TRAIL BLAZER
Daniel Boone’s Tucker Hogan becomes school’s first state champion; OJR’s Dillon Bechtold silver at 215; Boyertown’s Sheridan medals
HERSHEY >> Tucker Hogan’s perfect ending to a perfect season was enough to bring tears to his father’s eyes.
Hogan became the first Daniel Boone wrestler to win a state championship Saturday night, defeating Cole Bartram of Northern York 4-0 in the Class 3A 189-pound championship bout at the PIAA Wrestling Championships in Giant Center.
Hogan, who finished his junior season with a 44-0 record, smiled when his hand was raised, signifying the biggest individual victory in school history. He showed little else in emotion when he walked over to shake the hand of Northern coach Kyle Koser and jogged back to hug his father and head coach, Jim Hogan.
“I think it’s a little disrespectful if I would have celebrated too much,” Tucker Hogan said. “I know they put in just as much work as I do.”
Jim Hogan wasn’t showing up anyone, but his emotions flowed after draping the gold medal around his son’s neck that completed the long climb to the top for Tucker Hogan and the Daniel Boone program.
“I’ve been dreaming about this,” Jim Hogan said. “It’s awesome. The kid’s great, he works hard and it finally paid off.”
While Hogan’s championship dream came to fruition, a bout later Owen J. Roberts junior Dillon Bechtold saw his made to wait for another year.
Bechtold ran into nationally-ranked Virginia Tech commit Sonny Sasso of Nazareth and took a 7-5 setback to settle for silver.
“It’s really tough,” said Bechtold. “I was really close. That’s been my goal. I’ve been saying to myself ‘215-pound state champ’ to myself every morning so to get that close definitely hurts.”
Hogan and Bechtold headlined a group of eight Mercury-area wrestlers to earn 3A medals on the final day of the three-day tournament. Daniel Boone’s Dean Houser placed fifth at 121 to become a two-time medalist,
Owen J. Roberts also sent junior Sam Gautreau (fourth at 152) and freshman Dean Bechtold (sixth at 189) to the medal stand, Perkiomen Valley garnered two medalists, Gavin Pascoe (seventh at 160) and Max Tancini (sixth at 107), and Boyertown’s Gavin Sheridan scored his first medal by placing seventh at 133.
As the emotion of the moment overcame Jim Hogan, he said he wasn’t surprised by the way his son handled becoming Berks County’s first state champion in six years.
“That’s how he is,” Jim Hogan said. “He’s humble. He’s a great kid. I’m proud of him. It all came together. It’s something I’ll never forget. I hope he feels the way I feel.”
After finishing third last season at 172 pounds, Tucker Hogan was dominant throughout the tournament. He scored three technical falls and allowed only two points in four bouts.
Tucker Hogan left no doubt in the semifinals Saturday morning, defeating OJR’s Dean Bechtold by technical fall, racking up a 16-0 lead a year after a onepoint loss prevented Hogan from reaching the finals. He hasn’t lost since. “After that I was a little bit upset,” Tucker Hogan said. “I came into the season with a little bit of a chip on my shoulder, kind of wrestling with an edge
just because I knew what I wanted at the end of the year and I’d do anything to get there.”
The semifinal victory made Tucker Hogan Daniel Boone’s first state finalist
since John Clemens finished second in Class 2A in 1982. But Hogan made the step to the top with a workmanlike effort against Bartram, who had given Hogan one of his toughest matches
of the season.
Hogan defeated Bartram 5-3 two weeks earlier to earn his second straight District 3 title.
“Bartram is a good opponent, a tough guy,” Tucker Hogan said. “But I know what I’m capable of. I knew no matter who I wrestled I was ready for him.”
Hogan and Bartram battled through a scoreless first period before Hogan scored a reversal early in the second for a 2-0 lead.
Because he was unable to work off the bottom, Bartram chose to start the third period in the neutral position. Hogan scored a takedown 40 seconds into the third for a 4-0 lead and stayed in control the rest of the way.
“We finally got one for Daniel Boone,” Jim Hogan said. “It’s good. I’m proud of him as a father and a coach.”
Houser (40-8) received a forfeit in his fifth-place bout because Warwick’s Marco Tocci was unable to wrestle due to an injury he sustained in the consolation semifinals. It was the second state medal for Houser, who placed sixth last season.
“Placing again is pleasing, but it’s still not what I wanted,” said Houser. “I’m not satisfied with it. I’m definitely going to be working really hard this offseason to take the title.”
Becthold had mowed down the competition this winter, marauding his way to Escape the Rock, PAC, District 1-North and Southeast Regional championships.
The margins tightened at states, a 7-5 decision of McCaskey’s Jose Garcia earning him a spot in the final in a No. 1 vs. No. 2 matchup with Sasso.
Sasso scored a takedown late in the first period, then reversed Bechtold early in the second period to open a 4-0 margin.
“There were some positions where I feel like I could have scored on that final snap but I was a little more cautious than normal,” said Bechtold.
The Bucknell commit closed his season 46-3 and rose up the podium after placing fifth at 172 as a sophomore.
“Looking back, I still had a pretty good season,” said Bechtold. “I’ll be a little more satisfied in a couple days.”
The medal round dealt the Wildcats’ trio a down note on an otherwise productive tournament.
Gautreau was the area’s third-highest finisher by placing fourth.
The first-time state qualifier won a pair of Saturday morning consolation round matches – 2-1 over Altoona’s Luke Sipes and 3-1 over Hempfield Area’s Lucas Kapusta – to qualify for the third-place match. He ran into Northampton’s Dagen Condomitti, the wrestler who sent him out of the championship hunt in the quarterfinals. The wrong end of a 15-4 major gave Gautreau fourth place at a 44-7 season, a drastic improvement on a sophomore year when he was 2713 and did not place at regionals.