Burrell, Kiski Area wrestlers celebrate sport with 1st A-K Valley girls dual, latest edition of boys rivalry

By: Michael Love
Wednesday, December 13, 2023 | 10:05 PM

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The final score of the history-making girls wrestling match between Kiski Area and Burrell — the first-ever in the Alle-Kiski Valley — was won by the Cavaliers, 30-12.

But the wrestlers, coaches and spectators who witnessed the match know both Kiski Area and Burrell were winners Wednesday night.

“This is crazy. I never thought something like this would happen, at least while I was in high school,” Cavaliers sophomore Ava Golding said.

“It was great that we won all the matches, but I think everyone had fun. I am sure this is the start of a Burrell and Kiski rivalry for years to come.”

Freshman Kamdyn Pitts picked up the first win for the Cavaliers with a pin of Bucs freshman Caylee Enciso in 1 minute, 22 seconds at 100 pounds.

Burrell earned 12 points over the next two weights as freshmen Ella Campbell (106) and Kendra Lewandowski (118) earned forfeit wins.

Sophomore Kara Dilts tied the match for the Cavaliers as she pinned Bucs freshman Katie Koehler in 1:58 at 130.

Golding (136), ranked No. 2 in the state by PA Power, then gave her team the lead for good by defeating freshman Cierra Molnar by fall in 37 seconds.

“Seeing all the people in the stands got me a little nervous, but once I was out there, I was in my zone,” Golding said.

The Cavaliers closed out the match with wins at 142 and 148 as freshman Alyssa Tresco pinned freshman Cayla Brothers in 1:00, and sophomore Alyssa Perona scored a fall over junior Pippa Meyer in 1:31 at 148.

After the match, both teams gathered at the center of the mat for a group photo, and all of them were sporting mutually designed T-shirts that read, “‘We may be making history. … But this is just the beginning!’ #girls wrestling.”

“It was great we had this match with Kiski,” Burrell coach Chris Harkins said. “You could hear the crowd. Our girls were very nervous. We took a lot of shots, but we didn’t finish like we wanted. We’re working to get more mat experience. But there is no shame in how we wrestled tonight. I am proud of both teams. I think everyone was more than impressed.”

The boys wrestling rivalry between Kiski Area and Burrell is already in full swing, of course, and Burrell senior Nico Zanella was thrown right into the middle of it Wednesday.

One of two seniors in the Bucs lineup, Zanella wasn’t missing his final chance to wrestle in the rivalry match with the Cavaliers.

Making his season debut after suffering a left knee injury in the preseason, Zanella built a 5-1 lead into the third period against Kiski’s Riley Shearer before taking a timeout after aggravating the injury.

When the bout resumed, Zanella was aggressive, earning an escape and a takedown to finish off an 8-1 victory in what turned out to be a 42-21 Bucs win.

“I just tweaked it a little bit. It wasn’t anything too serious,” Zanella said. “I just needed a minute or two to recover. I just wanted to show my team I was still in it and still working.”

Zanella’s triumph was one of eight for Burrell, which topped Kiski for the second year in a row. It is the first time in the rivalry’s history that the Bucs have won two straight over the Cavaliers. Burrell won last year’s meeting at Kiski, 36-34.

“It is awesome to be a part of this,” Zanella said. “The guys are really pumped up right now.”

Burrell improved to 2-0 on the season, and it was coming off a second-place finish at the McCallie (Tenn.) Invitational over the weekend.

“(Kiski Area) is tough up top, and with where the match started (107), we knew we needed to score as many points as we could,” said Burrell coach Josh Shields, who was recognized before the match for being selected for a July enshrinement into the Jim Koch National Wrestling Coaches Association Division II Hall of Fame for his accomplishments as a collegiate wrestler at Mercyhurst.

“We wanted to wrestle well down low and in the middle to hopefully put the match out of reach. The guys weren’t satisfied with just getting wins. They went out there aggressively looking for falls. We bumped up Julian (Bertucci), Calio (Zanella) and Cooper (Hornack), and they did really well. That is no easy task to do that. It shows their commitment to this team.”

Kiski’s Payton King (107) and Burrell’s Cam Baker (114) won by forfeit to open the match.

Carter Thomas picked up a pin at 121 to give the Bucs a lead they wouldn’t relinquish.

John Deluca earned a 5-4 decision for Kiski over Luca Rosa at 127, getting a third-period escape to break a 4-4 tie.

That cut the Cavaliers deficit to 12-9.

Jake Stewart (133), Bertucci (139), Calio Zanella (145), and Hornack (152) each pinned their opponents in a four-bout blitz that opened up a 36-9 advantage with five to go.

Zanella’s decision over Shearer clinched the Burrell win.

Isaac Lacinski followed with a 10-4 decision over Evan Artman at 172 before the Cavaliers won the last three bouts to set the final.

Abrahm Taylor pinned Logan Shank at 189, Cooper Roscosky scored a 7-2 win over Luke Boylan at 215, and Ryder Ekas topped Ayden Kun, 6-0, at 285.

Kiski Area fell to 1-5 with the loss.

“We’re young and we’re still growing,” Kiski Area coach Chris Heater said. “Some of the guys are still learning how to transition to this level of wrestling. A number of (Burrell) guys have a lot of postseason experience even though they have several young kids. They have a little bit more experience than our guys right now. We just have to find a way to catch up and keep improving.”

Michael Love is a TribLive reporter covering sports in the Alle-Kiski Valley and the eastern suburbs of Pittsburgh. A Clearfield native and a graduate of Westminster (Pa.), he joined the Trib in 2002 after spending five years at the Clearfield Progress. He can be reached at mlove@triblive.com.

Tags: Burrell, Kiski Area