J-M’s Teasdale
Boiling Springs’ Kollin Myers is controlled by Jefferson-Morgan’s Gavin Teasdale during their 113-pound bout during the finals of the PIAA Class AA Championships Saturday in Hershey.
Jefferson-Morgan’s Gavin Teasdale, right, had 10 takedowns in dismantling Boiling Springs’ Kollin Myers during their 113-pound championship bout of the PIAA Class AA wrestling championships Saturday in Hershey.
HERSHEY – With a dominating three-day performance, Gavin Teasdale is halfway there.
Halfway to becoming one of the elite group of wrestlers to win four PIAA wrestling titles.
Halfway to an even more rare feat of an undefeated varsity career.
Halfway to wrestling immortality.
Teasdale polished off his second consecutive PIAA Class AA championship Saturday at the Giant Center in Hershey. He ripped up Kollin Myers, a freshman from Boiling Springs who was a Southeast Region champion.
Teasdale treated him like a first-round opponent from a nondescript tournament, winning by technical fall, 23-8, in front of a large crowd at the Giant Center.
Teasdale’s win was part of a good day for the area’s Class AA wrestlers. Mike Carr won the fourth state title in South Fayette history after a 3-1 decision over James Duffy of Smethport.
Teasdale’s teammate, Bill Bowlen, saw his hopes for gold dissolve in 6-3 loss to Gavin Hoffman of Montoursville in 195-pound finals.
Anthony Welsh of Beth-Center took third place at 170 pounds with a 4-1 decision over Dayton Wickwire of Towanda.
Carr’s teammate, Rasaun Culberson, took sixth place at 220 pounds with a 13-5 loss to Joe Gladish of Allentown Central Catholic.
Teasdale’s victory brought him closer to becoming a four-time undefeated state champion. There are only 12 in PIAA history. One of them, Cary Kolat, also attended Jefferson-Morgan and compiled a 137-0 record.
“My goal is to have two people – me and Cary – from the same school who are undefeated four-time champions,” said Teasdale. “There is nobody like him. It would be cool to be going to that school and knowing it’s the first school in history to do that.”
Teasdale used 10 takedowns to disarm Myers, a freshman with a 45-7 record. Teasdale had seven takedowns in the first period and three in the second. He also turned Myers for three backpoints.
“States is awesome. Every year, it’s a new task,” he said. “It gives me something to work for. It was just awesome. I had a lot more fun scoring points than from my freshman year.”
Teasdale won Jefferson-Morgan’s 10th state championship by outscoring his four opponents 98-32.
“My goal was to tech everybody,” said Teasdale, who works out with Franklin Regional state champion Spencer Lee at Young Guns club. “The reason being was so they couldn’t stall against me and allowing them to hold on. They can’t back up and not let me get to my best moves. I just attack and keep the pressure on them.”
Teasdale was a machine in this tournament, churning out technical falls the way the PIAA hands out bout sheets. The J-M sophomore opened with a 21-5 win over Luke Pipa of Bishop McDevitt, then rolled over Brian Friery of Lewisburg, 24-9, and made the finals with a 28-13 technical fall over Bronson Garber of Upper Dauphin.
“It’s awesome to sit there and watch him,” said J-M head coach Mike Lesko. “Knowing what he’s been through and getting all the accolades now because of what he put in to be there, like every night two practices. There is not break. He does all the extras.”
Only 12 wrestlers have won four PIAA titles, the latest Thomas Haines of Solanco in 2014. Only six wrestlers with at least three state tiles were undefeated, the last to do so being Chance Marsteller of Kennard Dale in 2014 with a 166-0 record.
A takedown in the second period was the turning point for Carr, now 81-0 over the past two seasons.
“This is an end of what once was a new beginning,” said Carr, headed to Illinois in the fall. “Now, it’s the start of a new beginning. Hopefully, I’ll have a sweet time in college.”
Bowlen, headed to Seton Hill College, gave up all his points in the third period of a 6-3 loss to Gavin Hoffman of Montoursville. The clincher came when Hoffman turned Bowlen for three backpoints with three seconds remaining.
“I look at this as laying the foundation for the rest of my life,” said Bowlen, a Carmichaels student who wrestles in a co-op agreement with Jefferson-Morgan. “I came up one short, but when you fall, you have to get back up again.”