BOYERTOWN >> Family gatherings rank as a big part of the winter holiday scene.
The athletes and coaches of Boyertown High’s wrestling team consider themselves a “family” in every sense of the word. At their first public gathering of the 2021-22 season, the Bears showed how strong their family ties are.
Boyertown hosted its traditional season-opener, the Brian Bealer Memorial Bear Duals, Saturday in its return to the schedule after last year’s COVID-19 restrictions. In doing so, it re-established its perennial level of success in the competition.
The Bears placed second among the 10 schools in the field … a field that included fellow Pioneer Athletic Conference member Owen J. Roberts and Suburban One League representative Souderton. They swept their pool matches to qualify for the championship match against perennial state power Easton.
A 50-15 loss to the Red Rovers ended up being the lone “down” moment of the day. Boyertown won matches by margins ranging from one to 32 points, claimed the runner-up team trophy, saw newcomer Leo Egbe have a very successful debut and had Gavin Sheridan named the tournament’s Outstanding Wrestler.
“It felt nice,” Sheridan said. “We needed to kick-start the season and boost our confidence.”
“We had good matches,” head coach Tony Haley added. “Kids were tested today, and they’re going to be tested more and more.”
Boyertown wrestler Gavin Sheridan poses with the Most Outstanding Wrestler Award on Saturday at the Boyertown Duals. (Jeff Stover – MediaNews Group)
Boyertown’s wins in pool action came against Harry S. Truman (50-18), Interboro (46-25), Garnet Valley (31-30) and Bethlehem Liberty (37-28). Egbe clinched the Garnet Valley match with a 12-3 major decision of Patrick Douglas at 215, staking his team to a 31-12 lead with three weights to contest.
“This is a new challenge for me,” the Bear senior (4-1), little more than a month removed from his success as the Boyertown football team’s premier running back, said. “The team took me in right away. They’re teaching me from scratch. It’s a testament to how much we’re like family.”
Sheridan’s OW candidacy was bolstered by a 5-0 run through the tournament. The sophomore, working at 126 and 132, had a first-period pin, a third-period technical fall, 13-2 major decision and 3-2 decision alongside a forfeit.
“I wasn’t thinking about it (award),” Sheridan, a third-place South East AAA Regional finisher and state-tourney qualifier his freshman season, said. “I wanted to wrestle my best to start up the season.”
Chance Babb gave the Bears another 5-0 day primarily at 152 but once at 160. The senior picked up from where he ended the 2020-21 season, one that saw him place eighth at 138 in states; he posted three falls and a major decision while receiving a forfeit.
Derek Renninger, a senior, chipped in with a 3-0 record at 126/132. He was among the various Bears who pleased Haley with their ability to perform at a level that left few holes in the team’s showing.
“We had freshman step up, and we had other inexperienced wrestlers step up,” Haley said. “All day, we preached how all 13 in the lineup needed to win and step up.”
Owen J’s season got off to a poor start, the Wildcats going 0-4 in pool matches. But they kept the day from being a total washout by edging Truman in the ninth-place match, 32-30.
“You can talk in the (wrestling) room all day about doing the little things,” head coach Steve DeRafelo said, “but if you haven’t experienced it … today was a learning experience for us.”
Mason Karkoska (138) and Dillon Becktold (172/189) both had 5-0 outings for Roberts, garnering praise from DeRafelo for “putting in work during the off-season.”
“We’re going to have some changes over the next couple weeks,” Roberts’ mat boss said. “We have a couple wrestlers with injuries we’re hoping to get back. How we wrestle will determine the final outcome.”
NOTES >> The OW award Sheridan received is named for the late Don Seeley, The Mercury’s longtime sports writer and department editor. … Team trophies were presented to the first three placers. Garnet Valley, by virtue of its 36-33 win over Sun Valley, was the tournament’s third-place team.
