Mar 10, 2018 2 min read

HERSHEY – Mike Doppelheuer is a wrestling official but has never seen the call that was made against his wrestler, Zach Hartman.

Doppelheuer, the head coach at Belle Vernon, had a word for it but it can’t be used in print.

Hartman had a highly controversial stalling call that produced a penalty point for Carter Starocci of Erie Cathedral Prep in the final seconds of the third period that sent the match to overtime tied at 4-4.

Starocci took Hartman down in the final seconds of overtime for a 6-4 decision and 160-pound title in the PIAA Class AAA Championships at the Giant Center in Hershey.

“The question is when our guy is trying to get backpoints,” said Doppelheuer. “I tried to explain to (the referee) that that is a move to try to get backpoints and he said you have to try and move up.

“He has the guy on his back. Is the point not to try and pin him? They didn’t want to hear it.”

Doppelheuer feels for Hartman, who finished his career with a 170-25 record. He was 43-2 this season.

“In our minds, he’s the state champion,” said Doppelheuer. “The books aren’t going to show it. It was a horrible call.”

Hartman took the call in stride, trying to put a positive spin on it.

“At the time, I wasn’t shocked. I just had to dig deep and get this,” he said. “When they called it, I didn’t think that was what it was. I thought they were trying to break us.

“Win some, lose some. When I came off the mat, I was sad but that is not going to define me. I have to move on to bigger and better things.”

Starocci also was involved in another controversial call to beat Gerrit Nijenhuis in the semifinals, also in overtime. The takedown was disputed but the referee did not change the call.