D2 wrestling: WVC crowns five champs in 2A; 17 advance to regionals

By Tom Fox - For Times Leader | February 24th, 2018 8:00 pm - updated: 11:12 am.

WILKES-BARRE — He just escaped the grasp of Hanover Area’s JJ Hooper. Looking to the sky, Justin Joseph let out a primal scream that was probably heard all the way back in West Pittston.

Yes, the Wyoming Area senior fulfilled the promise he made to himself and his late grandmother.

Joseph was one of five champs from the Wyoming Valley Conference Saturday at the District 2 Class 2A tournament held at the Kingston Armory. Berwick’s Nick Yule and WA’s Corey Mruk defended their title, while Joseph, Hanover Area’s DJ Erickson and Lake-Lehman’s Kaleb Konigus earned their first district golds.

Honesdale won the team title with 225 points, while Lehman finished second with 186 points. Western Wayne (163), Scranton Prep (136.5) and Wyoming Area (123) rounded out the top 5.

“All I wanted when I started this sport as a freshman was to win districts once,” Joseph said. “I told my grandma who passed away that I wanted this so much, and she told me that I had it. I’m a nervous person, so I always thought it wasn’t going to happen. But she kept telling me that I was going to win. I guess I didn’t have to worry.”

Hooper and Joseph certainly weren’t strangers to each other. As a matter of fact, the duo had already squared off three times in 2017-2018 with Joseph winning all three bouts, each one closer than the last.

That’s why it came as no surprise each one could only garner an escape in regulation, sending the match to overtime. Again, it was knotted at 3-3 – forcing a 30-second ride-out spot.

Joseph chose down. Hooper tried to lock in a cradle to keep the Warrior pinned to the mat. And the WA senior slipped right out seven seconds into the ultimate tie-breaker.

“I’m really short and I sweat a lot,” Joseph said. “I’m always wrestling tall kids, and they always look for that cradle. As soon as they lock it in, I shrug it off. It’s worked so far, so I was hoping it would work one more time. It was go big or go home.”

And the first one to greet Joseph on the mat after his victory was Mruk, a sophomore who just won his second district gold.

Mruk, who kind of flew under the radar last season, put together a dominating tournament with two falls, one major decision and a solid, 7-2 victory over Scranton Prep’s Alec Buttner, who entered the finals match with a record of 18-1.

“I think this tournament was harder for me this year,” Mruk said. “Last year, a lot of people didn’t know who I was. I was just another freshman. But this year, there was a target on me. It was more pressure, but that’s OK. It’s nice that people knew who I was this year.”

Konigus was in a tight bout in his championship with Valley View sophomore John Shnipes. Each recorded an escape, but the difference turned out to be a penalty point award to Konigus because of an illegal hold by the Cougar as the Lehman senior won 2-1.

“That’s my wrestling style. I’m a hand fighter, and I’ll go all three periods and overtime. I feel confident that I can win because I’m in good shape,” Konigus said. “As long as you get the win, that’s all that matters. It doesn’t matter if it’s by one point or a pin.”

Two who didn’t surprise were Yule and Erickson.

Both regional qualifiers in 2016-2017, the duo put on stellar performances to punch their tickets to Williamsport.

Yule, who won 106 as a freshman, had no problems with the bump-up in weight to 113. The Berwick junior pinned Honesdale’s Pete West in the semifinals, and earned a rematch with Hanover Area’s Joe Rowley. Yule built a 3-1 lead, and allowed a late escape for the 3-2 victory.

“It’s pretty special to win a second one, for sure,” Yule said.

Erickson’s tournament was dominating.

The Hanover Area junior, after recording a second-period fall in the quarterfinals, continuing his pinning ways Saturday. After sticking Lehman’s Jake Trumbower in the semifinals, Erickson built a lead and locked up Blue Ridge’s Adam Roe for a fall in 3:40.

Erickson, a fourth-place regional finisher and state qualifier one season ago, needs one more victory for his 30th win of his junior campaign.

“I felt pretty good this weekend, but I know that I can make improvements,” Erickson said. “I wasn’t as aggressive as I normally am. I should have shot more. For me, the district title feels great, but it’s another step for me in the postseason. It provides me more momentum going into regionals.”

Lehman will send eight to Williamsport — Zach Stuart (120), Bob Long (126), Garrett Kolb (132), Hunter Burke (138), Jake Trumbower (145), Nick Zaboski (152), TJ Meehan (195) and Konigus (285).

Wyoming Area’s Jaryn Polit-Moran and Damon Barhight will round out the four Warriors at regionals, while Hanover sends three — Erickson, Hooper and Rowley. Meyers’ Jason Carver rounds out the WVC group heading to the Magic Dome.

Class 2A Wrestling: Hanover Area’s Erickson captures 1st district title

 BY ERIC SHULTZ / PUBLISHED: FEBRUARY 25, 2018

WILKES-BARRE — For roughly a decade, D.J. Erickson has trained within the Hanover Area wrestling program and looked up at the banners celebrating its history.

