Winning a PIAA State Wrestling Championship as a freshman is a rare feat. In fact, there have only been 53 freshmen win PIAA titles in the 85 years of the championships. However, there has been a recent surge in freshman champions. There are many factors at play, but the coaching available at the club level prior to high school has allowed more freshmen to be ready to compete at a high level than ever before. The 2010’s produced more than twice the amount of freshman champions from any previous decade in history. The 2020’s are continuing that pace with ten freshmen earning titles in the first four championships of the new decade.

Let’s take a look through the years at freshman champions and some of their stories.

1940s

PIAA Wrestling was in its infancy in 1940 as it hosted the PIAA Championships for the third time. Two freshmen took home titles from the tournament hosted at Penn State’s Rec Hall. James Conklin of Waynesburg won his first of four PIAA titles and Steve DeAugustino of Grove City won his first of two titles in controversial fashion. The History Of The PIAA Wrestling Championships by Norm Palovcsik and Mike Smith is a must have for any wrestling junky. Their recap of the 1940 Championship described DeAugustino’s title as follows, “The 95-pound final bout pitted defending state champion Raymond ‘Bucky’ Murdock against freshman Steve DeAugustino from Grove City. While in the controlling position, Murdock rolled through across his back and was ruled pinned by the official. DeAugustino won the bout despite trailing and being in the bottom position. The loss was Murdock’s only loss of his high school career.”

Defensive falls apparently have been around and complained about for as long as the tournament has been in existence. Conklin and DeAugustino almost crossed paths down the line as seniors. Conklin was going for his fourth title, but DeAugustino had been pinned in the quarterfinals his sophomore year by Lancaster’s Dick Milley and was in search of a record tying third title and could have derailed Conklin in the process. The match wasn’t to be as George Halas, no not that George Halas, but his nephew,  of Haverford knocked off DeAugustino in the semifinals. Conklin made history and took home his fourth state title.

Jerry Maury won his first of four titles in 1947. Clearfield was a power of early PIAA wrestling and had accumulated 23 individual championships in 12 years at the time of Maury’s graduation in 1950. The Maury family accounted for eight of the 23 titles as older brothers James and Don had each won a championship prior to Jerry’s arrival on the high school level.

1950s

 Mike Johnson was the only freshman champion of the 1950s. In 1958 Johnson was the third straight 95 pound champion from Lock Haven High School as Ted Hill and Maynard Aungst had taken home the two prior lightweight crowns. Johnson went on to win four titles covering the first four weight classes of 95, 103, 112, and 120 pounds.

1970s

Not a single freshman was able to take a title home during the 1960s. It ended up being almost two full decades until the next freshman took home a title in 1977. Major changes had occured in 1974 that formed the landscape that is very similar to today’s PIAA Wrestling Championships. The PIAA went to a two-class format with Class A and Class B. The championship field also expanded to 16 competitors in each bracket. The field expansion was on the heels of the field expanding from four to eight in 1973. The classes were renamed to the current AAA and AA in 1976.

In 1977 it was Terry Williams a freshman from Bald Eagle Nittany that broke through for the freshmen. The title for Williams would mark the second consecutive title for a freshman that was from a school that would feed into the current Central Mountain High School. Williams would go on to win three titles as he came up short in the 1979 155 pound final against Fairview’s Randy McKinney, 10-5. It was the second week in a row that McKinney took down Williams as he also defeated him in the Northwest Regional final.

1980s

All four freshman titlists in the 1980s converted their freshman run into joining the uber-exclusive club of four-time state champions. Matt Gerhard of Catasauqua opened the decade in 1981 as a AA champion at 98 pounds. Gerhard defeated Northern senior Marty Walsh of Northern for the title in 1981, 8-2. Gerhard would win titles in the consecutive weight classes of 105, 112, and 119 pounds to cap his high school career.

