Fallsnewspress.com - Walsh wrestling sends seven on to district meet

by Michael Leonard

Sports Editor

Walsh Jesuit wrestling's effort Feb. 26 and 27 as it hosted its Division II sectional tournament was a classic case of quality over quantity.

Walsh finished second at the sectional with 231 points, as it was edged for the title by Aurora with 239.5 points.

More importantly, the Warriors sent eight wrestlers on to the district tournament, sixth of whom were weight class champions.

Walsh coach Joe Boardwine said the performance lived up to his expectations.

"We just don't have quite as much as I would like," Boardwine said. "The guys we do have that are moving on all are solid guys. As the tournament went on, our conditioning held up. When you look at the team we have, we actually performed pretty well."

Junior 125-pounder Johnni DiJulius began his quest for a second straight state title with a dominant performance. He pinned Kenston's Tre Smith in 2:42.

"That was a big win," Boardwine said. "Smith is dangerous, but he really handed it to him. People take Johnni for granted, but he really is in top form."

Meanwhile, Boardwine said 130-pounder Nate Skonieczny practically toyed with the field on his way to the title. He defeated Ravenna's Brandon Oberholtzer by a 26-11 technical fall in the final.

"He's just like a piece of iron, that kid," Boardwine said of Skonieczny. "I would not want to deal with him if I was a high school wrestler."

Boardwine said the fact twin brother Nick Skonieczny won the title at 135 pounds "shocked some people." Nick defeated Kenston's Jake Kazimir 3-2 in the final.

At 140 pounds, John Novak began his quest for states with a win over Aurora's Mark Korosec 11-6 in the final.

"It was a great tournament for him," Boardwine said. "John is probably a natural 130 pounder. He's just now growing into the weight class, so he's been dealing with a lot of bigger guys."

Senior 171-pounder Dillon Magalski looked locked in, as he won his title by pinning Streetsboro's Chris Ashburn in 2:31.

"Dillon's been working extremely hard," Boardwine said. "He's dealing with a couple small injuries right now. It think he's going to be OK."

Walsh's final champion was junior 189-pounder Anthony Melchiorre. Melchiorre pinned his way to the final and then pinned Benedictine's Joe Ward in 49 seconds in the final.

"It wasn't a super strong sectional at that weight, but Anthony was dominant," Boardwine said. "I think he's right where he should be and he's got a good shot of getting out."

Walsh also got third-place finishes from 103-pounder Cesare Piemarini and 215-pounder Bobby Hager.

Boardwine said he expected the Division II district at Akron Firestone to be "a donnybrook." The district tournament was scheduled for Feb. 26 and 27, but results weren't available at press time.

The top four finishers at districts move on to the Division II state tournament at Value City Arena in Columbus, which begins March 4.

E-mail: mleonard@recordpub.com

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