Nazareth 33, Bethlehem Catholic 24 – District 11 3A wrestling final – Rapid Recap
The Blue Eagles became the first District 11 team since Easton in 2011 to defeat the Golden Hawks and snapped Becahi’s six-year run of D-11 crowns with an inspiring display of aggression, savvy, conditioning and desire in front of a raucous, well-packed gym at Freedom Saturday night.
Nazareth had lost to Bethlehem Catholic 40-20 in last week’s Eastern Pennsylvania Conference championship, meaning the Blue Eagles (16-1) achieved a 29-point swing in a week.
“I think we all just went back to the drawing board,” said Nazareth sophomore 113-pounder Sean Pierson, who was one of four Blue Eagles who reversed decisions from the EPC loss, as he topped Becahi frosh Kenny Herrmann 1-0. “Last time we lost a lot of close matches. We knew if we chipped away at them we could get closer and closer to them. And then we did what Coach (Dave) Crowell told us to do and we all did our jobs.”
The win advanced Nazareth (16-1) to Thursday’s opening round of the PIAA 3A state tournament at the Giant Center in Hershey where they will meet the winner of a Monday play-in between Owen J. Roberts, District 1’s third-place team, and District 12 runner-up Archbishop Wood at 6 p.m.
Turning point: There were a lot, but biggest of all perhaps came at 132 where Nazareth junior Ian Pulli, who lost by major decision in the EPC bout, posted a pin of Christian Liedke in 5:44, a fall that seemed to swing an enormous body of emotion towards the Blue Eagles. “When I heard the referee slap the mat, it was just a rush,” Pulli said.
Top performer: Again, a lot to pick from, but Nazareth freshman Andrew Cerniglia’s return from a broken collarbone to post a technical fall over Becahi’s Dillon Murphy at 106 pounds was enormous. In fact, Cerniglia’s mere return seemed to boost the Blue Eagles. “He is special,” Nazareth coach Dave Crowell said.
What it means: A tectonic shift in scholastic wrestling power in Pennsylvania, to start with. A rousing and thrilling win for Nazareth that the Blue Eagle athletes, coaches and fans will remember for the rest of their lives. A fantasic dual meet to sell wrestling to potential fans and wrestlers. A lot of joy for area fans tired of Becahi’s dominance. A whole lot of fun to watch. But it would be premature to write Bethlehem Catholic’s obituary yet – Round 3 could come a week from now in the 3A final. We hope it does, and we can’t wait.
Brad Wilson may be reached at bwilson@lehighvalleylive.com. Follow him on Twitter @bradwsports. Find Lehigh Valley high school sports on Facebook.
Our editors found this article on this site using Google and regenerated it for our readers.