He added his name to the list of regional qualifiers a year ago, during a season that took him all the way to the state tournament. But the one place Erickson always wanted to wind up was on the Hawkeyes’ list of District 2 champions.

He nearly pulled it off last season, but fell in the district finals by a four-point decision. The year since turned out to be worth the wait.

Erickson breezed through his 145-pound bracket Friday and Saturday at the District 2 Class 2A championships, winning by pin in all three of his bouts at the Kingston Armory. His last fall, completed in 3:40 against Blue Ridge’s Adam Roe, sent Erickson back to the regional tournament with a gold medal around his neck.

“I’ve looked up to (our banner) since I was a kid,” Erickson said. “Now I’m going to be on it, so it feels good. … I’ve been looking at it for a while.”

Even with a trip to states highlighting his sophomore season, Erickson said his D2 finals loss had been on his mind since last season. He said he had a chip on his shoulder and made sure he stayed on the attack to pin his way to gold.

“I know that nobody can hang with me once I’m more aggressive, once I do what I want to do,” he said.

Joseph takes nail-biter

Wyoming Area’s Justin Joseph couldn’t get more than three points of separation between him and Hanover Area’s J.J. Hooper in his three victories last month.

So he certainly wasn’t expecting an easy 182-lb final with Hooper on Saturday. In the end, he had to sweat out a 4-3 decision that went to an ultimate tiebreaker.

Hooper matched Joseph’s reversal with a pair of escapes in the overtime periods that followed regulartion. Then, Joseph gambled in the final 30-second period when he let Hooper try to lock up the win — only to wiggle him off his back and escape for gold.

“That’s one of my things. I’m really short, and I sweat a lot. I’m always wrestling tall kids, and...they (think), ‘I’m going to cradle him.’” he said. “I bait a cradle, and as soon as he locks it in, I’ll just shrug him off. I’m like, it’s worked so far, maybe it might work one more time.”

A third trip to regionals was already clinched before Joseph’s final, but this is his first title in a pair of finals experiences. Joseph discussed during both days of the tournament how his late grandmother had been a fan of his wrestling career and served as motivation this weekend.

“It’s good to have. It pushes me through. … When I get nervous, I think about her and think about conversations and stuff and keep my mind off it,” Joseph said.

Joseph won’t be alone at the Northeast Regional in Williamsport. Four Warriors took third place or better to move on, including sophomore Corey Mruk, who defended his 160-pound champion.

Berwick sophomore Nick Yule repeated as D2 champ at 113, too.

Joseph, Warriors complete Day 1

BY ERIC SHULTZ, STAFF WRITER / PUBLISHED: FEBRUARY 24, 2018

WILKES-BARRE — Though he lost his grandmother several weeks ago, one of Wyoming Area wrestler Justin Joseph’s biggest fans wasn’t far from his mind once he stepped off the mat.

Joseph’s 18-3 tech fall in 4:55 sent the senior into the 182-pound semifinals at the District 2 Class 2A individual championships. The big win marked the end of Joseph’s first day of the tournament Friday, usually the time he’d get in touch with his grandmother, Joan Miller.

“After almost every match I’d go and talk to her, let her know how I did,” Joseph said.

Joseph is still wrestling for Miller, and he starts today in the semifinals, just two wins from his first District 2 championship. Joseph is one of five semifinalists for the fifth-place Warriors (52 points), along with Robin Wrobleski (138), defending champion Corey Mruk (160), Jaryn Polit-Moran (195) and Damon Barhight (285).

Honesdale leads the team race with 96 points, ahead of Lake-Lehman (79), Western Wayne (72) and Montrose (55).

Joseph, a two-time regional qualifier, and the rest of the remaining wrestlers in the districts are vying for three qualifying spots at each weight for next week’s regional tournament. He’s sure Miller would have been expecting big things by the end of the day.

“She always thought I was so good at wrestling. She never really knew anything about it, but she just thought I was good because I was her grandson,” he said. “I want to be out there, I want to be able to do good. Hopefully get a first and be able to go back and say I did that.”

“I have some people I’m thinking about, I want to win this for.”

If Joseph wins his semifinal with Montrose’s Bryan Ryan, he’ll be back in the D2 finals.

He settled for silver in 2017, but Joseph said this year is different because he’s picked up new moves from his coaching staff, he’s better conditioned and he’s dropped down to a more comfortable weight class.

A potential finals opponent could be Hanover Area’s J.J. Hooper, whom Joseph defeated three times last month. However, all three wins were in decisions settled by one to three points.

“He’s a really good wrestler. I’m pretty sure he’s been coming for me,” Joseph said. “It’s good to know that I have that respect, and I hope he knows I have that respect for him. … I’m looking forward to being able to wrestle him one more time.

Rematches possible

While Joseph has had the upperhand with Hooper, some of his teammates may get a chance at redemption on the road to gold.

Mruk — a sophomore and defending champion — could avenge a recent loss to Scranton Prep’s Alec Buttner, and Wrobleski could do the same with Lake-Lehman’s Hunter Burke in possible finals.

