Wrestling

Weight-by-weight recap of the Class 3A Southeast Regional

by
Nate Heckenberger
March 5, 2023

Pennridge’s Colby Martinelli. (Nate Heckenberger – For MediaNews Group)

107

Pennridge’s Colby Martinelli was aggressive and sharp on his feet all tournament, leading to the only takedowns against Perkiomen Valleys’ Max Tancini, in the semifinals, and a quick lead against Ridley’s Curtis Nelson in the finals. His confidence and tact on his feet won him a tough bracket.

Nelson certainly looked the part, down at 107. Any doubt that the cut would be too much was erased, as he dominated his way to the finals. Tancini didn’t give up a point to anyone outside of Martinelli in the tournament. After his semifinal loss he outscored Council Rock South’s Connor Lenahan and Spring-Ford’s Gus Smith by a combined 10-0.

1 Colby Martinelli – Pennridge

2 Curtis Nelson – Ridley

3 Max Tancini – Perk Valley

4 Gus Smith – Spring-Ford

5 Connor Lenahan – Council Rock South

Central Bucks West’s Chris Dennis. (Nate Heckenberger – For MediaNews Group)

114

The biggest off-the-mat news of the tournament happened when top-seeded Cole Smith of Spring-Ford withdrew before Saturday’s action due to a knee injury. He had just one loss in his senior season. But that just opened the path a little more for Central Bucks West’s Chris Dennis. The freshman marched his way to the finals where he came from behind to edge Haverford High’s Cole McFarland, 4-3.

Smith’s absence also opened the door for Council Rock South’s returning state medalist, Luke Reitter, who cashed in his spot in the semis with a top four finish. Pennridge’s Cole Coffin defeated him in the consolation final, as the Ram won four straight bouts in wrestle-backs.

1 Chris Dennis – Central Bucks West

2 Cole McFarland – Haverford High

3 Cole Coffin – Pennridge

4 Luke Reitter – Council Rock South

5 Isaac Williams – Quakertown

Quakertown’s Mason Ziegler. (Nate Heckenberger – For MediaNews Group)

121

Quakertown’s Mason Ziegler was so dominant, he was even smiling during his finals match against Pennridge’s Quinn McBride. Ziegler had two pins, a technical fall and a 16-2 major against McBride, to win his second regional title.

McBride opened plenty of eyes, locking up a cradle in sudden victory to defeat Upper Perkiomen’s Branden Rozanski as the No. 15 seed in the first round. His physicality overwhelmed his next two fellow freshmen on his way to the finals. Rozanski won five in a row in the consi bracket to place third, and Kennett’s Zack Jaffe flipped a quarterfinal loss to Council Rock South’s Pat Woloshyn with a 3-0 win for fifth-place.

1 Mason Ziegler – Quakertown

2 Quinn McBride – Pennridge

3 Branden Rozanski – Upper Perk

4 Andrij Szczesniuk – Coatesville

5 Zack Jaffe – Kennett

Council Rock North’s Eren Sement. (Nate Heckenberger – For MediaNews Group)

127

Council Rock Norths’ Eren Sement won his second regional title in as many seasons. He really didn’t get tested on his way to the finals. There, he couldn’t find any offense but rode out Kennett’s Blake Boyer in the third to hold onto a 1-0 win.

Boyer became the first freshman from Kennett to qualify for states when he cradled and pinned Spring-Ford’s Quinn Smith in the third period of a 1-0 match. Smith wrestled back for third as the only senior qualifier at the weight. Three of the other four placers were sophomores. In the fifth-place bout, Conestoga’s Miles Warkentine got a takedown in overtime to reverse a loss to Central Bucks West’s Patrick Kelly, in quarters.

1 Eren Sement – Council Rock North

2 Blake Boyer – Kennett

3 Quinn Smith – Spring-Ford

4 Hunter Delaney – Sun Valley

5 Miles Warkentine – Conestoga

Boyertown’s Gavin Sheridan. (Nate Heckenberger – For MediaNews Group)

133

Boyertown’s Gavin Sheridan vindicated his decision to go up to 133 with his first regional title. He bullied his way to the finals where he was able to scramble his way in and out of opportunities against a wily Carmen Cortese of West Chester Henderson, who nearly worked a defensive pin in the regional finals for the second straight year. Sheridan had all the answers, no matter where Cortese tried to roll him into.

