BY CHRIS MANNINGNorthern Tier Sports Report
TOWANDA — Towanda ended their dual match regular season much like they started it, with a convincing home win. Then it was Horseheads, but this time it was a 51-19 victory over Athens to clinch their second straight league championship Wednesday.
“We set a number of goals at the beginning of the year, and now we’re kind of ticking our way down through that list, and this was the first one that was achievable, and we got to it,” said Towanda coach Bill Sexton. “I thought we had a pretty dominant run this year through the league, and I think we finished it off with a real fine effort tonight against Athens. The score may not reflect it, but this was a pretty competitive match. There were no real giveaways out there, and the kind of match you need to wrestle at this point - the kind of match we need to wrestle, and hopefully the kind of match they think they need to wrestle.”
The match was tight early as the two teams were tied at six after three bouts, but Towanda went for 23 unanswered points after that to take a 29-6 lead.
Athens would cut it to 29-15 at one point, but Towanda finished off strong, winning the final four matches for the 51-15 final.
Sawyer Robinson (215), Gage Evans (133), and Riley Vanderpool (145) all had falls for the Knights with Mason Harbst (107), and Jayden Stranger (114), getting forfeits.
Mason Higley (285), Reese Sluyter (139), and Rylee Sluyter (152) finished with tech falls, but it was Jace Gunther (160), and Chase Geurin (172) setting the tone with two close decisions.
Gunther won 7-2 over Sean Peters to open the match, while Geurin scored a 15-12 sudden victory over Brendan Cooke.
“I thought the early part of the match was real good,” Sexton said. “It was good to see Jace Gunther back on the mat. Jace has been out a long time, he dealt with concussion syndrome early on, and then got himself back that, but couldn’t get in the line-up. You want your senior district place winner to be able to get himself back in the line-up, and hopefully get himself back in match shape, and ready to go here in the post season. Now we kind of got everybody straightened out in the weight classes where they need to be.
“I thought Geurin wrestled a real good match,” continued Sexton. “He got down early, came back with a strong effort on his feet, and ended up getting it tied up on him right at the end. Then getting the strong takedown to put it away in overtime.”
Connor Davidson (189) scored a fall for Athens, as Zaine Campbell (121) got a tech, and Lucas Persun (127) earned a 15-3 major decision.
The win came senior night for Towanda as they celebrated the class that put Black Knight wrestling back on the map. During their four seasons they’ve claimed two league championships, four Standing Stone trophies, and one North Section title with the individual postseason still looming.
“We got a real good effort out of all of our seniors, even in defeat,” said Sexton. “I though we got a real good effort out of Lantz. Mason and Sawyer just keep doing what Mason and Sawyer do. We got real strong performances out of Vanderpool, and out of Sluyter, just a real good, solid effort out of all of them. I thought we got a real good effort out of our freshmen. I thought Gage really pushed the pace there, and I thought Reese Sluyter really stepped up big, too.”
The match started at 160 as Gunther got the go ahead takedown with 20 seconds to go, though his opponent, Sean Peters, didn’t give up back points to keep it a 3-0 lead.
Gunther started the second with an escape, then added another takedown to go up 7-0. Two illegal holds on Gunther cut it to 7-2, but Peters couldn’t get any closer as the Knights went up 3-0.
The 172-pound match may be a candidate for match of the year.
Athens’ Brendan Cooke went up 5-0 early in the second but Geurin came back to cut it to 5-4. Cooke would extend his lead to 7-4, but a single leg takedown by Geurin with three seconds left made it 7-7 going into the third.
Geurin took the lead with an escape, then used a high crotch to go up 11-7. Cooke came back with a reversal, then cut Geurin to set up a tying takedown.
Cooke would get it with three seconds left in the bout, knotting things up at 12-all to set up sudden victory.
Geurin shot right off the whistle, and got inside on Cooke. The Wildcat held him off for a while, but Geurin eventually got the takedown for the win.
At 189 Davidson was able to fight off Zach Lantz’s headlocks as he went big, eventually pinning him in the third period to make it 6-6.
Robinson made quick work with his 26 second fall at 215.
At 285 Higley racked up seven takedowns on Athens’ Caleb Nason, four of them in the third period, to earn his 22-6 technical fall and push the lead to 17-6.
The back to back forfeits to Towanda at 107 and 114 put Athens on the brink.
Campbell, though, came out strong, taking a 9-2 lead after the first period over Towanda’s Curtis Maynard.
He added two more takedowns, and a set of back points in the second to get the 19-3 technical fall.
Persun would score five takedowns in his 15-3 win over Towanda’s Hagen Jones to make it a 14-point match.
Evans, though, ended the Athens run at 133. He opened with a takedown to go up 3-0 after the first period. He added another takedown in the second, then scored two sets of back points before getting the fall, securing the win for Towanda.
At 139 Reese Sluyter went up 3-0 with a takedown on Karson Sipley with two seconds left in the first. He got another takedown in the second, followed by a set of back points.
He did the same in the third as he cradled up Sipley for the 16-0 technical fall.
The match ended with 4-year stalwarts Vanderpool, and Rylee Sluyter. Last year against Canton these two needed to win to clinch the league title, but this time there was no such pressure.
It didn’t matter as Vanderpool went up 7-0 in the first on Athens’ Tryton Bennett before getting the fall in the second period.
Sluyter led 10-1 after the first period against Athens’ Hayden Mercer, then scored two more takedowns in the second.
He added another takedown in the third for the technical fall.
Towanda heads to Ultimate Warriors this weekend before hosting a District IV Duals match next Wednesday as they start to transition into their postseason.
“It’s nice to have one more match at home,” said Sexton. “That’s part of the goal, too. Hopefully we keep it going.”
TOWANDA 51, ATHENS 15
160: Jace Gunther (T) dec. Sean Peters, 7-2
172: Chase Geurin (T) SV Brendan Cooke, 15-12
189: Connor Davidson (A) fall Zach Lantz, 4:30
215: Sawyer Robinson (T) fall Judah Nason, :26
285: Mason Higley (T) tech. Caleb Nason, 22-6, 5:46
107: Mason Harbst (T) fft
114: Jayden Stranger (T) fft
121: Zaine Campbell (A) tech. Curtis Maynard, 19-3, 3:25
127: Lucas Persun (A) maj. Hagen Jones, 15-3
133: Gage Evans (T) fall Wyatt Clink, 3:51
139: Reese Sluyter (T) tech. Karson Sipley, 16-0, 6:00
145: Riley Vanderpool (T) fall Tryton Bennett, 2:34
152: Rylee Sluyter (T) tech. Hayden Mercer, 19-4, 4:17
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PHOTOS BY CHRIS MANNING
