In Saturday’s District 6 Class AAA Dual semis, the Wildcats fought hard to give themselves a shot, leading by as many as 16 points and as late as nine matches in, but it wasn’t enough for them to advance past No. 4 seed State College. Four straight victories gave the Little Lions an insurmountable lead late, as they took down the three-time defending champs, 35-31, before ultimately finishing as champion with a win over Altoona.

It was a disappointing outcome for a program eying a four-peat, one which had weathered a plethora of key departures but managed to put itself in position for more success. A reinvigorated State College squad coupled with battling the flu proved too difficult to overcome, but Central Mountain (11-1) still has a lot to look forward to in the weeks ahead.

“They went out and fought hard, so I’m always proud of the effort when they go out and compete hard,” said Central Mountain wrestling head coach Biff Walizer on the performance.

“We had two swing matches go their way, and then it’s bonus points, giving them and taking them. That obviously has to be in your favor if you’re going to beat a good team like State College. Four-point match, all that stuff kind of comes together to create that result.”

TIM WEIGHT/For the Express Central Mountain's Hunter Donley wrestles State College's Noah Williams at 189 during the District 6 Class AAA Dual semifinals on Saturday, Jan. 31, 2026, at Central Mountain. The Wildcats fell 35-31.

Examples of either were littered throughout the match, starting at 189.

After enduring a hard-fought five minutes against state-ranked Noah Williams, Hunter Donley’s projected loss by decision turned into an impactful pin State College’s way. Donley was banged up and trailing 7-1 at that time, but an overextension out of bottom didn’t help matters, giving Williams the opportunity he needed to turn him and give the Little Lions a 17-16 lead.

Two matches later at 285, Central Mountain sophomore Hayes Henry would fall one point short of a major decision. That would ultimately serve as the team’s last competitive victory, one which gave the Wildcats an 25-17 lead and set the stage for the ensuing evaporation.

From 107 to 127, State College produced four straight wins – four featuring bonus points and two coming in toss-up matchups at 107 and 127. Those toss-up matches netted the Little Lions seven points Central Mountain couldn’t afford to give up, with the latter being the dagger that put it down ten with one bout to go.

There were silver linings, particularly early.

TIM WEIGHT/For the Express Central Mountain's Hayes Henry wrestles State College's Quillan Phillips at 285 during the District 6 Class AAA Dual semifinals on Saturday, Jan. 31, 2026, at Central Mountain. The Wildcats fell 35-31.

To open at 139, sophomore Hayes Donley effectively looked off a 4-0 deficit in the second period, doing his best freestyle impression, rolling Jon Whitbred twice before working a pin deep in the stanza. Luke Garman followed him up by posting takedowns in every period on his way to an 11-1 major decision, giving the Wildcats a 10-0 lead out the gate.

“Those were kids that weren’t necessarily feeling 100 percent but went out, fought and did a good job,” said Walizer on Donley and Garman. “Hayes is just a dangerous kid. Obviously, he showed that, popping two cement mixers back-to-back to get the fall for us.”

Aiden Kunes would post a sub-minute pin at 152 to up Central Mountain’s lead to its pinnacle at 16-0. And after State College erased that gap with three straight wins, Todd Caris secured a first-period pin of his own to give the Wildcats the lead back at 22-17.

With the loss, Central Mountain finished the 2025-26 dual season with an 11-1 record and now heads into February getting a much-needed break. Its next action comes at districts on Saturday, Feb. 21, and until then, it can use the time to recover and prepare for individual postseason.

“I’m proud of the kids and looking forward to taking the next couple of weeks to get their individual skills ready to go for districts,” said Walizer on his thoughts moving forward.

TIM WEIGHT/For the Express Central Mountain's Gavin Heverly wrestles State College's Kael Davis at 127 during the District 6 Class AAA Dual semifinals on Saturday, Jan. 31, 2026, at Central Mountain. The Wildcats fell 35-31.

DISTRICT 6 CLASS AAA DUAL SEMIFINALS

State College 35, Central Mountain 31

139: Hayes Donley (CM) pinned Jon Whitbred (SC), 3:23. 145: Luke Garman (CM) maj. dec. Mason Sanderson (SC), 11-1. 152: Aiden Kunes (CM) pinned Nico Diaz (SC), 0:36. 160: James Whitbred (SC) won by tech. fall over Dalton McDermott (CM), 19-4 (3:05). 172: Teag Sanderson (SC) pinned Mario Serafini (CM), 1:19. 189: Noah Williams (SC) pinned Hunter Donley (CM), 5:03. 215: Todd Caris (CM) pinned Rhys Mitchell (SC), 0:29. 285: Hayes Henry (CM) dec. Quillan Phillips (SC), 7-0. 107: Camden Fletcher (SC) maj. dec. Hunter Nace (CM), 12-0. 114: Noah Young (SC) pinned Angelo Tarantella (CM), 0:19. 121: Luke Young (SC) won by tech. fall over Collin Bauman (CM), 19-4 (3:44). 127: Kael Davis (SC) dec. Gavin Heverly (CM), 8-1. 133: Patrick Tarantella (CM) won by forfeit.

TIM WEIGHT/For the Express Central Mountain's Hayes Donley receives an ovation after securing a pin during the District 6 Class AAA Dual semifinals on Saturday, Jan. 31, 2026, at Central Mountain. The Wildcats fell 35-31.

TIM WEIGHT/For the Express Central Mountain's Luke Garman wrestles State College's Mason Sanderson at 145 during the District 6 Class AAA Dual semifinals on Saturday, Jan. 31, 2026, at Central Mountain. The Wildcats fell 35-31.

TIM WEIGHT/For the Express Central Mountain's Todd Caris works a pin during the District 6 Class AAA Dual semifinals on Saturday, Jan. 31, 2026, at Central Mountain. The Wildcats fell 35-31.

TIM WEIGHT/For the Express Central Mountain's Hayes Donley wrestles State College's Jon Whitbred at 139 during the District 6 Class AAA Dual semifinals on Saturday, Jan. 31, 2026, at Central Mountain. The Wildcats fell 35-31.