EAST ROCKHILL >> Befitting their rivalry, Wednesday’s night dual meet between the Pennridge and Quakertown wrestling teams went into the final match still undecided.
Colby Martinelli was going to do all he could to deliver a victory to the host Rams.
“It was a pretty close score and I just felt I had to go out and give it my best and be there for my team,” the Pennridge sophomore said. “We worked all summer and every day, we put in the hard work. Feel like I had to go and be another good leader to our team.”
With the Rams holding a slim 34-32 advantage, Martinelli took the lead in his 114-pound match with Isaac Williams on a second period near fall then added on in the third for a 6-1 decision to secure a 37-32 comeback win over Pennridge in the Suburban One League nondivision matchup.
Pennridge’s Colby Martinelli (left) and Quakertown’s Isaac Williams vie for control during their 114-pound match on Wednesday, Dec. 21, 2022. (Mike Cabrey/MediaNews Group)
“We couldn’t of wrote it any better,” Rams coach Brian Kuhns said. “To come down to Colby, one of our best wrestlers, to finish that night. To have the match really come down he just has to win and we win, I mean it was insane.”
Quakertown led 28-16 after Zach Borsio’s pin in 1:26 at 172 but Pennridge took four of the next five, including the final three matches to claim its first win over the Panthers since a 34-32 victory over Dec. 22, 2017. The Rams had lost the team’s last three meetings.
“Huge step and we’re missing a couple starters,” Kuhns said. “We had three kids out that are really good starters for us so this was a complete team effort of we didn’t know where half the kids were going to wrestle tonight. I was literally all week everybody be ready. I mean we’ve had a bunch of sicknesses up to this point, a few injuries.
The last four weeks have been insane for it so tonight was just we’re throwing a full lineup out there, we just don’t know who yet, just everybody at every weight class we might grab you off the bench and send you out there and you just got to wrestle. And they stepped up which was awesome to see.”
Pennridge’s Colby Martinelli is swarmed by the Rams wrestling team after his 6-1 victory at 114 pounds sealed Pennridge’s 37-32 victory over Quakertown on Wednesday, Dec. 21, 2022. (Mike Cabrey/MediaNews Group)
Twelve of the 13 matches had bonus points with the only one that did not was the decision at 114 by Martinelli, who was mobbed by the Rams after he came off the mat then post-meet was lifted onto his teammates’ shoulders.
“I just felt we came in this as an underdog and a lot of people didn’t have a lot of faith in us,” said Martinelli, a South East 3A Regional qualifier last season. “And I feel that we did good as a team and I think that’s going to be a good confidence booster for us for the rest of the season.”
Pennridge edged Quakertown in pins 5-4 while the Panthers earned two of the night’s three major decisions.
“It was a great match,” Quakertown coach Kurt Handel said. “We knew it was going to be close. Both teams have their guys that are banged up and sick and things like that but man what an exciting match. Their coach had them ready, they were physical, they were aggressive, conditioned well.
“It came down to that last match there and we knew Colby and Ike, we knew that was going to be a close match.”
Quakertown’s Mason Ziegler lifts up Pennridge’s Anthony Granite during their 133-pound match on Wednesday, Dec. 21, 2022. (Mike Cabrey/MediaNews Group)
Quakertown competes at the Bethlehem Holiday Wrestling Classic Dec. 28-29 at Liberty High School. Pennridge next wrestles in 2023 when it hosts Souderton Jan. 4 in its SOL Colonial Division opener.
“I feel like Pennridge hasn’t had this much excitement in wrestling in a long time,” Kuhns said. “So to get it this early in a season, I think we can build a lot off of this. This is the most people I’ve seen in this gym in years, in a long time.”
Ryan Rowe pulled the Rams to within 28-22 by pinning Dylan Fenstermacher late in the first period at 189. Quakertown’s Calvin Lachman pushed for a tech fall at 215 before coming away with a 19-5 major decision over Chase Washington to give the Visitors a 10-point lead.
At 285, Riley Cullen pinned Keondre Lopez at 1:02 to cut the Rams’ deficit to 32-28. Cole Meenan followed by pinning Ashley Stank on eight seconds into the third period at 107 to give Pennridge its first lead since it was 4-0 after the first match.
Quakertown’s Calvin Lachman tries to pin Pennridge’s Chase Washington during their 215-pound match on Wednesday, Dec. 21, 2022. (Mike Cabrey/MediaNews Group)
Martinelli bested Williams three times by decision last year and in their match Wednesday broke a scoreless tie with a two-point near fall in the second period and stayed in the lead for the 6-1 win to seal the Rams’ victory.
“I felt really good on top,” Martinelli said. I feel like last year I was a little undersized and this year coming back and being a true 107, being close to 114 I feel like that really helped me too.
Cole Coffin began the dual meet by improving to 12-0 with a 13-4 major decision over Logan Pfistner.
“He looks phenomenal,” said Kuhns of Coffin, who qualified for states for the first time last season. “He’s wrestling up right now. We’re trying to get other people in the lineup to offset some of the kids that are sick so giving up a little weight but I think this is the best I’ve seen him start a season and I’ve coached him since he’s 5-years-old.”
Pennridge’s Cole Coffin (right) looks for a takedown on Quakertown’s Logan Pfistner during their 121-pound match on Wednesday, Dec. 21, 2022. (Mike Cabrey/MediaNews Group)
Quakertown proceeded to collect back-to-back pins – Kyler Roesener with a fall in 14 seconds at 127 with Mason Ziegler earning a pin in 2:45 at 133 to put the Panthers up 12-6.
Cody Stank made it three straight wins for Quakertown with an 11-2 major decision over Jeremiah Terpoilli at 139.
“He went out and did a great job,” said Handel of Cody Stank. “He’s a senior, he’s one of the guys in the lineup that works real hard and he don’t always get the mentioning that I feel he should. So he came out and did what he should have.”
Sam Kuhns snapped the Panthers’ run by pinning Josh Camacho in 1:04 at 145 but Collin Gaj had Quakertown’s lead back at a dozen with his win by fall over Brady McMahon at 152 in 2:42.
Pennrige’s Gio Iadonisi looks for the pin against Michael Socci during their 160-pound match on Wednesday, Dec. 21, 2022. (Mike Cabrey/MediaNews Group)
“With moving the lineup around, moving the guys around, I think both coaching staffs were like ‘Man, what are the lineups going to be?’” Handel said. “Because we had some different people and different weight classes and so it was like weight class by weight class who was going to be sent out.”
At 170, the Rams’ Gio Iadonisi pinned Michael Socci in 1:26 before Zach Borzio pushed the Panthers’ advantage to 28-16 by pinning Brady Hudgins in 1:26 at 172.
