FORT WASHINGTON — West Chester Henderson was exactly where it wanted to be, down just four in the dual, but with 152-pounder Bobby English inches away from a pin that could set the Warriors up perfectly.
It seemed Garnet Valley was plenty comfortable in that position, backs against the wall, odds stacked heavily against it.
The Jaguars entered the tournament seeded No. 13, after all, and no one expected them to move past the first round, let alone contend for a spot in the PIAA Duals. But when senior Matt Flicker found a burst of energy to get off his back, flip English to his and eventually pin him, Cinderella staved off midnight once again.
Thanks to Flicker’s fall, Garnet knocked off No. 6 Henderson, 32-25, in the District 1-3A consolation semifinals, to clinch its first trip to states since 2014. The Jags dropped the consolation final to No. 2 Council Rock South, 67-12, but will be the fourth-seed from District 1 in the state tournament, while Henderson was eliminated.
“First of all, we get the 13 seed and all year people have been writing us off, for the most part,” Garnet coach Rocco Fantazzi said. “Maybe they should’ve, I don’t know, but we came in here and wanted to prove we can compete. We try year in and year out, and sometimes we do. We work hard, we have a very demanding schedule and we have a bunch of kids who believe in the program and believe in the system. They work hard and they’re doing this as a team and having fun doing it. That’s what it’s all about.”
Garnet Valley’s Matt Flicker pins West Chester Henderson’s Bobby English at 152 pounds. (Nate Heckenberger – For MediaNews Group)
The Warriors erased an early deficit with three straight wins by Killian Delaney (126), Sammy McMonagle (132) and Palmer Delaney (138). The only Jaguar in the pa-wrestling.com District 1 rankings is Griffin Hollingsworth (an honorable mention at 126), and he bumped up to 138, but couldn’t overtake his bigger foe.
Chris Wood gave Garnet a four-point lead with a major at 145, but that looked in jeopardy after English took an early lead.
“All the way up to 152, we were happy with where we were at,” Henderson coach Rob Beighley said. “We were ahead of the game. That 12-point swing, we couldn’t overcome.”
West Chester Henderson’s Bobby English was this close to a pin at 152 pounds, before Garnet Valley’s Matt Flicker flipped the script. (Nate Heckenberger – For MediaNews Group)
Flicker, who didn’t wrestle last season, but decided to come back out for his senior campaign, waited for the one small window of hope. And he did not miss.
“I felt him turn, originally, and I waited to feel his weight shift and then I threw him over,” Flicker said. “Once I turned him, I squeezed him as hard as I could.”
Garnet Valley assistants, Chris Tate, left, and John Conte celebrate after Matt Flicker’s pin at 152. (Nate Heckenberger – For MediaNews Group)
As a part of the 2017 team that lost in the consolation semis, Flicker came back with this opportunity on his mind.
“I was thinking I couldn’t give up,” Flicker added. “This was our shot to go to states and we hadn’t been there in a long time. This was my senior year and I wanted to make that happen.”
Henderson was seeking its first trip to states, and would’ve been the first from the West Chester school district to do so. Despite a pin by Koh Bauman (160) in the penultimate bout, the Warriors’ run ended just shy.
“It’s tough, but it’s a life lesson,” Beighley said. “That’s the first thing I told them, that some things don’t go your way. I thought we wrestled really well. I thought we wrestled our best match. Sometimes you have to go through things to get better on the other side. It’s disheartening. It was right there.”
West Chester Henderson’s bench watches in anticipation of a pin by Koh Bauman at 160 pounds. (Nate Heckenberger – For MediaNews Group)
The Jags are the lowest-seeded team to ever qualify for states from District 1.
Garnet will wrestle District 12 runner-up, Archbishop Ryan, at the Raiders’ gym, Monday night. If the Jaguars can win that PIAA pigtail, they will become the first Delaware County team to compete in the PIAA Duals, in Hershey, Thursday.
“This group of guys, to get to this level, I don’t think we have any guys ranked, but they’re doing it as a team,” Fantazzi said. “We’re having fun doing it and we’re gonna ride the wave until it crashes.”
Third-seeded Spring-Ford won the 3A team title with a 39-22 victory over No. 1 Quakertown.
West Chester Henderson’s Owen McCarthy tries to cradle Garnet Valley’s David Dorf in a 10-7 win at 220 pounds. (Nate Heckenberger – For MediaNews Group)
West Chester Henderson 32, Garnet Valley 25
182- Conlon (GV) dec. Artis, 3-2 (3-0)
195- McCarthy (WCH) dec. Dorf, 10-7 (3-3)
220- DiTrolio (GV) pinned Hampton, 1:57 (9-3)
285- Mahoney (GV) dec. Caruso, 3-0 (12-3)
106- Cortese (WCH) dec. Reagan, 5-0 (12-6)
113- Ricci (GV) maj. dec. Jackman, 11-2 (16-6)
120- Puliti (GV) dec. Wilson, 4-0 (19-6)
126- K. Delaney (WCH) maj. dec. Husain, 9-1 (19-10)
132- McMonagle (WCH) pinned Mesaros, :43 (19-16)
138- P. Delaney (WCH) dec. Hollingsworth, 2-0 (19-19)
145- Wood (GV) maj. dec. Tran, 9-1 (23-19)
152- Flicker (GV) pinned English, 2:15 (29-19)
160- Bauman (WCH) pinned Park, 3:53 (29-25)
170- Perry (GV) dec. Baldwin, 5-2 (32-25)