At heavyweight, Lake-Lehman’s Kaleb Konigus holds the lead in his head-to-head series with the Warriors’ Barhight. But Barhight won when it counted last year in the D2 semifinals, and he could see Konigus again in today’s finals.

Berwick 113-pound sophomore Nick Yule could also face Hanover Area’s Joe Rowley in a 2017 finals rematch.

DISTRICT 2 WRESTLING TOURNAMENT: BRACKETS RELEASED

by Eric Shultz | Feb 21, 2018

With the District 2 Individual Championships just days away, wrestlers and fans got their first look at this weekend’s Class 3A and Class 2A brackets on Wednesday.

The district finalized all 28 weight classes’ preliminary pairings. Matchups can still be shuffled around in the result of scratches, but this is still a solid look at what each weight has to offer when the tournament gets underway Friday and Saturday at the Kingston Armory.

In Class 3A, Tunkhannock and Scranton lead the way with three top seeds. Coughlin — the Wyoming Valley Conference tournament champion in January — earned two top seeds, as did Valley West. The rest of the top seeds went to Dallas, Delaware Valley, Hazleton Area and Wallenpaupack. Overall, the WVC owns nine of the top seeds in the field, while the Lackawanna League has five.

In Class 2A, top WVC Division 2 team Lake-Lehman (5-0) collected three top seeds, the same as Wyoming Area. Western Wayne and Scranton Prep earned two top seeds, while the remaining top spots went to Berwick, Blue Ridge, Hanover Area and Lackawanna Trail. Overall, the WVC also enters the weekend with an 8-to-6 edge over the LL in top seeds for this field, too.

Wrestling: Wyoming Area Gets Victory

 STAFF REPORT / PUBLISHED: FEBRUARY 16, 2018

At Wyoming Area, Alex Pierce (152 pounds), Jaryn Polit-Moran (170) and Damon Barhight (285) won by fall, Corey Mruk (160) added a tech fall and Wyoming Area defeated Mountain View, 59-9, in non-conference wrestling Thursday.

132: Cody Sherwood (MV) dec. Sydni Johnson, 7-5. 138: Robin Wrobleski (WA) won by forfeit. 45: Charlie Banashefski (WA) won by forfeit. 152: Alex Pierce (WA) pinned Christian Kuhar, 4:50. 160: Corey Mruk (WA) tech fall Izaak Cook, 21-3. 170: Jaryn Polit-Moran (WA) pinned Zeb Gregory, 1:53. 182:Justin Joseph (WA) won by forfeit. 195: No contest. 220: Aidan Dollak (WA) won by forfeit. 285: Damon Barhight (WA) pinned Tyler Zech, 2:47. 106: Luis Lopez (WA) won by forfeit. 113: Kyle Emsley (WA) won by forfeit. 120: Barry Spriggs (MV) pinned Adam Sigman, 1:23. 126: No contest.

District 2 Duals: Honesdale upsets Lake-Lehman in Class 2A semifinals

By Dave Rosengrant - For Times Leader | January 31st, 2018 11:25 pm

LEHMAN TWP. — Honesdale head coach Ryan Chulada admitted on Wednesday that before the season started, everyone in Class 2A picked Lake-Lehman as the team to beat.

Well, the Hornets went to Lake-Lehman and knocked off the team to beat in the semifinals of the District 2 Class 2A Duals Tournament.

Honesdale, the defending tournament champion and the No. 2 seed from the Lackawanna League, picked up six pins in the semis to roll to a 47-28 victory.

“I think coming into the year, I think (Western Wayne) coach (Dante) Terenzio will agree that I think everyone picked Lake-Lehman,” Chulada said. “They have some very, very talented freshmen coming up that are now on the varsity and have been punching out wins all season. And we’re certainly ecstatic to come out on the winning side of that because that could have gone very easily.”

Honesdale advances back to the finals where it will see Western Wayne in a rematch from last year’s final, and a rematch of a close dual won by the Wildcats last week on criteria. Lake-Lehman falls into the consolation bracket and will face Nanticoke 20:30 a.m. Saturday.

In the other Class 2A consolation match, Wyoming Area meets Scranton Prep. The Warriors lost to Honesdale, 44-27, in the quarterfinals before defeating Montrose, 39-38. Nanticoke lost to Scranton Prep in the 2A quarterfinals before defeating Berwick via criteria in the elimination round.

The Wyoming Valley Conference top-seeded Black Knights, who beat Montrose 50-24 in the quarters, couldn’t get any momentum going in the semis.

After getting a pin from 132-pounder Bob Long to start the dual, the Hornets answered with a fall of their own by Matt Davis at 138. After Lehman’s Hunter Burke won by decision at 145 giving the Black Knights a 9-6 lead, Honesdale reeled off two consecutive falls to go up 18-9.

Nick Zaboski pulled Lehman within 18-15 after a pin at 170, but again, the Hornets answered in a big way, winning by pin, tech fall, pin in the next three bouts to open up a 35-15 advantage.

