At Saturday’s District 6 Class AAA wrestling championships, the Long brothers righted the wrongs of previous heartbreaking runs, claiming gold at 139 and 189 respectively while headlining a strong team outing. Junior Luke Hockenberry made it three Red Raiders to wrap up their district runs as champion, as Bellefonte placed third as a team behind nine medalists.

Of those medalists, six reached finals and eight qualified for regionals. It was a tad disappointing falling just 13 team points short of a team title, but there was still plenty of pride to go around when it was all said and done.

“Overall, it was pretty strong performance,” said Bellefonte head coach Mike Maney. “You always want to leave a tournament with more wins, but credit to the guys that compete and wrestled hard. In some places, we wrestled above our seeds and others right at our seeds.”

“I think we definitely did pretty awesome,” emphasized Hockenberry.

TIM WEIGHT/For the Express Bellefonte's Wyatt Long wrestles Central Mountain's Hayes Donley in the 139-pound final during the District 6 Class AAA wrestling championships on Saturday, Feb. 21, at Bellefonte.

Prior to their gold-medal showings on Saturday, both Long brothers had seen success at districts, but neither had quite managed to close things out on top. Wyatt fell one win short of a championship final bout on back-to-back occasions, and in his first championship appearance as a junior, Jackson just so happened to run into two-time state champ Asher Cunningham (State College).

While those shortcomings were disheartening, they also served as motivation for what lied ahead. Not having a district title to their name was a driving force in them going the extra mile over the offseason, and obviously, that hard work paid off.

“I learned to wrestle hard, train harder,” said Wyatt Long when discussing those past runs. “Just have better warm-ups and get my mind ready to wrestle smart and come out with a win.”

At 139, Wyatt Long – ranked No. 13 in the state – saw little issue on his way to gold, posting a first-period pin to open and never surrendering a point through Saturday’s entirety.

In his championship bout against Central Mountain’s Hayes Donley – ranked No. 25 in the state, he started each period with an early takedown or reversal before riding out the rest on his way to a controlled 7-0 decision. With the win, he didn’t just earn his first district gold. He took home the second gold medal of his entire high school career.

TIM WEIGHT/For the Express Bellefonte's Wyatt Long gets his hand raised after winning the 139-pound final during the District 6 Class AAA wrestling championships on Saturday, Feb. 21, at Bellefonte.

“It starts with getting something good to eat,” said Long on the keys to the composed run. “I got something good to eat at Hoss’s, had a salad, had some dessert. Then, I came back, got my mind ready and got a good warm-up in.”

For Jackson Long at 189, it wasn’t quite as seamless, as the senior was recovering from sickness heading into the event. But he’d manage to clutch it out when it mattered, evading a third-period scare in his championship bout.

After clearing his semifinal bout by way of third-period pin, Long – ranked No. 16 in the state – ran into No. 18 Noah Williams (State College) in the finals, and the result was about as even as you would expect.

Behind an early takedown and two escapes, Long would take a 5-2 lead before things got dicey in the third, with Williams tying it up at 5-5 with a takedown. But seconds after being taken down, Long was back up again, securing the escape that would ultimately propel him to a 6-5 win.

“I’ve been a little sick, so it was a little rough,” said Long. “I definitely could have done a little better. But at the end of the day, I got it done, so that’s all that matters. Not every match you win is going to be a good match.”

TIM WEIGHT/For the Express Bellefonte's Jackson Long wrestles in the 189-pound final during the District 6 Class AAA wrestling championships on Saturday, Feb. 21, at Bellefonte.

Apart from the brothers, Luke Hockenberry – ranked No. 9 in the state at 215 – continued to show how far he’s come in just a year. After taking fifth at last year’s event and falling short of a regional bid, he’d give up just two points in the run back with two pins, closing out the run with a third-period pin against No. 26 Todd Caris (Central Mountain).

“I think it’s pretty cool,” said Hockenberry on the accomplishment. “I definitely didn’t imagine myself here last year, didn’t even qualify for regionals last year. So, it’s a bit of a jump.”

Three other Red Raiders – Andrew Gall (145), Ezra Swisher (152) and Jack McHail (172) – reached championship finals, falling short of gold but still helping the team out in a big way.

In their district debuts, freshman Colin Harter (107) and sophomore Blake Glace (121) reached their respective bronze-medal matches, with Harter coming out on top. And in perhaps the biggest surprise of the team’s run, junior Quinn Park – who had one win on the season entering the tournament – claimed bronze at 160, outclassing his seeding by three.