Ty Moore of North Allegheny became the first AAA state champion in 1987. Moore took the title with a 10-2 major decision over fellow freshman Brad Silimperi of Nazareth. It wouldn’t be the only time Moore and Silimperi would meet in Hershey Park Arena. They both took home titles in 1988, Silimperi at 98 pounds and Moore at 105 pounds. Both Silimperi and Moore were at 112 pounds for the 1989 PIAA Championships. Moore was upset in the regional final by Connellsville’s Jeff Stephanic. Stephanic and Silimperi met in a quarterfinal showdown with Silimperi coming out on top, 4-3. In the final Moore scored a late third period takedown to take the advantage in a tied bout. A late escape for Silimperi wasn’t enough as Moore took his third championship with a 4-3 decision. A year later Moore pinned Ryan Youwakim of Northampton in the finals to earn his fourth title and the outstanding wrestler award.

Starting in 1988, a freshman took home a title each year in AA for the next three season. All three would go on to win four titles. John Hughes won the 112 pound championship for Benton. He would run off titles at 125, 140, and 145 pounds to join the four-timer club. John and his twin brother Russ lead a Benton team that book-ended their career with team titles in 1988 and 1991.

Cary Kolat burst onto the scene in 1989. He pinned Tony Owens of Tyrone in the 119 pound final in 1989. Kolat is widely regarded as the best high school wrestler of the modern era. His legend was widely known even by young wrestlers in the 1980s. I shared my memories of his high school run here. Twice during high school Kolat took home hardware from the prestigious Midlands Championship, finishing 3rd in 1989 and 4th in 1990. 

Kolat was incredibly dominant in Hershey Park Arena. He wrestled 16 bouts in four years: eight ended by fall, five ended by technical fall, two were decisions, and the final bout of his career he won by injury default. Three of his opponents at the state tournament either won a title the very next year or they were a returning champion. Against those opponents he won a 12-5 decision (Joel Torretti of Lewisburg received a standing ovation after this bout), earned a 22-7 technical fall, and pinned returning state champion Greg Budman of Hughesville in 1:16. There was such a buzz around Kolat the attendance reached 8,476 his senior season as he took the mat for the final time in Hershey Park Arena. 

1990s

Milton is a school that has a male enrollment that bounces their wrestling team back and forth between AA and AAA. In 1990, when Bob Crawford was a freshman, Milton was a AA school. In an early season dual meet with Mahanoy Area Crawford dropped a 7-6 decision to Jim Keck. Crawford didn’t suffer another defeat until the regional finals of his senior season, he ran off 131 straight after the early loss to Keck. His opponent in the PIAA finals was also from Mahanoy Area. However it wasn’t Jim Keck. Brendan Hasara had wrestled the 1989 postseason at 119 pounds, but dropped to 112 pounds for the 1990 postseason. It proved to be a good choice as he landed a spot opposite of Crawford in the finals. Under the old 1-1-1 overtime rules, Crawford took the 13-11 overtime decision. 

Crawford’s path to four titles is one of the most interesting in PIAA history. Milton moved to AAA for Crawford’s final three seasons. As a sophomore, Crawford met Nazareth junior Ryan Nunamaker for the championship. This bout is probably my favorite PIAA final of all time. Crawford showed a lot of funk way ahead of its time and prevailed 15-11, once again in overtime. Crawford’s junior year was the most uneventful as he dominated the field except Drew Spencer of Peters Twp. in the quarter-final. That was a 3-2 decision for Crawford and the second straight year in AAA that Crawford defeated a wrestler en route to the title that would go on to claim their own championship the following year. Crawford’s senior year wasn’t a celebratory victory lap that you sometimes expect. Crawford was defeated in the regional final by Nazareth’s Dan Tashner. Crawford was able to turn the tables in Hershey and pick up his fourth state title with a 6-0 decision. Special appreciation to Milton head coach, Josh Anspach, for tracking down the Crawford vs Keck score. He didn’t have to go very far as Crawford is part of his staff, as is the next freshman champion, Jason Betz.