Lehman closed out the dual with wins in three of the last five bouts, but it was too late.

“Lehman, I thought was gonna pack us in six weights,” Chulada said. “I think we only surrendered two pins and I couldn’t be happier with that.

“Jay (Konigus, Lehman coach) gambled a little bit bumping all his guys up and they gave up some weight to exploit some of our weakness. And it panned out a little bit at the end there because they won the last bout at 126.”

Wyoming Area pushed Honesdale to the limit in the quarters, and after Damon Barhight pinned Kenny Huber at heavyweight, the score was tied at 27-27 with three weights left, but Honesdale won the last three to advance.

The Warriors, who forfeited three matches against Honesdale and two versus Montrose, was victorious in six of 11 contested bouts against the Hornets and in five of nine contested matches against the Meteors.

“We were just looking for individual matchups to get our kids ready for the biggest tournament of the season, individual districts,” Warriors coach Jason Prokopchak said. “My kids had a great time. They wrestled free and they represented themselves very well, and the Wyoming Valley Conference as well.”

Wyoming Area fell to Scranton Prep earlier in the season, so the Warriors will be looking to avenge that setback. Winner of the consolation bouts will advance to the third-place dual at noon on Saturday at Pittston Area.

By Tom Robinson 

LEHMAN TWP. – Wyoming Area put together two impressive stretches of consecutive wins Wednesday night before falling on the road against preseason favorite and perennial power Lake-Lehman, 45-25, to open the Wyoming Valley Conference Division 2 wrestling schedule.

The match featured the only two WVC Division 2 teams with winning overall records.

Lake-Lehman took advantage of two forfeits and more bonus points to win on a night when both teams won six bouts on the mats.

“There’s a lot of history here at Lake-Lehman,” Wyoming Area coach Jason Prokopchak said. “To come in and get a lot of good matches for the fans and for our guys, that’s very important in their development.

“I have a very young team and we’re trying to bring these wrestlers along.”

Robin Wrobleski gave Wyoming Area a lead with an 8-3 win in the opening bout at 138.

Corey Mruk, Jaryn Polit-Moran and Justin Joseph kept alive hopes of an upset by winning consecutive decisions at 170, 182 and 195.

They combined to allow just two points in those wins.

Mruk and Polit-Moran each shut out their opponents.

Joseph won, 12-2, over T.J. Meehan, whom he had beaten, 7-2, just three days later.

“Justin wrestled Meehan in the conference tournament and they had a really tough match there,” Prokopchak said of Joseph, who has won six of his last seven to improve the team’s best record to 12-5. “Justin really picked it up a lot.

“He’s been working on his conditioning and we expect big things from him at the end of the season.”

Lake-Lehman took control of the match, 27-13, with wins at the two heaviest weight classes, but Wyoming Area got 12 more points on consecutive first-period pins by freshman Kyle Emsley and Adam Sigman at 106 and 113 before falling short.

With a win the next night, Wyoming Area finished the week with a 3-2 overall record. The Warriors went 7-11 last season.

“We’re coming from a team that had eight kids out last year to a program that doubled its numbers,” Prokopchak said. “To have a result like this – Lake-Lehman is the clear frontrunner right now in our District for Double-A and also for (WVC) Division 2 – I’m really proud of my team.”

Wyoming Area 54

Meyers 24

Wyoming Area won the first seven bouts Thursday at Meyers to open a 39-0 lead in the WVC Division 2 match.

Alex Pierce started the night with a pin at 160. Jaryn Polit-Moran (182) and Kyle Emsley (106) also had pins in the opening run, which included three forfeits.

After Meyers closed within, 39-24, Robin Wrobleski’s first-period pin at 138 clinched the win.

Tyler Martin followed with a 53-second pin at 145, then Charlie Banashefski closed out the night with a decision.

WVC Wrestling Team by Team Capsules

Division 1

Coughlin (3A)

Coach: Dave Parsnik, fourth season

Last Year: 3-3 Division 1, 9-9 overall

Key Losses: Frankie Castano, Taylor Chronowski, Dave Virgo, Nyheem Kenzakoski

Probable Lineup: 106: Nino Cinti, So.; 113: Darren Clarke, Fr., Tino Morrow, Jr.; 120: Jamie Pahler, So.; 126: Patrick Clarke, Sr.; 132: Jake Brown, Sr.; 138: Josh Brown, Sr.; 145: Joey Pahler, Sr.; 152: Tayshaun Qualls, Sr.; 160: Tanner Smith, Jr.; 170: Tyler Decinti, Sr., Joe Davis, Jr.; 182: Jake Cole, Sr.; 195: Connor Lee, So.; 220: Aaron Warnigiris, So.; 285: Corey Harrison, Sr.

Outlook: Parsnik has been waiting for this group to show the championship aspirations they showed as freshmen. Now seniors, there’s more optimism and more continuity, which could get the group back to that level.

