Girard tournament champ; Tony Cardiero winner at 130

By Eric Hamilton

Dan Gainey (135) and Nico Francis (152) also claimed gold for the Indians.

NORTH JACKSON — Girard High wrestler Tony Cardiero isn’t perfect. He’s never had an undefeated season and he’s never advanced to the state tournament.

But he keeps a permanent reminder of the perfection he seeks in the form of an eagle tattoo on his arm. He says it symbolizes “grace and perfection.”

Cardiero and his teammates demonstrated those attributes well on Saturday, placing 10 wrestlers in the top four of their respective weight classes — including three champions — to defend their team title at the Leonard Truck and Trailer tournament at Jackson-Milton High School.

“We had some young guys step up and the seniors have shown great leadership,” said Cardiero, after claiming the 130-pound championship with a 5-2 win over Middlefield Cardinal’s Chad Feiberg (16-3). “Our coaches really push us in practice to make sure we’re not going to lose any matches because of conditioning.

“I beat that kid last week [at the Girard Duals], so I knew my strong suit is on top and I could maybe turn him. These tournaments are just stepping stones for state. The season doesn’t start until sectionals.”

Cardiero, a three-time district qualifier, is off to an impressive start with a 16-1 record. This was his second straight title at Jackson-Milton.

Girard sent five wrestlers to the championship round and added five more competing for third place. In addition to Cardiero’s title, Dan Gainey (135) and Nico Francis (152) each claimed gold.

The Indians outdistanced second-place Cardinal and third-place Jackson-Milton.

Girard led Cardinal by 3 Ω points entering the finals, but secured the win with a 2-0 showing in head-to-head matches in the finals.

“I told the kids before the finals that those would be big matches,” said Girard coach Jim Cardiero. “Those two seniors [Cardiero and Gainey] took it on their shoulders and got it done.

“We have a good team and we had every intention of winning, but we knew there were some good wrestlers here. It worked out well for us tonight.”

Girard is 8-0 in dual matches and now has a tournament victory to its name, as the season heads into the stretch run.

“Last year, we kind of fell about at districts, but this year we have to get some kids to Columbus. I think physically, we’re ready, I just have to get the kids mentally prepared,” said Jim Cardiero.

Jackson-Milton sent four wrestlers to the championship round and went a perfect 4-for-4, with titles coming from Vinny Pizzuto (103), Tim Wiseman (112), Santino Pizzuto (119) and Dan Clawson (215).

Liberty’s Josh Hideg won the championship at 160 pounds, while Salem’s Josh Lankford claimed the title at 171. Warren JFK’s Conner O’Brien was the champion at 140 pounds.

Wellsville’s Ryan Crabtree won the championship bout at 189 pounds.