Mark Gray didn’t want to be conquered by fatigue. But after a lifetime of bumps and bruises wrestling, competing for the WPIAL team at the Pennsylvania Wrestling Classic didn’t sound too enticing for the Kiski Area 189-pound senior.
“I was just beat up, man,” Gray said. “My body wasn’t feeling it. I don’t want to say I was tapped out at the end of the season, but you know how it is. I was a little burnt.”
Gray, who finished his career with the Cavaliers with 110 wins after going 41-10 as a senior, honored his parents’ wishes to compete. He fought off knee pain in the final moments of his match to win by technical fall over New Jersey’s Vincenzo Lavelle. Gray helped the WPIAL team beat New Jersey 29-17.
“I didn’t want to come at first, but my parents said they thought it would be a good idea,” Gray said. “So I got on board, and I’m very thankful they told me I should do it. I’ve had a lot of fun here and met a lot of great people at this tournament.”
Westmoreland County wrestlers had an excellent day for the WPIAL team. Latrobe’s Luke Willochell, a Wyoming commit, was named the WPIAL’s most outstanding wrestler at the event after winning his 133-pound match with Pitt commit Carson Welsh in overtime.
Willochell badly wanted to leave an impression with the crowd. After scoring a late takedown to force overtime, then fighting off a deep shot in the extra period, it provided a major surge.
“Earlier today in my pre-match interview, I said I wanted to have the crowd on their feet,” Willochell said. “I wanted to hear a lot of ‘oohs’ and ‘aahs’ from the crowd. I think I did that. I heard that crowd cheering a lot. It was a back-and-forth match. That was a fun one.”
Early in overtime, Willochell found himself holding onto Welsh’s leg as he tried to force a neutral position. He said that is a situation he puts himself into regularly when he’s training.”
“Every day in the room, I’m scrambling,” Willochell said. “Even when we’re drilling. I like to finish out the drills and make the guy work for the takedown. It helps me in those types of situations.”
Willochell’s Latrobe teammate, Leo Joseph, won the opening match at 121 pounds after having both of his contacts accidentally poked out.
“I can’t see without them,” Joseph said.
Joseph took a chance at the end of the second round, rolling for an escape that gave him a one-point advantage. Joseph thought he would be able to ride him out but was able to work for the pin instead.
“I was,” Joseph said. “He’s pretty short and stocky. It wasn’t easy to get a turn on him. I could ride him, but it was tough.”
The WPIAL won the first three matches, culminating with Willochell’s 12-9 in overtime, to build a 13-0 lead. Indiana’s Nico Fanella (127 pounds), Connellsville’s Evan Petrovich (152), Ringgold’s Jake Conroy (215) and Thomas Jefferson’s Shepherd Turk (285) also won the WPIAL.
Gray enjoyed watching every match.
“I thought this was going to be a lot closer than it really was,” Gray said. “These boys are out here battling. Dom Ferraro’s match had me on the edge of my seat. I forgot I had to wrestle when I was watching him.”