Betz hit the PIAA scene in 1992 for Warrior Run High School. Betz defeated Andy Levan of Pine Grove back-to-back years for the AA title at 103 and 112 pounds. It was a 6-5 overtime decision for Betz his freshman year, and a 4-3 decision as a sophomore. Betz breezed through the 119 pound bracket as a junior and was set to become a four-time champion at the 1995 championships. Betz had an anticipated showdown with 1994 PIAA Champion Travis Makel of Jefferson-Morgan, who had dropped from his title weight of 130 pounds down to 125 pounds to take on Betz. The matchup never materialized. Betz was cruising in his semifinal against Jeremy Lengle of Pine Richland when disaster struck for Betz. Leading 10-2 Betz was on the attack again when Lengle countered with a spladle. The pinning combination was tight and Lengle secured the fall at 3:45. Showing great character Betz fought back through the backside for a third-place finish.

Jeremy Hunter was the next phenom to hit the arena floor in Hershey in 1993, but he didn’t come in as the favorite.  The McGuffey freshman was defeated in the southwest regional final by North Allegheny sophomore Teague Moore. Tied at four in the rematch with Moore, Hunter scored the match winning takedown in sudden victory to secure the first of four AAA state titles.

Tri-Valley’s Josh Miller has a unique, but unfortunate distinction amongst freshman PIAA Champions. Miller was the first freshman titleist to not get back to the top of the awards stand. Miller took home the AA 112 pound title in 1994. In three consecutive seasons Miller dropped the title match. He dropped back-to-back finals against Bald Eagle Nittany’s Scott Bair, before being defeated by Rob English of West Branch his senior season.

Reynolds is a history rich program that continues to set the benchmark in today’s AA classification. They have produced several freshman champions, the first being Justin Nestor in 1998. Nestor took home the 130 pound title with a 4-2 sv decision over Dustin Ziegler of Bedford. Nestor would drop his first round bout at the 1999 championships and finish fourth before capturing back-to-back titles at 145 pound in 2000 and 2001.

Another Mcguffey lightweight hit the mats in 1999. Jeff Breese was highly touted coming into high school and he delivered. Breese won the AAA 103 pound title. Immediately Jeremy Hunter comparisons started. However, Breese wouldn’t get his shot at four PIAA titles as his 2000 season ended with a knee injury before the postseason. Breese would rebound to take home the 112 pound title in 2001, but failed to place in the 119 pound bracket in 2002.

2000s

2003 saw two freshmen pick up AA titles. Matt Dunn of Reynolds and Garrett Scott of Juniata Valley took home the 103 and 119 pound titles. Scott did not win his district or regional tournament as he dropped close decisions to returning PIAA Champion Jake Stayer of Forest Hills. Stayer was caught in a cement job and pinned by Ryan Storm in round one. Scott took advantage and pinned Matt Guerrieri of Brandywine Heights at the 5:56 mark to take home the title.

Neither Dunn or Scott were able to parlay their freshman title into a full set of four championships. Dunn was the prohibitive favorite the following year when Central Columbia junior Taylor Cummings used a third period takedown, fleeing the mat point, and finally a three-point nearfall  from a cross-wrist tilt to take down the returning champion 6-5 in the quarterfinals. Scott ran off two straight titles before off the mat issues prevented him from competing his senior season. A school suspension was served the week of the state tournament and kept Scott from participating in any school activities.

The AA 103 pound weight class was owned by freshmen between 2006 and 2011. John Prezzia of South Side Beaver, Frank Martellotti of Shady Side Academy, and Luke Frey of Montoursville won the first three titles in this span and would all join the infamous club of freshman champions that would fail to win another title. Prezzia had a fourth place as a sophomore before injuries derailed his career. Both Martellotti and Frey would win four medals and they made the finals in 2010, coming just short of another title.

Jimmy Gulibon of Derry, Nick Roberts of North Star, and Arty Walsh of Wyomissing all won titles at the 2009 PIAA Championships. Gulibon won AAA 103 pounds and Roberts won the AA side. Walsh won a monster bracket at 112 pounds in AA that contained the aforementioned Frey, returning runner-up Mason Beckman of Reynolds. However, it was fellow Freshman Zach Beitz of Juniata coming through the top bracket posting wins over both Beckman and Frey. Walsh would take the title with a 5-2 decision. This would be the only title of Walsh’s career as he transferred to Juniata the following year and failed to place. As a junior and senior at Schuylkill Walsh picked up a fifth and third place medal to finish out his career.

