Quaker Valley’s Redinger rallies, TJ’s Serapiglia pulls surprise at Allegheny County tournament

By: HSSN Staff
Friday, January 18, 2019 | 8:27 PM

It’s not often a quarterfinal-round match features two past tournament champions.

But that’s what happened at the 18 ^th annual Allegheny County Wrestling Championships Friday at Fox Chapel.

Quaker Valley sophomore Conner Redinger, the 2018 champion at 106 pounds, battled Penn Hills senior Justin Perkins, the 2017 champion at 126, in the feature 132-pound match of Day 1.

Perkins used a four-point move to grab and early 4-0 lead, but the persistent Redinger rallied for a 6-4 victory to advance to the semifinals, rescheduled for 9 a.m. Saturday.

The schedule on Day 2 was advanced because of a forcasted snowstorm that’s expected to hit the Greater Pittsburgh area at midday.

“I was hoping for a battle like that,” Redinger said. “I needed to get my motor working because I was sick. I knew I had to stay after him because I knew he’d sit back and try to protect the lead.”

Before the end of the first period, Redinger got an escape and takedown to trim the deficit to 4-3. He added an escape in the second period to tie the score and then got a takedown midway through the third period to secure the win.

“I had to keep pushing and not give up,” Redinger said. “I’m not in the greatest shape, but it sure helped in the match.”

Redinger, seeded No. 2, will face North Allegheny sophomore Max Stedeford in the semifinals. The winner could face two-time PIAA and WPIAL champion Sam Hillegas of North Hills.

The finals are slated to begin around noon Saturday.

Thomas Jefferson senior heavyweight Dom Serapiglia (5-0) won more matches Friday than he has all season and finds himself in the semifinals against Mt. Lebanon senior Nathan Hoaglund, who is seeded No. 2.

Serapiglia opened with a pin of Montour’s Caleb Halaja and then upset the No. 3 seed, South Fayette junior Quentin Franklin, 3-2. He followed that stunner with a 6-4 win over Moon sophomore Sennaca Harney.

“He wrestled until ninth grade,” Thomas Jefferson coach Mike Ladick said. “He is friends with Max (Shaw) and wanted to give wrestling a shot so he could get ready for football in college. He’s been working hard.”

Serapiglia just returned to the lineup Jan. 9 against Belle Vernon and picked up a forfeit. He pinned Connellsville’s heavyweight Wednesday.

It was the first time he made weight, dropping from 315 pounds to 285 pounds from football. He was the starting center on the football team.

“I saw what Max did last year going to states, and I thought I’d give it a shot,” Serapiglia said. “I’m in better shape now and quicker on my feet. I knew coming here I’d be an underdog, but that was OK.”

Serapiglia managed to survive a grueling match in the quarterfinals and held on for the win. He had two takedowns and a reversal. He clinched the win with a takedown with 30 seconds left for a 6-3 lead.

He wasn’t the only competitor to upset a seeded wrestler.

Another upset occurred at 113 where North Allegheny sophomore Brad Stipetich defeated No. 2 Evan Whiteside of Gateway, 3-2, in the quarterfinals.

Quaker Valley freshman Patrick Cutchember took down the third seed at 160, South Fayette senior Michael Dedi, with a pin at 2:56.

The No. 1 seed at 220 fell as Bethel Park senior Jake Dowell pinned McKeesport junior Andy Mellinger in 1:13.

One of the top semifinal matches will occur at 106 pounds where South Park sophomore Joey Fischer faces North Allegheny freshman Dylan Coy. Fischer said he beat Coy in a preseason tournament, and he’s eager to see how they match up.

“I was a close match earlier in the year,” Fischer said. “It wasn’t my best match, but I’m looking forward to the rematch.”

Officials running the tournament have made an adjustment to Saturday’s schedule because of the expected snowstorm.

Action will resume at 9 a.m. with semifinal-round bouts at Fox Chapel High School. The finals and medal rounds are expected to begin at noon or earlier.

A snowstorm in 2016 forced officials to move Saturday’s semifinals and finals to Sunday. The storm hit Friday afternoon and eventually shut down the Pennsylvania Turnpike in Bedford County.

There are 37 teams from the county and City of Pittsburgh participating in the tournament.

Thomas Jefferson (100.5) leads the team standings after Day, followed by North Allegheny (100), Mt. Lebanon (99), Pine-Richland (97.5) and Chartiers Valley (95).

Paul Schofield is a Tribune-Review staff writer. You can contact Paul at pschofield@tribweb.com or via Twitter @Schofield_Trib.

Tags: Fox Chapel, North Allegheny, Quaker Valley, South Park, Thomas Jefferson