McDonogh wins Iron Horse

Second-ranked sophomore Jacob Naylor (113/120), fifth-ranked sophomore Weston Baumgartner (132/138), sixth-ranked junior Cole Genua (144/150) and ninth-ranked senior Giuseppe "JJ" DiMonte (190/215) were undefeated as third-ranked McDonogh went 8-0 to win last weekend’s Iron Horse Duals at C. Milton Wright High School.

DiMonte, Naylor and Genua went 7-0, and Baumgartner, 6-0. DiMonte pinned six opponents to go with a 12-0 major decision, Genua also decked six rivals and won by 13-2 major decision against another, Naylor earned four falls, and Baumgartner, two each in pins and technical falls.

Going 6-1 for the Eagles were fifth-ranked freshman Braidyn Taby (106), fifth-ranked junior Dominic Manna (157/165), 15th-ranked sophomore Logan Brown (285) and senior Reid Swirnow (120/126).

Taby flattened four opponents, Brown pinned three and Swirnow earned three technical falls and two major decisions.

Manna earned a pair of technical falls to go with a fall in 2:34 over Stephen Decatur’s 18th-ranked senior Alex Riehl, who finished at 7-1 with four pins.

Eighth-ranked sophomore Mason Comegys (138) was 3-0 with two pins and a technical fall for the Eagles in an event featuring 24th-ranked runner-up Huntingtown and fifth-ranked MIAA A Conference rival Loyola, which placed third.

The deep field included the host Mustangs, 11th-ranked Stephen Decatur, 16th-ranked Brunswick, 18th-ranked Glenelg, 19th-ranked Linganore, Boys Latin, Calvert Hall, Mount Carmel and Delaware-based programs Smyrna and Sussex Central.

The tournament director was ninth-year Mustangs’ coach John Thornton, a 1999 graduate of C. Milton Wright and former state champion went 37-0 as a senior and twice earned Harford County and regional titles.

"This year's tournament didn’t have a placement match. Each team wrestled eight duals, and we did placement by record,” Thornton said. “The tiebreaker was head-to-head, and then total match points. McDonogh was first with an 8-0 record, Huntingtown was second at 7-1, and Loyola was third at 6-2."

Thornton said the Eagles were given credit for earlier victories over Huntingtown and Loyola.

"Huntingtown didn’t wrestle Loyola, Loyola forfeited to McDonogh," Thornton said. "McDonogh didn’t wrestle Huntingtown at Iron Horse, but they wrestled Huntingtown at a different tournament earlier this year and beat them."

Huntingtown lost, 54-27, to Linganore. Loyola was beaten, 46-33, by Stephen Decatur. Smyrna (6-2) lost to Loyola and McDonogh. C. Milton Wright (5-3) fell to Huntingtown, Linganore and Loyola.

Linganore, Stephen Decatur and Sussex Central all finished at 4-4, with the Lancers falling to Calvert Hall, Loyola, McDonogh and Smyrna, and the Seahawks to C. Milton Wright, Huntingtown, McDonogh and Smyrna. Sussex Central fell against Brunswick, Huntingtown, McDonogh and Linganore.

Finishing at 3-5 were Brunswick and Calvert Hall, with Glenelg going 2-6, and Boys Latin and Mount Carmel being winless.

Brunswick had setbacks against Calvert Hall, C. Milton Wright, Huntingtown, McDonogh and in a 39-39 tiebreaker loss to Loyola. Calvert Hall fell to C. Milton Wright, Glenelg, Huntingtown, Smyrna and Sussex Central. Glenelg lost to Brunswick, Huntingtown, Loyola, McDonogh, Smyrna and Stephen Decatur.

The Eagles have a record of 29-3 under 32nd-year coach Pete Welch, including an earlier 34-30 victory over top-ranked MIAA A conference rival Archbishop Spalding and a 37-30 loss to second-ranked league foe Mount St. Joseph.

"We wrestled Huntingtown at the Dust or Diamond Duals at Crofton back in December," Welch said. "I’m pleased with how our team is tracking at this point. We have great kids, we've done a bunch of wrestling, and we're growing with each challenge."

HUNTINGTOWN

Going 8-0 for Huntingtown were fifth-ranked junior Owen Hayden (113), seventh-ranked junior Landen Vercoe (144/150), 12th-ranked sophomore Kyler Kiessling (120) and 14th-ranked senior Will Stewart (132).

