Teasdale’s 1st defeat comes in title match
Late takedown results in first loss of senior’s career
Tri-State Sports & News Service
It wasn’t the matchup WPIAL fans were hoping for. And it wasn’t the result they were hoping for.
Fans packed CanonMcMillan’s gym to see if Jefferson-Morgan senior Gavin Teasdale would win a fourth title at the Powerade Christmas tournament, which concluded Saturday. They were expecting to see Teasdale face North Hills sophomore Sam Hillegas in the 126pound final, as both were unbeaten in their career. And both were PIAA champions.
Wyoming Seminary sophomore Beau Bartlett spoiled the show by upsetting both. He posted a 2-0 win over Hillegas in the semifinals, then defeated Teasdale, a threetime PIAA champion, 4-3, in the title match. Bartlett, who was named the Outstanding Wrestler, recorded two takedowns, including the deciding one with 26 seconds left.
The loss ends Teasdale’s quest to become the sixth wrestler in PIAA history to finish his career unbeaten and untied. He now has a 134-1 career record.
Teasdale was one of eight WPIAL wrestlers who advanced to the finals. Only two won titles.
The only weight class that featured two WPIAL finalists was at 120. CanonMcMillan’s Logan Macri scored a takedown 14 seconds into overtime to pull out a 3-1 victory over Seneca Valley’s Louis Newell in a battle of the top two seeds.
Norwin sophomore Kurtis Phipps became the second member of his family to wrestle in the finals. His older brother Drew claimed the 195pound title in 2015. Kurtis followed in his brother’s footsteps by winning the 106pound crown with a 3-2 overtimewin against Will Guida of St. Paul’s, Md. The bout went to the ultimate tiebreaker and Phippsrode out Guida.
“My training was the difference,” Phipps said. “You never want to have a match go to the ultimate tiebreaker, but you have to be ready for the possibility.”
Hempfield senior Luke Kemerer advanced to the 145-pound final, but dropped a 4-2 decision to top seed Frankie Gissendanner of Pennfield, N.Y.
“I need to do a better job of finishing my shots,” said Kemerer, who came up short on three single-leg shot attempts. “I thought I had a takedown before the final buzzer, but the referee didn’t agree.”
Belle Vernon senior Zach Hartman made his third appearance in the finals and had to settle for a third silver medal. Hartman, the No. 2 seed, lost, 4-1, to top seed Carter Starocci of Erie Prep in the 160-pound final.
“Even if I didn’t get a gold medal, I still learned this weekend,” Hartman said. “That’s the way I approach every tournament.”
Waynesburg senior Kyle Homet was the top seed at 170, butcame up one point short in his title match against Chestnut Ridge’s Jared McGill, the No. 2 seed. Homet dropped a 43decision.
Albert Gallatin senior Tim Wallace lost, 7-4, in the 182-pound final to Mifflin County’s Trent Hidlay, who claimed a second consecutive title.