“Colin Harter wrestled through some injuries there to take third and battled, Andrew Gall and Jack McHail made finals and Quinn Park was overseeded, ended up coming back and taking third,” said Maney. “So, those were all really solid performances.”

TIM WEIGHT/For the Express Bellefonte's Jackson Long gets his hand raised after winning the 189 final of the District 6 Class AAA wrestling championships on Saturday, Feb. 21, at Bellefonte.

With eight Red Raiders – the Long brothers, Hockenberry, Gall, Swisher, McHail, Harter and Park – advancing to regionals, there’s still plenty of excitement to come. Action resumes for Bellefonte on Friday at 5 p.m., where it’ll look to build on its strong start to postseason at the West Class AAA Regional at Canon-McMillan.

DISTRICT 6 CLASS AAA WRESTLING CHAMPIONSHIPS

Team scores: 1. Central Mountain 180.0; 2. Altoona 175.0; 3. Bellefonte 168.0; 4. State College 148.0; 5. Mifflin County 106.5; 6. Hollidaysburg 96.5; 7. Greater Johnstown 12.

TEAM KEY: ALT-Altoona; BEL-Bellefonte; CM-Central Mountain; GJ-Greater Johnstown; HOL-Hollidaysburg; MC-Mifflin County; SC-State College.

FIRST-PLACE BOUTS

TIM WEIGHT/For the Express Bellefonte's Luke Hockenberry wrestles Central Mountain's Todd Caris in the 215-pound final during the District 6 Class AAA wrestling championships on Saturday, Feb. 21, at Bellefonte.

107: Dominic Picciotti (ALT) dec. Connor Sidney (HOL), 3-0. 114: Andrew Alexander (MC) maj. dec. Landon Krupka (HOL), 12-0. 121: Luke Young (SC) maj. dec. Brayden Sidney (HOL), 11-2. 127: Deklan Barr (ALT) dec. Kael Davis (SC), 2-0. 133: Braiden Weaver (ALT) pinned Patrick Tarantella (CM), 2:37. 139: Wyatt Long (BEL) dec. Hayes Donley (CM), 7-0. 145: Aiden Kunes (CM) pinned Andrew Gall (BEL), 3:29. 152: James Whitbred (SC) maj. dec. Ezra Swisher (BEL), 13-2. 160: Gavin Ciampoli (ALT) pinned Dalton McDermott (CM), 3:01. 172: Teag Sanderson (SC) maj. dec. Jack McHail (BEL), 15-2. 189: Jackson Long (BEL) dec. Noah Williams (SC), 6-5. 215: Luke Hockenberry (BEL) pinned Todd Caris (CM), 4:46. 285: Scott Payne (HOL) won by inj. default over Hayes Henry (CM), 0-0 0:25.

THIRD-PLACE BOUTS

107: Colin Harter (BEL) pinned Hunter Nace (CM), 3:42. 114: Noah Young (SC) pinned Angelo Tarantella (CM), 1:50. 121: Collin Bauman (CM) pinned Blake Glace (BEL), 0:42. 127: Gavin Heverly (CM) pinned Reece Fisher (MC), 1:19. 133: Bentley Felmlee (MC) maj. dec. Jon Whitbred (SC), 9-0. 139: Jake Knable (MC) dec. Brandt Hite (ALT), 8-1. 145: Reese Hite (ALT) tech fall Nico Diaz (SC), 17-2 (4:55). 152: Phillip Sarbo (ALT) maj. dec. Luke Garman (CM), 13-3. 160: Quinn Park (BEL) pinned Brian Albert (MC), 1:45. 172: Brayan Aurand (MC) dec. Ty’Kear Davis (ALT), 4-0. 189: Keegan Hewitt (HOL) dec. Reese Christine (MC), 7-3 215: Michael Colyer (ALT) pinned Paul Tisinger (Greater Johnstown), 1:55. 285: Quillan Phillips (SC) dec. Khamden Thompkins (ALT), 10-4.

