Jan 8, 2015 4 min read

They are the best of friends, the fiercest of competitors and the most loyal of brothers.

Sometimes, all in the span of one practice.

Gage and Teague Nicolella, the 1-2 punch in the lightweights for McGuffey High School, certainly make things interesting at practice.

The brothers – Gage is a 113-pound junior and Teague a 106-pound sophomore – hope to also make some noise when the Tri-County Athletic Directors’ Association Wrestling Tournament gets under way at 4:30 this afternoon at Ringgold High School.

Semifinals are 10:30 a.m. Saturday and the finals follow at 2:30 p.m.

Canon-McMillan is the defending team champion and Jefferson-Morgan was the highest Class AA team, finishing third.

Gage Nicolella won the 106-pound title last season with a pin in 3:09 of Tristan Buxton of Trinity. Teague Nicolella finished fifth after a 6-0 decision over Darrell Bails of Burgettstown.

“It’s a tough tournament,” said Gage Nicolella. “And this year, there some different teams coming.”

The tournament added two Class AAA teams in Butler and Seneca Valley. Butler gave McGuffey a strong dual meet challenge before failing 30-28 in December. The Golden Tornado finished third in the Chartiers-Houston Tournament and fourth in the Southmoreland Tournament.

“It was a hard tournament last year,” said Teague Nicolella. “That was the first high school tournament I placed in. I got a good spot in the bracket.”

The Nicolellas don’t have to worry about fortunate bracket placement this year. They depend on their talent, and both are enjoying strong seasons. Gage Nicolella is 17-1 and is third at 120 pounds in the Observer-Reporter Wrestling Rankings. Teague Nicolella is 14-6 and has been as high as fifth in some rankings.

Both Nicolellas recently moved down a weight class, which could improve their rankings.

“They are extremely hard workers during the season and in the offseason,” said McGuffey head coach Mark Caffrey. “Both are good on their feet. Gage is more of a pinner and more of a technical wrestler. Teague is more wiry and makes things happen on the mat.”

Gage Nicolella prepared for this season by spending two weeks at a high-intensity wrestling camp under the tutelage of Minnesota head coach J Robinson. This J Robinson Intensive Camp was held at Edinboro University over the summer. A normal day began with a 6 a.m. wakeup, practice, lunch, practice and a night competition among the group of campers.

“It was a lot harder than a normal wrestling camp,” said Gage Nicolella. “I thought I would have a better season because I put more work into it.”

Gage Nicolella said he doesn’t do pre-match reviews of his brackets, preferring to take on each wrestler as if it were his last match in the sport.

“I wasn’t sure if anyone would be dropping to 113,” he said. “I don’t like to look ahead much. I go one match at a time.”

The tournament will have a number of interesting weight classes, including 106, where everyone is fighting for second place behind Gavin Teasdale of Jefferson-Morgan.

Canon-McMillan’s Logan Macri and Waynesburg Caleb Morris will probably be the second and third seeds, respectively. The two have traded wins – Macri’s coming in the Powerade consolation finals and Morris Wednesday’s home dual meet – and could meet in the semifinals.

At 182, Waynesburg’s Colin McCracken and Bill Bowlen of Jefferson-Morgan could meet again. The two wrestled for the sixth time in a dual meet early in the season and McCracken won for the first time in the series.

At 120, Austin McDermitt of Burgettstown, No. 1 in the O-R’s Wrestling Ratings, No. 2 Brendan Howard of Jefferson-Morgan, and Teague Nicolella, will battle for the title.

Matt Oblock of Canon-McMillan and A.C. Headlee of Waynesburg, both at 132, are defending champions as are Anthony Welsh (145) and Jason Stay (152) of Beth-Center, Robert West (195) of Trinity, and Ian Wolfe (Hvy) of Jefferson-Morgan.