B-C freshman tops list of upset winners
Beth Center’s Dom Fundy gets a hug from a Bulldogs coach after winning the PIAA Class AA regional quarterfinal bout Friday at Canon-McMillan High School.
Beth Center’s Dom Fundy controls Moshannon Valley’s Larry Brown during the 160-pound quarterfinal bout. Fundy won by an 8-6 decision in overtime.
Bentworth’s Hunter Neely tries to turn while wrestling Huntingdon’s Seth Baney in the 145 quarterfinal bout. Baney won 5-4 in double overtime.
CANONSBURG – Dom Fundy was one of the few wrestlers to take the road less traveled to Hershey.
The 160-pound freshman from Beth-Center pulled off two stunning upsets in the PIAA Class AA Regional Tournament Friday at Canon-McMillan High School.
Fundy opened the tournament with a 12-9 decision over Morgan Bell of Somerset in the first round, then knocked off the second seed, Larry Brown of Moshannon Valley, a District 6 champion, 8-6, with a takedown in the first overtime.
“I gave myself a pretty good chance of winning two in a row,” said Fundy, now 34-8. “I knew it was going to be a close match, and I just had to be aggressive. I never saw him before. I didn’t scout him. I was just looking to take him down in overtime.”
The top six wrestlers in each weight class advance to the PIAA Class AA Championships, which get under way Thursday at the Giant Center in Hershey.
Fundy will wrestle District 5 champion Braden Fochtman of Berlin-Brothersvalley in the 11:30 a.m. semifinals. The finals are at 5 p.m.
Fundy was a part of a handful of wrestlers who made surprising runs to the semifinals. Included in the group are Dom Provenzano, a senior from Chartiers-Houston who didn’t make it out of the section tournament the previous two seasons. Provenzano, a 182-pounder, pinned Chase Marple of Somerset in 2:39 in the first round, then won a hard-fought 4-2 decision over Jacob Driskel, the District 6 champion.
“I worked my butt off,” said Provenzano, now 26-9. “That’s something I always wanted to do: qualify for state, and the last two years, I couldn’t make it out of sections. I figured I would have to wrestle (Driskel), and I knew it would a close match. I’ve got all the weight off my shoulders now.”
Provenzano gets District 5 champion Wesley Graham (29-3) of Everett in the semifinals.
Fort Cherry’s Trevor McIntyre followed in the footsteps of Fundy and Provenzano. The senior heavyweight came into the tournament as the sixth-place finisher in District 7. He won a 3-2 decision over District 6 runnner-up Alexander Albright of Cambria Heights and followed with a 5-1 rout of District 5 runner-up Mason Guyer of Northern Bedford.
“I just go out and wrestle,” said McIntyre, who raised his record to 28-11 with the two wins. “It doesn’t matter; I just go out there and wrestle. I felt good against (Guyer). Five points is a lot for me. I usually win my matches 1-0. I’ve never made it to Hershey before. I’ve made it here, but never to Hershey. I don’t know what it will be like. Only time will tell.”
Gavin Teasdale, the undefeated state champion from Jefferson-Morgan, breezed through the first day. The 113-pound sophomore who is 30-0 and a District 7 champion had a first-round bye then pinned Doug Bittner of Mt. Pleasant in 45 seconds to advance to the semifinals, where he will take on Keaton Furry (28-5) of North Star.
The other local defending state champion, Mike Carr of South Fayette, looked strong and fluid in ripping up Jared Hurd, a third-place finisher from District 6 from Penns Valley. Carr, a 145-pound senior who is 37-0, won by 18-1 technical fall. Carr gets District 6 runner-up Tom Opdenhoff of Central Cambria in the semifinals.
The three other defending state champions from District 7 – Derry’s Micky Phillippi (138), and the South Park duo of Jake Wentzel (160) and Greg Bulsak (182) – had no problems reaching the finals.
At 126 pounds, two defending state champions – Max Murin of Central Cambria and Jonathan Gabriel of Bedford – appear to be on a collision course. Both need a win in the semifinals for that to happen.