Coach’s Comments: “The last two years there were too many kids bunched up. I think this year they see the potential for the team we could have. I think that’s set in and they’re ready. When they were freshmen, there was no need to bump anyone out the lineup and I believe we’re back to that. …I think we’re the team that can decide who can win the division. I don’t know if that’s going to be us but we have the ability to decide who will win it.”

Crestwood (3A)

Coach: Darren Testa, 15th season

Last Year: 2-4 Division 1, 10-10 overall

Key Losses: Justin Lukashewski

Probable Lineup: 106: Hunter Greenberg, So. 113: Greenberg or Trey Zebroski, Fr.; 120: Justin Sterling, So.; 126: Jordan Miale, So.; 132: Garrett Swank, So.; 138: Tyler Shaud, Jr.; Nick Toronzi, Sr.; 145: Liam Stone, Jr., Chris Kremski, 152: Saige George, Sr.; 160: Ron Grevera, Sr.; 170: Anthony Kovalchik, Sr.; 182: Ryan Black, Sr.; Mike Janoski, Sr.; 195: Jeff Schmude, Sr.; Jeremy Buzak, Fr.; 220: Shane O’Rourke, Sr.; 285: John O’Boyle, Sr.

Outlook: A young team last season was one or two swing matches away from being in the thick of the divisional race. With another year of experience and seven wrestlers returning who had at least 20 wins last season, the Comets will be in contention this season.

Coach’s Comments: “The way I look at our team is we should be in every match. I think we’re good enough to compete. The last few years we went in knowing with forfeits we couldn’t compete. Certainly our goal is that with the teams we’ve had in the past we haven’t been able to compete and I think team goal is to qualify for team duals and put ourselves in position to be in those placing rounds.”

Dallas (3A)

Coach: Mike Richards, 11th season

Last Year: 5-1 Division 1 (co-champion), 14-7 overall

Key Losses: Xavier Barber, Moustafa Almeky, Danny Burkhardt

Probable Lineup: 106: open; 113: Liam Farrell, Jr.; 120: Ben Yanchik, So.; 126: Eric Criner, So.; 132: Matt Moransky, So.; 138: Kade Kravits, Sr., Kyle McAndrew, Jr.; 145: Thaddeus Mead, Fr.; 152: Nick Solinsky, Jr., Brian Novicki, Jr.; 160: John Betzko, Jr.; 170: Steven Newell, Jr.; 182: Len Kelley, So.; 195: open; 220: Taylor Bolesta, So.; 285: Shawn Henninger, Jr.

Outlook: The Mountaineers claimed their first Division 1 title in school last season. They return a solid group from that squad. Repeating isn’t out of the question, but it all depends how the matchups fall with other teams in a very balanced division.

Coach’s Comments: “I think the expectation is that we’ll have the same results that we did last year. We lost three district placewinners, and some of those kids you can’t replace, but we have experience coming back and the expectation is that we’re going to be able to competitive in the conference.”

Hazleton Area (3A)

Coach: Keith Maurer, 18th season

Last Year: 5-1 Division 1 (co-champion, District 2 Class 3A duals champion, District 2 team champ), 11-5 overall

Key Losses: Jake Maurer, Anthony Martoccio, Chris Lasecki, Jimmy Hoffman, Carson Kinney

Probable Lineup: 106: Johnny Cora, Fr., 113: Beck Hutchison, Fr.; 120: Christian Kislin, Fr.; 126: Joelyn Spinal, Jr.; 132: Charles Everdale, So.; 138: Stephen Martisofski, Jr.; 145: Dante Matterella, Fr.; 152: Jeremy Aquino, Jr.; 160: Jayson Brielmeier, Jr.; 170: Jake Marnell, So.; 182: Seth Hunsinger, Fr.; 195: Shane Noonan, Jr.; 220: open; 285: Michael Fuchick, Jr.

Outlook: Last year was one of the best seasons for the Cougars in recent history claiming just about every championship they could. With that, they lost the core five wrestlers of the group that led the team back to the glory days. But there’s a good group returning led by Noonan, and sophomores Everdale and Marnell. It’s not out of the question that the Cougars’ five freshmen grow up faster than expected and lead the team to another division title this season.

Coach’s Comments: “It’s definitely going to be different, but I’m excited because I brought five freshmen up and obviously it’s too early to tell, but I think these five could resemble what the last five did. We’re excited to see what they bring. I’m not really putting any non-wrestler on the mat. They all have some kind of experience. After winning districts and going to states, I put the goal out there that I wanna go back. I don’t think it’s out of the question, but I believe at some point we’re gonna have to wrestle above our head to do that.”

