Dec 8, 2021 8 min read

Walking onto the mats for wrestling practice gives a different feel for Brian Krenzelak now.

“I’ve been at this for a while,” said Krenzelak, who was hired this past summer to replace Jeff Havelka, who resigned after this past season to spend more time with his family.

“Being the head coach of a high school program, it definitely felt a little different. In my first three years, I was an assistant at the high school. This time, I was reminded, little kids, little problem, big kids, big problems.”

Canon-McMillan did not have a state champion last season nor did it have a state placewinner. The only wrestler who competed in the state tournament was Andrew Binney and he went 2-2 and did not medal.

That didn’t sit well with Canon-McMillan fans, who have higher expectations. Canon-McMillan has a district-best 46 state champions since the PIAA began its tournament in 1938.

“All the temptations and pychologoical things that come with coaching big kids, that was the first thing I was reminded of,” said Krenzelak. “But then there is the other side of it. They are more mature, they have a longer attention span, so you can push them a bit harder. There are pros and cons to everything.”

Numbers are not a problem on Canon-McMillan’s roster, but there are fewer 20-match winners than in recent memory. Only Binney, who was 24-6, maneuvered his way through the COVID-19 pandemic to reach that mark. The season was shorten because of the virus but Canon-McMillan was expected to have more than one.

Jacob Houpt, who only recently committed to Kent State, returns for his senior season after going 18-8 as a junior.

Matt Furman adds punch to the top of the lineup, having gone 15-6 as a freshman. He and Tyler Rohaley, who went 17-9 last season, also will be counted on in the upper weights.

“We’re going to go in and maybe take some lumps, but I want to see them work hard, get back the culture,” Krenzelak said. “My goals are performance based not outcome based. I’m not talking about winning and losing with the guys. Every time we go in the room, lets get better, stronger, let’s get a positive attitude, let’s go to the best tournaments. We might take some lumps, Whether we win or lose, I want them to say they had fun.”

No stopping Raiders

Yes, graduation took some of the bite from Waynesburg. Cole Homet, a state runner-up last season, won’t be ready until at least midseason. And Joe Throckmorton was forced to resign because of trouble at the marina.

For most teams, that might be a devastating blow. But this team is nothing except bu resilient. That’s bad news for opponents. Are you listening Seneca Valley?

Four key wrestlers, about one-third of the roster, were lost to graduation. More pressure will be placed on the shoulders of heavyweights Eli Makel and Noah Tustin.

Kyle Szewczyk took over for Throckmorton so the transition period should not be difficult.

C-H tournament

One of the steadily rising tournament over the years has been the Chartiers-Houston Invitational that kicks off the season in the county.

Action begins 4 p.m. Friday and ends with the championships at 2:30 p.m. Saturday.

Preseason rankings Class AAA

Top 10

1. Waynesburg

2. Seneca Valley

3. Kiski

4. Trinity

5. Canon-McMillan

6. Connellsville

7. Hempfield

8. North Allegheny

9. Latrobe

10. Norwin

Team Breakdown

(Based on last year’s roster)

Belle Vernon: Key losses: None

Key returns: Logan Hoffman (12, 189, 21-7); Cole Weightman (12, 215, 29-6, 8th in PIAA)

Comment: Concern over Weightman’s knee.

Canon-McMillan: Key losses: Gianni Martini (152, 11-11); Tyler Rohaley (215, 17-9)

Key returns: Andrew Binney (10, 106, 24-6); Jacob Houpt (12, 120, 18-8); Matthew Furman (11, 172, 15-6)

Comment: The Brian Krenzelak era begins for the Big Macs.

Peters Township: Key losses: None

Key returns: Richard Meyers (113, 12, 13-7); Jackson Spiteri (120, 11, 14-7; Chris Cibrone (126, 10, 16-3); Eliot Schratz (132, 11, 16-4); Phillip Nave (189, 12, 15-6)

Comment: Indians need heavier weights to compete for success.

Ringgold: Key losses: None

Key returns: Logan Trilli (113, 10, 12-4); Jack Duncan (120, 10, 16-5); (Noah Mimidis (113, 10, 17-19)

Comment: Upper weights a problem for Rams.

South Fayette: Key losses: None

Key returns: Jonathan Baiano (106, 10, 16-5); James Anderson, (113, 12, 17-5); Cohlman Carpenter (120, 12, 11-8)

Comment: Middle and upper weights a problem for the Lions.