WRESTLING
Brian Bealer Memorial Bear Duals
Boyertown 50
Harry S Truman 18
106 – Double forfeit
113 – Sonny Mash (Bt) pinned Dominic Wolfe, 4:25 (6-0)
120 – Luke Heimbach (Bt) dec. Dustin Marion, 18-4 (10-0)
126 – Gavin Sheridan (Bt) pinned Isabella Dias, 1:10 (16-0)
132 – Shane Stankina (Bt) pinned Mason Bost, 5:47 (22-0)
138 – Owen Dykie (Bt) pinned Weckley Cherilus, 1:10 (28-0)
145 – Dominic Sheridan (Bt) won by forfeit (34-0)
152 – Chance Babb (Bt) pinned Brandon Thompson, :46 (40-0)
160 – Colin Greenblatt (HST) pinned Nicholas Montanye, 2:54 (40-6)
172 – Terelle Dorceus (HST) pinned Nick Bauer, :36 (40-12)
189 – John Mellor (HST) pinned Michael Kelleher, 3:41 (40-18)
215 – Leo Egbe (Bt) dec. Donato Pellegrini, 14-6 (44-18)
285 – Matthew Cavalari (Bt) pinned Thomas Ferrfante, :29 (50-18)
Boyertown 46
Interboro 25
113 – Sonny Mash (Bt) dec. Bruno Squillace, 15-2 (4-0)
120 – Victor Quintiliana (Int) pinned Luke Heimbach, 4:54 (4-6)
126 – Gavin Sheridan (Bt) won by forfeit (10-6)
132 – Derek Renninger (Bt) won by forfeit (16-6)
138 – Beck Babb (Bt) pinned Gavin Oliva, 5:45 (22-6)
145 – Chase Gallo (Int) dec. Owen Dykie, 12-1 (22-10)
152 – Jake Finley dec. Dominic Sheridan, 7-3 (22-13)
160 – Chance Babb (Bt) pinned Taylor Burton, 1:15 (28-13)
172 – Dom D’Agostino (Int) pinned Nick Bauer, 2:54 (28-19)
189 – Leo Egbe (Bt) won by forfeit (34-19)
215 – Michael Kelleher (Bt) pinned Kyle Cramphorn, 1:20 (40-19)
285 – Matthew Cavalari (Bt) pinned Tomer Gabie, :56 (46-19)
106 – Colin Magee (Int) won by forfeit (46-25)
Boyertown 31
Garnet Valley 30
120 – Luke Heimbach (Bt) dec. Nolan Carroll, 6-4 (3-0)
126 – Derek Renninger (Bt) pinned Ryan Douglas, 1:13 (9-0)
132 – Gavin Sheridan (Bt) dec. Matthew Ricci, 3-2 (12-0)
138 – Shane Stankina (Bt) pinned Mark Emery, 3:04 (18-0)
145 – Daniel Husain (GaV) dec. Dominic Sheridan, 6-3 (18-3)
152 – Chance Babb (Bt) won by forfeit (24-3)
160 – Christopher Wood won by forfeit (24-9)
172 – Nicholas Montanye (Bt) dec. Shane Olinger, 5-0 (27-9)
189 – Jared Park (GaV) dec. Michael Kelleher, 5-3 (27-12)
215 – Leo Egbe (Bt) dec. Patrick Douglas, 12-3 (31-12)
285 – Nicholas Mahoney (GaV) pinned Matthew Cavalari, :28 (31-18)
106 – Dominic May (GaV) won by forfeit (31-24)
113 – Ethan Bliss (GaV) pinned Sonny Mash, 1:52 (31-30)
Boyertown 37
Bethlehem Liberty 28
132 – Derek Renninger (Bt) pinned Cesar Acosta, 0:15 (6-0)
138 – Javien DeLeon (BL) dec. Beck Babb, 9-1 (6-4)
145 – Dominic Sheridan (Bt) dec. Edwin Force III, 12-3 (10-4)
152 – Chance Babb (Bt) pinned Elijah Reid, :44 (16-4)
160 – Ryan Santiago (BL) won by forfeit (16-10)
172 – Christian Reid (BL) pinned Nicholas Montanye, 1:54 (16-16)
