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NTL WRESTLING: TOWANDA FALLS TO MONTOURSVILLE IN MATCH-UP OF TWO OF THE TOP TEAMS IN DISTRICT IV (2024-12-18)

BY CHRIS MANNING
Northern Tier Sports Report
TOWANDA — In a match-up of two of the top teams in District IV Towanda dropped a tight one to Montoursville, 39-28, during non-league dual meet action Wednesday.

The Warriors edged the Knights in matches won, 7-6, and in bonus points, 18-10.

“That’s why we wrestle the kind of teams that we wrestle,” said Towanda coach Bill Sexton. “We know Montoursville has kind of ruled the roost in District IV for the last five, six years, and we’ve been wrestling them forever, and it’s always a good gage of where we’re at.”

Montoursville won four of the first five matches to take a 23-5 lead, but Towanda won three straight bouts after that to cut it to 23-18.

However, a major decision in favor of the Warriors at 160 got them back on track, and they added falls at 172 and 189 to secure the win.

“We have a saying, ‘all 13, all the time,’” explained Sexton. “Everybody’s got to do their job. Everybody’s got to do the best that they can, and build off that, and wait for the next guy to pick us up if we don’t get it done. We’re not all that experienced, we’re a little disadvantaged in some weights, and the guys that follow them have to pick them up. By the same token, we have some other guys that need to step up in situations where they’re getting beat, and where they are more competitive, and are more seasoned, and that’ll come.”

Montoursville’s Branden Eisenhour (107) opened the match with a fall over Towanda’s Mason Harbst in 1:28.

At 114 Coltyn Wagner followed with a technical fall over Knight Jayden Stranger, 16-0 in 4:32, while at 121 Warrior Aristotlis Bobotas won by fall over Towanda’s Curtis Maynard in 2:55 for a 17-0 lead.

Tanner Vanderpool (127) stopped the bleeding for the Knights with a 16-0 tech in 3:46, but Montoursville’s David Kennedy (133) came back with a fall over Bryghton Yale in 39 seconds.

The first match to go the distance was at 139 as Towanda’s Gage Evans held on for a 3-1 win over Montoursville’s Blaize Vogel.

Evans opened the first with a takedown to go up 3-0, while Vogel made it 3-1 with a second period escape. In the third Vogel tried to get in deep with a shot but Evans sprawled hard to defend his 2-point win.

Towanda’s Reese Sluyter (145) followed that up with a 9-0 major decision over Karter Stone.

Stone got in on a shot but Sluyter was able to turn the tables for the takedown, and 3-0 lead. In the second Stone tried to pull Sluyter back, but his grip broke, allowing Sluyter to get the reversal. A penally point on Stone made it 6-0 Sluyter.

It stayed that way until the final 30 seconds of the match when Sluyter got in on a single leg, then turned it into a takedown for the major decision win.

“Real big wins,” Sexton said. “They’re quality freshmen, they’ve been around. They’ve wrestled the youth circuit for a long time, and been very successful at it. They were very successful in junior high last year, and now they’re stepping out on the varsity stage. A big win for Gage, his opponent is a well seasoned guy, and it was a big win for Reese, too, to build that into a major decision for us at the time. That’s his first varsity match, first varsity win.”

At 152 Riley Vanderpool got a quick fall over Ryan Meredith in 1:27 to make it a 5-point match.

However, at 160 Montoursville’s Hayden Harvey earned a 14-3 win over Towanda’s Rylee Sluyter.

Harvey got the first period takedown to go up 3-0, then added four back points in the second for a 7-0 lead.

Coming out of the turn Sluyter was able to get the reversal to cut it to 7-2 going into the third.

Harvey opened with an escape, then got a takedown and back points to get the major.

Gage Wentzel (172) and Owen Kleinman (189) then got first period falls over Chase Geurin and Zach Lantz to secure the team victory.

Towanda ended on a high note as they got back to back tech falls from Sawyer Robinson (215) and Mason Higley (285) to end the match.

The Knights will head to Central Columbia on Friday, then travel to Windsor after Christmas for their Holiday Tournament.

“We’ve got to keep building, we’ve got to keep getting better,” Sexton said. “We don’t have any time to sit around and feel sorry for ourselves, nobody else is going to feel sorry for us. We’ve got to figure out what to do, and get better.”

MONTOURSVILLE 39, TOWANDA 28

107: Branden Eisenhour (M) fall Mason Harbst, 1:28

114: Coltyn Wagner (M) tech. Jayden Stranger, 16-0, 4:32

121: Aristotlis Bobotas (M) fall Curtis Maynard, 2:55

127: Tanner Vanderpool (T) tech. Brody Bower, 16-0, 3:46

133: David Kennedy (M) fall Bryghton Yale, :39

139: Gage Evans (T) dec. Blaize Vogel, 3-1

145: Reese Sluyter (T) maj. Karter Stone, 9-0

152: Riley Vanderpool (T) fall Ryan Meredith, 1:27

160: Hayden Harvey (M) maj. Rylee Sluyter, 14-3

172: Gage Wentzel (M) fall Chase Geurin, :27

189: Owen Kleinman (M) fall Zach Lantz, :49