Gulibon ran through the AAA field at 103 and 112 pounds before Derry dropped to the AA classification. Gulibon took down Bethlehem Catholic’s Randy Cruz in the 119 pound final in 2011 6-5. He became the tenth member of the prestigious four-time champions club the following year when he defeated Keystone Oaks junior Nick Zanetta, 9-3.

2010s

Roberts finished his career a three-time champion. Only failing to win the title as a sophomore at 103 pounds. Knocking Roberts off his Sophomore year was the next freshman champion Zain Retherford of Line Mountain. Retherford defeated Roberts 4-3 in the semifinal, before defeating Brad Farley of Bermudian Springs in the championship bout. Retherford would come up short as a sophomore,just like Roberts. At 112 pounds Retherford was defeated by the identical 4-3 score by Penn Cambria’s Evan Link. This denied the Roberts vs Retherford rematch, and Roberts picked up his second title pinning Link in the final. After missing a year due to transfer rules, Retherford book-ended his career with a title in 2013 for the Benton Tigers. 

Along with Retherford in 2010 Cody Wiercioch of Charleroi would take home a title on the AA side. Wiercioch took down Kyle Dehaut of Bethlehem Catholic 8-3 in the 152 pound final. Wiercioch was the second heaviest freshman to win a title at the time just below Terry Williams of Bald Eagle Nittany at 155 pounds. Wiercioch fell victim to the sophomore jinx just like Roberts and Gulibon as he fell to Burrell’s Travis McKillop in sudden victory at the 2011 PIAA Championships. A move his junior season would land Wiercioch on the AAA level wrestling for Canon-McMillan. Wiercioch would win two titles for the Big Mac’s to close out his career.

Wiercioch would graduate from Canon-Mcmillan with Connor Schram who also took home a title as a freshman in 2010. Schram won a 2-1 UTB decision over Austin Miller of Hempfield for the title in 2010. Schram would come up short in back-to-back finals appearances dropping matches to Jordan Conaway of New Oxford and Godwin Nyama of Brashear. Schram wouldn’t be denied as a senior as he defeated Franklin Regional’s Michael Kemerer, 5-3.

In 2011 fans once again saw three freshmen take home gold medals from Hershey. Jason Nolf of Kittanning took home the title at 103 pounds in AA, while Chance Marsteller of Kennard-Dale and Thomas Haines of Solanco took home titles on the AAA side.

Nolf held on for a 2-1 UTB victory over Bethlehem Catholic sophomore Darian Cruz in a semi-final showdown. After getting past Cruz, Nolf took the title with a 4-2 decision over Joseph Byers of Boiling Springs. Nolf would be the only one of the 2011 trio to not will four titles. Nolf’s sophomore year he was defeated in the semifinals by Ryan DIehl of Trinity. 

Marsteller and Haines won championships at 152 and 215 pounds in 2011. Haines is the only freshman to win a title above 155 pounds in PIAA history. Marsteller dominated his way to an undefeated freshman season taking out two previous runner-up finishers. Both wrestlers would hold serve throughout their careers as they became the 11th and 12th member of the four-time PIAA champions club.

2012 was the first year since 2005 that a freshman failed to win a gold medal at the PIAA Championships. 2013 saw a single freshman in both AA and AAA climb to the top of the podium. George Phillippi of Derry won at 113 pounds in AA and Luke Pletcher took home the 106 pound AAA title. You know George Phillippi better as “Micky.” These two guys will be forever mentioned together. They met numerous times in high school level and renewed their rivalry on the NCAA mats. They each took home three PIAA Championships with Phillippi coming up just short his sophomore season and Pletcher lost an incredibly entertaining final to A.C. Headlee of Waynesburg his junior year. 

2014 saw another set of three freshmen leave the Giant Center with the championship. Jake Riegel of Bethlehem Catholic was a surprise winner at 106 pounds in AA. Riegel finished fifth at the southeast regional tournament. In round one, Riegel upset undefeated freshman Brian Courtney of Athens and never looked back. In the final he defeated John Pipa of Bishop McDevitt 3-1. Pipa defeated Riegel in the regional semi-final 4-2 just a week earlier. Riegel moved to AAA the next season as Bethlehem Catholic elected to move to the bigger classification. Riegel took home an eighth place finish in 2015 at 120 pounds. Riegel finished his career outside of the PIAA at Wyoming Seminary.

