Josh Jones led the Panthers through the gruel and grind of The Beast of the East national wrestling tournament.
This past weekend, Chad Shirk and his Saucon Valley Panthers made the trip up and down the I-95 corridor for a challenging weekend tournament known as “The Beast of the East”. Taking place at the Rob Carpenter Center on the campus at the University of Delaware, The Beast has a rock-solid reputation as one of the most competitive high school wrestling tournaments in the United States. Heavy hitters like Blair Academy, Bergen Catholic and Bethlehem Catholic are joined by teams from as far away as Florida and Texas. 120 of the toughest scholastic wrestling programs from across the nation have, once again, come to try their chances at The Beast!
The Panthers had four wrestlers who survived The Beast on Saturday. Sophomore Dane Csencsits and junior Josh Jones joined seniors Jason Jones and Angelo Mahaffey. All were able to advance into Sunday’s action. However, all Panthers came up short from making their way to the podium.
As a team, the Panthers held 32nd place out of 120 schools after Day One. When all Panther wrestlers were done, they slid to 36th overall. A very respectable showing for little ol’ Saucon Valley considering the number of big schools, private schools and prep schools that participate!
Beast of the East Update (Final Panther Results):
Consolation Bracket
Josh Jones
126 lbs. Josh Jones (Jr.) finished the 2017 Beast with a 3-2 record. He was knocked from the Championship Bracket when he was defeated in the Quarterfinals by #1 seed and 2016 Beast champ, Pat Glory of Delbarton, NJ. Glory is also a 2017 New Jersey state champion and was selected as NJ.com’s 2016-17 “Wrestler of the Year”. Jones then dropped to the Consolation Bracket and lost in the “Blood Round” to J.J. Wilson of Cedar Cliff, PA. Wilson was a PIAA (AAA) South-Central Regional champion last season and narrowly nipped Jones by a 4-2 score. Had Jones been able to get by Wilson, he would have placed in the top-8.
Jason Jones
145 lbs. Jason Jones (Sr.) earned himself a 4-2 record at he 2017 Beast. He was ousted by senior Logan Kissel of Garrettsville, Ohio in a 6-0 decision. Kissell entered The Beast as the 16th seed and is committed to North Carolina’s Campbell University to wrestle. According to Campbell’s website, “Kissel is a three-time Ohio State Placer, claiming seventh in 2015, sixth in 2016 and third in 2017. He has compiled a career record of 127-16 for James A. Garfield High School”.
Angelo Mahaffey
152 lbs. Angelo Mahaffey (Sr.) finished with a 3-2 record. Angelo’s first loss was to John Manning of St. Thomas Villanova (Ontario, Canada) who was the tournament’s 4th overall seed. He is also a Utah state champion. Mahaffey was then knocked out of the Consy’s by Stefahn Mayo of Muhlenberg, PA in a 7-1 decision. Mayo is a senior who placed 3rd in the PIAA (AAA) Regional tournament last season. Mayo is the Beast’s #15 seed.
Dane Csencsits
182 lbs. Dane Csencsits (So.) ended The Beast with a 4-2 record. Csencsits was dropped from the Championship Bracket by Leonardo Tarantino from Blair Academy who is the #1 seed. Csencsits was then eliminated by 13th seeded Roger Pierce of Brooke Pointe, Virginia in a tough 4-3 decision. Csencsits was not seeded. Not this year, anyway!
UP NEXT: The Saucon grapplers return home for Colonial League action on Tuesday night (12/19/17) against Salisbury. Junior High kicks things off at 6 p.m. with the Varsity scheduled to follow at 6:40 p.m.
The Saucon Valley Panthers continue their quest for a sixth consecutive Colonial League title!
Good Luck Wrestlers, the Source is with you!
