GRATERFORD >> When Perkiomen Valley hosted last year’s District 1-3A North tournament, Grant Euker and Gavin Pascoe were among hundreds in attendance, but not in the way they wished.
Injuries cost them the chance to compete at the district sectional tournament on their home mat, ending their individual postseasons before they began.
“I remember still being on crutches, coming in watching my younger brother Cole (Euker) make his way through sectionals, then regionals and on to states,” said senior Grant Euker, who suffered an ACL tear at the 2022 PAC Championships in January. “I reminisce on what could have been. But that’s made me push that much harder to get back to 100 percent. This season it’s been my driving factor to get back to where I could have been last year.”
Gavin Pascoe, also a senior, knows the feeling.
“It was all kind of a blur to me, like what could have been,” Pascoe said of his 2022 districts experience while out with a torn meniscus. “If I didn’t get hurt, what could I have done? I think this year I’m going to redeem myself because I think I have a very good shot.”
A year forward, Euker and Pascoe are among the host’s top competitors for the individual postseason-opening District 1-3A North tournament, which begins at 8:30 a.m. Saturday at Perkiomen Valley.
Pascoe (33-7) is the top seed at 160 pounds while Euker (30-5) is seeded second at 215 pounds.
Perkiomen Valley’s Grant Euker. (Nate Heckenberger – For MediaNews Group)
Being unable to compete in the postseason last year adds extra fuel this time around.
“People might look at my performance last year and the year before and think ‘This kid doesn’t have anything,’” said Euker. “But I have something to prove. I’m trying to prove it every time I step on the mat.”
Top four finishers will continue their quest for Hershey next weekend at the South East AAA Regional at Souderton March 3-4. The PIAA Championships return to Giant Center in Hershey from March 9-11.
Euker and Pascoe aren’t alone among the Vikings’ front-line talent, which also features two-time PIAA medalist Kelly Kakos and a pair who are primed to go over the 40-win mark this weekend in senior Carson Pascoe (38-3) and freshman Max Tancini (37-6).
Kakos is one of 10 returning North champions. That list also features the Spring-Ford quartet of Gus Smith, Cole Smith, Quinn Smith and Anthony Attilio; Boyertown’s Gavin Sheridan; Owen J. Roberts’ Dillon Bechtold; Pottsgrove’s Dominic DeMeno; and Conestoga’s Jake Allred and Hayden McLellan.
Perkiomen Valley’s Kelly Kakos. (Nate Heckenberger – For MediaNews Group)
The 152-pound Kakos is 11-2 on the year after suffering a torn meniscus in December and making a rapid return to get back in time for the District 1 Duals on Jan. 26.
“The first doctor said I needed to get my meniscus repaired and I’d be out three months, miss the whole season,” Kakos said. “That weekend I was still in disbelief. I honestly didn’t think it was true.”
But a second opinion gave him new belief and a six-week recovery period that would allow him to return for the team and individual postseasons.
“It was a process to say the least,” he said. “It started off slow but these last couple weeks since the start of February I’ve really started to feel like myself again.”
Kakos surpassed 100 career wins last weekend at the Downingtown West duals, a true milestone for any COVID-season affected wrestler, beyond his injury-shortened senior year.
The Lock Haven commit is currently ranked No. 3 in District 1 by pa-wrestling.com, which Kakos is using as motivation to remind everyone of his ability.
“Checking rankings and seeing all that, whoever is ranking me doesn’t think I’m what I used to be,” he said. “I’m lower than I should be so I’m coming in like an underdog looking to upset somebody.”
He is seeded No. 2 behind Owen J. Roberts’ Sam Gautreau (33-5) at 152 pounds.
PV teammate Carson Pascoe knows all about an injury derailing plans for the season. He wrestled hurt last season with collarbone and shoulder injuries through into the postseason and placed third at sectionals, losing to Conestoga’s McLellan in the 160-pound semifinal, a loss that has stuck with him.
“That match really hurt me,” Carson Pascoe said. “That match stuck with me all offseason. I still think about it a lot. I wanted to be a district champ last year and it affected my seeding.”
It’s a matchup that could be seen again with McLellan No. 1 and Pascoe No. 2 at 172 pounds. McLellan leads head-to-head battle 2-1.
“Right now he’s ranked ahead of me, we’re 1-2, so I’m really looking forward to that matchup. I know he’s looking forward to that matchup,” Pascoe said. “Nobody works harder than me and I feel like this is my time. I feel like I’ve elevated the gap between myself and the competition and I’m ready to show that.”
