Recovered from offseason injury, Plum’s Antonino Walker off to strong start to senior season

By: Michael Love
Saturday, January 6, 2024 | 11:01 AM

Antonino Walker’s summer of wrestling competition and also his preparation for the 2023-24 high school season came to a halt when he suffered a broken ankle at a tournament with Young Guns in Nashville, Tenn.

The injury required surgery and the standout Plum senior was off the mat for nearly three months while he recovered.

But during his layoff, Walker made sure to do whatever he could to maintain both his physical and mental strength.

“I was so anxious to get back,” Walker said. “I knew it was a matter of time. I just had to listen to my doctors.”

Individual and team goals motivated him, and he came into the season strong.

A month into the season, Walker is on a roll. At 16-1 after a win Jan. 3, he is one of the top wrestlers in WPIAL Class 3A, and he has no plans to slow down.

Walker said rankings don’t move the needle for him, but he is No. 2 at 152 pounds in the latest Trib HSSN rankings released Jan. 2.

West Allegheny senior Nick Jones, who was 14-4 with 11 pins after a match with Moon on Jan. 3, is in the top spot.

“Being successful on the mat is what counts the most,” he said. “That is what will get you to where you need to be.”

Walker opened the new year with a dominating victory in last week’s section dual with Fox Chapel.

He scored a 9-0 major decision at 152 over Alexander Kauffman, a senior making his season debut.

Kauffman was the section runner-up at 152 last year. He finished seventh at regionals with a 27-8 record and entered the season with 68 career wins.

“I just have to keep doing what I am doing with therapy and continue to work to keep my ankle as healthy as possible and get it back to what it was,” Walker said.

Walker knew all about coming back from injury.

Last year, he got a late start to his season after recovering from neck issues.

He made his junior season debut Jan. 11 with a pin in a dual with Shaler and went on to collect 22 wins in 25 bouts. He captured his second section championship and placed fifth at 172 pounds at the WPIAL/Southwest Regional.

Walker has his sights set on a second trip to states. He was second at regionals (106) as a freshman and reached Hershey where he didn’t place.

Walker closed out 2023 with a dominating performance at the Southmoreland Holiday Tournament where he went 5-0 with three pins and two decisions to claim the 160-pound title.

“I felt really good,” he said. “I weighed in at about 154 or 155. I still had to make my weight descent. I was giving up some weight at Southmoreland, but I felt really good and really strong.”

Walker said he should be at 152 for the individual postseason tournaments.

“Antonino is looking tough. He’s getting back to his best form,” Plum coach Mike Supak said.

“He’s bullying people around on the mat and getting to his shots. He is aggressive and is attacking more. I think his best matches are ahead of him.”

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: Plum