Hayden’s four pins comprised those in 15, 54, 83 and 98 seconds to go with technical falls by scores of 21-4 and 15-0. Hayden’s 100th victory came on the 98-second pin over Glenelg freshman Aiden Kwok as he ended the weekend with 103 career wins.

Kiessling recorded two of his four pins in 23 and 48 seconds along with technical falls of 15-0 and 21-5. Stewart decked two opponents with four technical falls.

Vercoe is a two-time champion in both the Southern Maryland Athletic Conference and Class 2A-1A South Regions who placed second and third at Class 2A-1A states.

At The Iron Horse Duals, Vercoe registered five pins and two technical falls, earning his 100th win with a 99-second pin against Mount Carmel sophomore Chouiry Harris. Vercoe’s record on the year is 27-1 with 15 pins and five technical falls, and he finished the weekend with 107 career victories.

Vercoe also decked Calvert Hall’s eighth-ranked senior Joshua Jackson in 4:16 and won a 6-0 decision at 150 pounds over Brunswick’s second-ranked senior Seth Crawford.

Currently ranked at 138 pounds by Legacy Wrestling, Vercoe faced a wrestler in Crawford who is rated at 150 pounds by Legacy Wrestling and was last year’s 138-pound Class 2A-1A state runner-up.

“I bumped up a weight class to challenge myself against Seth Crawford,” said Vercoe, who primarily competed at 126 pounds last year. “He’s a high-intensity wrestler, so I was expecting him to be aggressive and to shoot right away, so I was ready for that.”

Vercoe weighed in at 144 pounds compared to Crawford’s 150.

“Being smaller than him, I didn’t want to get caught underneath, so when he shot a double-leg on me, I did a throw-by and spun behind. In the second period, I chose the bottom position and he rode me out,” said Vercoe.

“I was able to get to my feet, but I never got an escape. In the third period, Seth chose down, so I threw the legs in. When he got into a sitting position, I pulled him back, got out to the side, and was able to get three back points with about 20 seconds left to seal it.”

Vercoe placed third at the War On The Shore Tournament, where he split bouts with junior Tyler Stephens of Mount St. Joseph. Stephens is top-ranked by Legacy Wrestling at 144 pounds.

“I lost to Tyler Stephens in 2-1 triple-overtime in the quarters because he had a good claw ride and every time I got to my feet, he would bring me back down. But I had to make some adjustments in the second match,” said Vercoe, who led by as much as 8-1 in their third-place rematch.

“He was up 1-0 going into the third period, and he went to an optional start and let me up, tying the match at 1-1. About 30 seconds later he went for an ankle pick, and I created a flurry and ended up on top. With about a minute left, I got four nearfall points with a re-bar tilt and ended up beating him 9-3.”

Crawford finished at 7-1 with a 29-second pin, five technical falls, and a 4-1 decision over Loyola’s fourth-ranked senior Josh Hale.

“I’ve been wrestling at 144 all season,” Vercoe said. “That’s where I’m going for states, and I definitely feel like this is my year to win it.”

LOYOLA

The Dons were paced by Hale, second-ranked senior Jayden Jackson (126/132) and their top-ranked underclassmen in freshman Charles Cooper (106) and sophomore Tyler Verceles (120/126).

Jackson earned pins in 25, 35, 67 and 87 seconds to go with a pair of 19-3 technical falls. Verceles accounted for three each in pins and technical falls, and Cooper, four pins and a technical fall. Hale went 6-1 with two pins and four technical falls.

STEPHEN DECATUR

Leading the Seahawks were top-ranked seniors Elijah Collick (138/144) and Pete Snyder (190/215) along with senior Braydon Bell (175/190), all of whom were 8-0 as Bell had five pins and a technical fall.

A three-time state champion, Collick pinned seven opponents to go with a 23-5 technical fall over Huntingtown’s 10th-ranked sophomore Logan Boyle. Collick also pinned Loyola’s 11th-ranked junior Lincoln Weeks in 3:11.

Snyder registered four pins, a technical fall and won a 3-0 decision over C. Milton Wright’s seventh-ranked senior Aaron Moccia. Snyder won the War On The Shore Tournament at 215 pounds, and Moccia did the same at 190.

C. MILTON WRIGHT

Moccia earned four pins while competing at 190, 215 and 285 pounds, including a 40-second fall at 285.

Moccia also earned a 4-2 decision at 215 pounds over Linganore’s 16th-ranked senior Alex Tortolani, who finished at 7-1 with six pins.

