Burgettstown fired up for team tournament
Each year, the question seems the same.
Can any team out there stop Burrell in the WPIAL Class 2A Team Tournament? After all, the Bucs have won 15 straight WPIAL team titles.
Some have come close, others not so much.
This year, that question is posed to Burgettstown High School and head wrestling coach Joey Vigliotti has an answer.
“We coach our team like good hard-nosed wrestling,” said Vigliotti. “We might not be the most technical team but you’re either going to be limping, bleeding or crawling off the mat. That’s our style. That’s just how it is with our team. If someone steps out on the mat against someone with Burgettstown written across their chest, they better be ready for a fight because that’s the way it’s going to turn out.”
Burgettstown comes into this year’s tournament as the No. 2 seed and as such earned a first-round bye. The Blue Devils will host their pod and take on the winner of tonight’s match between Southmoreland and Freedom in the quarterfinals, which will be held right after the first-round bouts.
Burrell, Beth-Center and Quaker Valley also received first-round byes and gained hosting rights for their pods.
The winners of tonight’s pods advance to the semifinals at noon Saturday at Chartiers-Houston. Finals will be held at 2 p.m. at C-H.
In Class 3A, Waynesburg, the defending PIAA and WPIAL team tourney champions, is the top seed and will host a pod. Latrobe is second seed, Connellsville third and Canon-McMillan fourth. The top four seeds will host.
The top three finishers in Class 2A and top four finishers in Class 3A will qualify for the PIAA team wrestling tournament. The Class 3A and Class 2A WPIAL champion and second-place team will advance directly to the round of 16 at the Giant Center Arena in Hershey Feb. 10.
The WPIAL Class 3A third- and fourth-place teams and Class 2A third-place team will participate in first-round matches Monday at a site to be determined.
Burgettstown won the Section 1 title by defeating Beth-Center last week.
“They have a bunch of very good wrestlers on that team and they are a well-coached team,” Vigliotti said. “I know we’ve been their kryptonite over the past few years. It’s nothing but respect for that team. We look forward to competing against them every year.”
The Blue Devils have a strong lineup from 106 pounds to 138. Most of their wins have come from points there. Jacob Noyse (215) and Joey Baronick (Hvy) make for a nice 1-2 punch at the end of the lineup.
The Sentipal brothers, Parker and Joey, have been outstanding this year.
“Both are straight-A students,” Vigliotti said. “They are what any coach would want on their team. They do everything right. They come to practice and then they work out with their clubs at night. I’m blessed to have those kids on my team.”
Rudy Brown, a middleweight, has been a pleasant surprise for Vigliotti.
“He’s been a steady force for us,” Vigliotti said.
Vigliotti said the coin flip can impact the matches.
“Burrell is a dangerous team and there are some other teams out there,” Vigliotti said. “We’ll be ready to go.”