Trinity: Key losses: Micah Finley (138, 14-8), Tyson Brophy (Hvy, 19-10)

Key returns: Blake Reihner (126, 10, 25-8); Bodie Morgan (11, 145, 21-12), Ty Banco (11, 220, 29-9)

Comment: Hillers have legitimate chance at beating every team. … except Waynesburg.

Waynesburg: Key losses: Wyatt Henson (145, 32-1, state champion); Nate Stephenson (160, 21-5); Luca Augustine (172, 21-1, state champions); Darnell Johnson (172, 4-3); Ryan Howard (Hvy, 20-5)

Key returns: Ky Szewczyk (106, 10, 20-7); Joe Simon (113, 10, 22-6); Mac Church (11, 120, 28-2, State champion); Zander Phaturos (126, 12, 20-7); Colton Stoneking (132, 12, 31-7, 5th in PIAA); Cole Homet (138, 12, 29-3, 2nd in PIAA); Nate Jones (138, 11, 4-3); Roccoe Welsh (152, 11, 26-5, 2nd in the PIAA); Eli Makel (189, 11, 15-7); Noah Tustin (215, 12, 13-7)

Comment: Homet injury hurts but Waynesburg still best in WPIAL.

Class AA

Top 10

1. Burrell

2. Beth-Center

3. Burgettstown

4. Quaker Valley

5. Mt. Pleasant

6. Laurel

7. Elizabeth Forward

8. Southmoreland

9. Keystone Oaks

10. Highlands

Team Breakdown

(Based on last year’s roster)

Bentworth: Key losses: Owen Petrisek (160, 7-3)

Key returns: Chris Vargo (113, 10, 20-2 3rd in PIAA); Vitali Daniels (Hvy, 10, 13-2)

Comment: Vargo the real deal for Bearcats.

Beth-Center: Key losses: Alex Lang (189, 12-9)

Key returns: Albert Medlen (106, 11, 14-7); Jackson Gwyer (120, 12, 13-5); Kyle McCollom (126, 12, 28-9), Tyler Fischer (126, 12, 12-5); Tyler Berish (145, 11, 26-7); Trevor Pettit (160, 12, 23-7); Alston Csuttoros (189, 12, 13-9)

Comment: Bulldogs seem to have stronger roster than last year.

Burgettstown: Key losses: Shane Kemper (189, 21-5); Turner Lehman (215, 14-8)

Key returns: Parker Sentipal (106, 10, 22-8); Dylan Slovick (113, 10, 18-6); Joey Sentipal (12, 126, 22-10), Rudy Brown (132, 10, 15-8), Eric Kovach (138, 10, 12-8); Anthony Lancos (145, 12, 14-9); D.J. Slovick (152, 12, 19-8); Ryan Green (160, 12, 10-3); Joey Baronick (Hvy, 10, 17-6)

Comment: Blue Devils strong enough for long team tournament run.

Chartiers-Houston: Key losses: Austin Kuslock (160, 10-6).

Key returns: Jesse Orbin (145, 11, 15-8)

Comment: Bucs still battling numbers problem

Fort Cherry: Key losses: Nasier Sutton (145, 13-4); Jake Tkatch (152, 16-2); Robbie West (215, 16-2)

Key returns: Julian Moore (120, 11, 12-3); Anthony Salvini (172, 10, 12-6); Christian Illig (Hvy, 12, 11-6)

Comment: Rangers lose 45 wins to graduation.

Jefferson-Morgan: Key losses: Jonathan Wolfe (215, 7-5)

Key returns: Chase Framell (126, 10, 11-1); Grant Hathaway (132, 10 9-4)

Comment: Rockets have seven wrestlers who are either a sophomore or junior.

McGuffey: Key losses: Rocco Ferraro (160, 15-4), Ethan Barr (172, 21-109), Tasso Makripodis (215, 14-4)

Key returns: Kyle Brookman (145, 11, 9-6)

Comment: Highlanders lost a lot to graduation.

Washington: Key losses: None

Key returns: Cameron Carter-Greene (Hvy, 12, 2-0)

Comment: Carter-Greene needs to stay healthy.

West Greene: Key losses: None

Key returns: Seth Burns (106, 10, 18-3)

Comment: Can Burns take the next step?