CHAMPIONSHIP SEMIFINALS

107: Dominic Picciotti (ALT) pinned Camden Fletcher (SC), 3:20; Connor Sidney (HOL) dec. Colin Harter (BEL), 5-0. 114: Andrew Alexander (MC) won by forfeit over Dominic Nardozza (ALT); Landon Krupka (HOL) maj. dec. Noah Young (SC), 13-3. 121: Luke Young (SC) tech fall Blake Glace (BEL), 17-2 (2:14); Brayden Sidney (HOL) maj. dec. Collin Bauman (CM), 10-1. 127: Deklan Barr (ALT) pinned Reece Fisher (MC), 1:28; Kael Davis (SC) dec. Gavin Heverly (CM), 6-2 TB2. 133: Braiden Weaver (ALT) pinned Jon Whitbred (SC), 0:48; Patrick Tarantella (CM) dec. Bentley Felmlee (MC), 5-4. 139: Wyatt Long (BEL) pinned Brandt Hite (ALT), 1:02; Hayes Donley (CM) dec. Jake Knable (MC), 2-1. 145: Aiden Kunes (CM) pinned Nico Diaz (SC), 2:25; Andrew Gall (BEL) maj. dec. Reese Hite (ALT), 12-3. 152: James Whitbred (SC) tech fall Luke Garman (CM), 20-2 (2:17); Ezra Swisher (BEL) dec. Phillip Sarbo (ALT), 4-0. 160: Gavin Ciampoli (ALT) pinned Brian Albert (MC), 0:44; Dalton McDermott (CM) dec. Quinn Park (BEL), 8-1. 172: Teag Sanderson (SC) tech fall Brayan Aurand (MC), 21-5 (3:26). Jack McHail (BEL) dec. Mario Serafini (CM), 7-5. 189: Jackson Long (BEL) pinned Keegan Hewitt (HOL), 4:23; Noah Williams (SC) dec. Reese Christine (MC), 8-2. 215: Luke Hockenberry (BEL) pinned Paul Tisinger (Greater Johnstown), 2:56; Todd Caris (CM) pinned Michael Colyer (ALT), 1:10. 285: Hayes Henry (CM) pinned Quillan Phillips (SC), 5:15; Scott Payne (HOL) dec. Khamden Thompkins (ALT), 4-1 SV.

CONSOLATION SEMIFINALS

107: Colin Harter (BEL) dec. Ethan Johnson (MC), 1-0; Hunter Nace (CM) dec. Camden Fletcher (SC), 7-4. 114: Noah Young (SC) maj. dec. Wonye Hiller (Greater Johnstown), 10-0; Angelo Tarantella (CM) won by forfeit over Dominic Nardozza (ALT). 121: Collin Bauman (CM) pinned Liam Chirdon (ALT), 0:38; Blake Glace (BEL) tech fall Colton Leister (MC), 18-3 (2:35). 127: Gavin Heverly (CM) pinned Bernard Bellinger (Greater Johnstown), 0:42. 133: Bentley Felmlee (MC) pinned Jacob Horn (BEL), 0:54; Jon Whitbred (SC) pinned Damarion Williams (Greater Johnstown), 2:39. 139: Jake Knable (MC) tech fall Caleb Detrick (HOL), 16-0 (4:20); Brandt Hite (ALT) dec. Mason Sanderson (SC), 4-1. 145: Reese Hite (ALT) maj. dec. Paxton Shawver (MC), 11-2; Nico Diaz (SC) maj. dec. Octavious Harris-Haye (Greater Johnstown), 13-5. 152: Phillip Sarbo (ALT) pinned Maurice Taylor (Greater Johnstown), 2:55; Luke Garman (CM) pinned Tyler Williams (MC), 0:58. 160: Quinn Park (BEL) dec. Doc Reviglio (SC), 7-4; Brian Albert (MC) dec. Tyler Rodgers (HOL), 4-2. 172: Ty’Kear Davis (ALT) maj. dec. Mario Serafini (CM), 16-6; Brayan Aurand (MC) pinned Blake Kennedy (HOL), 1:28. 189: Reese Christine (MC) dec. Tanner McCall (CM), 11-8; Keegan Hewitt (HOL) pinned Caleb Darpino (ALT), 2:56. 215: Michael Colyer (ALT) dec. Rocco Cacciotti (HOL), 4-2; Paul Tisinger (Greater Johnstown) pinned Dodger Weaver (MC), 3:30. 285: Khamden Thompkins (ALT) dec. Dekker Pietzsch (MC), 11-7; Quillan Phillips (SC) dec. Carson Crawford (BEL), 5-0.

TIM WEIGHT/For the Express Bellefonte's Andrew Gall wrestles Central Mountain's Aiden Kunes in the 145-pound final during the District 6 Class AAA wrestling championships on Saturday, Feb. 21, at Bellefonte.

TIM WEIGHT/For the Express Bellefonte's Colin Harter wrestles Central Mountain's Hunter Nace in the 107-pound third-place bout during the District 6 Class AAA wrestling championships on Saturday, Feb. 21, at Bellefonte.