Wrestling: LebCo Teams Compete at Holiday Tournaments – Full Recap

It was a busy holiday season for our LebCo wrestlers. Below is a team-by-team breakdown of their performance. Of note, there were some tournament champions, with none being bigger than Northern Lebanon’s Aaron Seidel winning the Beast of the East prior to Christmas. Additonally, teammate Sam Wolford and ELCO’s Zane Trostle achieved the 100-win milestone for their careers.

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Boys

The Dutchmen took part in the Newport Holiday Tournament on Saturday, December 28th. Overall, it was a successful day, with Annville-Cleona finishing 2nd out of the seven teams who competed.

Oliver Funck was Annville’s top finisher as the junior took gold at 127 pounds. In the championship match, Funck won via a 10-1 major decision over Harrisburg’s Malik Popoola. He is now 9-1 to start the season.

There was also a trio of Dutchmen wrestlers who earned silver: Jayden Jorge (107#), Blaine Leitz (172#), and Jaxon Speece (285#). John White (114#), Devon Englehart (133#), Blake Meyer (160#), and Jordan Nickens (189#) were bronze medal winners. Finishing with 4th place medals were Aedan Castka (121#), Clayton Kreider (145#), and Kaidavin Ginting (215#).

Girls

The Annville-Cleona Girls took part in the Governor Mifflin Girls Tournament on December 27th & 28th. As a team, the Dutchmen placed 15th out of twenty-one.

Leading the way for Annville was Kora Wolfe, who took 3rd place at 136 pounds. In the medal round, Wolfe pinned Reading’s Kaly Gonzalez. It was one of two pins that Wolfe had in the tournament. The freshman is now 8-5 on the season.

The Dutchmen brought two more medals home, with freshman Savannah Millan taking 5th at 155 pounds and sophomore Julie Goss claiming 8th place in the 142-pound division.

Boys

The Falcons were in action at the Jim Thorpe Christmas Tournament, which took place on December 27th & 28th. As a team, Cedar Crest finished 24th.

Landyn Kline was stopped just short of contending for a medal as the junior went 3-2 competing in the 189-pound division. His wins included a pin and a 20-3 tech fall.

Sophomore Aidan Smith won two matches at 139 pounds. His victories included a pin and a 21-5 tech fall.

Girls

The Cedar Crest Girls were in action on Saturday, December 21st BAGUBA Brawl, hosted by Elizabethtown. Of the thirty teams in action, the Falcons finished 14th.

Earning gold with an impressive performance was Lily Harchuska. Wrestling at 136 pounds, the freshman went 4-0 on her climb to the top of the podium. In the championship, Harchuska defeated North Penn’s Godie Hart, pinning her opponent 1:36 into the match.

Madelyn Schanfelder, also a freshman, went 5-1 in the tournament wrestling at 142 pounds. She is now 12-2 on the season.

Boys

After going 5-0 at the Raider Duals on December 21st, ELCO’s wrestlers were back in action at the MyHouse Trojan Wars held at Chambersburg High School on December 28th & 29th. Following a large number of successful performances, the Raiders finished 10th in the team standings out of the forty-seven team field.

Two Raiders finished with silver medals, as senior Kyle Miller and freshman Kane Kline both battled their way to the championship finals before suffering their only losses of the tournament. Miller, wrestling at 215 pounds, finished 4-1 with a pin and a major decision, improving his record to 18-4 this season. The 114-pound Kline also went 4-1, adding a 21-5 tech fall and two major decisions to the impressive 21-3 start to his varsity career.

Miller and Kline were not the only athletes who brought hardware back to Myerstown. Junior Ashton Kriss went 5-2 on his way to claiming 5th place in the 133-pound division. Sophomore Klint Miller went 4-2 at 160 pounds to take 7th place.

Also taking 7th was senior Zane Trostle, who went 5-2, competing at 121 pounds. For Trostle, his win in the medal round, a 12-9 decision over Northern York’s Braden Wivell, was the 100th of his varsity career.

Girls

The ELCO Girls traveled on December 21st to take part in the Big Spring Bulldog Tournament. They finished the day placing 11th out of the twenty teams in attendance.

Kylee Trostle headlined the performance by the Raiders, finishing with gold around her neck. The sophomore finished the tournament going 3-0 (all pins) to take the 112-pound weight class. After finishing 6th in the State as a freshman, Trostle has begun this season with a 9-0 record.

In the 100-pound division, sophomore Eleanor Musser finished in 4th place. Claiming 5th place medals for ELCO were Lorelai Boehler (100 #) and Kierra Sholl (124#). Also earning medals were Olive Brubaker (106#) and Maracelys Morales Sanchez (235#), each finishing 6th.

Boys

The Cedars traveled to Lancaster County to take part in the Donegal Holiday Tournament on December 27th & 28th.

Derryck Brickle finished the tournament with a 5-2 record, earning 5th place at 285 pounds. In the medal round, Brickle pinned West York’s Carter McClain less than two minutes into the match. The junior is now 9-4 to start the season.

Juan Ramos Vazquez, Wyatt Clawser, and Maicol Rivera also won multiple matches for Lebanon.

