Regional Wrestling Championships: Seidel & Trostle Win Huge Matches to Take Gold – Full LebCo Results

This time of year, the path to the PIAA State Wrestling Championships gets a little confusing for casual observers. Last weekend, the AAA Regionals took place, qualifying athletes from large schools for Hershey. Another event that took place last weekend was the District 3 Championships for the AA schools. That event qualified seven wrestlers from Annville-Cleona and Northern Lebanon for the opportunity to wrestle at the Southeast Regional Wrestling Championship that was held at Bethlehem’s Freedom High School on Friday and Saturday.

At this weekend’s Regional Championships, five LebCo wrestlers earned medals. Of that group, Northern Lebanon’s Aaron Seidel led the way with his third straight Regional Championship, this time defeating last year’s 121-pound State Champion in the Finals. Teammate Sam Wolford had an impressive performance and finished with a silver medal. Both young men have qualified for next week’s PIAA State Championship.

The Boys were not the only wrestlers in action this weekend, as the Girls held their first-ever PIAA South Central Regional Championship. LebCo Wrestlers earned four medals at the event, including a gold won by ELCO’s Kylee Trostle. Her exciting win in the 112-pound weight class finally got her past rival, Journie Rodriguez of McCaskey, whom she had lost to the last two times they met. The performance qualified Trostle for States.

The PIAA Championships begin on Thursday, as Seidel, Wolford, and Trostle are all looking poised to bring home hardware by the time the event concludes on Saturday.

Below are brief recaps of each of the performances by each of our local wrestlers at this weekend’s championships.

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South Central Regionals – Girls

The inaugural South Central Girls Wrestling Regional Championships were held at Penn Manor on Saturday. The event welcomed athletes from 44 teams, each competing to make it onto the podium and possibly with a top-four finish that would qualify them for the PIAA State Championships.

ELCO

The Raiders only have one female wrestler, but they have a Regional gold medalist. Freshman Kylee Trostle, after spending most of the season wrestling against boys is now headed to Hershey to compete for a State Championship. She was able to climb to the top of the podium after overcoming her rival, someone she is likely to see again next weekend.

Team Finish: 26th

1st  Kylee Trostle (112 pounds) – After finishing with silver at Leagues and Sectionals, the freshman tore through her opening round with a 13-1 major decision. Trostle then won her semifinal matchup with a 9-2 decision over Manheim Township’s Isabella Baccio. This set up a Finals match with McCaskey’s Journie Rodriguez. Trostle had previously lost to Rodriguez in exciting matches in two prior meetings when they met at the aforementioned championship tournaments. Trostle struck first with a takedown but trailed 6-2 at the end of the 1st period. In the 2nd and 3rd periods, Trostle had a pair of takedowns that would even the score. A third takedown in sudden victory gave Trostle the victory. Now a Regional Champion, Trostle will go to Hershey primed to make a run.

Lebanon

The Cedars had two medalists at Regionals, with both Isabella Poole Martinez (Fr.) and Staisy Martinez Severino (Sr.) narrowly missing out on States.

Team Finish: 20th

5th   Isabella Poole Martinez (100 pounds) –The freshman won her first tournament match by pinning Big Spring’s Emma Barrick in the quarterfinals. Poole Martinez then lost in the semifinals in a 2-0 decision. After losing in consolations, she then entered the 5th place match, winning with a convincing 8-1 decision over Gettysburg’s Taylor Keckler. Poole Martinez finishes her season with a 24-9 record.

5th     Staisy Martinez Severino (130 pounds) – The senior earned a 9-0 major decision in her first match of the tournament. She then lost in the quarterfinals but then pinned opponents in her next two matches. After being defeated in the consolation semifinals, Martinez Severino was given a chance to wrestle for 5th place. In the medal round, she pinned Exeter’s Molly Lubenow at the 2:54 mark. Martinez Severino finishes her season as a Regional medalist after touting a 30-8 record.

Palmyra 

The Cougars entered two sophomore into Regionals, Shayla Carl and Riley Zettlemoyer. When the wrestling was complete, Carl had battled her way onto the podium.

Team Finish: 28th

5th     Shayla Carl (148 pounds) – After finishing 3rd at Sectionals, the sophomore began Regionals by pinning CD East’s Eva-Cruz Germain in just :34. In the quarterfinals, she lost but came back in consolations to win two straight matches by pinning her opponents in :29 and :50. In the consolation semifinals, Carl lost a 4-0 decision. This put her in the 5th place match, which she won via a forfeit. Carl finished the season on the podium with a 20-7 record.

