Mar 8, 2024 By Jonathan Guth 4 min read

HERSHEY – There was some joy in Friday night’s semifinals in the PIAA Individual Wrestling Championships at the Giant Center in Hershey. There was also some heartache.

The joy belonged to Bentworth’s Chris Vargo and Trinity’s Bodie Morgan, while the heartache was suffered by Burgettstown’s Joey Baronick, Canon-McMillan’s Andrew Binni and Ringgold’s Jake Conroy.

Vargo, a four-time state medalist, plowed through Reynolds’ Logan Stewart to win by fall in 1:35 at 127 pounds. Vargo, who will continue his academic and wrestling careers at Edinboro, will wrestle Bishop McCort sophomore Jax Forrest in today’s Class 2A finals at 4 p.m.

Vargo defeated Forrest 13-7 last Saturday to win his fourth southwest regional title. Like last week, Vargo expects the majority of fans in the Giant Center, and those watching or listening at home, to believe Forrest will win the championship.

“I am excited to wrestle tomorrow,” Vargo said. “I hope he looks past me again. I am ready to take it to him. Maybe I’m in his head, maybe I’m not, but I’ve had a good week of practice and I’m ready to go. People still think I can’t beat him, so I have nothing to lose out there, and I might as well let it rip.”

Vargo scored a takedown and allowed an escape before planting Stewart’s shoulders to the mat.

“I got him on another shot after he escaped, he got funky, and I pretty much held him in the funk and his shoulders must have been flat because the ref called the pin,” Vargo said.

Morgan edged Latrobe’s Hunter Snyder 5-3 to advance to the finals at 172, but that wasn’t his closest match of the tournament, as Morgan won by rideout in the round of 16 and escaped with five seconds remaining for a 6-5 victory in the quarterfinals.

“I really don’t think too many people would have had me in the finals when the tournament began,” Morgan said.

Morgan had wrestled Snyder twice this season prior to the semifinals with each winning once in wild matches. Morgan defeated Snyder 12-11 on Dec. 9 in a dual meet, while Synder recorded a 15-13 decision in sudden victory during last week’s WPIAL Class 3A semifinals.

“I am just wrestling a lot smarter this tournament and staying in good position,” Morgan said. “I am trying to score points without getting in stupid positions and giving up too many points.”

Morgan, a Davidson commit, will look to become the Hillers’ first state champion since Dan Burkholder in 2005 when he faces Pine-Richland’s Vaughn Spencer in the Class 3A finals. Spencer defeated Morgan 8-2 when the two met Jan. 27.

“Wrestling in the state finals has been a goal of mine since I was little,” Morgan said. “I am just going to go out there and wrestle. I really don’t have anything to lose.”

Binni was seeking his second appearance in the finals, but dropped a 1-0 decision to Northampton’s Trey Wagner at 127 in Class 3A. Binni let Wagner escape in the third with 1:35 remaining after not being able to turn him.

Binni worked to get the match-winning takedown, but Wagner was able to hang on for the triumph.

“We got rode out in the second period, and Andrew knows that as much as anybody,” Canon-McMillan coach Brian Krenzelak said. “We always preach, ‘If you want to win a big tournament like this, you have to get off bottom against a good kid, and you have to be able to take down a good kid,’ and in that particular match, we weren’t able to accomplish either.

“The kid was good on top. We tried one pull back in the third period with the kid on bottom. Andrew has a real good chin drop. We tried it once, almost hit it, but when we didn’t hit it, we had to cut him.”

Despite the loss, Krenzelak has no doubt that Binni will rebound in the consolations and wrestle back for third place.

“Andrew will wrestle hard in his next match,” Krenzelak said. “He is off to the Naval Academy to wrestle for Cary Kolat. He has a good perspective that wrestling is a part of our identity, it’s not the totality of our identity, and he knows that as much as anyone.”

Baronick lost by fall in Class 2A at 285 to Central Valley’s Brenan Morgan.

Baronick, like Binni, has the opportunity to wrestle back for the bronze.

Conroy was pinned by Abington Heights’ Caleb Marzolino in the Class 3A bracket at 215.