On the AAA side Spencer Lee of Franklin Regional and Cameron Coy of Penn Trafford took home titles at 113 and 132 pounds. Both Lee and Coy won three PIAA titles in their career, but they went about getting there in different ways. Coy was defeated in the 2015 final by former Hempfield state champion Sam Krivus, 1-0. Coy would bounce back to cap his career off with two more titles. 

Lee went on one of the most dominant runs high school wrestling has ever seen through his first three seasons. At the state tournament Lee was 12-0 with seven falls, four technical falls, and one major decision. That is a stat line that was unprecedented in PIAA wrestling. Unfortunately, a major knee injury during Lee’s senior season hobbled him as he looked to close out his career as a four-time champion. His final bout with Austin DeSanto is well documented as Lee came up just short when he surrendered a buzzer-beating takedown. 

Gavin Teasdale of Jefferson-Morgan and Cole Matthews of Reynolds took to the top of the stand on the AA side in 2015. Matthews defeated Brian Courtney of Athens for the championship at 120 pounds, 3-2. However this wasn’t the last those two would see of each other at the Giant Center. Courtney pulled off an incredible run in 2016 defeating three returning state champions in a row to win his first title at 126 pounds. Matthews was Courtney’s semifinal victim falling 9-3. Courtney also defeated 126 pound state champion Jonathan Gabriel of Bedford and 113 pound champion Max Murin of Central Cambria. Murin and Matthews fought it out for the 138 pound championship in 2017 with Murin coming out on top 2-1 in UTB. Matthews did cap his career with a title in 2018 and finished 1, 3, 2, 1 for his career.

Teasdale was able to join the elite club of four-time champions becoming the 13th member. It wasn’t without some challenges though. The most significant came in the quarterfinals his freshman year. Teasdale was squaring off with fellow freshman Jaret Lane of Southern Columbia. Lane had Teasdale in deep trouble, almost pinning the freshman phenom. Teasdale was able to recover and fight back with a flurry of takedowns to tie the match at 10 a piece heading into sudden victory. Teasdale was able to secure the takedown in overtime and was on his way to his first of four titles.

2016 and 2017 saw one freshman champion emerge from the AAA classification each year, and those two wrestlers will be linked in PIAA history after the 2019 PIAA Championships. Julian Chlebove of Northampton was a freshman titleist at 113 pounds in 2016 taking down Matt Parker of Pennridge 3-0. The next season Sam Hillegas earned the 113 pound crown with a 5-2 decision over Louis Newell of Seneca Valley. At the 2019 PIAA Championships Hillegas and Chlebove squared off in the 132lb semifinal. Chlebove made a second period reversal stand up in a 2-1 bout. It wasn’t without controversy as the officials missed a locked hands call as Hillegas was working on his escape in the third period. Hillegas finished his career with two titles, while Chlebove missed the postseason in 2018 and finished with three. More than half of the freshman champions have gone on to win at least three titles, and about one in every four are able to run the table with four PIAA titles.

106 pounds was won by a freshman on both the AA and AAA side in 2018. Gary Steen won the AA Championship for Reynolds, and Alejandro Herrera won the AAA title representing Seneca Valley. These two met at the 2017 Powerade Tournament with Steen coming out on top 6-4 in TB2. 

Steen was the headline of the 2019 PIAA Championships on the AA side Thursday morning. Steen dropped his round of 16 bout to Matt Vulakh of Pope John Paul II. Steen recovered to earn third place with five straight wins. In 2020 Steen returned to the top of the podium earning his second state title. Steen finished third as a senior as Brett Ungar won the final bout in their back and forth rivalry. Unger pinned super freshman Mason Gibson of Bishop McCort in the final to prevent him from joining the list.

Alejandro Herrera won back-to-back titles before coming up just short in the 2020 semifinals dropping an UTB match to Patrick Noonan of Stroudsburg at 132lbs. Herrera capped his high school career returning to the top of the podium as he dominated the 152lb weight class his senior season.

