IAC WRESTLING: WAVERLY CROWNS THREE CHAMPS; FINISHES SECOND AT IAC CHAMPIONSHIPS (24 PHOTOS) (2023-01-21)

By TIM BIRNEY
Valley Sports Report
WAVERLY - Waverly finished the IAC wrestling championships here Saturday afternoon on a high note, with 8th-grader Matthias Welles (189 pounds), senior Ty Beeman (215 pounds), and sophomore Kam Hills (285 pounds) winning the last three weight classes to help the Wolverines to a second-place finish in the team standings.

Tioga pulled away to win the team title after crowning six champions with 246 points, while Waverly tallied 197.5 points — just two points ahead of third-place Newark Valley. Schuyler was fourth with 139, and Marathon was fifth with 128 points.

Waverly also had a pair of runners-up in seniors Gage Tedesco (189) and Braeden Hills (160), and a pair of third-place finishers in freshman Troy Beeman (285), and 7th-grader Drayton DeKay (102).

"Sweeping the top three weight classes was big for us," said Waverly coach Devan Witman. "There were a lot of familiar foes, especially in the finals; and those are kids we’re going to see over and over again, and the kids we’ll have to get through to get to States."

Kam Hills and Ty Beeman both beat very familiar opponents in the finals. Hills pinning Marathon’s Logan Jamison, and Beeman posting a hard-fought, 10-9, decision over previously-unbeaten Donovan Mitchell of Groton.

"It definitely left a bad taste in Kam’s mouth losing to Jamison last year at States," noted Witman. "He knew coming in this was the match he wanted, and he got it. I couldn’t be more proud of him.

"Ty (Beeman) wrestled a great match, and against a very good opponent (Groton’s Donovan Mitchell)," added Witman. "I’m sure we’ll see him again."

Last year, Hills and Jamison matched up four times. Hills won in the IAC finals, and the Section IV, Division 2 finals. Jamison won the Qualifier B finals, and in a consolation bracket match at States.

Ty Beeman edged Mitchell, 11-9, at the Windsor Tournament last year, but lost via second-period fall to Mitchell at the IAC Championships. Earlier this year, Mitchell beat him, 3-2, at the Oneonta Rotary Tournament.

Overall, Witman was pleased with the day.

"It was a good day," he said. "We’ve worked really hard, and got some of our young guys on the podium here at the IACs, which is a big deal.

"At 102, Drayton DeKay avenging a loss, and not only avenging it, but getting a major decision over a kid that beat him earlier in the year was very impressive," noted Witman. "We’ve wanted that match back for a long time, so I’m glad he got to experience and come back for third place.

"Caden Bradley is putting in the work, to place at the IACs as an 8th-grader is awesome.

"Other guys like Parker Larson, Nico Rae, Kevin Hollenbeck, and Brance VanDyke … all these are young guys who are experiencing placing for the first time.

"Overall, the entire team performed very well," Witman added.

Witman also pointed out the performance of freshman Troy Beeman.

"We bumped Troy (Beeman) up to 285 to test the water between 215 and 285 to see where we want him at the end of the year," he noted. "After today and coming back for third place convincingly, I think 285 is the place where he needs to be."

At 215 pounds, Ty Beeman went 4-0 on the day to win the weight class.

Ty Beeman started the day with a pin of Tioga’s Austin Babcock at 2:53, then forged a 9-3 decision over Newark Valley’s Seth Northrup in the quarterfinals.

In the semifinals, Ty Beeman decked Tioga’s Tate Macauley in 3:19.

In the finals, Ty Beeman built an early 6-2 lead, then held on for a 10-9 win.

"It felt phenomenal," said Ty Beeman. "I’ve been putting in a lot of extra work, going to morning practices, going on runs every night, doing my push-ups, doing my sit-ups … it’s that extra work that really pays off.

"He beat me, 3-2, at the Oneonta Tournament, and I’ve been working my butt off ever since, really looking to that match" he noted. "I wanted that one."

At 285 pounds, Kam Hills was dominant in a 3-0 performance on his way to the weight class title.

In the quarterfinals, he forged a 15-0 technical fall over Newark Valley’s Austin DeBolt.

In the semifinals, Kam Hills decked Dryden’s Kaydin Hinckley in 1:13, then in the finals avenged a pair of losses last year to Marathon’s Logan Jamison with a fall in 1:15.

Also at 285 pounds, Troy Beeman went 3-1 to finish third.

Troy Beeman pinned Moravia’s Gavin Wells in 55 seconds in the quarterfinals.

In the semifinals, Troy Beeman was locked up in a 2-2 battle with Jamison until the Marathon senior worked him to his back for a fall at 5:54.

Troy Beeman bounced back in the consolation semifinals with a pin of Tioga’s Bradley Guiles in 1:43.

In the third-place match, Troy Beeman pinned Hinckley in 43 seconds.

At 189 pounds, Welles went 2-0 to win the weight class, while Tedesco was 1-1 to finish second.

Welles pinned Newark Valley’s Derek Payne in 2:48 in the semifinals, then won a hard-fought, 6-5, decision over Tedesco in the finals.