Pittston Area (3A)

Coach: Dave Krantz, first year

Last Year: 0-6 Division 1, 1-15 overall

Key Losses: Jason DeBoard

Probable Lineup: 106: Brandon Lopez, Sr.; 113: open; 120: Anthony Thomas, Fr., Keith Romanchik, Fr., Nathan Ridgley, So.; 126: Crystal Smith, So.; 132: Ryan Lombardo, Sr.; 138: Tyler Santee, So.; 145: C.J. Demark, Fr.; Preston Olecki, Sr., Nick Ridgley, So.; 152: Justin Ambs, So.; 160: Richard Wallace, Sr.; 170: A.J. Gordo, So.; 182: open; 195: open; 220: Nathan Lombardo, Sr.; Huey Bentham, So.; 285: Jake Rutkowski, Sr.

Outlook: It might be another tough season for the Patriots. But they will be more competitive in dual meets without a doubt. The lineup has another year of experience under its belt so improving on last year’s numbers shouldn’t be much of a problem.

Coach’s Comments: “I’m not worried about wins or losses. I just want the kids to give 100 percent. As long as nobody quits and they give it all they can, wins and losses will take care of itself. If kids don’t quit out on the mat, that’s all I’m looking for. I want to see their efforts out there on the mat.”

Tunkhannock (3A)

Coach: Bob Hegedty, ninth season

Last Year: 5-1 Division 1 (co-champion), 9-9 overall

Key Losses: Josh Beeman, John Walsh

Probable Lineup: 106: Matt Rosentel, Fr.; 113: David Evans, So.; 120: Connor Elgin, Fr.; 126: David Gavek, Sr.; 132: Gavin D’Amato, So.; 138: Tommy Traver, Jr.; 145: Luke Carpenter, Fr.; 152: Brian Christ, Fr.; 160: Carl Anthony, Jr.; 170: Shane Sherwood, Jr.; 182: Connor Munley, Sr.; 195: Sam Rice, Sr.; 220: Tom Perry, Sr., Dustin Henry, Jr., Logan Hegedty, Jr.; 285: Harry Thrash, So.

Outlook: One of the division favorites, the Tigers will be looking for their fourth straight divisional title. Only graduating a few members from last year’s championship team, Tunkhannock is in position to accomplish a division title. But with competition up across the circuit, the goal will be much harder to achieve.

Coach’s Comments: “We’re gonna fill everything and we’re not gonna have the depth we had the last couple years. But we’re gonna be solid. We’re just looking to try to be ready for the end of the year and just keep rolling.”

Wyoming Valley West (3A)

Coach: Ryan Vassello, third season

Last Year: 1-5 Division 1, 5-15 overall

Key Losses: Mason Moravinski, Kevin Cordes

Probable Lineup: 106: Matt Giza, So.; 113: Cadden Kucek, So.; 120: J.J. White, So., Trent Giza, So.; 126: Justin Hargrave, Jr.; 132: David Krokowski, Jr.; 138: Robert Napersky, So.; Ethan Scott, So.; 145: Napersky or Scott; 152: Landon Stanislow, Sr.; 160: Jaylon Brunson, Jr.; 170: Dave White, Jr.; 182: Sean Mikovitch, Sr.; 195: Seth Decker, Jr.; 220: open; 285: Anthony Vattaro, Jr., Brandon Tirado, So.

Outlook: It’s a bit of a rebuilding year for the Spartans, but the program’s numbers are up from junior high through varsity, which shows promise for the future. The team still has standouts in J.J. White and Krokowski, who look primed for long postseason runs.

Coach’s Comments: “We’re gonna have a younger team but it’s a lot to build on for the future. A lot better than in the year’s past. So that’s a bonus. For the future, it’s gonna be an awesome building team.”

Division 2

Berwick (2A)

Coach: Ron Swingle, 15th season (first at Berwick)

Last Year: 2-3 Division 2, 5-12 overall

Key Losses: Travis Dent, Stone Force

Probable Lineup: 106: open; 113: Alexander Beck, Fr., Nick Yule, So.; 120: Beck or Yule; 126: Gage Bortz, So., Preston Robbins, So.; 132: open; 138: Mark McCracken, Jr., Mark Prebola, Jr.; 145: Maurice Smith, Jr., David Pace, So.; 152: Oscar Perla, Jr.; 160: Alec Talanca, Sr.; 170: Austin Dewald, Sr.; 182: Brandon Spezialetti, Fr.; 195: Fernel Guevara, Sr., J.J. Snyder, Jr., Devon Rodzon, Jr.; 220: open; 285: open

Outlook: The colors, name and location may have changed for Swingle, but the goals remain the same. He wants to build a winning program year in and year out. If everything flows perfectly for the Bulldogs this season, the winning attitude will start as soon as this year. The team is returning experienced wrestlers along with some newcomers to help the process. Nick Dawson, former wrestler and football player at Wilkes, is Swingle’s assistant.

Coach’s Comments: “My goals don’t change every year. I want to win every match I’m in. I want to be in duals. I think I’m realistic about where we land. We need to fill more weights. We need to build our work ethic and confidence. The goals never change but we’re approaching it that we control what we can. If we put our best effort out there and win we’ll be in duals. If we put our best effort out there and not fortunate to win, we’re gonna take it with a gain of salt figure out where our deficit is and work from there.”

