Senior special
Frazier’s Erdely, West Greene’s Whyte capture 1st regional titles
ALTOONA — There weren’t any dramatic celebrations, but deep down in the pit of their stomachs, Frazier’s Jonah Erdely and West Greene’s Colin Whyte were doing cartwheels and handstands.
The senior duo won their first regional titles in tightly-contested battles on Saturday in the PIAA Class 2A Southwest Regional Individual Wrestling Championships at Altoona Area High School.
Erdely earned his title in the 152-pound weight class with a 2-1 decision over Elizabeth Forward’s Lucas Boyer in double overtime, while Whyte edged Bishop McCort’s Caleb Rodriguez, 1-0, at 285.
“It feels great to get a regional title, especially since I am a senior,” Erdely said. “I qualified for the state tournament my freshman and junior seasons, but I was hurt my sophomore year and didn’t get to compete in the postseason. I am looking to get on that podium in Hershey.”
Erdely and Boyer wrestled for the WPIAL championship a week prior, and due to their familiarity with each other, the bout didn’t feature any wild offensive outbursts. Erdely topped Boyer, 5-3, for his first district gold last Saturday at Chartiers Valley High School.
“We have only wrestled each other twice this year, but we have done some training together, so we are real familiar with each other, and it’s hard to get to each because we know what the other is going to do, but he is a great opponent, and it was a battle,” Erdely said.
Erdely earned a 2-1 victory in the ultimate tiebreaker over Bishop McCort’s Jackson Butler in the semifinals.
“When I look at my semifinals and finals matches, I would have liked to get more takedowns, but if I have to rely on my top and bottom wrestling, I am confident I can get it done there, too,” Erdely said.
Whyte won the rubber match against Rodriguez, as the two competed twice last season and split victories with Whyte earning a 2-1 decision in the blood round at Powerade and Rodriguez a 4-3 win in the consolation finals at the state tournament.
Whyte was the regional runner-up last year to eventual state champion Rowan Holmes of Somerset.
“It felt good to avenge my loss to Caleb (Rodriguez) and win my first regional title,” Whyte said.
Whyte, a senior and Kent State commit, improved his season record to 44-3. His career mark is 160-33.
In the finals, Rodriguez and Whyte had a scoreless first period before Whyte rode out Rodriguez in the second. Both were warned for stalling, but Whyte was able to avoid a second stall call by working his arm bar and not riding parallel.
Whyte escaped with 30 seconds remaining in the third, stayed in good position and held on for the decision.
“I just went back to wrestling and not focusing on riding parallel,” Whyte said. “I knew there was limited time left in the period, so I felt pretty good about it.”
Whyte, who is a three-time state qualifier, is eager to compete in his final state tournament next Thursday, Friday and Saturday at the Giant Center in Hershey.
He is aware of the challenges that will face him, but looks forward to leaving it all on the mat.
“First and foremost, my goal is to win a state title, but I will just attack every match the same way,” Whyte said.
Beth-Center senior Noah Layhue qualified for his first state tournament after finishing third at 215.
Layhue, who improved to 46-4 this season and 108-36 overall, pinned Laurel’s Kolton Carlson in 3:21 for the bronze medal in a rematch of last week’s WPIAL final, which Layhue won, 8-1. The California student who wrestles for the Bulldogs as part of a co-op, started competing at the varsity level as a sophomore.
Teammate Mason Wright (37-13/140-55) lost his round-of-16 bout, but won his next four bouts to qualify for his third straight state tournament.
Wright is also part of the Trojans’ co-op with Beth-Center, lost to Bishop McCort’s Owen McMullen in the consolation final to place fourth at 139.
Malachi Peak is the last of the California-Beth-Center co-op, and the senior placed fifth at 189 to earn his first trip to the state tournament. Peak, who has a season record of 40-6 and a career mark of 102-36, edged Quaker Valley’s Trey Dunlap, 4-2, in their bout for fifth place. Peak didn’t wrestle varsity until his sophomore season.
Jefferson-Morgan’s Alek Palko finished in third place at 160 to qualify for the state tournament, which is the first for the sophomore, who has a season record of 36-9 and a career mark of 56-18.
Teammate Brayden Hanning qualified for Hershey in a dramatic way with a fall in 1:54 at 107. Hanning trailed Bishop McCort’s Ethan Cotchen, 12-10, when he won the bout for seventh place. Hanning, a sophomore who is 24-8 this season and 60-22 overall, will be competing in his first state tournament.
Southmoreland’s Kaden Shannon pinned Central’s Blair Miller to win fifth place at 285. The senior improved to 32-9 this season and 81-44 overall.