All three freshman champions in 2019 were in the AA classification. Jackson Arrington of Forest Hills won an all-freshman final at 113lbs. Arrington turned a midseason result as he defeated Southern Columbia freshman Kole Bisco 10-3. Arrington finished third at 126lbs in 2020. Arrington was as dominant as anyone in the tournament in 2021 as he returned to the top of the podium winning the 132lb championship. Arrington continued a steep upward development his senior season as he bonused his way through the postseason. Arrington scored a technical fall and three falls in Hershey capping off his third championship.

Ryan Crookham of Notre Dame lived up to the hype taking the 120lb championship. Crookham defeated Beau Bayless of Reynolds for the second time of the season in the championship match. Bayless was a four-time medalist, and earned a state title himself in 2017. 

Crookham won the crown in 2020 at 126lbs when he downed Levi Haines of Biglerville. In the semifinal, Haines handed Arrington his only loss in the Giant Center. Between seasons Crookham made the decision to return to public school at Saucon Valley. Crookham missed the 2021 season due to injury. He missed a large portion of the 2022 season with injury, but played a key role in Saucon Valley’s PIAA Dual Championship. Crookham finished his career off with his third title in three tries.

Dayton Pitzer of Mount Pleasant became the second heaviest freshman champion in PIAA history. Pitzer won the 182lb title to cap off a one-loss season. Unfortunately, Pitzer missed the 2020 season due to injury. Pitzer made a triumphant return in 2021 claiming the 215lb title. Pitzer made it back-to-back titles at 215lbs in what I believe to be the most dominant PIAA season ever. Pitzer was 45-0 with 38 falls and 6 forfeits. The lone decision for Pitzer was over TJ Stewart (Blair Academy) in the Powerade finals, 4-2 TB2. Pitzer finished his career with 100 falls in just three seasons of competition.

2020s

In 2020 both the AA and AAA side added one freshman titleist. AA almost doubles the amount of AAA freshmen titleist when comparing the two divisions over the course of history.

Branden Wentzel of Montoursville defeated fellow freshman Calan Bollman of Chestnut Ridge for the 106lb title. Wentzel is the second freshman to win a title for Montoursville. Luke Frey won back in 2008, but it was his only title in his career. Wentzel was knocked off in the quarterfinals by Cooper Hornack of Burrell in 2021 and dropped the title match to Gavin Bradley in 2022. Wentzel finished 3rd in 2023 after dropping a tight quaterfinal, 1-0, to eventual champion, Gauge Botero of Faith Christian Academy.

Vinny Kilkeary of Greater Latrobe dropped seven matches as a freshman, but came on at the right time to qualify for the PIAA Championships and ultimately win the 106lb AAA title. Kilkeary had two of the most exciting bouts of the championships when he knocked off Tyler Kasak of Bethlehem Catholic 14-10 in the semifinals and won by fall over Jacob Van Dee of Erie Cathedral Prep in sudden victory. Kilkeary dropped a semifinal to Zac Jacaruso of Delaware Valley in his bid to repeat as champion in 2021 at 113lbs. Kilkeary climbed back to the top of the podium in 2022 with a dominant performance at 120lbs. Kilkeary’s 12-3 major decision over previously unbeaten Mason Leiphart of Dover was one of the best championship performances. Kilkeary became the 58th three-time champion when he capped off an undefeated season at 127lbs in 2023.

Three freshmen walked away from the Giant Center with titles in the Covid-altered format, where just the medalists competed in Hershey in an eight-man bracket, in 2021. Louie Gill of Hickory and Kaedyn Williams of Manheim Township took home the 106lb titles. Rune Lawrence of Frazier bucked the trend of lightweight champions and took home the 172lb AA title. 