Hanover Area (2A)

Coach: Mike Griffith, first year

Last Year: 3-2 Division 2 (District 2 Class 2A team champion), 10-7 overall

Key Losses: Josselin Meyer, Jeff Bennett, Zakee Nettles, Noah Rakowski

Probable Lineup: 106: Cael Davis, Fr.; 113: Joey Rowley, So.; 120: open; 126: open; 132: Jared Banesh, Jr.; 138: Jared Fuginiti, Sr., Nate Ayalla, Fr.; 145: D.J. Erickson, Jr.; 152: Hunter Thompson, So.; 160: open; 170: Mike Lenahan, Sr.; 182: Jeremy Andrewlavage, Sr.; 195: J.J. Hooper, Sr.; 220: Tom Mercadante, Sr.; 285: Derek Knorr, Fr.

Outlook: Griffith is familiar with the program, graduating in 2000 from then returning as an assistant. He coached many of these current wrestlers when he was an assistant. Repeating last season’s performance will be a tough task. But being competitive in the division and competing for the division title is a realistic opportunity.

Coach’s Comments: “I love the kids on the team. They have a great work ethic. Everyone’s buying into the program and hopefully it pays dividends on the mat. My expectations are that the kids achieve the goals that they set and if they do that, then it’ll be a pretty good season. … I just wanna thank my wife, Amanda, for the support and help me help these kids become successful. Without my wife I wouldn’t be able to coach.”

Lake-Lehman (2A)

Coach: J.J. Konigus, eighth season

Last Year: 4-1 Division 2, 6-7 overall

Key Losses: R.J. Driscoll, Bob Lipski, Jake Tomolonis, Jesse Tomolonis,

Probable Lineup: 106: Brendan Boston, So. or Gavin Ruger, Fr.; 113: Boston or Ruger; 120: Zack Stuart, Fr.; 126: Bobby Long or Josh Bonomo, Fr.; 132: Garrett Kolb, Sr. or Matt Sczyerk, 138: Jake Trumbower, Fr., Hunter Burke, Fr.; 145: Trumbower or Burke; 152: Chase Button, So; 160: Nick Zaboski, Fr.; 170: Jared Cummings, Jr.; 182: Tom Nalbone, Jr.; 195: T.J. Meehan, Jr.; 220: Mike Slivinski, Sr., Chuck Harry, Sr.; 285: Kaleb Konigus, Sr.

Outlook: Even though there’s six freshmen who will see a lot of time this season for the Black Knights, those wrestlers have plenty of experience and are ready to make the leap. With that jump, they give the team more depth and balance it has lacked in some years. The team is likely the division favorite, but anything can happen too.

Coach’s Comments: “We’re looking pretty good, hopefully we can stay healthy. From 120 to 160 we’re pretty jacked, and even from 120 to heavyweight we’re pretty solid.”

Meyers (2A)

Coach: Anthony Mercadante, seventh season

Last Year: 5-0 Division 2 (division champ), 12-10 overall

Key Losses: Brian Huertero, Anthony Kasper, Colin Pasone, Kevin Huertero, Jeremy Bergold, Jamell Ballard, Namir Murphy, Lucas Borum, Preston Perkins

Probable Lineup: 106: Brando Abreu, So.; 113: Jason Carver, So.; 120: Jose Sepulveda, So.; 126: open; 132: Caleb Burns, So.; 138: Josh Johnson, So.; 145: Emmanuel Guiterrez, So., Keyontay Suydam, Sr.; 152: Susu Burroughs, Sr., Jason Mulan, So; 160: Rafael Olmedo, So.; 170: Carl Johnson, Fr., Colin Browne, Sr., Greg Ambers, So.; 182: Michael Gavin, So., Malik Robinson, Fr.; 195: open; 220: open; 285: open

Outlook: This could be a transition season that Meyers hasn’t had in a long time. The team is young with just two seniors and a plethora of sophomores. If the learning curve moves along faster, the Mohawks will be in divisional contention.

Coach’s Comments: “I’m hoping that from where we were day one to where we end that the kids improve and they love the sport of wrestling. I hope by the end of the year we can be competitive as a team and have them grow as a wrestler, improve on their weaknesses and get stronger. I want them to grow, fall in love with the sport of wrestling, keep working at it. Keep grinding away and hopefully come districts, we can get some guys in the medal round at districts and to regionals and to states.”

Nanticoke (2A)

Coach: Harold Shotwell, fifth season

Last Year: 0-5 Division 2, 3-15 overall

Key Losses: Megan Kocher,

Probable Lineup: 106: Zach Capie, So.; 113: Joe Sauers, So.; 120: open; 126: George Brown, Jr.; 132: open; 138: Chris Maute, Sr.; 145: Austin Cheslaw, Jr; 152: Keeghan Kester, Jr.; 160: Adam Eckhart, So.; 170: Zack Pelton, So.; Isaiah Johnson, So.; Colin Kashatus, So.; 182: see 170; 195: Seth Pelton, So.; Hunter Welch, So.; 220: Shane Repasky, Jr.; 285: Sheik Ali, Jr.

