Daily Local News’ All-Area wrestling teams and Coach of the Year
Wrestler of the Year — Dayton DelViscio, Jr., Malvern Prep, 113 pounds
First Team
106 — Keanu Manuel, Soph., Downingtown East
Claimed a sectional title before finishing fourth at regionals to make first trip to states. Finished 37-6.
113 — Sammy McMonagle, Soph., West Chester Henderson
Finished a win shy of a state medal, going 41-6. Was a regional runner-up and sectional champ.
120 — Killian Delaney, Jr., West Chester Henderson
Earned his second state medal, taking eighth with a 40-8 record. He won sectionals and took second at regionals.
126 — Corey Celenza, Sr., West Chester East
Returned to Hershey with third-place finish at regionals. Won a sectional title and went 37-8.
132 — Lukas Richie, Sr., Downingtown East
Earned his first regional title and made states for a third time, going 33-5. Was also a sectional champ.
138 — Dalton Harkins, Jr., Malvern Prep
Won his first prep state title and finished fourth at prep nationals while going 56-11.
145 — Nick Barnhart, Sr., Avon Grove
Finished third in the region for second straight year after winning sectional title. Went 37-6.
152 — Andrew Connolly, Fr., Malvern Prep
Stepped in for an injured Henry Hague and reached state finals, also finishing seventh at nationals. Went 46-12.
160 — Nick Feldman, Fr., Malvern Prep
Won an area-high 58 matches, taking third at prep states and fifth at prep nationals.
170 — Max Hale, Jr., Downingtown West
Won his second straight regional title, leading to a fifth-place medal at states. Won sectional title and went 42-4.
182 — Tyler Mousaw, Jr., Unionville
Took second at sectionals, third at regionals, but still claimed sixth-place medal at states with 39-9 record.
195 — Nick Florschutz, Sr., Malvern Prep
Bumped up in the postseason, resulting in a second-place at states and fourth at nationals. Went 53-13.
220 — Paul Pelham, Sr., Conestoga
Worked his way to states for first time after sectional crown and fourth-place finish at regionals. Went 34-6.
285 — Emmanuel Lawal, Jr., Church Farm
Became Church Farm’s first-ever state medalist with an eighth-place finish. Went 32-6, winning districts and reaching regional finals.
Second Team
106- Dom Findora, Fr., Downingtown West
113- Nate Lucier, Soph., Coatesville
120- Trent Kochersperger, Soph., Kennett
126- Josh Viarengo, Soph., West Chester Rustin
132- Jack Wehmeyer, Fr., Malvern Prep
138- Brandon Sheffield, Sr., Oxford
145- Caden Rogers, Fr., Malvern Prep
152- Alex Pratzner, Soph., West Chester Rustin
160- Sebastian Corrales, Sr., Church Farm
170- Andrew DiBernardo, Sr., West Chester East
182- Chase Mielnik, Jr., Downingtown West
195- Ethan Seeley, Sr., Great Valley
220- Pat Cusack, Jr., Downingtown West
285- Sam Blevins, Sr., Oxford
Honorable Mention
Noel Gilgeous, Sr. Church Farm; Morgan Lofland, Soph., Conestoga; Spencer Uggla, Jr., Downingtown East; Joe Shafer, Sr., Downingtown West; Collin Watson, Jr., Kennett; Kyle Mathues, Soph., Malvern Prep; James Toal, Fr., Malvern Prep; Owen Vietmeier, Soph., Malvern Prep; Henry Hague, Sr., Malvern Prep; Harry Stinger, Sr., Malvern Prep; Cannon Hershey, Fr., Oxford; Kevin Quin, Jr., Oxford; Cooper Johnson, Soph., Oxford; Landon Meredith, Soph., Oxford; Will Johnson, Sr., Oxford; Scott Gilman, Fr., Phelps School; Jacob Lehman, Sr., Unionville; Jamison Eadie, Jr., West Chester East; Billy Wilson, Fr., West Chester Henderson; Jimmy King, Soph., West Chester Rustin; Zack Jones, Sr., West Chester Rustin; Mohammad Mustafa, Sr., Westtown; J.P. Lisi, Sr., Westtown
Coach of the Year — Art Smith, Church Farm
It was a banner year for Church Farm wrestling, with three Griffins qualifying for the state tournament. Sebastian Corrales (160 pounds), Noel Gilgeous (195) and Emmanuel Lawal (285) had all reached states individually in prior years, but this past winter the trio made the trek together.
At the helm is longtime coach Art Smith, who reaped some rewards after years of pouring into kids who barely know the basics of the sport of wrestling when they show up on campus. For his efforts, he is the 2019 Daily Local News’ Coach of the Year for wrestling.
Lawal became the school’s first state medalist, placing eighth, while Corrales was a win away from joining him on the podium.
It takes a special demeanor and level of patience to mold teenagers with little to no experience into competent wrestlers. Year after year, a new batch of newbies arrive in the Church Farm wrestling room, and more times than not, they leave having learned a sport that demands discipline, determination and perseverance. That alone is worth the experience, but when the stars align and that talent is cultivated and matures into the group that Smith and his staff had this season.
Alongside of Smith are assistants Tom Johnstone, Ian Weigand and Luis Benitez-Palermo, who hope the run of four straight seasons with a state qualifier continue. Corrales and Gilgeous graduate, but Lawal will be back, and who knows who the next Griffin to make something out of nothing will be.
