrna) 14-14, So. (Dec 13-7)
132
1st Place Match
Tyler Dekraker (Chantilly) 5-0, Jr. over Gino Schinina (St Peter`s Prep) 28-13, Jr. (TF-1.5 2:16 (17-2))
3rd Place Match
Sean Garretson (Archbishop Spalding) 53-6, Sr. over Mason Comegys (McDonogh School) 5-2, Fr. (TF-1.5 4:06 (20-4))
5th Place Match
Adam Ayala (New Kent) 28-18, Jr. over Conner Walck (Cape Henry Collegiate) 41-18, Jr. (Dec 8-4)
7th Place Match
Christian Manley (Our Lady of Mt. Carmel) 13-3, Sr. over Donnie Smith (Smyrna) 23-20, Sr. (Fall 1:35)
138
1st Place Match
Caedyn Ricciardi (St Peter`s Prep) 28-1, Sr. over Trevor Copes (Caesar Rodney) 46-4, Sr. (TF-1.5 2:30 (17-1))
3rd Place Match
Zane Leitzel (Archbishop Spalding) 48-10, Jr. over Noah Cuic (New Kent) 41-10, Sr. (TF-1.5 4:02 (19-3))
5th Place Match
Beck Holtzman (Georgetown Day School) 9-3, Sr. over Joshua Hale (Loyola-Blakefield) 40-15, Jr. (M. For.)
7th Place Match
Zach Glory (Gilman School) 37-16, Sr. over Koen Fredricks (St. Paul VI Catholic) 20-15, Jr. (MD 12-1)
144
1st Place Match
Laudan Henry (St Peter`s Prep) 32-11, Jr. over Jameson Burns (Benedictine College Prep) 39-15, So. (TF-1.5 4:06 (15-0))
3rd Place Match
Rohan (RJ) Bucknor (Bullis School) 28-3, Sr. over Nicky Melfi (Severn School) 36-12, Sr. (Dec 4-1)
5th Place Match
Niko Colavecchio (St. Paul VI Catholic) 50-9, So. over Quinn Morrison (New Kent) 30-13, Jr. (Fall 3:54)
7th Place Match
Justin Craig (Sussex Central) 40-20, Sr. over Piero Papili (Delaware Military Academy) 44-19, Jr. (Fall 2:42)
150
1st Place Match
Evan Boblits (St. Mary`s Ryken) 53-6, Sr. over Joseph Ruiz (St Peter`s Prep) 30-12, Jr. (Dec 5-3)
3rd Place Match
Karl Ludwig (Frank W. Cox) 30-11, Jr. over Adonis Iparraguirre (Chantilly) 32-10, Sr. (Dec 11-4)
5th Place Match
Griffin Stewart (Calvert Hall College) 5-2, Sr. over Dylan Briles (Archbishop Spalding) 25-8, Sr. (Fall 0:56)
7th Place Match
Dominic Manna (McDonogh School) 25-19, So. over Soshiant Ahanj-Elias (Bullis School) 4-3, Fr. (Dec 4-0)
157
1st Place Match
Max Nevlin (St Peter`s Prep) 37-11, Sr. over John Jurkovic (Gilman School) 38-14, Sr. (Dec 10-5)
3rd Place Match
Noah Tucker (Bullis School) 45-8, So. over Aidan Kammar (Calvert Hall College) 6-2, Sr. (TF-1.5 4:21 (16-1))
5th Place Match
Kenneth King (Caesar Rodney) 23-23, Sr. over Liam Kilner (The Heights School) 27-10, Jr. (For.)
7th Place Match
Vicente Granada (Frank W. Cox) 26-19, So. over Mahir Ozdemeir (Chantilly) 4-3, Sr. (Fall 1:40)
165
1st Place Match
Josh Piparo (St Peter`s Prep) 22-6, So. over Craig Dixon (Caesar Rodney) 36-16, Sr. (Fall 0:55)
3rd Place Match
Arthur Konshak (Gilman School) 36-15, So. over Hayden Myers (St. Paul`s School) 4-1, Jr. (M. For.)
5th Place Match
Gunner Colbert (St. Paul VI Catholic) 5-2, Fr. over Josh Taylor (Archbishop Spalding) 23-19, Jr. (Dec 6-5)
7th Place Match
William Martin (Dematha Catholic) 21-9, Sr. over Jared Edeza (New Kent) 27-16, Jr. (Fall 0:31)
175
1st Place Match
Emmitt Sherlock (Gilman School) 48-5, Sr. over Salah Tsarni (Bullis School) 44-7, So. (Dec 1-0)
3rd Place Match
Bojan Sulc (Gonzaga College HS) 42-7, Jr. over Townsend Winans (Cape Henry Collegiate) 47-12, So. (TF-1.5 4:40 (17-1))
5th Place Match
Matt VanSice (Gonzaga College HS) 42-10, Sr. over Anthony Verdi (St Peter`s Prep) 34-16, Jr. (M. For.)
7th Place Match
Theo Darras (St. Paul VI Catholic) 36-16, Jr. over Christopher Tomer (James W. Robinson) 9-14, Jr. (Fall 0:47)
190
1st Place Match
Gabriel Smith (Gilman School) 34-13, Sr. over Rudy Wagner (Frank W. Cox) 35-5, Jr. (Dec 10-8)
3rd Place Match
George Tate (Good Counsel) 44-13, Jr. over Carmen Marano (St Peter`s Prep) 12-8, Jr. (Dec 2-0)
5th Place Match
Chase Wiles (New Kent) 29-18, Jr. over Teagan Gratkowski (Smyrna) 28-18, Jr. (Dec 5-4)
7th Place Match
Dennis Meza Velasquez (Chantilly) 28-17, Sr. over Jaxon Simons (James W. Robinson) 15-20, So. (Fall 3:55)
215
1st Place Match
Cash Colbert (St. Paul VI Catholic) 58-5, Jr. over Tiller Smith (Landon School) 40-9, Sr. (TF-1.5 2:46 (19-4))
3rd Place Match
Dionysus Alston (Caesar Rodney) 35-10, Sr. over Chinuo Nnamani (Saint John Paul the Great) 5-2, Sr. (Dec 1-0)
5th Place Match
Mason Schulenburg (Smyrna) 18-16, Sr. over Evan gavin (St. Mary`s Ryken) 4-3, Jr. (Fall 1:33)
7th Place Match
Stephan Mason (Bullis School) 22-12, So. over Talin Krashoc (Severn School) 21-11, Jr. (Dec 8-1)
285
1st Place Match
Luke Randazzo (Loyola-Blakefield) 34-5, Sr. over Cael DeNigris (Delaware Military Academy) 49-5, Sr. (MD 15-5)
3rd Place Match
Connor Reynolds (St Peter`s Prep) 25-16, Sr. over Juelz Peters (Alexandria City) 8-4, Sr. (Fall 2:12)
5th Place Match
Miles Sanderson (St. Paul VI Catholic) 27-6, Jr. over Sean Jewett (St. Mary`s Ryken) 4-3, Sr. (Fall 2:17)
7th Place Match
Maxwell Garland (Calvert Hall College) 4-2, Sr. over Bryton Brown (Good Counsel) 22-13, Jr. (Fall 0:44)
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