By TIM BIRNEYValley Sports Report
SYRACUSE — Top-seeded Miller Place won all the "toss-up" matches, and piled up bonus points, while avoiding the same in a convincing, 45-18, win over Tioga in pool play to advance to the semifinals of the New York State Division 2 wrestling duals here at the SRC Events Center on the campus of Onondaga Community College.
"That was a tough match," said Tioga coach Kris Harrington. (Miller Place is) a really good team.
"We have to give them all the credit in the world, they're well-prepared, and gave us a really hard fight," he noted. "They didn't give up a lot of back points, and were very good on top.
"We needed bonus points out of some of our guys, and didn't get them," said Harrington. "And, we lost two really close ones; that's a six- or eight-point swing.
"Good teams win those close one and don't give up bones points," added Harrington. "Miller Place is a good team. I wouldn't be surprised if they won this."
The loss snaps Tioga's 13-match win streak at the State Duals, dating back to 2022 season. The Tigers' last loss was a 31-29 decision to Mount Sinai in 2020.
The loss was also the worst-ever for Tioga at the State Duals, easily topping a 34-27 setback to Mount Sinai in 2019. The Tigers are now 17-5 since the inception of the State Duals in 2017-18, with their first four losses, three of which came to Mount Sinai during their three-peat, by a combined 12 points. (Tioga won state titles in 2022, '23, and '24.)
(NOTE: Miller Place beat fifth-seeded Marcellus-Onondaaga, 39-31, in the semifinals, and second-seeded Shoreham-Wading River, 45-24, in the finals.)
Miller Place got off to a quick start against Tioga with a pin at 285 to take a 6-0 lead, but the Tigers won four straight in the lower weights to take a 14-6 lead.
Sophomore Drayke Ulrich started out the run with a 9-0 major decision over Reese Zakar at 103 pounds.
Reigning state champ junior Declan McKee gave Tioga a 7-6 lead with a 7-1 decision over Nicolo Dolson, who is ranked in the top-5 in the state.
Senior Logan Bellis dominated in the 118-pound match, forging a 13-0 major decision over Noah Bloom to make it 11-6.
Senior Kadin Cole scored a reversal and a takedown in the second period to pull out a 5-3 win over Evan Seppe to increase the Tioga lead to 14-6.
Brett Winslow snapped Tioga's streak, scoring nine points in the third period to rally past senior Brayden MacWhinnie, 9-4, to close the gap to 14-9.
Senior Jayden Duncanson scored Tioga's last points of the match with a 17-2 technical fall in 2:00 at 138 pounds to make it 19-9. (Tioga would have a team point deducted later in the match for unsportsmanlike conduct."
Miller Place blew through the upper weights, winning the final seven weight classes, including four by fall and one by forfeit.
They also won a pair of close decisions, with Alex Southworth scoring a takedown with 12 seconds remaining to pull out a 6-4 decision over junior Caden Bradley, and junior James Howey's comeback from an early 7-0 hole falling just short in a 9-8 loss to Brice Browning.
Tioga 60, Eden 17
Tioga scored three falls and five technical falls in a 60-17 win over Eden in the first match of pool play Saturday morning.
"I thought it was a very complete match for us," said Harrington. "They had some really good wrestlers, and I thought we controlled pace and really did a good job on top.
The Tigers led 12-0 before the first action on the mat, thanks to forfeits to sophomores Jamie Woodcock at 215 and Mark McCane at 285.
Sophomore Drayke Ulrich gave Tioga its first win on the mat with a dominating 19-2 technical fall win over Tyler DellaPenta at 103 pounds, and junior Declan McKee gave the Tigers their first pin, decking Drew DellaPenta in 1:34 at 110 pounds to stretch the lead to 23-0.
Mason DellaPenta, one of the top 110-pounders in the state, bumped up to 118 and put Eden on the board with a first-period fall.
Seniors Logan Bellis (16-0 in 2:13) and (19-2 in 2:29) scored back-to-back technical falls at 126 and 132 pounds, respectively, then senior Brayden MacWhinnie decked Vincent Colantino in 2:41 at 138 pounds to pounds to put the Tigers up 39-6.
Senior Jayden Duncanson added an 18-1 technical fall at 144 pounds to extend the lead to 44-6.
Trevor DellaPenta stopped Tioga's run with a pin at 150 pounds, and Bryce DellaPenta provided Eden's last win of the match with a technical fall at 165 pounds. In between, junior Caden Bradley forged a 16-6 major decision over Eden's Brodey Krempa at 157 pounds.
Eighth-grader Carson LaBour scored a second-period fall at 175 pounds for the Tigers' last win on the mat, and junior James Howey received a forfeit for Tioga at 190 pounds to round out the scoring.
Tioga returns to action Saturday at the Section IV Qualifier at Newark Valley.
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IN PHOTO 1: Tioga's Logan Bellis. IN TOP PHOTO: Tioga's Jayden Duncanson. ... PHOTOS BY TIM BIRNEY.
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TIOGA 60, EDEN 17
215: Jamie Woodcock (T) won by forfeit;
285: Mark MCane (T) won by forfeit;
103: Drayke Ulrich (T) tech. fall Tyler DellaPenta (E), 19-2 @ 4:13;
110: Declan McKee (T) by fall over Drew DellaPenta (E), 1:34;
118: Mason DellaPente (E) by fall over Parker Jackson (T), 0:52;
126: Logan Bellis (T) tech. fall Troy DellaPenta (E), 16-0 @ 2:13;
132: Kadin Cole (T) tech. fall Ruger Pastwik (E), 19-2 @ 2:29;
138: Brayden MacWhinnie (T) by fall over Vincent Colantino (E), 2:41;
144: Jayden Duncanson (T) tech. fall Mason Pastwik (E), 18-1 @ 1:22;
150: Trevor DellaPenta (E) by fall over Tyler Haskins (T), 0:54;
157: Caden Bradley (T) major dec. Brodey Krempa (E), 16-6;
165: Bryce DellaPenta (E) tech. fall Aiden Black (T), 15-0 @ 1:41;
175: Carson LaBour (T) by fall over Garrett Schmitt (E), 3:12;
190: James Howey (T) won by forfeit.
MILLER PLACE 45, TIOGA 18
285: Bradyn Ellis (MP by fall over Mark McCane (T), 1:04;
103: Drayke Ulrich (T) major dec. Reese Zakar (MP), 9-0;
110: Declan McKee (T) dec. Nicolo Dolson (MP), 7-1;
118: Logan Bellis (T) major dec. Noah Bloom (MP), 13-0;
126: Kadin Cole (T) dec. Evan Seppe (MP), 5-3;
132: Brett Winslow (MP) dec. Brayden MacWhinnie (T), 9-4;
138: Jayden Duncanson (T) tech. fall Cameron Meadows (MP), 17-2 @ 2:00;
144: Charles Clifford (MP) by fall over Tyler Haskins (T), 0:36;
150: Alex Southworth (MP) dec. Caden Bradley (T), 6-4;
157: Christian Caccavale (MP) won by forfeit;
165: Francisco Sigismondi (MP) by fall over Aiden Black (T), 3:44;
175: Jack Miller by fall over Carson LaBour (T), 1:23;
190: Andrew Bennett-Guma by fall over Jamie Woodcock (T), 1:26;
215: Brice Browning (MP) dec. James Howey (T), 9-8.
*Tioga 1-point deduction for unsportsmanlike conduct