NP   Riley Zettlemoyer (112 pounds) – The sophomore lost her opening round match before battling back in consolations with a 3-2 decision over Big Spring’s Evelyn Hippensteel. She then lost on an 8-5 decision in her next round, thus ended her season. Zettlemoyer finished with a 23-10 record.

Girls Wrestling: Sectional Results

Boys Wrestling: Previous Weekend’s Results

Southeast Regionals – Boys (AA)

The AA Southeast Regional Wrestling Championships took place at Bethlehem’s Freedom High School on Friday and Saturday. Attending the event were wrestlers from 54 schools. The top six wrestlers from each weight class qualified for the PIAA State Championships.

Annville-Cleona

The Dutchmen qualified two wrestler for Regionals. Only Oliver Funck (So.) was available for the event and earned an 8th place medal for Annville.

Team Finish: 40th

8th   Oliver Funck* (121 pounds) – The sophomore started the tournament with an exciting 5-4 victory over Pope John Paul II’s Brady Pires. In the match, Funck had a successful 2nd period to wear down his opponent on the way to the victory. In the quarterfinals, Funck had the daunting task of facing Aaron Seidel. Following the loss, Funck rebounded and took another 3-2 decision, this time in sudden victory. The victory placed him in the 7th place match, in which he lost 11-2 to Trinity’s Noah Aubert. Finishing with an 8th place medal, Funck concluded his sophomore campaign with a 29-19 record.

NP   Liam Pulaski* (145 pounds) – The senior forfeited both of his matches, finishing the season with a 20-22 record.

Northern Lebanon

Following the success of last week’s District 3 Championships, Northern Lebanon carried five wrestlers into the Southeast Regional Championships. Their party was made up of Aaron Seidel (Jr.), Sam Wolford (So.), Karter Adams (So.), Julian Zaragoza (Sr.) and Hayden Adams (Jr.). When all of the wrestling was complete, the Seidel walked away with gold for the third straight year, while Wolford earned silver. As a result, Northern Lebanon will have both of them return to States.

Team Finish: 7th

1st   Aaron Seidel* (121 pounds) – Aiming for his third straight Regional championshiop, the junior grappler made quick work of Annville’s Oliver Funck on Friday night. On Saturday, he faced Jeffrey Spofford in the semifinals, a match Seidel won with a pin at the 1:34 mark. He had a tough test in the Finals as he was matched up against Faith Christian’s Gauge Botero, the defending 121-pound State Champion, in what may be a preview of this year’s State Finals. Seidel did not back down from the challenge made by the junior who is committed to Michigan, taking him down three times on the way to a 7-0 decision. Seidel is now 48-1 on the season and looks poised to repeat as State Champion.

2nd  Samuel Wolford* (107 pounds) – After winning Districts, the sophomore was looking to improve upon his 4th place finish at last year’s Regional Championships. He began his quest on Friday with an 18-2 tech fall over Bishop McDevitt’s Braiden Lotier. On Saturday, he pulled out a 7-6 decision over Conwell-Egan’s Thomas Boyce, a match that was decided when Wolford executed a late escape. In the Finals, Wolford was matched up against Faith Christian’s Joey Bachmann, an undefeated freshman. Despite a great effort, Wolford was defeated in a 3-2 decision. Earning silver, Wolford will return to States for the second straight year. His season record is now 40-5, as he looks to improve upon that mark next week at Hershey.

7th   Hayden Adams (285 pounds) – Following his 7th place finish at Districts, the junior entered Regionals with hopes of making the podium. He started the tournament on Friday with a win 5-2 decision. In the quarterfinals, the heavyweight was pinned by a wrestler from Big Spring. After moving into the consolations, Adams won his next match before dropping his final match before the medal round. In the 7th place match, Adams won a 7-4 decision over Northern Lehigh’s Sam Frame. Adams finishes his season with a medal at Regionals and a 37-19 overall record.

8th   Karter Adams (127 pounds) – The sophomore finished 4th at Districts to advance to Regionals in his first postseason. He started this tournament with an exciting 8-6 sudden victory. Adams then lost his next match on Friday night. In the consolations, he began Saturday with a win before losing in another sudden victory match. In the 7th place match, Adams battled but lost to Saucon Valley’s Aiden Grogg. Reaching the podium with an 8th-place finish, Adams completed his season with a 35-14 record.

NP   Julian Zaragoza* (114 pounds) – The senior won his first match by pinning Bristol Evan Blackman. Zaragoza then lost in the quarterfinals to Newport’s Roman Polcha and then the consolation match that followed. Zaragoza missed out on the medal round, bringing a close to a successful senior year where he finished 35-16.

* indicates qualification for PIAA State Championship

Girls Wrestling: Sectional Results