J-M’s Teasdale wins third section, WPIAL titles
CANONSBURG — Without a doubt, the most exciting Class AA wrestler in the WPIAL is Jefferson-Morgan’s Gavin Teasdale. He’s probably the most exciting AA wrestler in the state and it doesn’t take much of an argument to extend that to the country.
Winning equals excitement.
Don’t look now, but there’s an up-and-comer who took the WPIAL by storm over the weekend at Canon-McMillan High School.
Thayne Lawrence, a freshman 138-pounder from Frazier High School, won section and WPIAL titles, becoming the first in school history to do so. Of course, the wrestling program there is in its infant stages, having only four members this year.
Teasdale and Lawrence, along with any other wrestlers from the district who placed in the top seven last Saturday night, advance to the PIAA Southwest Regional Championship Friday and Saturday at IUP’s Kovalchick Complex with the top five placewinners in each weight class advancing to the PIAA Tournament in Hershey March 9-11.
Teasdale won his third section and WPIAL titles at Canon-Mac Friday and Saturday, upping his season record to 32-0 and career mark to 114-0. But his WPIAL title match against Burrell senior Dillan Jeffrey, a 20-8 victory, wasn’t as easy as the score might have indicated.
“He was another kid who was looking to keep tying me up, trying to keep the match close,” Teasdale said. “I have to keep learning to stay out of those tie-ups and wrestle my match. You have to respect your opponent, regardless of whether it’s a first-year kid or a veteran.”
Jeffrey was only the fifth wrestler in 32 bouts this season to go the distance with Teasdale, who won his WPIAL matches with a pair of technical falls and a major decision.
Beth-Center’s Dominic Fundy, who finished third in the WPIALs last year, had a tough match with Burrell’s Anthony Marra in the 182-pound finals, but won it with an escape in overtime, 2-1.
“I wrestled him in a tournament at Bedford,” Fundy said. “It gets harder because you learn each others moves and how you work against them. But you usually get better no matter the outcome.”
Competition at IUP begins Friday at 3 p.m. with the preliminary round, quarterfinals and first rounds of consolations. On Saturday, the semifinals will be held at 10 a.m., followed by the second, third and fourth rounds of consolations. The championship and consolation finals will be contested at 5:45.