Mustangs’ freshman Lucas Hefner (106) was 6-0, with one of his two first-period pins lasting 41 seconds.

LINGANORE

Going 8-0 was the Lancers’ eighth-ranked junior Cash Wheat (157/165). Wheat’s seven pins comprised those in 23, 29, 40 and 59 seconds, two more in 74 seconds each and yet another in 1:53. Wheat also won a 6-3 decision against Manna.

CALVERT HALL

The Cardinals’ sixth-ranked junior Izaac Robertucci (175) went 6-0, and 18th-ranked freshman Owen Stewart (285) was 7-0. Stewart pinned four opponents, and Robertucci had three each in pins and technical falls.

SM vs MD - McDonogh

Guaranteed 1st place

Match #1 1st Place Match

McDonogh defeated Smyrna 43-21

106 - Jaden Uhde (Smyrna) over Braidyn Taby (McDonogh) Dec 3-1

113 - Jacob Naylor (McDonogh) over Michael Pierson (Smyrna) Dec 5-1

120 - Jamen Haliburton (Smyrna) over Reid Swirnow (McDonogh) Dec 7-5

126 - Sam Dulin (Smyrna) over Damian Manna (McDonogh) Fall 4:35

132 - Wes Baumgartner (McDonogh) over Gabe Crenshaw (Smyrna) Dec 4-0

138 - Mason Comegys (McDonogh) over Victor Hernandez-Bryant (Smyrna) TF 16-1

144 - Cole Genua (McDonogh) over Billy Wiseley (Smyrna) Fall 3:53

150 - Blake Taylor (McDonogh) over Russell Reed (Smyrna) TF 16-1

157 - Dominic Manna (McDonogh) over Ian Alfree (Smyrna) Maj 18-5

165 - Caden Gardner (McDonogh) over Max Justice (Smyrna) Fall 1:43

175 - Ithan Caballero (Smyrna) over Jonathan Afolabi (McDonogh) Fall 3:51

190 - Teagan Gratkowski (Smyrna) over Declan Vaughan (McDonogh) Dec 6-4

215 - Giuseppe DiMonte (McDonogh) over Saabir Pratt (Smyrna) Fall 1:13

285 - Logan Brown (McDonogh) over Takai Fearon (Smyrna) Fall 7:16

McDonogh's team score was adjusted by -1.0 for Unsportsmanlike Conduct - 165

SC vs MD - McDonogh

Guaranteed 1st place

Match #1 1st Place Match

McDonogh defeated Sussex Central 67-12

120 - Reid Swirnow (McDonogh) over Celso Perez Arreaga (Sussex Central) TF 17-1

126 - Damian Manna (McDonogh) over Seth Milligan (Sussex Central) Fall 3:54

132 - Wes Baumgartner (McDonogh) over Jaydan Mieth (Sussex Central) Dec 10-8

138 - Mason Comegys (McDonogh) over Mark Everitt (Sussex Central) Fall 3:51

144 - Logan Kahatapitiya (McDonogh) over Camren Baldwin (Sussex Central) Fall 4:53