Gill was an unlikely champion as he finished third at the West Super Region. He had lost twice to Hunter Robison of Saegertown in the postseason, but got the one that mattered in the state semifinal. Gill then defeated Cooper Hornack of Burrell just a week after dropping that match-up in the super region. Gill wasn’t able to break the curse of returning AA 106lb champions in 2022, as he fell in the final to Aaron Seidel of Northern Lebanon. That made three AA 106lb champions in a row that returned to the weight the following year and failed to repeat. Gill missed the 2023 postseason after transferring to Reynolds and being ruled ineligible.Gill returns this season in a stacked 121lbs weight class on the AA side. Aaron Seidel and Gauge Botero are both returning state champions that are anticipated to be in Gill’s path to another state championship.

Williams followed Gill’s path finishing third in the super region before earning the title in Hershey. Williams lost a razor thin match to Tyler Chappell in Altoona before he was able to flip the result in the semifinal in Hershey. Williams came up short in 2022 as he dropped his semifinal to Cole Campbell of Bethlehem Catholic. Williams earned his third medal in 2023 as he finished fourth at 114lbs.

Williams comes into the Giant Center this weekend undefeated and looking to bookend his career with championships. The AAA field at 114lbs contains a few of the freshmen with legitimate title aspirations this season.

Lawrence had a spectacular trilogy against Malachi Duvall of Penns Valley. Lawrence trailed late in the regional final before pinning Duvall in 5:37. He earned a sudden victory win at the super region, and scored a late reversal to take a 9-7 win in Hershey. Lawrence is the third heaviest freshman to win a PIAA title. Lawrence made it back-to-back titles when he stormed through the 172lb bracket picking up three falls and a 7-0 decision in 2022. Lawrence stayed on track to become the 14th four-time PIAA champion as he picked up a decision and three falls en route to the 2023 championship. 

Lawrence is in line to make history Saturday evening joining an exclusive club of four-time champions. This won’t be a simple coronation and farewell tour for Lawrence. Austin Johnson of Muncy is the second seed and should provide a stiff test in the finals. Johnson is a junior that has finished second and first in two trips to the Giant Center. 

For the second year in a row three freshmen took home championships in 2022. Aaron Seidel of Northern Lebanon and Nathan Desmond of Bethlehem Catholic took home the 106lb titles in AA and AAA, while Dalton Perry of Central Mountain won the 126lb AAA title.

Aaron Seidel proved himself to be title contender in the Southeast Regional final when he knocked off returning medalist Ayden Smith of Notre Dame-Green Pond. Most still viewed Seidel as the underdog in the championship bout against returning champ Louie Gill of Hickory. In the pivotal sequence Seidel secured a reinforced bar for three nearfall. He fended Gill off in the third to take a 4-2 decision.

Seidel broke the AA 106lb curse in 2023 after three returning champions in a row failed to win in their sophomore campaign. Ironically he didn’t technically break the weight class curse as the weight class changed to 107lbs. Seidel is looking to stay on track for four titles and is the top seed at what I perceive as the premier bracket on the boys side in either class. Louie Gill and Gauge Botero of Faith Christian Academy have both won PIAA championships and are in the opposite half of Seidel. The trio is currently ranked sixth, seventh and eighth in the most recent FloWrestling national high school rankings.

Nathan Desmond of Bethlehem Catholic dominated the field at 106lbs on the AAA side. Desmond put up two major decisions and a technical fall en route to the final. In the final, Desomond scored three takedowns and three sets of nearfall to take a 15-5 major decision.

Desmond won his second and possibly final PIAA title. Desmond picked up two falls, a 6-0 decision, and a major decision in the title bout. 

Desmond enrolled in Wyoming Seminary this fall and picked up a National Prep title for the Blue Knights. 

Dalton Perry of Central Mountain won the 126lb title over Ethan Lebin of Hempfield 6-3. As big of a win was the semifinal win over fellow freshman Maddox Shaw of Thomas Jefferson, 3-1. Many people circled that semifinal knowing the implications as both freshmen had legitimate title hopes.

Perry finished third as a sophomore, losing a tight semifinal, 3-1, to eventual champion Kollin Rath of Bethlehem Catholic. Perry returns at 139lbs as a regional runner-up. Brock Weiss’ (Jersey Shore) lack of prestige points created a funky bracket situation leaving Perry opposite of Weiss and top seed Maddox Shaw of Thomas Jefferson.

2023 had just one freshman champion in both AA and AAA.