Outlook: Shotwell is seeing things he hasn’t seen in his tenure as coach of the Trojans having a motivated bunch that wants to stop the losing. The Trojans haven’t won a match in the division since January, 2014 having dropped 16 straight duals dating back to then. This team is different, and with four double-digit winners returning, expectations have changed.

Coach’s Comments: “Once we get the allowances after the holidays, we’ll be close to filling a lineup, and that’s a big step for a program like us. We should be hopefully very competitive. The attitude in the room, and of the kids, this year is night and day from last year. The attitude is something we’ve been lacking the last few years. This year, they’re practicing harder and they’re working harder. They’re more of a team this year than just individuals. They’re working together as a whole where in previous years when unity wasn’t there. We’re hoping this is a nice stepping stone for the next two, three, four five years.”

Wyoming Area (2A)

Coach: Jason Prokopchak, second season

Last Year: 1-4 Division 2, 7-11 overall

Key Losses: Adam Buczynski

Probable Lineup: 106: Kyle Emsley, Fr., Luis Lopez, So.; 113: Adam Sigman, Fr.; 120: open; 126: open; 132: Sydni Johnson, Jr.; 138: Robin Wrobleski, Jr.; 145: Tyler Martin, Jr.; 152: Charlie Banashefski, So.; 160: Alex Pierce, So., Enzo Scotto-Diluzio, So., Tauhid Abdush-Shahid, So.; 170: Corey Mruk, So., Skylar Santacroce, Sr.; 182: Jaryn Polit-Moran, Jr.; 195: Justin Joseph, Sr.; 220: Aidan Dollak, So., Tierra Rhodes, Jr.; 285: Damon Barhight, Sr., James Gashi, Jr.

Outlook: With another year under the new regime of Prokopchak, the Warriors will be more experienced this season. They’re led by sophomore Corey Mruk, who won a district title last year and finished sixth at the regional tournament.

Coach’s Comments: “I look forward to continuing the journey with my group from last year. We only lost one senior from our small team. Our numbers are up, but we are extremely young. I will rely heavily on the more experienced returners to assist the coaching staff in helping these wrestlers jump levels. In the end, we will be looking forward to having some fun in the process and see it all come together at the end of the season.”

Wyoming Area returns six wrestlers who placed at the District 2 Class 2A Tournament last season, but just as importantly for the hopes of team success, the Warriors have expanded the number of wrestlers in the program.

“This being our second year at Wyoming Area, it takes a little bit to grow your numbers,” said Jason Prokopchak, a former Warriors wrestler who took over the program prior to the 2016-2017 season. “Last year, I got an awesome junior high staff together and our junior high numbers are up this year, as well.

“And now, the kids who got experience at the junior high level are coming up to the high school this year.”

The Warriors had just nine varsity wrestlers last season, meaning they went into each dual knowing they would be unable to fill at least five of 14 weight classes.

Even though five of those wrestlers posted winning records and another was at .500, it was not enough to consistently overcome the damage done by forfeits. The Warriors went just 1-4 in Division 2 of the Wyoming Valley Conference and finished 7-11 overall.

The strong individuals made Wyoming Area better suited for tournament competition and the team placed eighth of 15 at the District 2 tournament.

Corey Mruk came on strong in his freshman season, pulling out a pair of one-point decisions to win the 160-pound district title. After missing time early in the season, he finished 19-8.

“He has a great work ethic,” Prokopchak said. “ … Corey was hurt in the beginning of the season so it took him a little time to get into wrestling shape and to jump levels coming from the junior high ranks to the high school ranks.”

Current seniors Justin Joseph and Damon Barhight are back after joining Mruk as district finalists while wrestling at 195 and 285 pounds.

Joseph won 23 bouts last season, including 13 by pin, while Barhight won 22.

Charlie Banashefski, at 138, and Jaryn Polit-Moran, at 170, each finished sixth at districts last year. Polit-Moran is a junior and Banashefski a sophomore.

Banashefski went 17-17 last season.

Juniors Robin Wrobleski, who was 17-10 before missing the postseason with an injury, and Tyler Martin also return.

Alex Pierce, a sophomore who won a WVC junior high title last season, could help at 145 or 152 pounds.

Prokopchak is expecting 10 wrestlers to join the varsity from last year’s junior high team.

“Year Two, we’re looking at the same exact thing we talked about in Year One,” said Prokopchak, who led the team through its first official practices Friday. “That’s going from where we’re at now, growing exponentially as the season goes on and that’s being able to peak at districts, regionals and states.

“They did really well at that last year with the district tournament and many of them did really well at regionals.”

Mruk finished tied for fifth in the Northeast Regional. Barhight was eliminated in a one-point loss and Joseph in a three-pointer.

Prokopchak said about 90 percent of the team is made up of football players so it will take a little time to assess potential weight classes and how the lineup will fall together.

The Warriors open the season Dec. 9 at the Saucon Valley Tournament.