Alterio’s work will be rewarded

HERSHEY — Sudden victory.

Those words should never faze Bellefonte senior Shane Alterio again.

Alterio, who wants to wrestle in college, ended a three-year quest to earn a PIAA Class AAA medal by defeating Northampton’s Shane Fenningham 3-1 in a second-round consolation bout Friday.

Alterio scored the biggest points of his career by converting a double-leg takedown with four seconds remaining in the sudden-victory period. The takedown guaranteed Alterio a top-eight finish in a loaded 145- pound bracket.

“All the pressure is off right now,” Alterio said. “It’s about having fun. I reached my goal for the season.”

Two sudden-victory losses, including one in his first bout here, led to some dicey moments.

Alterio went 0-4 in his first two state tournaments, giving him one last chance to reach the medal stand. He then started this season at 152, but he decided to drop to 145 after discussions with his father and Bellefonte junior high coach, Tom Alterio.

“I wasn’t planning on dropping,” Alterio said. “I thought I would be a bigger 152-pounder and it just wasn’t working out. My dad and I were talking about it at the beginning of the season. I moved down to see how I would feel, and I’m feeling better since I moved down.”

The decision shifted Alterio into a weight class that includes Central Mountain’s Dylan Alton and Cumberland Valley’s Joey Napoli, a pair of state champions, and six other returning state placewinners, including Fenningham.

Alterio finished second behind Alton in the District 6 Championships. A week later, he wrestled back to take third after a sudden-victory loss to Erie Prep’s Jamal Lyons in the regional semifinals.

His PIAA tournament opened with a sudden-victory loss to Pennridge’s Colin McConnell. After defeating Bethel Park’s Mike Ganley, a returning placewinner, Alterio found himself in another sudden- victory period against Fenningham.

Alterio tied the bout at 1 when Fenningham was called for stalling with 39 seconds remaining. With his father watching from behind the hockey boards and many other relatives sitting in Section 122, Alterio corralled Fenningham in the sudden-victory period.

“They all knew I could do it,” said Alterio, the first member of his family to earn a state medal. “They probably believed in me more than I believed in myself sometimes.”

Maney said Alterio faced self-inflicted pressure throughout the season.

“He put a lot of pressure on himself and lost a tough first-round match and could have easily said that’s it,” Maney said. “He wasn’t ready to be done and refocused to beat two tough kids. It wasn’t easy. That’s perseverance on his part and shows that he has put time in the program the last couple of years.”

Wildcats continue to roll

Central Mountain led District 6 and Northwest Regional by sending three wrestlers into this morning’s semifinals.

The group included Andrew Alton at 140, Dylan Alton at 145 and Jake Bachman at 189. The Altons are in the semifinals for the second straight season.

Junior 125-pounder Jordan Rich and sophomore heavyweight Zach Corl rebounded from quarterfinal losses to win second-consolation bouts.

The Wildcats are second in the team standings with 37 points. Central Dauphin, which has six semifinalists, leads the tournament with 58.5 points.

Bellefonte freshman Tom Traxler and Indian Valley senior Tye Boyer are the only other District 6 wrestlers to reach the semifinals. Boyer defeated Penn Manor’s Andrew Eshleman 10-4 at 140.

Reversals

Tyrone junior A.J. Schopp (39-0) defeated Curwensville’s Derek Brothers 9-3 at 119 to advance to the Class AA finals. Schopp, a finalist at 103 in 2007, will face returning champion Anthony Zanetta of Keystone Oaks. Tyrone sophomore Ronnie Garbinsky (38-1) suffered a 14-5 semifinal loss to Greenville’s Coty Burnett at 125 …New Oxford 103- pounder Jordan Conaway ensured a PIAA medal by winning a second-round consolation bout. Conaway is the son of former Philipsburg-Osceola wrestler Dave Conaway. …Former Penn State great Sanshiro Abe is the coach at Pittsburgh Central Catholic, which qualified two wresters for the tournament. …Friday’s Class AAA attracted a crowd of 7,643 fans.