BETHLEHEM >> Last year, Council Rock South’s Max Mendez was a participant in the Bethlehem Holiday Wrestling Classic.
But all he went home with were hurt feelings.
Speaking of 180-degree turnarounds, the Golden Hawks’ 106-pound sophomore went home Saturday night with the 106-pound crown after slipping past Quakertown’s Josh Stahl, 8-4 in the finals.
Mendez walked away as the only District One champion at the prestigious proceedings, although Pennridge’s Josh Stillings (160) and Paul O’Neill (182) went home with silver, as did the aforementioned Stahl.
But the star of the show was Mendez, who went from also-ran to gold medalist behind three takedowns.
“I had only wrestled (Stahl) before in the Quakertown practice room,” Mendez said. “I just cleared everything out of my head and focused on winning the match.”
Stahl actually took the lead in the match with an early-second-period reversal, but Mendez re-took the lead with a reversal of his own, then twice took down Stahl in the third period.
“I always look for an angle (to use as a takedown),” Mendez said. “I look for an opening and shoot in, and tonight I got the takedowns.”
With Matt Parker a no-show due to what was described as “resting his knee,” the title hopes for Pennridge fell to Stillings. But when he was beaten in overtime by nationally ranked Tyler Dow of Stoughton, Wisconsin, the surprising Paul O’Neill took the reins.
And while he came up short in his 182-pound finals match against Luke Funck of Northern Lebanon, O’Neill said he was happy with his performance.
“I came here to win it,” the Rams senior said. “I work hard in the room, but I really haven’t had a chance to show what I’ve got. Hopefully, this will change the way people see me.”
La Salle’s Vincenzo Pelusi came into the tournament as the top seed at heavyweight, but suffered a tough loss in overtime in the semifinals.
But the Explorers heavy guy rallied and came back strong to finish third, outlasting Brady Maxwell of Cocalico, 3-1.
“I was happy with the way I wrestled (Wednesday), but not today,” Pelusi said. “I’m disappointed, but I’m happy at the way I ended.
“You live and you learn.
“I think I can definitely win a state championship, but that’s still a long ways away. And I really don’t pay attention to rankings.”
Team Scores
Northampton 184.5; Easton 159; Stoughton (Wisc.) 156; Nazareth 142; Central Dauphin 139.5; Northern Lebanon 133, Liberty 130; Saucon Valley 128.5; Phillipsburg (N.J.) 127.5; 10. Stroudsburg 106.5; 11. Pennridge 102.5; Hazleton 100; Council Rock South 95; Blue Mountain 85; Pottsville 82.5; Tri-Valley 77; North Penn 76; Cocalico 72; Quakertown 70; Delaware Valley and La Salle 67.5; Warwick 66; Wilson-West Lawn 65.5; Northwestern Lehigh 58.5; Freedom 55; 26. Pen Argyl 54; Honesdale 38; Whitehall 37; Truman (36; Pleasant Valley 34; Northern Lehigh 32; Wyoming Valley West 27.
Championship Finals
106: Max Mendez (Council Rock South) dec. Josh Stahl (Quakertown) 8-4.
113: Cameron Enriquez (Stroudsburg) maj. dec. Nick Rosengrant (Saucon Valley) 11-3.
120: Chris Wright (Central Dauphin) dec. Luke Werner, L, 5-4.
126: Julian Chlebove (Northampton) dec. Jonathan Miers (Easton) 8-3.
132: KJ Fenstermacher (Northampton) dec. Andrew Wert (Central Dauphin) 4-2.
138: Jimmy Hoffman, Haz, p. Zach Trampe, CRS, 0:43
145: Sammy Sasso, (Nazareth) pinned Garrett Model (Stoughton) 2:27.
152: Brock Wilson, (Nazareth) maj. dec. Chase Anklam, (Pen Argyl), 9-0
160: Tyler Dow, (Stoughton) dec. Josh Stillings (Pennridge) 4-1 2 OT.
170: Cade Moisey, (Northampton), maj. dec. Trevor Dorn (Pleasant Valley) 9-1.
182: Luke Funck, (Northern Lebanon) dec. Paul O’Neill (Pennridge) 7-3.
195: Drew Horun (Phillipsburg) dec. Carson Kinney (Hazleton) 7-2
220: Robert Melise, (Phillipsburg) dec. Devin Fontanez (Saucon Valley) 3-2
285: Dan Scheib, (Tri-Valley), dec. Ryan Stewart (Warwick) 2-1.
