Saucon Valley Wrestling Puts Colonial League on Notice

Bangor came to Saucon Valley Saturday morning with their undefeated (5-0) Colonial League record, hoping to knock off the unbeaten hometown Panthers (5-0). Bangor left Hellertown humbled, with their first league loss after a 49-12 drubbing by the hosts. Bangor’s high hopes were quickly grounded as Saucon Valley won the first seven matches, building a 28-0 lead. When it was all over, Saucon Valley won 11 of the 14 matches. This will, no doubt, send a strong message to the rest of the Colonial League.

Saucon tallied pins from Paul Miller (106), Blayne Hirschbeck (160) and Sam Scheetz (220). The Panthers also earned bonus points resulting from Dylan Yonney’s tech fall (145) and major decisions from Jason Jones (132) and Nick Schneider (138). In addition, Saucon would also get six more by virtue of a forfeit given to Trey Polak at 285.

Dylan Yonney looked especially sharp and was named by Coach Chad Shirk as Saucon’s “Wrestler of the Match.” Yonney methodically dismantled his opponent, Justis Zigubu, with five takedowns and six near fall points. Shirk said Yonney is “wrestling really well right now.”

The rest of the Panther points were decisions by Jack Hill (113), Angelo Mahaffey (120), Ty Druckenmiller (126) and Jason Lynch (170). Lynch beat previously unbeaten Dallas Labar by a score of 9-4.

Bangor was able to register a pin at 182 where Bangor’s Kaleb Happel fought from a 5-4 deficit to catch a much lighter Nate Kehs, who weighed in at 170. In addition, the Slaters would pick up a couple of decisions at 152 and 195. Undefeated Charles Sell (15-0) of Bangor–who was the 2014 AAA District XI 145-pound champion–squeezed by Saucon’s Nate Harka 3-0, while Terrance Higgins got the best of Devan VanVliet at 195.

On paper, the Slaters–led by Charles Sell and Dallas Labar, with 14-0 records–were supposed to challenge the reigning two-time champs. Nine of Bangor’s 13 wrestlers had only two or fewer losses. Eleven of Saucon’s wrestlers had six or more losses. Based on current records it seemed Bangor had many advantages. But, when Saucon Valley wrestlers attend cutthroat tournaments like “Beast of the East” and “The Hurricane,” losses are expected to accumulate. Records may become blemished, but the wrestlers become hardened against some of the toughest competition in the nation.

Shirk acknowledged that it was “a great win,” but cautioned, “we must still move forward and continue to improve. There are mistakes that need to be fixed.”

“We still have Catty and Palmerton before the Colonial League tournament,” he noted.

Saucon will be at Catasauqua (2-3) on Wednesday, Jan. 21 at 7 p.m. and then finish at home with Palmerton (0-5) on Saturday, Jan. 24 at 11 a.m. The Colonial League tournament will follow, with the top four seeds ultimately determining the Colonial League champions. Stay tuned to see if the Panthers can “three-peat.”

For now though, “Beware Colonial League!” The message has been sent. It doesn’t matter what your record is. When you compete against Saucon Valley, the battle-tested Panthers are going to be tough to beat.

About the Author: Keith Riefenstahl is a deeply rooted sports fan, former coach and freelance writer. A Penn State grad and veteran educator, he resides in Saucon Valley with his wife Jill and four children: Brooke, Kiele, Travis and Tanner.