Feb 4, 2024 By Jonathan Guth 4 min read

McMURRAY – Burgettstown came up short in repeating as the WPIAL Class 2A team wrestling tournament champion on Saturday inside the AHN Arena on the campus of Peters Township High School, but coach Joey Vigliotti was proud of his team despite a 41-20 setback to Burrell in the final.

“We don’t pull kids from clubs, we don’t pull kids from other schools, we are a home-grown team and we’re proud of it,” Vigliotti said. “They gave max effort and we are proud of what they accomplished.”

The Buccaneers (14-2) won their 18th WPIAL team title after finishing as the runner-up the last two years. Burrell had won 15 in a row prior to losing to Quaker Valley in 2022 and the Blue Devils last year.

Burgettstown (15-1) will turn its attention to the first round of the PIAA Class 2A team tournament. The Blue Devils will wrestle District 9 champion Clearfield on Thursday at the Giant Center in Hershey. The dual meet is scheduled to begin at 4 p.m.

“They have been on that big stage before,” Vigliotti said. “It may be something new for our newer kids, but we have a great group of leaders that are going to tell these kids that the mat’s the same size, go out and wrestle. We tell them that it is not a vacation up there, it’s a business trip, and we are going up there to show what the WPIAL can do. I have nothing but respect for Burrell. We go back years.”

Burrell will wrestle District 2 champion Honesdale at 2 p.m. in the first round of the state tournament.

“We knew that it would be a tough match with Burgettstown,” said Burrell coach Josh Shields. “They have made us a better team the last couple of years. They have great coaches, and I will be cheering for them when they wrestle anybody else but us.”

With action starting in the 215-pound weight class, the Buccaneers won five of the first six bouts for a 23-3 lead.

“We ran the numbers there and we knew what to expect,” Vigliotti said. “They are a solid team. We have first and second-year kids on our team that come out and battle.”

The one match the Blue Devils won in the first six was senior Joey Baronick’s 8-5 decision over Ayden Kun at 285. Shields was proud of his freshman’s effort against a veteran who is one of the top heavyweights in the state.

“For a freshman to hold a kid that is a state placewinner to a decision is huge,” Shields said.

Julian Bertucci’s 4-3 decision over Dylan Slovick at 127 provided Burrell with its 20-point advantage. Slovick trailed 2-0 after the first period before scoring an escape and recording a takedown for a 3-2 lead.

Bertucci escaped to tie the match at 3-3 heading into the third before escaping again for a 4-3 advantage. Slovick nearly had the match-winning takedown as time expired in the period but the referees ruled that time had run out.

“When you get up into championship wrestling, those one-point matches are important,” Vigliotti said. “I still think we were the more aggressive team, across the board, but unfortunately, other people didn’t think that way.”

Burgettstown’s Parker Sentipal got his team back on track with a fall in 50 seconds at 133. Teammate Gaven Suica followed with a 23-8 technical fall in 4:49 at 139 to cut the deficit to 23-14 with five bouts remaining.

Defending state champion Cooper Hornack wasted little time in increasing the Buccaneers’ lead to 29-14 with a fall in 36 seconds at 145.

Calio Zanella’s 5-0 decision at 152 clinched the championship for Burrell, as it was the the seventh individual victory for the Buccaneers, which would have broken a tie if the Blue Devils rallied to secure six points in each of the last three matches contested with the first tiebreaker being number of matches won.

Shields wasn’t aware that Zanella’s triumph had clinched the title.

“I don’t relax until I know it’s official,” Shields said. “I have seen too many things happen over the years. Also, the kids want to win their individual matches because it is about pride for them. They all want to go out there and win.”

Burgettstown’s Rudy Brown won by fall in 1:01 at 160.

The Blue Devils took advantage of four forfeits and recorded four falls in a 56-15 rout of Mt. Pleasant in the semifinals.

Brodie Kuzior (215), Sentipal (133), Brown (160) and Eric Kovach (172) had the pins while Slovick (127) and Suica (139) won by major decision.

Aiden States (189), Gage Bradley (107), Darius Simmons (114) and Daniel Smith (121) won by forfeit.

The Vikings’ Dylan Pitzer earned a 6-0 decision at 285. Teammates Jamison Poklembo (145) and Greg Shaulis (152) won by fall.

Quaker Valley defeated Mt. Pleasant 42-28 in the consolation final.