Mar 9, 2016 4 min read

HERSHEY (AP) – Wrestling fans attending the 79th Annual PIAA Wrestling Championships, which begin Thursday at Giant Center in Hershey, will be treated to the most celebrated weight class in tournament history.

The 126-pound weight class in Class AA features three returning PIAA champions and one returning runner-up. The tournament has never had three champs returning in one weight class.

Central Cambria junior Max Murin (37-1) won the 113-pound title last season. Reynolds sophomore Cole Matthews (40-4) was the 120-pound champ. Bedford senior Jonathan Gabriel (29-3) won at 126 pounds. All three are entered at 126 this season, along with Athens junior Brian Courtney (37-2), who placed second at 120 last year.

“I kind of hoped that Max would move down (to 120) so both of us could win another state title,” said Gabriel, who lost 3-0 to Murin in the finals of the Southwest Region Tournament on March 5.

Murin will have the easiest road back to the finals, as he is in the lower half of the 20-man bracket. Matthews, Gabriel, and Courtney are in the upper half of the bracket. Gabriel has the toughest road, as he would face Courtney in the quarterfinals if both win in the first round.

“I could have moved to another weight class, but I felt great at 126 all year,” Gabriel said. “I don’t care who is in my weight class. I still have to win four matches to win another gold medal.”

A similar situation will take place in the Class AA 182-pound weight class. Franklin senior Dakota Geer (37-0) is the defending champ.

South Park senior Greg Bulsak (40-1), last year’s state champ at 170, is also entered at 182.

“Dakota has been ranked No. 1 in the state all year and I’ve been No. 2,” Bulsak said. “I’ve work out with Dakota at Team Nauman Wrestling Club many times, but we’ve never met in a high school match. If we meet at the state tournament, it will be in the finals. If that occurs, it will be the last high school match for both of us.”

Bulsak’s South Park teammate Jake Wentzel is also a returning state champ. Wentzel (38-0) has moved to 160 after winning at 152 last year.

The other three returning champs in Class AA are: Derry senior George Phillippe, Jefferson-Morgan sophomore Gavin Teasdale, and South Fayette senior Mike Carr.

Phillippe (39-2) is a two-time champ. He claimed titles as a 113-pound freshman and a 132-pound junior, and placed third at 120 as a sophomore. Teasdale (32-0) has moved to 113 after winning at 106 last year. Carr (39-0) won at 138 last season and is now at 145.

The Class AAA bracket features five returning state champs, including a trio of two-time champs: Franklin Regional junior Spencer Lee, Bethlehem Catholic senior Luke Karam, and Latrobe senior Luke Pletcher.

Lee (8-0) has won PIAA Class AAA titles at 113 and 120 and returns at 120. Lee, who boasts a perfect 105-0 career record, missed most of the season recovering from shoulder surgery.

Luke Karam (33-3) is the defending champ at 126. He also won at 113 as a sophomore and placed second at 106 as a freshman.

Pletcher (39-1) is a three-time state finalist and two-time champ. He won titles at 106 and 120, then placed second last year at 132. Pletcher is now competing at 138.

The other two returning champs in Class AAA are: Penn-Trafford junior Cameron Coy and Nazareth senior Tyson Klump. Coy won as a 132-pound freshman, placed second at 138 last year, and is now at 145. Klump is the defending champ at 106.

Boyertown senior Jordan Wood (42-1), a three-time PIAA Class AAA finalist and one-time champ at 220 pounds, will not participate in this year’s state tournament due to torn cartilage in his rib area and a rib popping in and out of place.

“It’s upsetting that I didn’t get to finish out my senior postseason,” Wood said. “I had goals to be a four-time state finalist and two-time state champion.”

“It breaks my heart,” Boyertown coach Pete Ventresca said. “It breaks his heart. It’s a shame he couldn’t take his senior season to the end.”