Girls

The Lebanon Girls finished 20th in the thirty team field at the BAGUBA Brawl, hosted by Elizabethtown on Saturday, December 20th.

Leading the way for the Cedars was Isabella Poole Martinez, finishing 3rd in the 100-pound weight class. In the tournament, the sophomore went 3-1, improving her record to 7-2 this season.

Boys

Prior to Christmas, a contingent from Northern Lebanon traveled to the University of Delaware to take part in the prestigious Beast of the East Tournament. This event drew wrestlers representing 176 schools from all over the eastern half of the country and as far away as Utah.

Last year, Aaron Seidel finished as the runner-up at 120 pounds. This year, Seidel threw aside the runner-up status, going 7-0 and claiming the 132-pound title. In the seven matches, Seidel was beyond impressive, winning via four tech falls, a pin, and a forfeit. In the championship match, he earned a 4-0 decision over Tyler Dekraker of Chantilly, Virginia, a junior who is already committed to Ohio State.

Sam Wolford also put forth a strong showing, going 4-2 while competing at 113 pounds. The junior, who took 4th at the PIAA State Championships last year, had an impressive 17-1 tech fall victory over Malvern Prep’s Brendan Kelly, who finished 3rd in the State last season among prep school wrestlers.

2024 Beast of the East Champion 132 Pounds#beastwrestling#beastoftheeast pic.twitter.com/SjNIzvqWsl

— BeastWrestling (@beastwrestling7) December 22, 2024

The Vikings then competed at the Bethlehem Holiday Classic Championship, held at Liberty High School on December 28th & 29th. As a team, they claimed 7th place overall.

Seidel headlined the tournament, cruising to his 4th Bethlehem Holiday Classic Championship, and was named the tournament’s Outstanding Wrestler. Going 5-0 in the 133-pound weight class, Seidel won his match by pinning his first opponent, followed by tech falls in the next three matches (22-5, 21-6, 27-9). In the gold medal match, Seidel defeated Gabriel Ballard of Northampton, notching a 16-2 major decision. The Virginia Tech commit and three-time State Champ is now 15-0 to start the season.

Seidel was not alone in claiming gold, as Wolford also climbed to the top of the podium. Wolford went 5-0, improving to 12-2 on the season and also eclipsing the 100 win milestone for his career. His two wins prior to the championship match came via tech falls, defeating his opponents 20-3 and 17-0. In the finals, he earned a 7-3 decision over Emilio Albanese of Emmaus.

Two other Vikings earned hardware in the tournament, helping to bolster the team’s ranking. Senior Karter Adams placed 6th in the 127-pound weight class after being forced to forfeit his remaining matches after beginning the tournament with three straight wins. At 285 pounds, senior Hayden Adams claimed 7th place after going 4-2 and pinning Nazereth’s Jacob Cozze in the medal round.

Girls

The Northern Lebanon Girls competed in the TWC Jingle Bell Battle Dual held at York Suburban High School on December 21st. In five head-to-head matches, the Vikings won two with victories over Northeastern and Red Lion.

Sadie Ostermayer had a great day, going 5-0. The senior had four contested matches, defeating each of her opponents by pinfall. Freshman Dakota Dengler won three matches, two of which were contested, winning each by pinning her opponent.

Boys

After starting the season with a 7-1 record in duals, the Cougars traveled to Chambersburg to compete at the MyHouse Trojan Wars on December 28th & 29th. As a team, Palmyra placed 27th out of forty-seven.

Jason Foutz was the top finisher for the black and orange, claiming 4th place in the 107-pound weight class. The senior began the tournament with three straight pins before losing via decision to a wrestler from Downingtown West. However, Foutz recovered by winning a sudden victory (overtime) over his opponent from Skyline, Virginia. In the medal round, he fought hard but lost a decision to Trinity’s Camron Smith. With his victories, Foutz improved his season record to 14-3.

Freshman Trevor Carl, competing at 133 pounds, dropped his first match of the tournament before winning four straight, including two major decisions and a pin. After losing a tight match to ELCO’s Ashton Kriss, Carl finished the event with a 9-8 victory in the 7th-place match.

Aaron Andrew rounded out Palmyra’s medal haul, taking 8th place at 152 pounds. The junior finished the event with a 4-3 record. Fellow freshman Nick Gordon finished just out of medal contention, going 3-2.

Girls

The Palmyra Girls took part in Elizabethtown’s BAGUBA Brawl on Saturday, December 20th, finishing 19th out of the thirty teams in competition.

Shayla Carl finished 3rd in the 148-pound weight class. The junior went 3-1 on the day, with all three of her victories coming via pins. In the bronze medal match, Carl pinned her opponent from Carlisle in just thirty-one seconds. She is now 7-3 on the season.

Junior Riley Zettlemoyer also medaled for the Cougars, finishing 5th in the 118-pound weight class. She finished the tournament with a 5-1 record in four of her matches, with her pinning her opponents, the fastest of which came forty-five seconds into the match. Zettlemoyer is 9-3 to start the season.