NTL WRESTLING: TOWANDA'S VANDERPOOL, SULLIVAN'S WADE HIGHLIGHT NORTH SECTION TOURNAMENT (2025-02-16)
BY CHRIS MANNINGNorthern Tier Sports ReportWELLSBORO — Another North Section Tournament is in the books, and this chapter was written using plenty of black and orange. Towanda had nine finalists, with six champions, but everybody had something to cheer.
Towanda’s Riley Vanderpool, and Sullivan County’s Colton Wade both joined the 4-time North Section Champions club, first time hosts this century Wellsboro got to cheer on a title winner, while Troy and Sayre had their first sectional champions this decade.
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Williamson freshman Zander Wilson started his North Section career with a title, scoring an 8-2 win over NEB’s Mason Alexander.
Wilson got one takedown in each of the first two periods off leg attacks, then scored a reversal in the third, finishing on top for the win.
“I wanted to score all the points,” Wilson said about the match.
He’s hoping to keep things rolling as he heads into districts.
“I’m going to focus on head position, keep moving, standing position - things like that,” he said.
NPL’s Bodhi Nickerson won 11-1 over Canton’s Levi Vermilya in the third place match.
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NP-Liberty’s Bryce Pequignot controlled Sullivan County’s Andrew Kapec for a 10-0 major decision to get the North Section title.
Pequignot worked Kapec’s right side for two of his three takedowns. Scoring one in the first, then another in the second after getting an escape.
“It’s kind of how I like to wrestle, and he was kind of giving me an opening to attack that side,” Pequignot said.
He added a third takedown in the final period to get the major decision. Now he’ll focus on a tough bracket at districts.
“I’m going to focus on keep getting better in every position, and just keep doing what I do,” Pequignot said.
Canton’s Levi Vermilya pulled out a 5-1 win over Wyalusing’s Isaiah Harvey in the third place match.
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Towanda’s Curtis Maynard came out like a shot, scoring seven points right off the bat in his 19-2 tech fall over Williamson’s Hunter Simonds to claim his first North Section title.
“It feels pretty good,” Maynard said. “I’ve been working hard this season to get here, and I’m just hoping I can do better.”
He got a takedown and back points to go up 7-0, then scored another takedown after Simonds got an escape to take a 10-2 lead after the first period.
Maynard used a single leg attack to get a takedown in the second for an 11-point lead, then got the reversal and back points in the third to close out the match.
“I want to focus on my conditioning, more shots, and work on my bottom,” said Maynard.
Wyalusing’s Bostyn McMicken pinned NPL’s Charles Aumick in 43 seconds to take third.
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Sullivan County’s Colton Wade is no stranger to dominant performances in the North Section Tournament, and he finished off his career with one, as he got an 18-0 tech fall win over NPL’s Brayden Pequignot in 5:26.
“It feels pretty good,” Wade said. “It just makes you wonder how it went by so fast. It feels like I just won my first sectional title last year.”
He opened up with a takedown in the first to go up 3-0. Wade would add another takedown in the second, then ran the bar for back points to go up 10-0.
In the third he added an escape, a takedown, and back points to get the win.
“I just wanted to go out, and have fun,” said Wade. “Keep moving on, and we’re off to districts now.”
Towanda’s Tanner Vanderpool got a 14-5 major decision over Williamson’s Noah Robinson in the third place match.
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Towanda’s Gage Evans started a potential 4-year North Section Tournament champion career with a big 22-3 tech fall win over Sullivan County’s Wyatt Bagley in 2:58.
“It feels good as a freshman, coming down here, and doing the best I can, even coming off an injury,” said Evans.
Evans scored three takedowns in the first period to take a 9-2 lead, then added a takedown and back points in the second to go up 15-2.
He finished things off with a takedown and back points before the end of the second period.
“The more I got, the more I felt good about what I was doing,” Evans said about his scoring. “How I can actually wrestle the whole thing.”
Troy’s Keegan Kerr pinned Wellsboro’s Mason Nowak in 2:33 to take third.
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It was a little more exciting of a win for fellow Black Knight freshman Reese Sluyter, who rallied to beat Wyalusing’s Cole Patrick 8-4.
“It feels great,” Sluyter said about earning the title. “I’ve been wanting to do this for a very long time.”
Patrick got up early with a takedown, while Sluyter got an escape for a 3-1 score after one.
In the second Sluyter got the reversal with 15 seconds left to knot things up at 3-3.
Patrick opened the third with an escape to back up 4-3. It looked like he might hold on for the one point win until Sluyter got the last second takedown, plus a a couple back points, for the 8-4 win.
Sluyter couldn’t break into the Towanda line-up earlier in the year, and now he’s a sectional champ.
“I didn’t think I was going to be here at the beginning of the season but I’m here, so I’m happy,” he said.
Canton’s Tommy Preston won 6-0 over Sullivan County’s Keegan Bagley in the third place match.
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Towanda’s Riley Vanderpool finished off his career at the North Section in style, earning his 150th win to start the tournament, and getting his 100th fall to end it.
He also became just the second 4-time North Section champion from Towanda in his fall over Canton’s Carson Rockwell in 2:39.
“One of my cousins (Caleb Vanderpool) is the other four time champion from Towanda,” explained Vanderpool. “I also looked up at how he wrestled. I might not wrestle like him, but I’ve always wanted to be the same as him.”
Vanderpool went to work quickly, getting a takedown and back points in the first. He worked for the fall but Rockwell fought him off.
In the second he got a takedown again, and this time finished it off.
Now he’ll set his sites on districts.
“I’m going to focus on just working hard in the room, and getting better at everything I can,” said Vanderpool.
Wyalusing’s Jonathan Earle pinned NEB’s Russell Martin in 2:32 in the third place match.
