Playing Possum: Raiders’ Church wins state title
HERSHEY — Ray Brinzer had Gumby. Karl Shindledecker had the possum.
The mercurial Brinzer had his good-luck Gumby doll along for the ride as the North Allegheny wrestler won three state titles in the late 1980s.
Shindledecker has a stuffed possum that sits under the head coach’s chair for all of his bouts.
But Shindledecker didn’t count on Waynesburg Central having a good-luck charm of its own in a motivated Mac Church for the 120-pound final in the PIAA Class AAA Championships Saturday.
Church’s motivation didn’t come from any doll or stuffed animal. It came from a one-point loss in this tournament last season that cost him a chance for first place on the 103-pound dais.
“I’m glad I was the first (Waynesburg finalist),” he said. “I get to relax and watch the others.”
The crucial moment of the match came in overtime, the start of the ultimate tiebreaker. The match was tied 1-1 when Shindledecker did what most wrestlers wouldn’t try on this level.
He let Church up, falling behind 2-1.
But there was method behind Shindledecker’s madness and it had nothing to do with a stuffed possum.
Shindledecker felt it easier to take Church down rather then try to hold him down for the required 30 seconds to win. He could hold him only for a moment or two to start the second period.
“I wasn’t surprised at all,” said Church, who raised his season record to 28-2 and career mark to 75-8. “He did that last week (in the Super Regional final) when we wrestled. I guess he thinks he can’t ride me, which he can’t. He’s slick on his feet and hard to tie up with.”
Church was not about to let this opportunity escape him. He avoided all possum-inspired takedown moves and won the match 2-1 to become the 33rd Waynesburg state wrestling champion
In other bouts, only two points stopped Cole Homet from becoming the 34th.
Homet lost a 7-5 decision to Finn Solomon of Franklin Region in the 138-pound finals. Homet took a 4-3 lead with a dramatic four-point move on Solomon but just as quickly gave up a reversal and later a takedown to fall behind 6-4.
“He had a lot of reversals the last time,” said Waynesburg head coach Joe Throckmorton. “It all changes in the middle of matches when you get in the middle of things. Cole has done a great job and Finn is a good kid too.”
Homet, who finished a disappointing seventh last season after finishing fifth as a freshman, made the leap this season. Homet finished his junior season at 29-3 and now has a career mark of 118-27.
Waynesburg’s Rocco Welsh dropped a 3-1 decision to Alejandro Herrera-Rondon, who was named Outstanding Wrestling. Welsh trailed 3-0 in the third and managed one escape with five seconds remaining.
Welsh saw his season record fall to 24-4 and career mark sink to 65-13. It was the second straight time Welsh finished as a runner-up.