The boys and girls varsity took their skills to the PIAA state tournament.
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.
Not only was this weekend a phenomenal weekend for the High School team, but the Jr. High had a great showing at the Area IV Regional tournament. Coach Slack's squad qualified a record 14 wrestlers for the tournament, beating the previous record of 12 in 2016. The young men will compete next weekend in the PJW Jr. High State Championship at the Cambria County War Memorial Arena in Johnstown, PA (3/3 - 3/4).
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.
The biggest collegiate dual of the year is approaching as #2 Ohio State takes on #1 Penn State at Rec Hall this weekend in what some are calling the “Super Bowl of College Wrestling.” PSU has a 42 match winning streak with two undefeated seasons in 2016 and 2017, the longest since Iowa’s “unbeaten” 84-0-1 win streak from 2008-2012. Their last loss came from Oklahoma State in February of 2015, which was also the last season that the Buckeyes beat the Nittany Lions by a score of 22-15. Both PSU and OSU have phenomenal teams this year, and that is shown by the stats of their head coaches, individuals, and teams
All good things must come to an end, so the CMWAA is concluding our WotW series with one final installment. We’ve highlighted eight of the fourteen total wrestlers on the HS team, and now we’re moving into our ninth line-up spot at 152 lbs. Congrats to our final Wrestler of the Week, Dimitri Pihiou!
Penguins versus Flyers, Yankees versus Red Sox, Rocky Balboa versus Apollo Creed; these are some of the greatest sports rivalries of all time. A rivalry is filled with competitions that have a sense of familiarity between opponents. Wins and losses are shared back and forth throughout years of history. Fans cheer loud when nemeses compete because emotions rise when the stakes are high. With a rivalry, bragging rights are sometimes more important than the trophy itself.
CM wrestling fans have been treated to bios of the 106, 113, 120, 126, 138, 145, and 160 lb. weight classes in our Wrestler of the Week series. But, where are the heavier weights? Well, this week we move up to the biggest weight class that there is with this week’s Wrestler of the Week, Giomar Ramos.