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Wyalusing’s Ayden Hunsinger pulled out a 5-3 win over Towanda’s Rylee Sluyter to win his second straight North Section title.
“It feels good finally getting back at it, and on the track for states,” Hunsinger said.
It was a rematch from when they were freshmen, with Sluyter pulling out the win then.
Hunsinger got the first takedown, going up 3-0 in the first. He added an escape in the second for a 4-0 lead, but Sluyter was able to defend off a pair of shots later in the period.
In the third Sluyter went on the offensive, getting a takedown. He let Hunsinger up as he worked for the winning takedown, but Hunsinger fought him off.
“It’s a little frustrating because we know what each other can do,” Hunsinger said about facing off with Sluyter. “He was pretty heavy on his outside foot there, but at the same time I was more worried about a head lock, too. I was just thinking I had to push the pace, keeping going at him, the score doesn’t matter, but as you can see I didn’t do that so well. I’ve just got to keep working on it.”
NPL’s Riley Oakes won a 19-3 tech fall over Sullivan County’s Layne Price in 3:40.
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Few made bigger strides than Troy’s Carter Austin this season, as he went from never reaching the North Section podium to winning it with his 13-4 win over NEB’s Kale Howland.
“It’s my first time being sectional champion, my first time getting out of sectionals, so it feels pretty good,” Austin said. “I just wanted to come to compete and move on.”
Austin scored two first period takedowns to go up 6-1, then added an escape and a takedown for a 10-1 lead in the second.
Howland made it 10-2 with an escape, but in the third Austin extended his lead with a fourth takedown to secure the win.
“It kind of made me feel a little bit at ease,” he said about getting that first takedown. “It felt good having the lead going into the second.”
Towanda’s Jace Gunther pulled out a 4-1 win over Wellsboro’s Silas Mickey in the consolation final.
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Sayre’s lone wrestler went undefeated on Saturday as Jordan Brown (172) became the team’s first sectional champion since Nate Nordin in 2016 with his 7-2 win over Towanda’s Chase Geurin.
“This is a really big step forward,” Brown said about as they try to rebuild the program at Sayre. “I’ve been trying to get the guys in the United room get a lot better, and I’ve been trying to get other people in there. I think this will be (a recruiting tool).”
After a scoreless first Brown got a takedown as he sprawled on a Geurin shot, then spun around for the 3-0 lead.
After getting an escape in the third he did the same in the second for his 7-1 lead. Geurin got out to cut the deficit to five points, then held off Geurin’s attacks the rest of the way.
“I didn’t want to give away any takedowns,” Brown said. “I wanted to try and work the mat, work the center.”
Troy’s Rylan Breidt pinned Wellsboro’s Evan Ingerick in the third place match.
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Wellsboro’s Ryder Bowen gave his home fans something to cheer for with his 10-3 win over Towanda’s Zach Lantz to claim North Section title.
“It’s been a longtime coming for me,” Bowen said about the title. “It feels amazing (in this gym). It’s the first time in a long time it’s been in this gym, and I don’t think it’s leaving.”
It was a scoreless first with Lantz going up 1-0 with an escape in the second. Bowen used a single leg to get a takedown with 20 seconds left in the second period for a 3-1 lead.
“I felt the energy of the match just turn in my favor, and it felt great,” Bowen said about getting that takedown.
He added two more takedowns in the third to open things up.
“My boy Timmy (Freeman) lost by two (to Lantz), and I said I wasn’t going to do that again,” explained Bowen. “I went out there, and I didn’t let him throw me.”
Canton’s Leland Pepper got a 5-0 win over Freeman in the third place match.
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Towanda’s Sawyer Robinson found himself in a strange spot to start his title match, down 3-0. He would score nine straight en route to a pin in 2:21 over Williamson’s Ben Freeman to get the sectional title.
“I’ve got to warm up better,” Robinson said. “I wasn’t really ready for the match.”
Freeman got an early takedown, but Robinson came back with a reversal, then scored back points for an 8-3 lead.
After getting an escape in the second Robinson worked for the fall.
“I just used my strength and my leverage to my advantage to do my best,” remarked Robinson.
Come districts he’ll be in the same bracket as the top ranked kid in the state, Muncy’s Austin Johnson. He lost to him at Ultimate Warrior, but use that experience as he strategizes for this weekend.
“I’ve got to focus better on my stance,” he said. “I’m getting lazy a little bit.”
NPL’s Braden Route won 8-5 over Wyalusing’s Dan Fox in the third place bout.
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Towanda’s Mason Higley used a dominant first period to beat Williamson’s Luke Sottolano 11-0 for the heavyweight title.
Higley scored 10 points in the first, using a takedown straight to Sottolano’s back for a 6-0 lead, then got a trap arm tilt to go up 10-0.
However, Sottolano kept it scoreless in the second, and Higley only managed an escape point in the third for the major decision.
“It was nice scoring right off the bat, but I’m not going to lie, I wasn’t happy with it,” Higley said. “I didn’t score as many points as I would have liked, I’m honestly kind of disappointed with how I wrestled.”
He’s hoping to do better at districts next weekend.
“Just having some courage and going after it,” said Higley. “Not being afraid to shoot, not being afraid to get to my offense, and to my attacks, and stop worrying.”
Troy’s Reed Palmer won 4-2 over Wellsboro’s Hayden Stevens in the third place match.
TEAM SCORES
Towanda - 236.5
Wyalusing - 140
Williamson - 132
North Penn-Liberty - 114
Sullivan County - 100.5
Troy - 95
NEB - 85.5
Canton - 82.5
Wellsboro - 81
Sayre - 26
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PHOTOS BY CHRIS MANNING
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