Bellefonte’s Ethan Rossman wins a PIAA Class 3A West Super Regional title as 4 county wrestlers advance

Bellefonte advanced three to Hershey and State College one at the rugged Class 3A West Super Regional on Saturday at the Altoona Fieldhouse.

Making a return trip to states and guaranteed a medal for the Red Raiders were Jude Swisher (132), Ethan Richner (160) and Ethan Rossman (189). This is the second PIAA medal for Swisher and Richner and the first for Rossman.

The Little Lions pushed through Lance Urbas (172) for his first PIAA hardware.

The PIAA Class 3A championships kick off at 8:30 a.m. Saturday.

Rossman claimed the 189-pound championship, with Richner getting second and Swisher third.

Urbas took home fourth to earn another trip to the Giant Center. Teammates Owen Woolcott (126) and Carson Manville (189) came in sixth and failed to advance.

Here’s a look at the results for both teams:

Bellefonte

Champions: Ethan Rossman (189)

Other PIAA qualifiers: Ethan Richner (2nd), Jude Swisher (3rd)

Other finishers: Lane Aikey (DNP)

Recap: Rossman brought home the gold with a hard-fought 1-0 victory over Dallastown’s Brooks Gable in the finals. The Red Raider senior beat Colt Barley (Penn Manor) 8-1, and Hampton’s Justin Hart to reach the finals. Rossman rode out Gable in the second and escaped in the third to seal the deal.

“It feels great to win. I had jitters in my first match. Once I got that out of the way and won my second match, I felt great. Everything went away, and I felt great for the finals,” Rossman said. “I’m super excited to be going back to Hershey and doing it with my teammates. It’s awesome to share this with them.”

Swisher dropped his opening match 8-6 to Colton Stoneking of Waynesburg, but came back to beat him by an 8-5 decision in the match for third.

“This is another step on the journey. Next week is the focus, so next week I want to be firing on all cylinders. I lost my first match, it didn’t really matter. You just got to keep getting better and fight right through. It feels good to earn a medal and move on,” Swisher said. “Stoneking is a great competitor and we’ve wrestled several times before. He has a unique feel. In the first match, it may have been over-excitement being the first match. I got myself out of position. I had a chance to win the match, but couldn’t get it done. In the second match, I finished my shots and was better technically. A medal isn’t the goal. I want to be on the top of the podium.”

The Red Raider junior scored two takedowns, a reversal and two escapes in the third for the victory.

“Collectively, we got off to a slow start. To Jude’s credit, he learned from that first match. He’s a student of the sport and he’s always trying to get better,” coach Mike Maney said. “All the weight classes here are deep and a credit to him working in the things he needs to work. Keep working to get better and earn a state medal.”

Pine Richland’s Cole Spencer capitalized on a seven-point second period to hand Richner the 10-3 defeat in the 160-pound finals.

“I have to work on some things, make adjustments, get better, and be ready for states,” Richner said. “My goal is to be a state champ and I’m going to do everything I can to make that happen.”

Maney had nothing but effusive praise for his trio and their return trip to Chocolatetown.

“The three guys moving on, they’ve been at it for a long time. They have been steadfast for a long time. Ethan Richner and Jude have been state placers, and Ethan Rossman has been so close. He finally got over the hump and won a state medal,” Maney said. “It would be hard to find another tournament tougher than this, other than the Big Ten championships. They are really good guys who are not moving. I’m proud of our guys and the way they performed today. It’s been a three-week grind and I’m looking forward to next week and hopefully, we can get to the top of the podium.”

Senior Lane Aikey came up short in his injury-riddled 2021 season. He went 0-2 on the day and saw his season and high school career end.

“Lane was limited in competition and it affected him. Just the fact he was even on the mat a couple weeks ago speaks to his determination,” Maney said. “He was competitive despite the lack of mat time, winning a district and regional championship. He has nothing to be ashamed of. He wrestled hard. He just came up a little short today. He hasn’t had a full season because of injuries. He’s looking to wrestle at the next level, hopefully, he can put a full season together. He hasn’t reached his full potential yet.”

State College

Champions: None

Other PIAA qualifiers: Lance Urbas (4th)

Other finishers: Owen Woolcott (6th), Carson Manville (6th), Ty Price (DNP)

Recap: Urbas battled back after a tough loss to Waynesburg’s Luca Augustine with a 3-0 win over Brian Finnerty of Thomas Jefferson to earn his first PIAA medal. He dropped a 12-3 major to Sammy Starr of Kiski Area for third.

“I knew it would be a tough bracket with good kids. I knew I had to do what it takes to fight hard and get through,” Urbas said. “I felt good in neutral. I kept the pace up. I got to my stuff. My mat wrestling needs to improve, and that’s what I’m going to work on this week. My mentality has really come together. It’s a big relief to know I’ve got a medal. Obviously, I want to go out and wrestle hard, but it is nice to know you already placed.”

State College coach Ryan Cummins talked about the hard road Urbas had to battle for that fourth place.

“He wrestled like a champion today. We talked to him about moving his feet, and that opened up his offense today. If he continues that, he will continue to do well,” Cummins said. “I’m proud of how he wrestled. This is a tough weight class, To get through it is saying something and now he’s a medalist at Hershey. This kind of day there is a relief they made it. Now, they can refocus and go after the gold medal.”

Owen Woolcott (126) and Carson Manville (189) finished sixth, and Ty Price (215) failed to place. All three saw their seasons end.

