TIM WEIGHT/For The Express Central MOuntain wrestles against State College at the District 6 Class AAA Duals recently.

The thing about thrones is they’re destined to change hands. No king or queen is immortal. And in sports, the moment a team earns itself a title, the stopwatch surrounding its defending champion status begins, a status that’s end is a matter of when, not if.

Such was the case for Central Mountain wrestling over this past weekend. After three years of supremacy over District 6 in a team setting, the Wildcats saw their hopes of a four-feat abruptly come to a halt, as they fell to State College, 35-31, in Saturday’s District 6 Class AAA Dual semifinals.

While the outcome was disappointing for a team that’s grown used earning gold and fandom that’s grown used to seeing it, it wasn’t indicative of a drop-off the Wildcats’ way.

A team-wide battle with the flu didn’t help matters. But overall, it was more indicative of the growth of the district, with multiple squads set to match or exceed Central Mountain in the coming years.

State College, without two starters for key portions of the season, still managed to compile a 14-4 record through a tough regular season featuring key wins over Montoursville and General McLane. It got those starters back at the perfect time and has since gone on to defeat Altoona and Selinsgrove to reach state quarters.

It’s hard to say whether or not the Wildcats would’ve fared better against Altoona or Bellefonte, the other two teams in the tournament. That’s a hypothetical that’ll remain unanswered. And though the depth of the Red Raiders will take a hit after this season, Altoona and State College can be expected to maintain much of theirs, especially the latter.

With the Wildcats younger than they’ve been in quite some time and likely to return much of their key contributors, the potential for an even more competitive 2027 rendition of the event is certainly there. For now, they should still look back on the 2025-26 dual season as a successful one, just one missing the typical postseason accolades of years past.

STREAK STILL INTACT

Following Central Mountain’s dominant win over Bald Eagle three weeks ago, head coach Biff Walizer brought up preseason expectations when discussing the match. Not his preseason expectations. Those coming from the outside looking in.

Once again, the Wildcats were doubted as December approached, not in the sense that they’d take a large step back, but that they’d struggle to reach last year’s highs.

With two-time state finalist Dalton Perry gone, the 2025-26 campaign would be its first without a returning state place winner since 2019-20. Some could say that departure represented the end of an era for the Wildcats. Perry’s leadership and assurance in duals likely filled Central Mountain’s lineup with added confidence, and he took a considerable senior class with him.

Maybe that’s where those seeds of doubt were planted. It makes sense to a certain extent. But based on results, it doesn’t seem like that possibility registered in the minds of the Wildcats this season.

That win over the Eagles was just one of many examples one could point to when reflecting on the dominance this team inhibited throughout the 2025-26 dual regular season. Three days later, it completed a week where it outscored three opponents 174-49. And ten days later, it cemented its undefeated regular season for the fourth straight time.

“There was a lot of noise at the beginning of the season. It’s the first time we haven’t had a returning state place winner on the team in however many seasons and so forth,” said Walizer after the team’s 61-9 win over Bald Eagle.

“They go out, and there’s fight from every one of them. They come into practice; they work hard. I’ve enjoyed this season more than most, just enjoy being a fan of them and watching them go out and compete.”

The keys to Central Mountain’s continued success have come up from time to time. Alongside Walizer, his staff – from his assistant coaches to trainers – knows what it’s doing.

But from a wrestling standpoint, perhaps the biggest key has been his wrestlers’ willingness to buy in, from hard work and consistent focus improving technique, to their understanding of the importance of health – both physical and mental. It’s a mindset that’s been instilled in them from the beginning, one picked up from both the program’s storied coaching staff and the Wildcats that have succeeded in years past.

“I think a part of it is having had those guys who were state place winners and state champs who have been setting the tone for those younger guys,” said Walizer after the team’s win over Jersey Shore.

“After they graduate, the guys who were on the team and a part of that, they’re able to replicate it for the younger guys coming up. That’s what’s helped the program maintain that level of success. The older guys set an example for the younger guys, they take to it and it keeps repeating.”

It’s what has Central Mountain where it is today, having won 36 regular-season duals in a row despite considerable losses.

Through the regular season, the Wildcats outscored their 11 opponents by a combined score of 590-164, including wins over No. 25 Mifflin County, District 4 Class AAA Duals champ Selinsgrove, Bald Eagle Area and Garnet Valley. They cruised through Rage in the Cage Duals on their way to a title and appeared unstoppable at points in the season.

Even with it set to lose a few key seniors, most notably multi-year starters in Collin Bauman, Dalton McDermott and Hunter Donley, it’s set to return a promising core in its pursuit of a runback. Multi-year standouts Aiden Kunes, Gavin Heverly and Patrick Tarantella are juniors, and a stout underclassman unit headlined by breakouts from Hayes Donley, Todd Caris and Hayes Henry should continue to grow.

Therefore, Central Mountain’s title streak ending shouldn’t be seen as indicative or the end of an era. It should just be seen as a bump in the road amidst the current one. And notably, the team’s chances of bouncing back this season are far from over, as it’ll look to surpass Altoona and State College at the District 6 Class AAA tournament on Saturday, Feb. 21.

“We told them that last year, we won here and then went and took second at individual districts. So, they have a chance to flip that script from last year,” said Walizer. “We didn’t win here, but we’ve got time now. We can practice, work hard and hopefully, grab an individual district title.”

Henry Huber is the sports editor at The Express. Email him at hhuber@lockhaven.com. Follow him on Twitter at @HenryHuber_.