Canon-McMillan High School has dominated in the sport of wrestling for over 90 years. A brief history of the program reveals that the team is one of the most historic in the nation. CM holds the record dual meet wins in the state with 1,075, among other records. State champs and NCAA champs alike have wrestled in the practice room at the Canonsburg, PA high school since the days that R.J. O'Connell started the intramural program. Canon Mac's 90th season is officially over, and we're looking back on our history.
Canon-McMillan’s 90th Anniversary season is over, and Coach Havelka and his Big Macs did not disappoint on making this season an exciting one. Coaches Havelka, Bowman, Crivelli, Maisner, and Steele coached the team to a 15-3 record. Some of the exciting matches along the ride was a win over Kiski on Alumni Night, a rematch with the Cavaliers in the WPIAL finals, and matches that were too close for comfort against Central Dauphin and Seneca Valley at Team States. The grapplers won the program’s 17th straight Section title, claimed silver at the WPIAL tournament, and took 4th at the PIAA tournament.
The Big Macs put on one final performance of the season at the PIAA State Tournament. The team brought three wrestlers and placed two of them. After four years in pursuit of a State title, Logan Macri accomplished his goal by plowing through the 120 lb. weight class. With the finals win, Logan became CM's 44th State Champion. Gerrit Nijenhuis also made his way onto the podium with a bronze medal. Though he lost in the semifinals on a controversial call, Gerrit wrestled back for 3rd at 160 lbs. CM’s final wrestler, Tim Hritsko wrestled for his first time in the Individual State tournament and earned two wins before falling in the bloodround to go to placing. While Tim did not place, his points accumulated with his teammates earned the team a respectable 5th place team finish with 53.5 points behind Kiski (60 pts), Bethlehem Catholic (68.5 pts), Cathedral Prep (72 pts), and Nazareth (87 pts). Below are the match-by-match scores, as found on FloArena:
Roaring crowds, shining gold medals, thrilling emotions, and a flood of congratulations make a victory in the present a feeling unlike any other. But what happens after the fact? Does a win stay forever rooted in a particular gym only to be remembered by those who witnessed the act? Maybe not in today’s society with live streaming, photographs, and videos that can be saved and rewatched for years to come. However, the moments from the 1930’s may be hard to come by.
On Sunday, March 4, the Oscars Academy Awards will take place at the Dolby Theatre in Los Angeles, California. This will be the 90th time that the world-renowned Academy reveals their choices for Best Picture; coincidentally, 90 is also the number of years that the Canon-McMillan Wrestling Program has been around. With that in mind, we’ve decided to rank the Top 7 Wrestling Movies of All Time
The Big Macs came into the WPIAL Championship weekend with ten qualifiers from the Section IV tournament, and three placed in the top 4 to advance onto the PIAA tournament. Hritsko placed 4th at 138 lbs. after losing in the semifinals to and winning in the “blood round.” At the 160 lb. weight class, Nijenhuis took home a silver medal with a great run through the bracket and a loss to Hartman of Belle Vernon in the finals. Logan Macri (120 lbs) came away with another impressive victory over Louis Newell of Seneca Valley. This is Logan's first WPIAL Title, which adds him to the list as another name on the board of WPIAL Champs
Mat Madness continues to stun fans with more upsets. It was apparently clear-cut for the Blue Age to host the #1 and #2 wrestlers in the finals, but the other three divisions were not so straightforward. #3 Manuel Pihakis edged out NCAA All-American Elias George to advance to the Gunners Division Finals. On the opposite side of the bracket, #6 Bruce Cridge advanced with a second upset against NCAA Champion; however, he now faces the wrestler with the most votes in the tournament thus far, Mark Angle. And in the final division, #4 Johnston pulled out a close victory over the only #1 seed not to advance, Solomon Chishko.
Upset city! All four #1 and #2 seeds are moving on, but that doesn’t mean that they’re safe. #4 seeds Bill Hulings (Gunners) and Jim Biringer (Blue) found that out against their respective #5 seeded opponents Vic DeFelice and Emil Deliere. Bruce Cridge has plowed through the competition an upset win over JUCO Champion Rob Benjamin, but he faces a resilient NCAA Champ Sylvester Terkay next. The only division to come out unscathed with all 4 of the top seeds still remaining is the Modern Age, though Wiercioch battled in a close contest against Kyle Deliere.
The Big Macs didn’t disappoint in the Section 4 AAA Championships this weekend, qualifying 10 wrestlers for the WPIAL tournament next weekend at Canon-McMillan High School starting Friday (3/2). The team ended with the most 1st place finishes in the tournament (5) over Waynesburg (3). Logan Macri earned his 3rd straight section title, while Nijenhuis earned his 2nd championship. Below are the results from the championship and consolation matches
The wrestlers, fans, and coaches of Canon-McMillan Wrestling have had a variety of nicknames given to them over the years. The origins of a nickname can be silly, historic, cultural, or sincere. A truly great nickname can stick with somebody for life, and for certain individuals in the CM Wrestling program, it certainly has. Some nicknames of note are: Superfan Stanley “Stush” Sadowski, cameraman Aaron "Buck" Caldwell, legend Manuel “Buz” Pihakis, Jr. High coach Brian “Slack” Krenzelak, and former head coaches Andy “Pooch” Puchany and R.J. “Roc” O’Connell. We got together with two of these guys to discuss the origins of their nicknames.
Canon-McMillan started the 2017-2018 season ranked 4th in the WPIAL, but ended it by placing 4th at the PIAA team state tournament. The squad racked up 6 regular season wins, including a big upset against Kiski Area. The Big Macs earned 2 more wins by smashing through the Section tournament to win the program’s 17th straight title. The boys made it all the way to the WPIAL finals before they dropped their first loss to rival Kiski Area in another tight match.