The officials disqualified Manville from the tournament after repeatedly using his hands and forearms to punch Gable in the face, drawing blood in their semifinal match.

“It’s unfortunate. It’s sad to see that. I was on the other mat, so I didn’t see all of it. It’s disappointing, and it’s certainly not the way we want to represent ourselves at the tournament,” Cummins said. “You’ve got to remember he’s young and young people make mistakes. He’ll come back from it and it will be a learning experience.”

West Super Regional Class 3A Championships

Saturday at Altoona

Finals

106: Tyler Chappell, Seneca Valley dec. Dom Flatt, Solanco, 3-1; 113: Kamdyn Williams, Manheim Township dec. Vincent Kilkeary, Greater Latrobe, 9-7. 120: Mac Church, Waynesburg dec. Karl Shindledecker, Chambersburg, 4-3; 126: Carter Dibert, Franklin Regional dec. Luke Simcox, Central Mountain, 4-2 ; 132: Dylan Chappell, Seneca Valley dec. Briar Priest, Hempfield Area, 6-5; 138: Finn Solomon, Franklin Regional major dec. Cole Homet, Waynesburg, 12-1; 145: John Altieri, Norwin DQ Wyatt Henson, :43; 152: Alejandro Herrera-Rondon, Seneca Valley def. Rocco Welsh, Waynesburg; 160: Cole Spencer, Pine-Richland dec. Ethan Richner, Bellefonte, 10-3; 172: Trey Kibe, Mifflin County dec. Luca Augustine, Waynesburg, 5-3 ; 189: Ethan Rossman, Bellefonte dec. Brooks Gable, Dallastown, 1-0; 215: Josh Harkless, Wilson-West Lawn dec. Jake Lucas, Cumberland Valley, 3-2; 285: Nate Schon, Selinsgrove vs Isaiah Vance, Hempfield Area

Third Place

106: Kaedyn Williams, Manheim Township dec. Cael Nasdeo, Williamsport, 2-1 ; 113: Jacob VanDee, Erie Prep dec. Troy Hohman, Penn Trafford, 10-6; 120: Mason Leiphart, Dover pinned Chad Ozias, Connellsville, 1:28 ; 126: Ethan Berginc, Hempfield Area pinned Matt Repos, Central Dauphin, 3:31; 132: Jude Swisher, Bellefonte dec. Colton Stoneking, Waynesburg, 8-5; 138: Chandler Ho, DuBois dec. Dylan Evans, Chartiers Valley, 6-3; 145: Riley Bower, Williamsport dec. Ty Linsenbigler, Hempfield Area, 3-2; 152: Paniro Johnson, Erie Prep pinned Jared Keslar, Connellsville, 3:56; 160: Ryan Fry, Red Lion pinned Chase Kranitz, Norin, :59; 172: Sammy Starr, Kiski Area major dec. Lance Urbas, State College, 12-2; 189: Justin Hart, Hampton pinned Colt Barley, Penn Manor, 3:46; 215: Logan Harmon, Armstrong def. Cole Weightman, Belle Vernon; 285: William McChesney, Greensburg-Salem vs. Dawson Dietz, Hampton

Fifth Place

126: Aliazer Alicea, Manheim Township dec. Owen Woolcott, State College, 8-4; 189: Braden Solar-Roscosky, Kiski Area forfeit Carson Manville, State College

Quarter Finals

120: Chad Ozias, Connellsville dec. Lane Aikey, Bellefonte, 5-2; 126: Aliazer Alicea, Manheim Township dec. Owen Woolcott, 3-0; 132: Colton Stoneking, Waynesburg dec. Jude Swisher, Bellefonte, 8-6; 160: Ethan Richner, Bellefonte dec. Collin McCorkle, North Allegheny, 3-1; 172: Lance Urbas, State College dec. Tate Nichter, Chambersburg, 6-1; 189: Carson Manville, State College dec. Cooper Baxter, Butler, 6-2; Ethan Rossman, Bellefonte dec. Colt Barley, Penn Manor, 8-1; 215: Logan Harmon, Armstrong dec. Ty Price, State College, 7-1.

Semifinals

160: Ethan Richner, Bellefonte dec. Chase Kranitz, Norwin, 9-4; 172: Luca Augustine, Waynesburg major dec. Lance Urbas, State College, 13-0; 189: Brooks Gable, Dallastown fmc Carson Manville, State College, 6-4 (4:44); Ethan Rossman, Bellefonte dec. Justin Hart, Hampton, 4-3.

Consolation Quarterfinals

120: Lane Aikey, Bellefonte vs. Mason Leiphart, Dover; 126: Owen Woolcott, State College dec. Stephen Spitko, Daniel Boone, 1-0; 132: Jude Swisher, Bellefonte major dec. Griffin Gonzalez, Lebanon, 8-0; 215: Ty Banco, Trinity dec. Ty Price, State College, 8-3

Consolation Semifinals

126: Matt Repos, Central Dauphin dec. Owen Woolcott, State College, 3-1 SV; 132: Jude Swisher, Bellefonte dec. Braden Bower, Williamsport, 3-1; 172: Lance Urbas, State College dec. Bran Finnerty, Thomas Jefferson, 3-0; 189: Colt Barley, Penn Manor forfeit Carson Manville, State College

This story was originally published March 7, 2021 at 12:57 AM.