Adam Waters of Faith Christian Academy was named outstanding wrestler after winning the 172lb AA title. Waters recorded a technical fall followed by three falls. In the finals he pinned returning PIAA champion Holden Garcia of Notre Dame-Green Pond in 1:43. 

Waters is back as the top seed at 172lbs and looking to stay on track to become a four-time PIAA champion.

Keanu Dillard became the second Bethlehem Catholic freshman to win the lightest weight class in as many years, and the third freshman lightweight titleist for the Golden Hawks. Dillard only put up bonus points in the opening round, but he was never really pressed, winning six and seven point decisions en route to the 107lb AAA title. 

Dillard is at 121lbs this season and the ranking favorite, but seeded second behind Mason Ziegler of Quakertown. Dillard could have to go through both Ziegler and Luke Willochell of Greater Latrobe who have both made appearances in the finals.

This decade has seen an average of two and a half freshmen champions per year, well ahead of the pace over any decade in the past. This year could slow that pace as there are very few freshmen coming in as the favorite, and those that have been tabbed as favorites to win face deep fields or very talented co-favorites. 

On the AA side I feel there are four freshmen with legitimate title hopes. Joey Bachmann of Faith Christian is the only freshman without a blemish on his record and the favorite coming into the tournament. Bachmann is ranked #1 in the country, and would normally be a heavy favorite. However, returning runner-up and #2 in the country is the top seeded Dominic Deputy of Chestnut Ridge. That isn’t the only challenge in the way for Bachmann. Fellow freshman Tanner Guenot of Bald Eagle Area is a potential quarterfinal opponent. He only has two losses on the season and both are close losses to Deputy.

Moving up to 114lbs freshman sensation Brock Rothermel of Line Mountain has a skill set that would normally tab him as a favorite. That’s not the case with Ayden Smith of Notre Dame Green Pond in the weight class. Smith is a returning state champion and currently ranked #2 in the nation. 

Melvin Miller of Bishop McCort is the final freshman on the AA side that I believe to have a solid chance of standing atop the podium on Saturday evening. Miller doesn’t face a field with a top ranked rival, but he definitely faces the deepest field and has an incredibly tough path to the title. He could have to run a gauntlet through PIAA medalists Brady Collins of Clearfield, Cameron Milheim of Warrior Run, and a potential final against Max Stein of Faith Christian. Stein knocked off Miller in the team championship after Miller wasn’t awarded a buzzer beating takedown. I had sided with the official in the moment, but with the benefit of review I think Miller probably scored the winning takedown at the end of the third period. If Miller is able to prevail this weekend he will have earned his title.

On the AAA side opportunities aren’t as plentiful and that follows the course of history. 107lbs seems to be open for a handful of wrestlers to seize their moment. Dominick Morrison of Hatboro-Horsham and Nicholas McGarrity of Peters Township are regional champions set up in the bottom bracket. In fact, six of the ten wrestlers on the bottom half of the bracket are freshmen. It seems like the opportunity is there for a freshman, who will rise to the occasion?

Landon Sidun of Norwin had been the state’s top-ranked wrestler at 114lbs for a majority of the season after his descent for Powerade back in December. However, Santino Sloboda of Butler turned the prognosticators' plans on their head with the upset win over Sidun in the WPIAL final. Sidun had seemed to be a strong favorite as he had also been ranked #1 in the country since his Powerade victory. The bracket dynamics changed a lot with Sloboda and Sidun swapping positions. This didn’t change a whole lot for either wrestler other than the names and style differences in their path to a title. The quality on both sides of the bracket is high and several wrestlers are capable of winning the championship. 2021 freshman champion Kaedyn Williams is in the bottom with Sloboda, and Sidun now faces a potential quarterfinal matchup with returning medalist Colby Martinelli of Pennridge. The change could also lead to a freshman battle in the top semi as Gabriel Ballard of Northampton only has tasted defeat once this season. The storylines at just this weight should create quite the fan interest here in the Keystone state.

A little bit of a historical side note on the identified AAA contenders: Hatboro-Horsham, Peters Township, and Norwin all have just one PIAA wrestling champion coming into the 2024 championships.