189 – Leo Egbe (Bt) dec. Sawyer Quayle, 12-6 (19-16)
215 – Michael Kelleher (Bt) dec. Rafi Harrington, 3-2 (22-16)
285 – Levi Levy (BL) pinned Matthew Cavalari, 1:20 (22-22)
106 – Jasiah Pagan (BL) won by forfeit (22-28)
113 – Sonny Mash (Bt) won by forfeit (28-28)
120 – Luke Heimbach (Bt) dec. Jack Evans, 10-0 (32-28)
126 – Gavin Sheridan (Bt) won by technical fall over Kamal Abboud, 4:44 (37-28)
Championship
Easton 50
Boyertown 15
138 – Owen Dykie (Bt) dec. Quentin Hammerstone, 7-3 (0-3)
145 – Dominic Sheridan (Bt) dec. Jack Baker, 11-1 (0-7)
152 – Chance Babb (Bt) dec. James Geiger, 13-4 (0-11)
160 – Dylan Reed (Ea) pinned Nicholas Montanye, 1:30 (6-11)
172 – Giovani Macario (Ea) pinned Nick Bauer, 0:33 (12-11)
189 – Michael Hynes (Ea) pinned Michael Kelleher, 4:00 (18-11)
215 – Tyler Cocciolillo (Ea) pinned Leo Egbe, 2:27 (24-11)
285 – Matthew Cruise (Ea) pinned Cooper Gardner, 0:25 (30-11)
106 – Brendan Bowman (Ea) won by forfeit (36-11)
113 – Christopher Kelly (Ea) pinned Sonny Mash, 3:08 (42-11)
120 – Benjamin Fanelli (Ea) dec. Luke Heimbach, 11-3 (46-11)
126 – Gavin Sheridan (Bt) dec. Shae Linegar, 13-2 (46-15)
132 – Oliver Fairchild (Ea) dec. Shane Stankina, 18-5 (50-15)
Souderton 39
Owen J. Roberts 35
106 – Luke Ragusa (SA) won by forfeit (6-0)
113 – Charlie Arobone (SA) pinned Lucas Zachesky, :58 (12-0)
120 – Alex Brandt (OJR) pinned Gisele Ramirez, :39 (12-6)
126 – A.J. Stayton (SA) won by technical fall over Braden Hauseman, 5:57 (17-6)
132 – Matthew Englehardt (OJR) pinned Kayla Husti-Luca, :59 (17-12)
138 – Mason Karkoska (OJR) won by technical fall over Tyler Geiger, 4:00 (17-17)
145 – Erick Dominguez (SA) dec. Bryce Schmoyer, 15-6 (21-17)
152 – Logan Brower (OJR) pinned Emerson Goering, 1:32 (21-23)
160 – Ben Beckett (SA) pinned Vincent Langford, 3:07 (27-23)
172 – Dillon Becktold (OJR) pinned Brayden Crawford, :45 (27-29)
189 – Thomas Gonce (SA) won by forfeit (33-29)
215 – Francis McCoy (OJR) pinned Kole Lester, 1:52 (33-35)
285 – Justin Morales (SA) pinned Joey Calamaro, 2:40 (39-35)
Sun Valley 51
Owen J. Roberts 21
113 – Timothy Kearney (SV) dec. Brady Quinn, 7-2 (3-0)
120 – Dalton Pedrick (SV) pinned Alex Brandt, 5:40 (9-0)
126 – Shane Holefelder (SV) pinned Blaine Schmoyer, 3:49 (15-0)
132 – Brecken Strickland (SV) won by injury default over Matthew Englehardt, time NA (21-0)
138 – Mason Karkoska (OJR) pinned Gunnar Pedrick, 0:57 (21-6)
145 – Sam Gautreau (OJR) dec. Daniel Kearney, 4-0 (21-9)
152 – David Voshel (SV) pinned Dysen Neil, 1:33 (27-9)
160 – Alexander Gamble-Williams (SV) pinned Bryce Schmoyer, 1:17 (33-9)
