Seeley sparks runaway win by Great Valley
ATGLEN — Down four points with 10 seconds left in the match, Great Valley freshman Ethan Seeley didn’t have to dip deep into his bag of tricks to find a miracle.
Seeley (170 pounds) reached back and converted a headlock for a four-point move as time expired and went on to score the winning takedown in sudden victory to edge Ryan Sharpless, 8-6.
The last-second comeback broke a tie and spurred the Patriots on to a 48-21 road victory against Octorara in the Ches-Mont League American Division opener, Wednesday.
Starting with Seeley, Great Valley (1-0 division, 4-1 overall) won the final five bouts to turn a highly-contested dual meet into a rout.
“I needed to get points for the team,” Seeley said. “I got lucky with the headlock and got the win, and that’s what’s important.”
Great Valley performed better in the clutch, winning all but one of the tight bouts. Trailing 2-1, freshman Jack Semar earned a pin at 132, Joe Campbell (195) won by fall after trailing 6-3 heading into the third period, and Eric Payne (182) worked a pin after leading by one heading into the second.
The Pats were without two of their top wrestlers, Nick Chawaga (170) and Nate Tang (182), but got the job done despite being forced to bump up weights throughout the lineup.
“We knew it was going to be close, and Chawaga and Tang being out put us at a disadvantage,” Great Valley coach Mike Semar said. “We’re pretty young and only have five guys from last year’s lineup, so that’s a lot of holes to fill. We won a lot of the close matches and that obviously helps, and we had a lot of guys giving up a lot of weight. That’s what you have to do.”
Octorara (0-1, 3-3) jumped out to a quick lead thanks to a 65-second pin by freshman Seth Hoopes (113). Jared Zupito (120) got Great Valley on the board with a 6-5 win over Liam Babauta, and Luke Wilson (126) and Mike Colon (138) notched pins to give the Pats a 21-6 lead.
But the Braves roared back, starting with a fall by Noah Hoopes (145), who is 6-0 after winning five bouts in each of the past two seasons. Caden Dalton (152) managed a 3-0 decision, and Scott Burridge (160) tied it at 21 with a first-period pin.
“I’m pleased overall and we’re getting better,” Octorara coach Mark Durante said. “The close matches we have to win. Those are the growing pains, and we addressed the things we need to work on. If we want to be happy with our performance, it all comes down to the work in the practice room.”
Burridge’s pin was the last win by the Braves, but the junior is now 6-0 with six falls after coming up a win short of reaching regionals last winter.
“Scott is a hard-working kid and there’s nothing flashy about him, but the kid works,” Durante said. “He doesn’t complain and he does what he’s asked and he’s become a leader.”
Great Valley 48, Octorara 21
113- S. Hoopes (OCT) pinned Kahan, 1:05 (0-6)
120- Zupito (GV) dec. Babauta, 6-5 (3-6)
126- Wilson (GV) pinned Sellers, 4:00 (9-6)
132- Semar (GV) pinned T. Sharpless, 1:30 (15-6)
138- Colon (GV) pinned George, :22 (21-6)
145- N. Hoopes (OCT) pinned McGoldrick, 1:55 (21-12)
152- Dalton (OCT) dec. Hilditch, 3-0 (21-15)
160- Burridge (OCT) pinned Neale, 1:28 (21-21)
170- Seeley (GV) dec. R. Sharpless, 8-6 SV (24-21)
182- Payne (GV) pinned Jackson, 3:33 (30-21)
195- Campbell (GV) pinned Allison, 4:29 (36-21)
220- Driscoll (GV) pinned Unitis, 1:47 (42-21)
285- Cavanaugh (GV) won by forfeit (48-21)
106- no match (48-21)
