Four area wrestlers near state berths

Three Fitch matmen and one from Boardman all reached the semifnals.

By ERIC HAMILTON

VINDICATOR CORRESPONDENT

MASSILLON — Four Mahoning Valley wrestlers have state tournament berths within their grasp after the first day of competition at the Division I Massillon Perry district tournament, which is widely considered the toughest district in Ohio.

Fitch’s Tony Jameson (145 pounds), Josh Pankewicz (160) and Chris Miller (215) and Boardman’s Jeff Liggitt (135) all won two matches on Friday to secure spots in today’s semifinals.

The quartet must win just one of two matches today in order to finish in the top four of their respective weight classes and earn state berths.

“I’m hoping to win it all,” said Liggitt, who has never gotten out of districts. “It feels good to be that close, but I just need to keep pushing it and stay aggressive. I feel good about my conditioning and I just want to be aggressive the whole match, no matter what the score is.

“I felt like I had a good draw, but to make it out of here you have to wrestle the toughest kids eventually. I’m just going to go weigh in and then get something to eat. I’ll probably stick to some pasta or a granola bar — but maybe I’ll splurge a little.”

Liggitt will face a tough opponent in the semifinals in Lake’s Zack Cline, who is ranked No. 7 in the Brakeman Report. Liggitt is rated No. 10.

In addition to Liggitt, Boardman still has hopes for a few more state qualifiers. Jerry Pasquale (103) and Ricky Zupko (112) each won first-round matches, but fell into the consolations after losing in the quarterfinals. The pair will have to win three matches today in order to advance to state.

Nick DeMarinis (152) and Brad Creatore (215) each fell in the first round, but have new lives after winning consolation bouts on Friday.

Fitch’s Shawn Ague (103), Louis Greco (152) and D.J. Moss (285) find themselves in the same situation. Greco lost on a questionable call in the quarterfinals (3-2) and will look to bounce back in the consolations. Jake Peterson (140) is still alive as well, losing his first match, but winning in the first round of consolations.

In two cases — at 103 pounds and 152 pounds — two area wrestlers could meet again, with the loser being eliminated. Ague (Fitch) and Pasquale (Boardman) would battle at 103 and DeMarinis (Boardman) and Greco (Fitch) would face off at 152.

“If anyone can get back through the consolations, Lou and Shawn can,” said Fitch coach Brett Powell. “They have put in as much time in practice as anyone. That hard work will show tomorrow. We knew in some cases we’d have to go through the consolations too get out of here, so we were mentally prepared for that.

“I’m proud of how our guys wrestled. This is a loaded district and we’re still up there near the top five. I’m surprised Mentor is ahead of us, but they’ve wrestled well. We know that if we just get as many individuals out of here as we can, we’ll do well as a team.”

Canfield’s Brad Benedict (135) won his first-round match, but fell 11-4 to Cline in the quarters. The 2007 state alternate still has a shot at a state berth, but will need to win three straight consolation bouts. Aron Brenner (145) lost his first match, but rebounded in the consolations with a win to keep his hopes alive.

Perry is leading the team standings with 60 points. Brecksville (47) is second, while Lake (43.5), Maple Heights (43) and Fitch (40.5) round out the top five.

Wrestling will continue today at 11 a.m. with the second round of consolations. That will be followed by the semifinals and more consolations. The finals will begin at 7 p.m. and includes matches for first through sixth place.