Featuring photos by Susan Dengler (Owlcatraz Photography)
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For our Girls Wrestlers, the road to Hershey began on Friday with all six Lebanon County teams in action across three venues for their respective Sectional Championships. Annville-Cleona and ELCO wrestled at Susquenita for Section 4, Cedar Crest competed at Governor Mifflin for Section 1, and Lebanon, Northern Lebanon, and Palmyra were at Mechanicsburg for Section 3.
When all was said and done, Lebanon County wrestlers made plenty of noise across the three sites — 4 LebCo athletes claimed gold, 25 reached the podium with top-six finishes, and with only the top four advancing, 19 LebCo wrestlers extended their seasons into the Regional Champion round.
Leading the way were four champions who set the tone for the weekend. Kylee Trostle of ELCO continued her reign at 112-pounds, as the junior captured her third straight Section Championship. Cedar Crest delivered two titles of its own, led by Lily Harchuska, a sophomore who repeated as champ at 124-pounds, and Lilliana Bohn, who earned gold at 155-pounds. Northern Lebanon’s Anna Lanka also repeated as a champion, with the junior again standing atop the podium at 130-pounds.
Beyond the gold medalists, Lebanon County stacked plenty of additional top-four finishes to punch more tickets to the next round. Annville-Cleona was led by Kora Wolfe (3rd). ELCO added a strong group of qualifiers in Lorelai Boehler (2nd), Ava Stewart (3rd), Nevaeh Fischer (4th), and Maracelys Morales Sanchez (4th), while Lebanon advanced two more with Isabella Poole Martinez (3rd) and Nataliah Rodriguez (3rd). Cedar Crest’s qualifier list continued with Madelyn Shanfelder (2nd), Vanessa Yiengst (3rd), and Sophia Ventura (4th), and Northern Lebanon added two more alongside its champion in Dakota Dengler (2nd) and Sophia Opazo (4th). Palmyra rounded out the list with three qualifiers — Riley Zettlemoyer (3rd), Cadence Manney (3rd), and Cala Hipple (4th) — giving LebCo a deep, multi-team presence moving on.
Beyond the qualifiers, Lebanon County added six more medalists who finished 5th or 6th: Julie Goss (5th), Chloe Taylor (6th), Aaliyah Gill (5th), Johbrianna Long (5th), Reminisce Perez (5th), and Rebecca Hilton (6th) — while Cedar Crest’s impressive 3rd-place team finish helped set the tone for a big day across the county.
Team-wise, Cedar Crest led the county with an impressive 3rd-place finish at the Section 1 Championships, fueled by two individual titles and a deep medal haul. ELCO also put together a strong day to place 5th at Section 4, while Northern Lebanon finished 5th at Section 3 with a champion, a runner-up, and multiple additional medalists. Palmyra added a 10th-place finish at Section 3 behind three qualifiers, Lebanon placed 13th at Section 3 with a pair of bronze medalists, and Annville-Cleona rounded out the team standings at 17th in Section 4.
The South Central Regional Championships will take place in two weeks on Saturday, February 28th at Manheim Township High School. There, wrestlers will battle for their chance to advance to the PIAA State Championships.
Below are team-by-team recaps.
Team Finish: 17th
Section 4 — Susquenita High School
Annville’s best push came at 136-pounds, where Kora Wolfe turned an early setback into a statement run. After falling in the quarterfinals, she tore through the consolation bracket, won a 7-4 (SV) consolation semifinal, then clinched 3rd with a 9-4 decision in the 3rd-place bout — earning both a medal and a ticket to Regionals.
At 148-pounds, Julie Goss added another medal by finishing 5th, capped by a 1:21 pin in the placement match after reaching the championship semifinals earlier in the bracket. Annville also picked up notable match wins from Paige Stoltz, Lillian Manwiller, and Joanna Roserie.
Team Finish: 3rd
Section 1 — Governor Mifflin High School
Cedar Crest’s 3rd-place team finish was powered by two champions — starting at 124-pounds with Lily Harchuska, a sophomore who repeated as Section champion. She pinned her way through the early rounds, then sealed the title with a 5:31 fall in the finals.
