From the early goings of the tournament on Friday to his tech fall victory over No. 14 Jacob Mitchell in the 145 final, the Central Mountain senior was nothing short of dominant, posting two pins and two tech falls on the way to gold. It was a special moment for Perry, who has greatly enjoyed kicking the season off with the tourney through the years.

“It’s just a fun tournament that kicks off the season for us every year,” said Perry. “It’s just a good feeling not having to think about anything anymore, no injuries. It’s good to be able to be back, competing at it at 100-percent.”

Through the event, Perry finished tied for second for most team points scored with 31. Though he made it look easy, that was more of a testament to his experience and skill than anything, with the former state champion being quick to credit his other competitors when discussing the run.

“These guys are all tough. They’re all raw and they all know how to wrestle,” said Perry. “It’s just about creating my own offense and getting angles and scoring like that. Not putting myself in these flurries where I’m wasting a lot of energy.”

RALPH WILSON/For the Express Central Mountain's Dalton Perry wrestles at 145 during the Tom Best Memorial Top Hat wrestling tournament at Williamsport Area High School on Saturday, Dec. 7, 2024.

In the parade of champions, he was joined by Central Mountain sophomore Aiden Kunes, who finished as a Top Hat finalist for the second straight season. After falling just short of a title as a freshman, Kunes took that additional step the next go round, defeating Mifflinburg’s Bradley Wagner – who’s ranked No. 4 in the state in Class AA – by decision, 7-1.

There, the regional champion was composed and completely controlled the match, steadily gaining points with opportunistic takedowns and never allowing Wagner to establish his offense. That win came after Kunes had previously earned a bonus point victory over Easton’s Noah Fenner, who’s ranked No. 12 in the state in Class AAA.

“I’m just thinking that all the hard work I did over the summer was paying off, and it’s a great start to the season,” said Kunes when discussing his thoughts after the final. “Just trusted my training. They work hard too but I put in more work over the summer.”

There were ups and downs throughout Saturday for Central Mountain, with senior Jacob Weaver and Gavin Heverly each experiencing back-to-back losses after making it to championship semis at 172 and 114 respectively.

But Heverly was able to bounce back, earning a 7-1 win by decision over Titusville’s Sawyer Wolfkiel to claim fifth, an uptick from his previous seventh place finish at the event. And although Weaver fell in his respective fifth-place match, the senior was right there in all three of his losses. He forced sudden victory in his last two defeats, the latter which came against No. 21 Xayden Sallit (Emmaus).

RALPH WILSON/For the Express Central Mountain's Gavin Heverly gets his hand raised after winning the fifth-place match at 114 during the Tom Best Memorial Top Hat wrestling tournament at Williamsport Area High School on Saturday, Dec. 7, 2024.

“Lacked some confidence and energy in semifinals and the next match after that, got a little banged up in my knee. But found a way to find something and bounce back,” said Heverly on his run. “I just realized that I know who I am, and I know what I do. And the other two matches that I lost was not me. Had to find that switch somewhere and pulled it out.”

On the day, seven Wildcats placed as the team finished fourth overall behind Connellsville, Easton and Saucon Valley. Sophomores Patrick Tarantella and Luke Garman took fourth and fifth respectively after not placing at last year’s event and junior Bryce Brungard logged the same placement – a one-place uptick from his previous run.

“This is our first competition of the year, and I felt like overall, as a team, we did well,” said Perry. “Aiden Kunes, he won his first Top Hat title this year and wrestled extremely well throughout, and all our guys here, they all went out and battled.”

Central Mountain returns to action on Tuesday, Dec. 10, where it’ll take on Bald Eagle Area (1-0) on the road. That match is set for 7 p.m.

A COMMON THEME

RALPH WILSON/For the Express Central Mountain's Gavin Heverly wrestles at 114 during the Tom Best Memorial Top Hat wrestling tournament at Williamsport Area High School on Saturday, Dec. 7, 2024.

Like Perry, Jersey Shore senior Slate Sechrist came into the season 100-percent after missing time last season with injury. But there were two key differences: Sechrist had never competed at Top Hat up to this point and he was able to compete for just under a month last season.

In his first high school action since early January, Sechrist picked up where he left off, making it all the way to championship semis and ultimately taking fourth in a tough, 215 bracket.

On his way to the semifinals, the Bulldog would log a tech fall and first-period pin before earning his third straight victory in upset fashion. In a 9-3 decision win over No. 9 Chris Cook out of Connellsville, Sechrist was in complete control, showing little signs of rust.

“It felt great to me coming back out tonight after a long season off,” said Sechrist. “With all the injuries I had in the past year, my foot last year, it’s kind of like a revenge tour now.”

His championship run would ultimately end at the hands of three-time state finalist Austin Johnson (Muncy), but he’d bounce back with a 15-2 major decision to make it to the third-place game. Unfortunately, he had to forfeit due to a minor injury, finishing his run in fourth, but he expects to be back to 100-percent in a week or two.

RALPH WILSON/For the ExpressCentral Mountain's Bryce Brungard wrestles at 189 during the Tom Best Memorial Top Hat wrestling tournament at Williamsport Area High School on Saturday, Dec. 7, 2024.

Either way, it was a strong 2024-25 debut for the senior, who looks forward to giving the sport his all in the coming months.

“Can’t wait to see some of these fellows again,” said Sechrist. “I’ll see some of them over the next couple weeks. Just going to wrestle hard.”

Though Sechrist was the only Bulldog to place, Shore’s young squad showed promise throughout the weekend. Junior Mason Winter, sophomore Tobias Morgret and freshman Louden Spotts all concluded their runs with multiple wins, heading into next week with 2-2 records.

The Bulldogs return to action on Thursday, Dec. 12, where they’ll look to try to pick up their first dual win in front of their home crowd. That match is set to take place at 7 p.m.

RALPH WILSON/For the Express Central Mountain's Bryce Brungard wrestles at 189 during the Tom Best Memorial Top Hat wrestling tournament at Williamsport Area High School on Saturday, Dec. 7, 2024.