District 11 AAA wrestling highlighted by trio of unlikely.

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Feb
23

http://www.lehighvalleylive.com/sports/index.ssf/2013/02/district_11_class_aaa_wrestlin_4.html

District 11 Class AAA wrestling highlighted by trio of unlikely runs to semifinals.

By Brad Wilson | The Express-Times 
on February 22, 2013 at 11:26 PM

Freedom’s Willie Byrnes defeats Nazareth’s Sage Karam by fall in 5:38 in the 138 pound weight class in the preliminary round of the District 11 Class 3A wrestling tournament at Liberty High School on Friday.

Not many Lehigh Valley wrestling devotees expected to see Freedom’s Willy Byrnes, Bangor’s Charlie Sell and Nazareth’s Chase Zemenak among the semifinalists at the District 11 Class AAA tournament.

Reasons for such doubts seemed valid. Zemenak wasn’t supposed to put weight on a fractured knee suffered six weeks ago for four months, meaning today was well in advance of that projection. Sell’s path to the semis was blocked by No. 3 seed Kyle Baker of Easton and the Slaters don’t often tame a Red Rover. And Byrnes had just finished sixth in the D-11 junior varsity tournament, not quite making him a prime candidate to excel at the varsity event.

All good reasons — and all utterly, completely and totally wrong.

The unlikely trio are among 24 area semifinalists who will go for berths in the final and an assured spot at the Northeast Regional in today’s semifinals at 10:30 a.m. at Liberty High School. The finals will be 7:15 Saturday night.

Easton led the local parade of semifinalists with eight, all shooting to extend the Rovers’ streak of district champions to 66 years. Northampton has five in the semis, Freedom and Nazareth four apiece, Liberty two and Bangor one.

The Red Rovers trail Parkland, which also has eight semifinalists, 93.5-85.5 in the team standings (Parkland has 14 wrestlers alive, the Rovers 13) with Stroudsburg a distant third at 57.5.

Perhaps Byrnes’ odyssey to the semis took the unlikeliest path. The Patriots sophomore, fresh off that JV sixth place and seeded No. 15 in the tournament with a 7-15 record, trailed second seed Sage Karam of Nazareth in the third period before he threw a mighty headlock that ensnared the junior for a pin in 5:38 that had the crowd leaping to its feet.

“I had to go and try something, I was losing,” Byrnes said. “I don’t hit that move very often, but I felt good when I hit it and I knew I had him.”

Then Byrnes battled No. 7 seed Brian Morales of Stroudsburg in the quarterfinals, fought off a deep shot at the third-period buzzer in a tied match and then took down Morales in the overtime to win 5-3.

“That was torture, going to overtime,” Byrnes said. “He almost had me (in regulation).”

Byrnes said he wasn’t really confident coming into the tournament.

“I haven’t been wrestling especially well,” he said. “I credit this success to inspiration from my coaches and to do this at districts makes it extra special. This is far and away the best I have wrestled all season.”

Speaking of inspiration and coaches, Sell’s 4-2 come-from-behind win over Baker had Bangor coach Rick Thompson all fired up.

“I have not been this happy in a long time.” Thompson said. “Charlie Sell is what I want all the kids from Bangor to do. He’s the perfect example. We need more Charlie Sells in the Bangor program.”

Sell, who will meet Byrnes in a semifinal, trailed Baker, ranked No. 5 at 138 in the region by The Express-Times, 2-0 but used a reversal to tie the match.

The Slater sophomore, seeded No. 6, came close to a takedown several times in regulation but then decisively scored a takedown in the extra session.

“I thought I had the takedown in the third period but the referee didn’t so I just knew I’d get it if I kept going at him,” said Sell, now 26-3 on the season. “I knew I’d wrestle him in the quarterfinals and I was looking forward to wrestling him because he’s from a big school and we don’t get a chance to wrestle big schools often.”

Zemenak might be the most inspiring of the trio, since his knee injury seemed certain to cost him his junior postseason year after he finished fourth in the state as a sophomore.

But there he was Friday, the No. 1 seed at 126 and acting like it, hammering Northampton’s Paul Hetrick and then Pleasant Valley’s Bale Brannon by a combined 26-2 to roll into the semis where he will meet sophomore Shane Jones of Stroudsburg, the No. 5 seed.

“I am just so lucky to here,” said Zemenak (17-3), who broke a bone inside his knee six weeks ago. “I don’t worry about things I can’t control, but I didn’t think I’d be here at all two weeks ago. I’m limited in what I can do, and there are no guarantees. I was just happy to compete.”

Zemenak said he was severely tested by the return to competition.

“This is exhausting,” he said. “But I feel pretty good, better than I would have been not competing. I am going to give it my best shot.”

Which, like Byrnes’ and Sell’s, has been pretty good so far.