GRATERFORD >> Transitions.
Perkiomen Valley and Methacton both have faced these scenarios this winter. The neighboring Pioneer Athletic Conference rivals have new head coaches running their programs, and at this early stage of the 2021 season, they’re experiencing different levels of success.
PV, which has Dave Thomas moving up to his current post from the district’s middle-school level, hosted Saturday’s neighborhood scuffle with a Methacton squad in its first season under the direction of former longtime Norristown boss Mark Harner. The Vikings continued their roll by posting a 42-22 win over the Warriors.
A 5-1 advantage in pins was key to Perk Valley (3-1 overall) evening its PAC Liberty Division record at 1-1. Methacton (2-3) got two within five (18-13) of its hosts near the midway point of the day’s card before a three-bout sweep between 145 and 160 got the Vikes a more-comfortable 20-point edge prior to a split of the four heavyweight classes.
“We’re on par with where we’re working at,” Thomas said. “Other than numbers. We had two kids leave, and our heavyweight’s parents are dealing with COVID.”
PHOTO GALLERY: Perkiomen Valley-Methacton Wrestling 1.30.20
Methacton’s Grant Baker, top, attempts to pin Perkiomen Valley’s Jimmy Wallace. (Owen McCue – MediaNews Group)
The eight weights PV won included a pair of 7-3 decisions by Carson Pascoe at 160 and Nate Gey at 189. In the five weights Methacton won, two of them were decided by two points.
“Anything we do seems to work okay for us kids,” Kelly Kakos, who recorded the fastest of PV’s pins, said. “We’re sticking with the things we’re doing.”
Kakos needed just 2:31 to get the slap at 132, that after opening a 9-2 lead in the first period. The sophomore, a District 1-AAA North champ as a freshman, upped his season record to 3-0 with the win.
“Everything is good,” he said. “We’re working on not giving up bonus points, which has killed us. For me, it’s been having a stronger mentality and bigger gas tank.”
Perkiomen Valley’s Gavin Pascoe, top, attempts to pin Methacton’s Shane McQuad in Saturday’s match at PV. (Owen McCue – MediaNews Group)
The Vikes’ other falls came from Pat Lamirande at 119 (3:56), Gavin Pascoe at 145 (4:31), Luke Ricci at 152 (3:36) and Grant Euker at 215 (3:22). Their match clincher was Gey’s decision of Colin O’Neil, giving them a 36-16 lead with two weights left to contest.
“On our feet,” Thomas noted, “we’re working on setups and outside shots. On top, it’s bar arms and cradles; on bottom, it’s standups.”
Grant Baker scored Methacton’s lone, and the match’s fastest, pin at 138. He needed just 29 seconds to get the slap in an inspired reversal of fortunes from his sophomore season.
“He was 2-13 last year, and now he’s 5-0,” Harner said. “It’s a good turnaround effort by him.”
Joshua Retzlaff got the Warriors a brief opening lead with a 4-2 decision of Joey Capaldo at 106. Joey Simko added a major decision at 126, the freshman racking up a 9-0 score, while Matthew Blakemore edged Hunter Sprecher at 172, 5-3.
“We’re doing good in attendance and effort,” Harner added. “These are tough times to be coaching, but I’m happy. We have a tight-knit team that’s thrilled to go to practice.”
Perkiomen Valley’s Grant Euker grabs Methacton’s Joshua Cancro in a meet Saturday at PV. (Owen McCue – MediaNews Group)
Kakos, whose current 3-0 record has been forged by a pair of pins and a technical fall, is shooting for a more-productive post-season after a 2-2 showing in last year’s South East AAA Regional.
“My goal is to place at states,” he said. “We have to see how the super-regional goes. If a couple kids make it, we can make things happen.”
NOTES >> The teams had a 1-1 split in forfeits: Luke Hanlon at 112 for PV, Damian Moser at 285 for Methacton. … Thomas on his team’s post-season outlook: “We have to get to sectionals first. There are 29 teams in (District 1-AA) North, but only 12 kids go on. Considering the COVID and a shortened season, compressing five months of work into two.”
Perkiomen Valley 42
Methacton 22
106- Joshua Retzlaff (Me) dec. Joey Capaldo, 4-2 (0-3)
113- Luke Hanlon (PV) won by forfeit (6-3)
120- Pat Lamirande (PV) pinned Evan Pelligrino, 3:56 (12-3)
126- Joey Simko (Me) dec. Aidan Stratton, 9-0 (12-7)
132- Kelly Kakos (PV) pinned Matt D’Orsogna, 2:31 (18-7)
138- Grant Baker (Me) pinned Jimmy Wallace, :29 (18-13)
145- Gavin Pascoe (PV) pinned Shane McQuaid, 4:31 (24-13)
152- Luke Ricci (PV) pinned Levi Borkowski, 3:36 (30-13)
160- Carson Pascoe (PV) dec. Brody Borkowski, 7-3 (33-13)
172- Matthew Blakemore (Me) dec. Hunter Sprecher, 5-3 (33-16)
189- Nate Gey (PV) dec. Colin O’Neil, 7-3 (36-16)
215- Grant Euker (PV) pinned Josh Cancro, 3:22 (42-16)
285- Damian Moser (Me) won by forfeit (42-22)
