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Four Knights, two Eagles advance to regionals

Eisenhower’s Logan Jaquay battles Greenville’s Riley Kneeland during their District 10 120-pound semifinal match at Sharon High School.

SHARON, Pa. – There were plenty of highs and lows for Eisenhower, as well as Youngsville, at the District 10 Class 2A wrestling championships on Saturday.

When the dust settled, four Knights – Logan Jaquay, Cael Black, Gannon Jaquay and Jesse Gourley, and two Eagles – Collin Clough and Jake DeSimone, advanced to the Northwest Regional, returning once again to Sharon.

Jaquay and Black both won their quarterfinal matches Friday night, rolling into the semifinals with a wave of confidence.

Jaquay was dominant in earning a 10-2 major decision over Greenville’s Riley Kneeland at 120, while Black earned a hard-fought 3-2 decision over Evan Miller of Reynolds.

In the finals, Jaquay met fellow senior Cole Bayless of Reynolds. What followed was a bit of a surprise, as Bayless (28-9) handed Jaquay (34-1) his first loss of the season, 6-1.

Youngsville’s Collin Clough (left) and Eisenhower’s Gannon Jaquay lock arms during their 138-pound consolation match at the District 10 Class 2A wrestling championships on Saturday at Sharon High School.

Black (31-6), meanwhile, squared off with Maplewood’s Joey King (28-3) in a final for the second time in as many weeks. After a 3-1 decision for King at sectionals, he once again was able to edge his 220-pound counterpart, 2-1.

Meanwhile, both Gannon Jaquay and Clough made it through at 138 with fifth and seventh place finishes, respectively, as did DeSimone (7th) and Gourley (8th) at 285.

Jaquay beat Girard’s Dustin Roesch 8-1, while Clough knocked off Greenville’s Luke Gentile, 6-2 in their opening consolation matches to earn a spot in the top eight.

They met each other in the next round, and battled deep into the third period before Jaquay was able to put Clough on his back and secure a fall.

Jaquay lost his next match, sending him into the fifth-place bout, where he topped Conneaut’s Brady Gould, 4-3.

COLLIN CLOUGH (LEFT) and JAKE DESIMONE

Clough, meanwhile, bounced back from his loss to Jaquay with an 11-6 win over Mercer’s Michael Berger in the seventh-place match.

“Collin wrestled his best weekend of the year, beating the third, fourth, and seventh place finishers from the south section,” said Youngsville coach Paul Clough. “His only losses were to Kenny Kiser – 4-time district champ and last year’s state runner-up, and Gannon. He and Gannon wrestled a close match. Collin was trailing by 3 with about 30 seconds left and tried for a big move, but Gannon countered well. We’re hoping to continue this momentum next weekend at regions.”

Gourley, after initially not qualifying for districts, is now on his way to sectionals.

Both Gourley and DeSimone earned second-period pins in their first consolation matches on Saturday, DeSimone against Mercer’s P.J. Boggs and Gourley over Conneaut’s Isaiah Gilchrist.

That qualified both of them for the top eight spots, securing their return trip to Sharon. DeSimone lost by fall in his next bout and then got a forfeit win over Gourley in the 7th place match.

Eisenhower’s Jesse Gourley battles Conneaut’s Isaiah Gilchrist during their 285-pound consolation match at Sharon High School.

“DeSimone picked up wins of the fourth and fifth place finishers from the south section and a medical forfeit from Gourley,” coach Clough noted. “He turned in a solid performance and set himself up well heading into the regional tournament next weekend.”

It was also a tough end for a pair of EHS standouts, Easton Hedman and Josh Bortz.

Bortz (145), who had 32 wins on the season, lost his first consolation match on Saturday, as did the 27-win Hedman (132). Alex Hummel (152) and Jeremyah Aiken (182) also saw their seasons come to a close.

The six wrestlers advancing to regionals will be aiming for a top-four finish, which would get them to the state championships in Hershey.

Logan Jaquay and Black are defending Northwest Regional champions.

Youngsville's Jake DeSimone locks into Mercer's P.J. Boggs during their 285-pound consolation match. DeSimone earned a second-period pin.

– – – 

Championship matches

106: Kane Kettering (Rey) md Lucas Munsee 8-0

113: Gary Steen (Rey) md Connor Saylor (Hy) 11-3

120: Cole Bayless (Rey) d Logan Jaquay (E) 6-1

126: Connor Pierce (HC) d Alex Kightlinger (Sae) 7-1

132: Kaeden Berger (Rey) d Matt Leehan (GM) 5-2

138: Kenny Kiser (Sae) p Alex Ischo (Rey) 3:40

145: Jackson Spires (GM) p Alex Chess (Mer) 3:55

152: Sully Allen (Sh) d Owen Jefferson (Sen) 5-0

160: Gage Musser (CP) d Daiveon Say (GC) 3-2 TB

170: Cole Toy (Rey) d Holen Cook (Fr) 9-4

182: Bryce McCloskey (Rey) d Vito Pilosi (SR) 6-1

195: Braydon Herbster (Rey) md Trevor Tursky (Conn) 11-3

220: Joey King (Mw) d Cael Black (E) 2-1 TB

285: Jordan Schell (G) p Xavier Reyda (Cy) 3:45

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