NEW YORK STATE WRESTLING: TIOGA'S McKEE, DUNCANSON ADVANCE TO SEMIFINALS; THREE TEAMMATES ONE WIN AWAY FROM STATE MEDAL (24 PHOTOS) (February 27, 2026)
By TIM BIRNEYValley Sports ReportALBANY — Reigning New York State champion Declan McKee and four-time state place-winner Jayden Duncanson are back in the semifinals here at New York State Division 2 Wrestling Championships, and three of their Tioga teammates need one more win to reach the podium.
Seniors Logan Bellis and Kadin Cole, and sophomore Drayke Ulrich are still vying for state medals, while junior Caden Bradley and freshman Parker Jackson were 0-2 Friday.
"There were some some highs and some lows today," said Tioga coach Kris Harrington. "I thought for the most part we are wrestling pretty well.
"We have to protect our legs a little bit better," he noted.
"We're winning the tournament right now, so that's nice," added Harrington. "It's a big day tomorrow."
Tioga, which saw its five-year run atop New York State's Division 2 hierarchy end last year, sits atop the team standings after Day 1 with 39.5 points, while Honeoye-Falls Lima is second with 38.5, defending champ Waverly is third with 35.5 points, Eden is fourth with 34, and Unadilla-Unadilla Valley-Franklin is fifth with 31.5 points.
McKee, who won the 101-pound title last year, was dominating in his two wins Friday.
McKee, the top seed at 110 pounds, opened with a pin of Collegiate School's Nathan Jacoby in 69 seconds.
In the quarterfinals, McKee forged a 17-1 technical fall of Adirondack's Seth Strain in 3:29.
McKee used a takedown early in the first period, and four near-fall points at the buzzer to take a 7-0 lead into the second period. He added a takedown early in the second period, then a seven-point move to close out the technical fall with 31 seconds remaining in the second period.
McKee will face fourth-seeded Wyatt Sartori of Danville-Waylon-Cohocton in the semifinals Saturday morning.
"Declan is locked and loaded," said Harrington."He's focused."
Duncanson, who has a second, two thirds and a fourth-place finish at States to his credit, picked up his 200th career win in the quarterfinals Friday night.
Duncanson, the third seed at 138 pounds, locked in a cradle on Gouverneur's Mason Dursham for a fall at 1:58 in the opening round.
In the quarterfinals, Duncanson scored a five-point move late in the first period, but Duanesburg's Wyatt Rock, the sixth seed, recorded a reversal with 5 seconds remaining.
Duncanson made it 7-2 with a reversal in the closing seconds of the second period, then hit on a takedown early in the third period to make it 10-2, on his way to an 11-6 win.
"Rock is tough," said Harrington. "Jay and Rock have wrestled a few times in the offseason, we knew that that would be a tight, a tight match. I thought he controlled it for the most part.
"His knee got caught up there a little bit one point, but in the end it's all good," added Harrington. "Like I said, 'make weight,' and things feel a lot better when you're in the semifinals."
Duncanson will face second-seeded Joe Scott of Letchworth in the semifinals.
Bellis, the fifth seed at 118 pounds, gave up a takedown with 2 seconds remaining in an 8-7 loss to 12th-seeded Joel Diaz of Seaford in the opening round.
Bellis, who has a second- and third-place finish at States under his belt, bounced back with a pin of Rye Country Day's Kenji Clark in 2:21, and a 7-4 decision over Our Lady of Lourdes' Bryce Reilly in sudden-victory.
"Logan is battling a little illness," said Harrington. " When you're a senior, every match can be your last one at this point.
"He just needs to battle through and get on the podium," said Harrington. "We need to get these three guys on the podium.
Ulrich, who is making his first appearance at States, is the seventh seed at 103 pounds and opened with a pin of Owego 7th-grader Gavin Lovell, the 10th seed, in 2:41.
In the quarterfinals, Ul rich dropped a 17-1 technical fall to second-seeded Max Hanselman of Lowville.
"Hanselman is real good, very tough" said Harrington.
"Drayke's got a big one in the morning," noted Harrington. We have all the confidence in the world that he's going to get on that podium."
Cole, who was a fourth-place finisher at States in 2024, but missed last year due to injury, is the seventh seed at 126 pounds and opened with a pin of 10th-seeded Luke Gillis on Hoosick Falls in 3:40.
In the quarterfinals, Cole fell behind second-seeded Brock Frederick of South Jefferson, 15-4, but put him on his back in the third period and closed the gap to 15-10 at the buzzer.
"I thought when he locked up the bar half he had them," said Harrington. "He just couldn't hold him there to glue him down.
"You have to stay in the fight with those guys when, even when he's losing and he's giving up points in bunches, his pace is real high," noted Harrington. "He's in every match that he wrestles because his pace is so high, you just got to mitigate the damage a little bit better than he did in the early periods there."
Bradley was 0-2 in the 144-pound weight class, and Jackson was 0-2 in the 110-pound bracket. Both were making their first trip to Albany.
"The first time here, sometimes the lights are a little bright," said Harrington.
"They both have a lot to be proud of this year," he added. "Right now, it's just reset and refocus. It will big a spring for those guys, so when we come back here next year, they're ready to compete."
Action resumes at 9:30 a.m. Saturday morning.
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