06 Mar February Team of the Month: Reynolds Raiders Wrestling
Gilbert’s is very proud to honor the Reynolds Wrestling Team for the second time as our February Team of the Month!
Led by Coach Casey Taylor, Reynolds kicked off February by beating out three opponents in the District 10 AA Duals (Fort LeBoeuf 57-9, Greenville 84-0, and Conneaut Area 64-18), advancing them to PIAA Class AA Duals.
The Raiders cruised to the championship of the PIAA Class AA Duals, where they defeated, yet again, three straight opponents (Notre Dame-Green Pond 47-18, Westmont Hilltop 54-9, and Saucon Valley 46-20). The following day the Raiders squared off against the familiar faces of Southern Columbia, a highly anticipated rematch of last year’s championship tilt.
Although the Raiders led 28-23 going into the final bout – the score was no indication of how tense the entire match was. Raiders senior Hunter Thompson and Tigers’ state-ranked wrestler Cade Linn faced each other in the last match of the day. Thompson ended up battling back against Linn, winning 10-8 in an overtime, sudden-victory take-down, earning his team a 31-23 victory against Southern Columbia. This is the Raiders’ third consecutive PIAA AA Dual Team State Championship Title, and they now hold the record for the most dual titles of any Class AA team. Taylor’s team ended their season with an 18-0 record.
The Raiders Wrestling team also participated in the AA Sectional Tournament for individuals. Reynolds was victorious at this tournament as well, and advanced wrestlers in 13 of the 14 weight classes to the District 10 tournament.
The District 10 AA Tournament for individuals was held the last weekend in February and Reynolds again steamrolled the competition to a victory. Reynolds advanced 12 wrestlers out of the District 10 tournament and into the AA Northwest Regional Tournament. Reynolds also had 3 individual District 10 Champions – Gary Steen, Beau Bayless, and Derrick Skeehan! With his victory, Bayless became a four-time District 10 champion!
We won’t leave you hanging! The success continued the first weekend in March as Reynolds once again was victorious in the PIAA AA Northwest Regional Tournament. Reynolds advanced nine wrestlers to the PIAA tournament this weekend in Hershey, PA and had 2 wrestlers win a Regional Championship – Gary Steen and Beau Bayless. Also advancing to Hershey are Cole Bayless (4th), Kaeden Berger (3rd), Rocco Bartolo (2nd), Hunter Thompson (4th), Cole Toy (4th), Wyatt Owen (3rd), and Derek Skeehan (2nd).
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