Flying high again: Falcons come out swinging in state quarterfinal win over CR South
ALTOONA — Bill Swink made some moves in his lineup, but with the way Connellsville was wrestling, he probably could have gone with the bouts straight up.
The Falcons had a 27-0 lead after four matches and went on to earn a 38-26 victory over Council Rock South in the quarterfinals of the PIAA Class 3A Team Wrestling Championships Friday night at Altoona Area School District’s Field House.
The final score made the dual meet appear closer than it was, as Swink decided not to send out his starters at 189, 215 and 285 pounds.
“The match was over, we had it won, so we decided to save them for tomorrow,” Swink said.
Connellsville (13-2) advances to the semifinals on Saturday against three-time defending champion Bethlehem Catholic (15-0). The action is scheduled to begin at 9:30 a.m., as the PIAA moved the times up due to the threat of inclement weather. The consolation semifinals will be at 11:30 a.m. and the final and consolation final is scheduled for 1:30 p.m.
“We will go back, the kids will get a shower, then we will have a talk and be ready to go tomorrow,” Swink said. “It really doesn’t matter with the change in time and such. The kids will adapt.”
Council Rock South (18-3) faces Council Rock North (14-6) in the consolation quarterfinals at 8 a.m.
Tommy Gretz gave the Falcons a 6-0 lead after recording a fall in 23 seconds at 107. Zachary Franks earned a 6-1 decision at 114 before Nolan Rice (121), Daniel Smith (127) and Jake Lilley (133) had three-straight pins for a 27-0 advantage.
“Tommy wrestled well the last two times after losing on Saturday in the WPIAL final, and Zach had a good match against a tough kid,” Swink said. “Daniel Smith got a big win.”
The Golden Hawks cut the deficit to 27-6 after winning by fall at 139.
Kai Vielma was bumped up to 145, and the move paid off, as he earned an 8-0 major decision over Patrick Woloshyn for a 31-6 lead.
“One of our goals was to get Kai on their 139-pounder, who they moved to 145, so we just moved everyone up,” Swink said.
Julian Ruggieri earned a 12-1 major decision at 152 for a 35-6 advantage before Evan Petrovich edged Ben Brillhart, 2-1, at 160. Ruggieri and Petrovich moved up from their normal weights.
Lonzy Vielma bumped up to 172, but dropped a 2-0 decision to Gavin Cole. The two met twice last year with Vielma winning both matches, but Cole had an 11-pound weight advantage on Friday.
“Evan and Lonzy wrestled good kids, and they were giving up some weight in those matches,” Swink said.
Council Rock South won the last three bouts.