BUCKTOWN >> Wrestling isn’t designed for lineup flexibility.
It’s inherently opposite really – you wrestle your weight and there’s no going down.
So Monday night, with their team season effectively on the line and a trip to Hershey in the balance, Owen J. Roberts basically said, ‘Hey, let’s shake it up.’
Must’ve been a chocolate shake considering all the Hershey’s chocolate bars being tossed around post-match.
While the Wildcats’ middleweights came out in an unusual order, there was nothing unusual about their performance as Owen J. Roberts ran up a 28-point lead on the way to a 40-28 victory over Cumberland Valley in a PIAA Class 3A Duals opening round match at Owen J. Roberts.
Owen J. Roberts’ Connor Quinn, top, closes on a pin of Cumberland Valley’s Ben Belga at 152 pounds during a PIAA Duals opening round match Monday. (Austin Hertzog – MediaNews Group)
The job wasn’t done until junior Josh Jackson and freshman Matthew Englehardt hit for back-to-back pins at 113 and 120, respectively, to stem the Eagles’ four-match run and send the District 1 third-place Wildcats to Hershey for the PIAA Duals, which begin Thursday at Giant Center.
“I’m pumped. It’s definitely crazy that we’re here, our senior year and it’s already halfway gone,” said senior captain Cole Meredith, who won 8-4 at 145 pounds. “I’m happy we had the opportunity to wrestle in our gym again.”
It’s Owen J. Roberts’ second trip in three years, their last trip when this year’s seniors were sophomores. That year also required a first-round home win (against Archbishop Wood).
Owen J. Roberts’ Ricky McCutchen, right, works against Cumberland Valley’s Matthew Barrick on the way to a major decision at 182 pounds during a PIAA Duals opening round match Monday. (Austin Hertzog – MediaNews Group)
Of their three captains – Dan Mancini, Cole Meredith and Ricky McCutchen – McCutchen was the least proven commodity back in 2017. Now, the senior is a fixture of OJR’s sweet spot, scoring a 16-5 major decision after bumping from 170 to 182 Monday.
“It takes patience. I wasn’t up to my potential freshman and sophomore year; I knew I could do better every single day,” said McCutchen, who is 28-10 this winter. “But practicing with Cole as a sophomore, Dan as my practice partner last year, Connor Quinn this year, they all push me to do the best I can every single time.”
McCutchen majors at 182 to give Owen J a 28-0 lead on Cumberland Valley pic.twitter.com/W4t8lUPioT
— Austin Hertzog (@AustinHertzog) February 5, 2019
Monday’s lineup shakeup allowed Austin Boaman into the lineup and the junior rewarded his team with a pin in 1:43 at 160 pounds. That pin followed the wins of Antonio Petrucelli (9-5 decision at 138), Meredith and Connor Quinn (pin at 152). Two-time PIAA qualifier Dan Mancini followed by bumping from 152 all the way to 170. Last year’s PIAA fourth-place finisher came through with ease, a :30 pin for a 24-0 lead that extended to 28-0 with McCutchen’s major.
Owen J. Roberts’ Austin Boaman, top, pins Cumberland Valley’s Keegan McCoy at 160 pounds during a PIAA Duals opening round match Monday. (Austin Hertzog – MediaNews Group)
“You’ve gotta do whatever is best for the team,” Mancini said. “I showed up a little bit under weight for 152, .4 over, so I went up and then just bumped up an extra weight. Austin Boaman is really good and we wanted to get him in the lineup.
“The heart of our lineup is right in the middle but we have a lot of really tough JV wrestlers that rarely get to wrestle because they’re behind so many tough wrestlers. But whenever we can stretch that out and get them in, that’s our best scenario.”
Cumberland Valley got itself into the match with four straight wins through Jacob Lucas (major at 195), Dontey Rogan (pin at 220), Connor Mundis (7-5 decision at 285) and Noah Groelly (pin at 106) to close with 28-19.
The home crowd got good news shortly thereafter with Jackson’s second-period pin at 113, then the match-clinching pin for freshman Englehardt, wrestling in place of David Forrest (illness), in 1:01 for a 40-19 lead.
Owen J. Roberts’ Josh Jackson, top, collects back points on Cumberland Valley’s David Wardle en route to a pin at 113 during a PIAA Duals opening round match Monday. (Austin Hertzog – MediaNews Group)
OJR is one of three Pioneer Athletic Conference teams making the trip, joining District 1 runner-up Spring-Ford and fourth-place Boyertown (a winner over Archbishop Ryan in a Monday first round match).
The Wildcats open with District 7 champion Kiski Area Thursday night.
