Central Mountain’s Luke Simcox advances to super regionals
Central Mountain left the PIAA Northwest Regional tournament in Altoona with just one winner, as freshman Luke Simcox grabbed the top spot in the 126-pound bracket.
“There were some bright spots,” Wildcats coach Biff Walizer said regarding his team’s outing Saturday at Altoona high school. “Hopefully for the younger guys who aren’t moving on it lights fire heading into the offseason and next year.”
Simcox began his championship run by tallying two falls in both the quarterfinals and semifinals. The freshman pinned Colin Cooley of Alderdice in 0:39, and then got the fall against Brendan of DuBois to advance to the finals.
In the 126 finals, Simcox rolled to a 10-2 major dec. victory over State College’s Owen Woolcott.
Outside of Simcox’s victory, Central Mountain sixth-seeded junior Taylor Weaver upset the three-seeded Logan Carrick of McDowell 7-4 in the quarterfinals of the 138 bracket. After grabbing the upset victory, Weaver fell to Chandler Ho of DuBois in the semifinals. Weaver then picked up another win over Carrick in the third-place bout, defeating him 14-3.
145 – Central Mountain Griffin Walizer
Freshman Griffin Walizer fell in extra time to Karson Kline of Clearfield in the quarterfinals of the 145 weight. Kline scored the winning takedown just seconds into SV.
Rocco Serafini gritted out a 1-0 victory in the 152 quarterfinals as he defeated McDowell’s Artis Simmons. Serafini’s escape midway through the second period proved to be the deciding factor. The win setup a semifinal matchup against Williamsport’s Roman Morone. Morone proved to be too much for the freshman as Serafini fell 8-3 via decision.
Nikolas Miller represented the Wildcats in the 215 class. Miller fell to John Campbell of Cathedral Prep in the semifinals by a count of 4-2. He then rebounded with an 8-2 victory against Rhoan Woodrow of Meadville that propelled him in the third-place bout. Miller then defeated Clearfield’s Mark McGonigal for the opportunity to secure a spot at super regionals. Miller met Ty Price in the third-place bout and fell via decision 7-4.
Team Standings
(1) Bellefonte 119.0, (2) Williamsport 114.5, (3) Erie Cathedral Prep 111.0, (4) State College 110.0, (5) Mifflin County 58.5, (6) Altoona 54.0, (6) Central Mountain 54.0, (8) Clearfield 51.0, (9) DuBois 47.5, (9) Selinsgrove 47.5, (11) General McLane 31.0, (12) Erie McDowell 28.0, (13) Meadville 25.0, (14) Juniata 15.0, (15) Punxsutawney 14.0, (15) St. Mary’s 14.0, (17) Hollidaysburg 4.0, (17) Taylor Allderdice 4.0, (19) Brashear 0.0, (19) Obama Academy 0.0, (19) Westinghouse 0.0
Complete tournament results
Championship Quarterfinals
126 – Luke Simcox pinned Calvin Cooley (Taylor Allderdice), 0:39
138 – Taylor Weaver dec. Logan Carrick (Erie McDowell), 7-4
145 – Karson Kline (Clearfield) dec. Griffin Walizer, 6-4 SV
152 – Rocco Serafini dec. Artis Simmons (Erie McDowell), 1-0
Championship Semifinals
126 – Luke Simcox pinned Brendan Orr (DuBois), 1:35
138 – Chandler Ho (DuBois) maj. dec. Taylor Weaver, 14-0
152 – Roman Morrone (Williamsport) dec. Rocco Serafini, 8-1
215 – John Campbell (Erie Cathedral Prep) pinned Nikolas Miller, 3:31
Consolation Semifinals
138 – Taylor Weaver pinned Elijah Hunt (Erie Cathedral Prep), 4:29
145 – Kyler Everly (Mifflin County) dec. Griffin Walizer, 4-2 SV
152 – Carter Weaverling (State College) dec. Rocco Serafini, 9-5
215 – Nikolas Miller pinned Rhoan Woodrow (Meadville), 3:35
Third Place
138 – Taylor Weaver maj. dec. Logan Carrick (Erie McDowell), 14-3
215 – Nikolas Miller dec. Mark McGonigal (Clearfield), 4-2
Championship Finals
126 – Luke Simcox maj. dec. Owen Woolcott (State College), 10-2
True 2nd Place Finals
215 – Ty Price (State College) dec. Nikolas Miller, 7-4
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