Tedesco advanced to the finals with a pin of Dryden’s Hunter Covington in 3:35.

At 160 pounds, Braeden Hills, the third seed, pinned his way into the championship match, where he lost via first-period fall to reigning state champion Ousmane Duncanson.

Braeden Hills opened with a pin of teammate, freshman Jarren Ennis, in 2:00, then pinned Edison’s Mason Barchet in 1:26 in the quarterfinals.

In the semifinals, Braeden Hills flattened second-seeded Tristan Harrington of Schuyler in 69 seconds.

In the finals, Duncanson locked Hills in a cradle for a fall at 1:40.

At 102 pounds, DeKay, the fourth seed, went 4-1 on the day to finish third.

DeKay started his day with a pin of Marathon’s Simon Donah at the first-period buzzer in the opening round, then forged an 11-3 major decision over Tioga’s Kadin Cole in the quarterfinals.

In the semis, top-seeded Owen Clark of Lansing scored a fall over DeKay in 62 seconds.

DeKay bounced back in the consolation semifinals with a pin of Lansing’s Aaden McMillen in 2:20.

In the third-place match, DeKay avenged a 4-0 loss earlier this season, with a 15-5 major decision over Newark Valley’s Trevor Middendorf.

At 110 pounds, 8th-grader Caden Bradley went 3-2 to finish fifth.

After receiving a bye into the quarterfinals, Bradley lost his first match via fall to Tioga’s Brayden MacWhinnie, but bounced back with two wins in wrestlebacks.

He decked Schuyler’s Ayden Williams in 58 seconds, and topped Tioga’s Connor Streeter, 6-2 to advance to the consolation semifinals, where he dropped an 8-1 decision to SVEC’s Rodney Vaow.

In the fifth-place match, Bradley received a forfeit from Tioga’s MacWhinnie.

At 118 pounds, 8th-grader Nico Rae went 2-2 to finish fifth.

After losing in the quarterfinals via fall, Rae forged an 11-5 decision over Whitney Point’s Sam Baker to reach the consolation semifinals, where he lost via first-period fall to Moravia’s Hunter Boynton.

In the fifth-place match, Rae won via no contest as his opponent had already reach the five-match maximum for the day.

At 126 pounds, junior Josh Courtney went 2-2 to finish fifth.

After losing in the quarterfinals in an 8-5 decision to Marathon’s Brendan Gumaer, Courtney bounced back with a pin Marathon’s John Root in 2:10 and a 7-3 win over teammate sophomore Jason Besecker.

In the consolation semifinals, Courtney lost a 16-1 technical fall to Tioga’s Levi Bellis.

In the fifth-place match, Courtney won via no contest as his opponent had already reach the five-match maximum for the day.

Also at 126 pounds, Besecker was 2-2 on the day.

In the round-of-16, Besecker decked Dryden’s Chris Green in 1:48, but was pinned in the quarterfinals by two-time state champ Gianni Silvestri of Tioga.

Besecker bounced back with a 59-second fall over Schuyler’s Dylan Senecal, but was eliminated by Courtney in a 7-3 decision in his next consolation bracket match.

At 132 pounds, freshman Brance VanDyke was 2-3 to finish sixth.

After losing via fall in the opening round, VanDyke pinned his teammate, senior Mason Ham, in 2:40, then decked Edison’s Jace Shiller in 3:38.

In the consolation semifinals, VanDyke dropped a 7-4 decision to Newark Valley’s Logan Rhodes.

In the fifth-place match, VanDyke lost via fall to Edison’s Julian Buzzetti.

At 138 pounds, 8th-grader Parker Larson went 2-2 to finish fifth.

After dropping a 10-2 major decision to SVEC’s Shane Neal in the opening round, Larson bounced back in wrestlebacks with an 8-2 decision over Schuyler’s Balan Ault, and a 6-5 decision over Schuyler’s Jaymes Forker.

In the consolation semifinals, Larson dropped a 13-0 major decision to Tioga’s Jack Woodcock.

In the fifth-place match, Larson won via no contest as his opponent had already reach the five-match maximum for the day.

Also at 138 pounds, sophomore Riley Pipher went 1-2, with his win a pin of Dryden’s Dean Belden in 2:54.


Also at 152 pounds, sophomore Dustyn Gingerich went 1-2, with his lone win a medical forfeit from Marathon’s Anthony Neville.

At 172 pounds, freshman Nate Peters went 2-2 to finish fifth.

After a loss in the quarterfinals, Peters bounced back with a pin of Tioga’s Max Dydynski in 2:38 to reach the consolation semifinals, where he lost via second-period fall to Marathon’s Julian Spirizzi.

In the fifth-place match, Peters erased a 6-0 deficit, and then pinned Schuyler’s Jeremy Miller in 4:47.

At 189 pounds, junior Mackenzie LaForest went 0-3 and placed sixth.

Freshman Hudson Sink (132 pounds), senior Mason Ham (132), and freshman Jarren Ennis (160) each went 0-2 on the day.



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