172 – Dillon Becktold (OJR) pinned R.J. Barlow, :34 (33-15)
189 – Chase Thompson (SV) won by forfeit (39-15)
215 – Francis McCoy (OJR) pinned Anthony Laird, 3:09 (39-21)
285 – Ronald Weaver (SV) pinned Joey Calamaro, :54 (45-21)
106 – John Deorio (SV) won by forfeit (51-21)
Council Rock North 44
Owen J. Roberts 30
120 – Tony Burke (CRN) won by technical fall over Alex Brandt, 3:00 (5-0)
126 – Mack Marcy (CRN) pinned Blaine Schmoyer, 2:49 (11-0)
132 – Anthony D’Antuono (CRN) won by forfeit (17-0)
138 – Mason Karkoska (OJR) pinned Ivan Galarza, 1:05 (17-6)
145 – Bryce Schmoyer (OJR) pinned Logan Atkinson, 4:54 (17-12)
152 – Sam Gautreau (OJR) pinned Matt Romano, :20 (17-18)
160 – Logan Brower (OJR) pinned Arya Chaudhary, 0:31 (17-24)
172 – Patrick Ayers (CRN) pinned Vincent Langford, 5:48 (23-24)
189 – Dillon Becktold (OJR) pinned Abdul Khan, :53 (23-30)
215 – Gavin Papp (CRN) pinned Joey Calamaro, 3:50 (29-30)
285 – Aden Roe (CRN) dec. Francis McCoy, 9-4 (32-30)
106 – Alexander Diaz (CRN) won by forfeit (38-30)
113 – Eren Sement (CRN) pinned Brady Quinn, 1:06 (44-30)
Easton 54
Owen J. Roberts 15
132 – Oliver Fairchild (Ea) won by forfeit (6-0)
138 – Mason Karkoska (OJR) won by technical fall over Quentin Hammerstone, 16-0 4:43 (6-5)
145 – Lebron Simms (Ea) dec. Sam Gautreau, 4-1 (9-5)
152 – James Geiger (Ea) pinned Logan Brower, 2:36 (15-5)
160 – Dylan Reed (Ea) pinned Vincent Langford, 3:05 (21-5)
172 – Dillon Becktold (OJR) dec. Giovani Macario, 9-1 (21-9)
189 – Michael Hynes (Ea) won by forfeit (27-9)
215 – Francis McCoy (OJR) pinned Tyler Cocciolillo, 1:00 (27-15)
285 – Matthew Cruise (Ea) won by forfeit (33-15)
106 – Brendan Bowman (Ea) won by forfeit (39-15)
113 – Christopher Kelly (Ea) dec. Brady Quinn, 8-2 (42-15)
120 – Benjamin Fanelli (Ea) pinned Alex Brandt, 3:39 (48-15)
126 – Shae Linegar (Ea) pinned Lucas Zachesky, 1:14 (54-15)
Ninth Place
Owen J. Roberts 32
Harry S Truman 30
138 – Mason Karkoska (OJR) won by technical fall over Weckley Cherilus, 2:18 (5-0)
145 – Sam Gautreau (OJR) won by forfeit (11-0)
152 – Caleb Wright (HST) pinned Logan Brower, 5:05 (11-6)
160 – Colin Greenblatt (HST) pinned Gavin Psolka, 1:53 (11-12)
172 – Dillon Becktold (OJR) dec. Terelle Dorceus, 3-0 (14-12)
189 – John Mellor (HST) won by forfeit (14-18)
215 – Francis McCoy (OJR) won by forfeit (20-18)
285 – Joey Calamaro (OJR) pinned Thomas Ferrfante, :18 (26-18)
106 – Double forfeit
113 – Brady Quinn (OJR) pinned Dominic Wolfe, :26 (32-18)
120 – Dustin Marion (HST) dec. Alex Brandt, 9-5 (32-21)
126 – Isabella Dias (HST) dec. Blaine Schmoyer, 4-3 (32-24)
132 – Mason Bost (HST) won by forfeit (32-30)