150 - Cole Genua (McDonogh) over Giovanni Tiano (Sussex Central) Fall 3:07

157 - Blake Taylor (McDonogh) over John Teoli (Sussex Central) TF 16-0

165 - Dominic Manna (McDonogh) over Unknown (Unattached) Forf

175 - Ben Lee (Sussex Central) over Jonathan Afolabi (McDonogh) Fall 2:32

190 - Giuseppe DiMonte (McDonogh) over Pablo Martinez (Sussex Central) Fall 0:29

215 - Cody Nichols (Sussex Central) over Samson Daniel (McDonogh) Fall 0:44

285 - Logan Brown (McDonogh) over Lincoln Moore (Sussex Central) Fall 1:39

106 - Braidyn Taby (McDonogh) over Jonathon Ramirez (Sussex Central) Fall 0:44

113 - Jacob Naylor (McDonogh) over Ivan Rodriguez (Sussex Central) Fall 0:33

GL vs MD - McDonogh

Guaranteed 1st place

Match #1 1st Place Match

McDonogh defeated Glenelg 47-20

126 - Reid Swirnow (McDonogh) over Zach Frattali (Glenelg) Maj 22-11

132 - Phil Key (Glenelg) over Damian Manna (McDonogh) Dec 3-2

138 - Mason Comegys (McDonogh) over Mason Dalton (Glenelg) Fall 2:35

144 - Joey Brought (Glenelg) over Logan Kahatapitiya (McDonogh) Dec 8-2

150 - Cole Genua (McDonogh) over Dwane Morgan Jr. (Glenelg) Fall 4:00

157 - Josh Choi (Glenelg) over Blake Taylor (McDonogh) Dec 8-7

165 - Dominic Manna (McDonogh) over Daniel Bianco (Glenelg) TF 22-6

175 - James McCoy (Glenelg) over Jonathan Afolabi (McDonogh) TF 15-0

190 - Giuseppe DiMonte (McDonogh) over Matthew Garcia (Glenelg) Fall 1:45

215 - Caleb Ladson (Glenelg) over Samson Daniel (McDonogh) Fall 0:28

285 - Logan Brown (McDonogh) over Mason Knapp (Glenelg) Dec 4-0

106 - Braidyn Taby (McDonogh) over Simiel Paper (Glenelg) Fall 0:16

113 - Evan Swirnow (McDonogh) over Aiden Kwok (Glenelg) TF 19-3

120 - Jacob Naylor (McDonogh) over Quinn Hartner (Glenelg) Fall 3:10

LN vs MD - McDonogh

Guaranteed 1st place

Match #1 1st Place Match

McDonogh defeated Linganore 46-24

113 - Jacob Naylor (McDonogh) over Jayden Lassiter (Linganore) Fall 0:47

120 - Reid Swirnow (McDonogh) over Trey Covey (Linganore) Dec 9-4

126 - Damian Manna (McDonogh) over Blake McGee (Linganore) Fall 1:25

132 - Wes Baumgartner (McDonogh) over Ryan Jordan (Linganore) Fall 0:53

138 - Jonathan Rice (Linganore) over Avetis Manukyan (McDonogh) Fall 3:36

144 - Cole Genua (McDonogh) over Lincoln Zirk (Linganore) Maj 13-2

150 - Logan Kahatapitiya (McDonogh) over Will Lambert (Linganore) Dec 10-6

157 - Blake Taylor (McDonogh) over Unknown (Unattached) Forf

165 - Cash Wheat (Linganore) over Dominic Manna (McDonogh) Dec 6-3

175 - Noah Zohrabi (Linganore) over Jonathan Afolabi (McDonogh) Fall 3:21

190 - Giuseppe DiMonte (McDonogh) over Eli Shol (Linganore) Fall 1:15

215 - Titus Misaalefua (Linganore) over Samson Daniel (McDonogh) Fall 1:22

285 - Alex Tortolani (Linganore) over Logan Brown (McDonogh) Dec 7-4

106 - Braidyn Taby (McDonogh) over Nick Gordon (Linganore) Fall 0:38

MD vs BL - McDonogh

Guaranteed 1st place

Match #1 1st Place Match

McDonogh defeated Boys` Latin 61-16

120 - Reid Swirnow (McDonogh) over Robbie Garcia (Boys` Latin) TF 19-4

126 - Damian Manna (McDonogh) over Wynn Gardner (Boys` Latin) Fall 1:34

132 - Cooper Monroe (Boys` Latin) over Amari Bradshaw (McDonogh) Fall 1:09

138 - Wes Baumgartner (McDonogh) over Devon Pringle (Boys` Latin) TF 19-3

144 - Logan Kahatapitiya (McDonogh) over Finn Ladenson (Boys` Latin) Dec 3-2

150 - Cole Genua (McDonogh) over Jayden Camilleri-Delgado (Boys` Latin) Fall 0:35

