Honesdale, Western Wayne and Wallenpaupack Area qualify for District Duals
HONESDALE — Wayne County wrestling fans are in for a treat this week as all three local boys varsity teams have qualified for the 2023-24 District Duals tournament.
Weather permitting, this year’s edition of the event gets underway Wednesday night as Honesdale, Western Wayne and Wallenpaupack Area begin their gold medal quests.
The Hornets (8-2) are seeded second in Class AA and will host No. 7 Lake Lehman in a quarterfinal match. The Wildcats (10-5) have locked down the three seed and will take on Scranton Prep.
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Meanwhile, Paupack (15-2) is ranked third among Class AAA teams. The Buckhorns open up against sixth seeded Wilkes Barre Area at Dallas High School.
Consolation and championship matches for both classes are scheduled for Saturday at Pittston Area.
“We are looking forward to a very competitive tournament,” said tournament director Dr. Jay Starnes. “It’s always exciting to get the Lackawanna League and Wyoming Valley Conference together to see who will represent District II at states”
Red & Black attack
Honesdale enters this year’s AA fray rated second behind only Berwick.
The Hornets have clinched the Lackawanna League Division II title thanks to impressive wins over the likes of Western Wayne, Lackawanna Trail and Valley View.
Under the direction of longtime head coach Ryan Chulada, the Red & Black most recently traveled to Lehighton to compete in the Coal Cracker Invitational. There, the Hornets finished 14th in a pool of 53 elite teams.
Honesdale is led by junior Mason Avery, who boasts a team-best 23-5 record at 160 pounds. Also making key contributions are: Joey Giannetti (20-5, 172 lbs); Duke Martin (19-7, 145 lbs); Joel Landry (19-8, 189 lbs); Justin Scanlon (16-7, 127 lbs); Levi Landry (15-7, 215 lbs).
“Getting to host District Duals is definitely a nice accomplishment and something we haven’t gotten to do since 2017-18,” Coach Chulada said. “The guys are really excited for another crack at another district final.
Coming on strong
Western Wayne lost a heartbreaker to archrival Honesdale early in the season.
Since then, though, the Wildcats have been on a roll in dual meet action. Coach Josh Harrison’s squad has now reeled off lopsided wins over divisional foes Lackawanna Trail (46-30), Valley View (54-18) and North Pocono (63-6).
Leading the charge for the ‘Cats is battle-tested veteran Liam Farley. The senior 133-pounder currently sports a sparkling 27-5 record and is closing in on 100 career wins.
Also raking in the team points are: Tyler Barletta (25-7, 145 lbs); Gavin Morcom (22-6, 139 lbs); Marcello Caminiti (21-10, 114 lbs); Jake Leslie (20-3, 145 lbs); Landon Morcom (19-11, 127 lbs).
“I’m really proud of our kids and the hard work they’ve done this year to put themselves in this position,” said Coach Harrison. “I think our team is going to compete very well this week and make a run at a district title.”
Battlin' Buckhorns
Wallenpaupack Area is enjoying one of its finest seasons in program history.
With veteran skipper Steve Krushnowski calling the shots, the Buckhorns have already piled up 15 wins and are 3-1 in Lackawanna League Division I action.
Paupack’s most recent win came last Wednesday with a 48-24 decision over Scranton High School. The Bucks also competed at the Coal Cracker Invitational and carved out a sixth place finish.
Gunnar Myers is Paupack’s team leader on and off the mat. A senior who has committed to continue his wrestling career at Northwestern University, Myers heads into District Duals with an unblemished 32-0 record.
Also putting up big numbers for Paupack are: Xaiden Schock (28-5, 189 lbs); Gabriel Caufield (28-9, 172 lbs); Conan Kier (27-7), 215 lbs); Ayden Blaut (24-10, 107 lbs); Nick Skokos (22-11, 127 lbs).
“We are excited to be going to District Duals,” said Coach Krushnowski. “I think we have a great shot to make the final and possibly advance to states.
“We put a solid group of guys on the mat, so it’s tough for anyone to go on a big run against us. This is quite possibly one of the best bunch of kids I’ve ever had the pleasure to coach.”
This article originally appeared on Tri-County Independent: Local wrestling teams advance to AA and AAA District Duals tournament