Sun Valley’s Brecken Strickland was disqualified for biting Council Rock South’s Ben Brillhart in quarters, which opened things up a little more in wrestle-backs. Harriton’s Nadav Nafshi’s funky style got him to the consi final, on the side where Strickland would’ve been. Kennett’s Kane Lengel won the consi bracket with a win over Brillhart and a pin against Nafshi.

1 Gavin Sheridan – Boyertown

2 Carmen Cortese – West Chester Henderson

3 Kane Lengel – Kennett

4 Nadav Nafshi – Harriton

5 Ben Brillhart – Council Rock South

Pennridge’s Sam Kuhns. (Nate Heckenberger – For MediaNews Group)

139

The referees and Central Bucks South coaching staff might still be at the table, debating the most-controversial call of the tournament. In the semis, Pennridge’s Sam Kuhns seemed to get close to taking down CB South’s Jake Neill in the waning seconds, but the ref did not award it, securing Neill’s 1-0 lead. But after conferring with the second ref, Kuhns was given two for the takedown and there was much debate for a good 10 minutes afterwards. Kuhns didn’t take the easy way to his first regional title, escaping from Oxford’s Austin McMillan in a scoreless bout that reached ultimate tiebreaker.

Neill won his consi semi bout, but Quakertown’s Gavin Carroll beat him for third, as the second through fifth-place finishers qualified for states for their first times.

1 Sam Kuhns – Pennridge

2 Austin McMillan – Oxford

3 Gavin Carroll – Quakertown

4 Jake Neill – Central Bucks South

5 Mason Karkoska – Owen J. Roberts

Quakertown’s Collin Gaj. (Nate Heckenberger – For MediaNews Group)

145

The only real drama for Quakertown’s Collin Gaj was who would he get to beat in the finals. The super sophomore had three pins on his way to the finals, where he played catch and release against Sun Valley’s Brandon Carr for a major decision. Gaj heads back to Hershey with a 45-0 record.

Carr earned some revenge, beating West Chester East’s Max Parnis in the semis, after losing to him in the District 1 West final. Parnis fought back for third, negating an early lead by Neshaminy’s Beknazar Baiyshbekov. Chichester’s Blake Bryant outlasted CR South’s Andrew Lindros for fifth.

1 Collin Gaj – Quakertown

2 Brandon Carr – Sun Valley

3 Max Parnis – West Chester East

4 Beknazar Baiyshbekov – Neshaminy

5 Blake Bryant – Chichester

Owen J. Roberts’ Sam Gautreau. (Nate Heckenberger – For MediaNews Group)

152

Owen J. Roberts’ Sam Gautreau continued to prove he’s the real deal. After two pins, he earned a workmanlike win over CR South’s Gavin Cole in the semis, before beating Quakertown’s Zach Borzio by technical fall in the finals.

Borzio made his first final with a 6-2 win over Perk Valley’s Kelly Kakos, shaking off an early takedown to score the final six. Kakos just hasn’t been able to be himself, coming back from a knee injury, and after squeaking into the consi final, he injury defaulted to Neshaminy’s Dan Hansbury, for fourth. Cole came from behind to top Pottsgrove’s Trenton Allen for the final spot.

1 Sam Gautreau – Owen J. Roberts

2 Zach Borzio – Quakertown

3 Dan Hansbury – Neshaminy

4 Kelly Kakos – Perk Valley

5 Gavin Cole – Council Rock South

Council Rock South’s Bekhruz Sadriddinov. (Nate Heckenberger – For MediaNews Group)

160

Council Rock South’s Bekhruz Sadriddinov was a class of his own, and his regional title moved the Golden Hawks into a tie with North Penn for most Class 3A Southeast Regionals of all time. Sadriddinov had two pins, a tech and a major over Perk Valley’s Gavin Pascoe in the finals.

With no drama in the finals, the fireworks were saved for the consi bracket. Kennett’s Josh Barlow got knocked off by Pennridge’s Ryan Gallagher in the first round, but won five straight, including a rematch against Gallagher, to place third. For fifth, Unionville’s headlocked and then cradled Gallagher to extend his career one more week.