157 - Blake Taylor (McDonogh) over Unknown (Unattached) Forf

165 - Dominic Manna (McDonogh) over Unknown (Unattached) Forf

175 - Jay Greene (Boys` Latin) over Jonathan Afolabi (McDonogh) Maj 15-3

190 - Giuseppe DiMonte (McDonogh) over Jack Farrell (Boys` Latin) Fall 0:37

215 - Keno Brown (Boys` Latin) over Samson Daniel (McDonogh) Fall 0:34

285 - Logan Brown (McDonogh) over Neil Farrell (Boys` Latin) Fall 1:12

106 - Braidyn Taby (McDonogh) over Unknown (Unattached) Forf

113 - Jacob Naylor (McDonogh) over Unknown (Unattached) Forf

BW vs MD - McDonogh

Guaranteed 1st place

Match #1 1st Place Match

McDonogh defeated Brunswick 59-16

132 - Damian Manna (McDonogh) over Chase Sofley (Brunswick) TF 21-5

138 - Wes Baumgartner (McDonogh) over Cayden Boedecker (Brunswick) Fall 0:40

144 - Cole Genua (McDonogh) over Colby Moore (Brunswick) Fall 1:41

150 - Seth Crawford (Brunswick) over Logan Kahatapitiya (McDonogh) TF 15-0

157 - CJ Watts (Brunswick) over Blake Taylor (McDonogh) Fall 5:20

165 - Dominic Manna (McDonogh) over Jaden Casey (Brunswick) TF 18-3

175 - Jonathan Afolabi (McDonogh) over Unknown (Unattached) Forf

190 - Giuseppe DiMonte (McDonogh) over Benjamin Guyton (Brunswick) Maj 12-0

215 - Dorran Charles (Brunswick) over Samson Daniel (McDonogh) Fall 0:20

285 - Logan Brown (McDonogh) over Lane Riggleman (Brunswick) Maj 11-2

106 - Braidyn Taby (McDonogh) over Unknown (Unattached) Forf

113 - Evan Swirnow (McDonogh) over Unknown (Unattached) Forf

120 - Jacob Naylor (McDonogh) over Unknown (Unattached) Forf

126 - Reid Swirnow (McDonogh) over Gabriel Belcher (Brunswick) TF 30-14

Brunswick's team score was adjusted by -1.0 for Unsportsmanlike Conduct - Coach

Brunswick's team score was adjusted by 0.0 for Coach Misconduct

SD vs MD - McDonogh

Guaranteed 1st place

Match #1 1st Place Match

McDonogh defeated Stephen Decatur 60-18

138 - Elijah Collick (Stephen Decatur) over Avetis Manukyan (McDonogh) Fall 1:22

144 - Logan Kahatapitiya (McDonogh) over Tim McCormick (Stephen Decatur) Fall 3:42

150 - Cole Genua (McDonogh) over Levi McDaniel (Stephen Decatur) Fall 1:16

157 - Blake Taylor (McDonogh) over James Timmons (Stephen Decatur) Fall 0:32

165 - Dominic Manna (McDonogh) over Alex Riehl (Stephen Decatur) Fall 2:34

175 - Braydon Bell (Stephen Decatur) over Jonathan Afolabi (McDonogh) Fall 5:36

190 - Peter Snyder (Stephen Decatur) over Unknown (Unattached) Forf

215 - Giuseppe DiMonte (McDonogh) over Price Hill (Stephen Decatur) Fall 1:40

285 - Logan Brown (McDonogh) over Malakai Mason (Stephen Decatur) Dec 2-0

106 - Braidyn Taby (McDonogh) over Kyle Wilson (Stephen Decatur) Fall 2:38

113 - Jacob Naylor (McDonogh) over Gavin McBride (Stephen Decatur) Fall 0:21

120 - Reid Swirnow (McDonogh) over Paulo Mena-Weber (Stephen Decatur) Maj 15-6

126 - Damian Manna (McDonogh) over Juan Valenzuela (Stephen Decatur) Fall 0:46

132 - Wes Baumgartner (McDonogh) over Tanner Intrieri (Stephen Decatur) TF 15-0

LY vs MD - McDonogh

Guaranteed 1st place

Match #1 1st Place Match

McDonogh defeated Loyola-Blakefield 0-0

144 - Unknown (Unattached) vs Unknown (Unattached)

150 - Unknown (Unattached) vs Unknown (Unattached)

157 - Unknown (Unattached) vs Unknown (Unattached)

165 - Unknown (Unattached) vs Unknown (Unattached)

175 - Unknown (Unattached) vs Unknown (Unattached)

190 - Unknown (Unattached) vs Unknown (Unattached)

215 - Unknown (Unattached) vs Unknown (Unattached)

285 - Unknown (Unattached) vs Unknown (Unattached)

106 - Unknown (Unattached) vs Unknown (Unattached)

113 - Unknown (Unattached) vs Unknown (Unattached)

120 - Unknown (Unattached) vs Unknown (Unattached)

126 - Unknown (Unattached) vs Unknown (Unattached)

132 - Unknown (Unattached) vs Unknown (Unattached)

138 - Unknown (Unattached) vs Unknown (Unattached)

McDonogh's team score was adjusted by 1.0 for Loyola Forfeit