Freshman Tancini has been an instant impact at 107 for the Vikings. With 25 pins he’s set Perk Valley’s pins record, won the PAC title in January and is ranked No. 1 in District 1 by pa-wrestling.com.
“I just got the pin record for the school and now I’m trying to get to 40 wins and place in states. That’s my goal for the year,” said Tancini. “I want to keep moving forward and never stop the grind.”
Perkiomen Valley’s Max Tancini cradles Kennett’s Owen Coats on his way to a technical fall at 114 pounds. (Nate Heckenberger – For MediaNews Group)
With 37 wins and his only losses to opponents from Pennsylvania coming via last year’s 2A champion and third-place finisher, his rookie year has exceeded his own expectations.
“I thought I’d get 20 wins, maybe go to states. But I’m pretty confident now that I can place in states and maybe do bigger things,” Tancini said.
Tancini is seeded No. 2 behind Spring-Ford’s Gus Smith, a past state qualifier. The two could meet in the 107-pound final, which would be their third meeting (Tancini leads head-to-head 2-0).
For a group that has endured its share of injuries, the Vikings group lists themselves as healthy – at least wrestler-in-February healthy – entering the individual postseason.
“We are wrestlers who push our bodies to the absolute max every day so everyone is going to be dealing with some minor injuries. Everyone is going to be sore. But that’s just the name of the game,” Euker said. “You have to push through, keep working hard and not let it get to you mentally.”
District 1-3A North individual champions in 2022 were, kneeling from left, Spring-Ford’s Gus Smith, Spring-Ford’s Cole Smith, Boyertown’s Gavin Sheridan, Spring-Ford’s Quinn Smith, Owen J. Roberts’ Matthew Englehardt, Perkiomen Valley’s Kelly Kakos (Outstanding Wrestler); standing from left, Boyertown’s Chance Babb, Spring-Ford’s Anthony Attilio, Conestoga’s Hayden McLellan, Owen J. Roberts’ Dillon Bechtold, Conestoga’s Jake Allred, Pottsgrove’s Dominic Demeno, Perkiomen Valley’s Cole Euker. (Austin Hertzog – MediaNews Group)
Among other returning champions, Spring-Ford senior Cole Smith (30-1) leads the 114-pound field with Boyertown’s Luke Heimbach (32-8) second; SF senior Quinn Smith (23-3) is tops at 127, followed by Conestoga sophomore Miles Warkentine (26-1); Boyertown junior Gavin Sheridan (36-2) is favorite at 133, followed by Souderton’s AJ Slayton (26-5); SF’s Attilio (21-14) is seeded third at 160 behind PV’s Gavin Pascoe and Conestoga senior Matthew Boye (28-4); Conestoga senior Jake Allred (30-2) is seeded first at 189, followed by Perk Valley’s Carter Euker (28-7); OJR’s Bechtold (36-2) and Pottsgrove’s DeMeno (28-3) are returning champs occupying the same space at 215, seeded first and third, respectively.
Upper Perkiomen junior Branden Rozanski, the PAC champion at 127 pounds, has dropped to 121 for the postseason and is seeded first at 121.
Other top seeds include Upper Merion freshman Jowell Jones at 145 and Boyertown senior Cooper Gardner at 285.
South Central AAA Regional
Daniel Boone sends six wrestlers to the South Central 3A Regional at Spring Grove High School this weekend.
Undefeated Tucker Hogan (36-0), last year’s Mercury All-Area Wrestler of the Year, leads the list. He’s top seed at 189 pounds.
The Blazers also feature junior Dean Houser (33-6), No. 2 seed at 121; senior Brett Marchiano (30-10), No. 9 seed at 145; senior Jared Hewitt (25-15), No. 6 at 160, senior Khyre Inman (24-13), 15th at 172; and freshman Jackson Drumheller (18-10), No. 6 at 114.
Top four finishers qualify for the PIAA Championships.
National Preps
The Hill School qualified eight wrestlers for this weekend’s National Preps Championships in Upper Marlboro, Md.
The Blues had eight medalists at last weekend’s Pa. Independent Schools Athletic Association Championships, led by silver medalists Cole Albert (138) and Colby Isabelle (165), and third-place finishers Kate Davidheiser (126) and Robert Pavlek (132).
Hill will also send Hunter Sloan (144), Kayden White (190), Dante Donaldson (215) and William Antippas (285) to the season-ending competition.