1 Bekhruz Sadriddinov – Council Rock South

2 Gavin Pascoe – Perk Valley

3 Josh Barlow – Kennett

4 Shane McGurrin – Pennsbury

5 Topher Tryon – Unionville

Conestoga’s Hayden McLellan. (Nate Heckenberger – For MediaNews Group)

172

Conestoga’s Hayden McLellan kept his dominant senior going with the Pioneers’ first regional title since 2008. McLellan had two pins and a major to reach the finals, where an early four-point move held against Pennridge’s Talan Hogan.

In the semis, Hogan hit a peterson to get by Perk Valley’s Carson Pascoe in rideout. Pascoe won his next two to take third, pinning Spring-Ford’s Mason Richards, who qualified as a freshman. Souderton’s Ben Beckett used the hometown crowd to propel him to a 9-8 win in the fifth-place bout against Pennsbury’s Mason Keller, after coming in as the fourth-place finisher in the North last week.

1 Hayden McLellan – Conestoga

2 Talan Hogan – Pennridge

3 Carson Pascoe – Perk Valley

4 Mason Richards – Spring-Ford

5 Ben Beckett – Souderton

Owen J. Roberts’ Dean Bechtold collects near-fall points in a 6-2 win over Conestoga’s Jake Allred in the 189-pound final. (Nate Heckenberger – For MediaNews Group)

189

The Becthold Era is officially here. Dean Bechtold became the first freshman since Aaron Brown in 1997 to win a regional title for Owen J. Roberts. He did it rather dominantly. In the semis, Bechtold shook off an early deficit and just went to work on top against Strath Haven’s Sam Milligan, in a 15-2 major. In the finals, Bechtold’s huge size advantage was too much for Conestoga’s Jake Allred, in a 6-2 win.

Allred came from behind to beat Downingtown West’s Mason Hale in quarters and then was better on his feet in the semis, against Oxford’s Jeremy McKinney. Milligan knocked off McKinney for third, and Perk Valley’s Carter Euker earned fifth.

1 Dean Bechtold – Owen J. Roberts

2 Jake Allred – Conestoga

3 Sam Milligan – Strath Haven

4 Jeremy McKinney – Oxford

5 Carter Euker – Perk Valley

Owen J. Roberts Dillon Bechotold. (Nate Heckenberger – For MediaNews Group)

215

Owen J. Roberts’ Dillon Becthold followed his little brother with his first regional title, marking the first time brothers won golds in the same year. Dillon coasted to the finals where he found a familiar foe, Calvin Lachman of Quakertown. Dillon won 3-1, scoring a takedown in the third, using great body control and heavy hips to thwart Lachman.

In the semis, Lachman scored the only takedown to beat Kennett’s John Pardo for the second time this year, 3-2. It was all chalk on the podium, as Pardo, Pottsgrove’s Dominic DeMeno and Perk Valley’s Grant Euker finished third-fifth.

1 Dillon Bechtold – Owen J. Roberts

2 Calvin Lachman – Quakertown

3 John Pardo – Kennett

4 Dominic DeMeno – Pottsgrove

5 Grant Euker – Perk Valley

Strath Haven’s Ben Farabaugh comes to grips with a 1-0 loss to Central Bucks East’s Joe Collins in the 285-pound final. (Nate Heckenberger – For MediaNews Group)

285

For the second time in the tournament, a scoreless final was decided in ultimate tiebreaker. Strath Haven’s Ben Farabaugh won the coin toss and took top, just like Oxford’s McMillan, and just like at 139, the bottom man got out for the first time in the match. Central Bucks East’s Joe Collins broke free with a second to go to claim the title.

Kennett’s Bailey Shindle beat CB South’s Collin Goetter for the second time in the tourney, for third, and Garnet Valley junior, Dylan Bledsoe advanced in his first year as a starter.

1 Joe Collins – Central Bucks East

2 Ben Farabaugh – Strath Haven

3 Bailey Shindle – Kennett

4 Collin Goetter – Central Bucks South

5 Dylan Bledsoe – Garnet Valley

Quakertown’s Calvin Lachman and Kennett’s John Pardo. (Nate Heckenberger – For MediaNews Group)

Team Race

Quakertown edged Pennridge by one point. Both teams had two champs, but Quakertown had the edge in state qualifiers, 6-5. Isaac Williams pinned to win fifth and Ziegler and Gaj both picked up bonus points in the finals, while Martinelli and Kuhns won by decisions.

Quakertown, Kennett and Perk Valley tied for the most top-five finishers. Kennett broke its previous program record of four state qualifiers, and Perk Valley shattered its old mark of two.

Top 10