The Falcons crowned another champion at 155-pounds, where Lilliana Bohn finished the run with a dramatic 13-12 decision in the championship match. Cedar Crest also qualified three more wrestlers: at 142-pounds, Madelyn Shanfelder reached the finals to place 2nd; at 136-pounds, Vanessa Yiengst rebounded after the semifinals and won the 3rd-place bout by fall; and at 235-pounds, Sophia Ventura reached the 3rd-place match and finished 4th to advance.
Cedar Crest’s remaining medalist was at 148-pounds, where Aaliyah Gill battled through wrestlebacks and finished 5th.
Anna Lanka battles for gold
Team Finish: 5th
Section 4 — Susquenita High School
ELCO’s day was built around a championship performance at 112-pounds from Kylee Trostle, a junior who secured her third straight Section title. She opened with a quick fall, controlled the quarterfinal, punched her way into the finals with a pin, and finished it off with a 1:25 fall for gold.
The Raiders stacked more qualifiers across the bracket: at 100-pounds, Lorelai Boehler reached the finals with a big quarterfinal win and a tight 12-10 semifinal before finishing 2nd; at 118-pounds, Ava Stewart bounced back after the semis to claim 3rd, capped by a 4:08 pin in the 3rd-place bout; at 155-pounds, Nevaeh Fischer fought through to a top-four finish to qualify; and at 235-pounds, Maracelys Morales Sanchez battled back to the 3rd-place match and finished 4th to advance.
ELCO’s medal depth also included a 6th-place finish at 136-pounds from Chloe Taylor, while additional match wins helped the team total from Gabrielle Zimmerman, Alexis Strasz, and Madelyn Zimmerman.
Team Finish: 13th
Section 3 — Mechanicsburg High School
Lebanon’s points came from two bronze-medal finishes — and both landed in the top four to qualify. At 100-pounds, Isabella Poole Martinez opened with a quarterfinal tech fall, then after a semifinal loss, worked back into the placement round and closed with a 15-0 tech fall in the 3rd-place match.
At 235-pounds, Nataliah Rodriguez reached the semifinals, then responded with a strong wrestleback to secure 3rd, capped by a 1:51 fall in the placement bout. Those two podium runs carried the Cedars’ finish in a competitive Section 3 field.
Poole Martinez fights through an opponent on her way to bronze
Coach Black looks on as his wrestler battles
Team Finish: 5th
Section 3 — Mechanicsburg High School
Northern Lebanon’s top-end was led by another title run at 130-pounds from Anna Lanka, a junior who repeated as Section champion. She controlled her way to the finals and finished the championship bout with an 11-6 decision to take gold.
The Vikings added two more qualifiers in the upper weights and the lightest class: at 148-pounds, Dakota Denglerreached the finals and finished 2nd; and at 100-pounds, Sophia Opazo battled through consolations to reach the 3rd-place match and secure a top-four finish.
Northern Lebanon’s medal depth included a 5th-place finish at 124-pounds from Joby Long, who hit her 50th career win milestone along the way, plus 5th at 136-pounds from Reminisce Perez and 6th at 155-pounds from Rebecca Hilton.
Team Finish: 10th
Section 3 — Mechanicsburg High School
Palmyra qualified three wrestlers, led by a standout bronze run at 118-pounds from Riley Zettlemoyer. She delivered one of the tournament’s most memorable wins in the quarterfinals, pushing a match into triple overtime (tied 6-6 after regulation) before pulling away 10-6, then responded after the semis to finish 3rd — and in the process notched her 75th career win.
At 130-pounds, freshman Cadence Manney bounced back from the semifinals and pinned her way to 3rd place. Palmyra’s third qualifier came at 112-pounds, where Cala Hipple opened with a fall, then fought back through consolations to reach the 3rd-place match and finish 4th to advance.
Manney muscled through opponents to take third place
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