PowerAde Wrestling Tournament Ends with Bishop McCort's Dramatic Victory Over Lake Highland Prep

Bishop McCort edges out Lake Highland Prep in a thrilling team race, with powerhouse performances from Bo Bassett and Jax Forrest leading the charge

The Bishop McCort (PA) wrestling team pulled off a dramatic victory over Lake Highland Prep (FL) to capture the 2024 PowerAde Tournament. / Bishop McCort Athletics

When the final buzzer sounded on Friday night, No. 3 Bishop McCort (PA) and No. 4 Lake Highland Prep (FL) were tied for the lead of the PowerAde Tournament at Canon- McMillan High School in Pennsylvania. Their even places in the standings set the table for a wild Saturday, that saw some shuffling of the team race after the semifinals.

No. 6 Delbarton (NJ) was sitting in third on Friday night, 2.5 points behind the co-leaders, 130.5-128. The Highlanders were in front after the semis with Delbarton trailing them and the Crushers in third. Lake Highland was up by 3.5 over the Green Wave and ten over McCort.

When the last matches were wrestled before the placement rounds, McCort worked its way back to the top of the heap, just one point ahead of the Highlanders, 195-194. Delbarton (185.5) was back in third where it would stay.

A decision was made by the tournament directors to begin the final round at 172 lbs. This benefitted Lake Highland Prep as far as momentum and team morale were concerned as their strength lies in the upper weights and Bishop McCort doesn’t have much national-level firepower up top.  

While Delbarton began the final round within striking distance of the top spot, as the results piled up, it became a two-team race as the Crushers and Highlanders separated themselves from the Garden State power. None of these squads had a representative to send out in the 172 lb placement rounds.

In the 189 lb final, the Green Wave would need a monumental upset to tack on additional team points as the unranked Carl “CJ” Betz faced Lake Highland Prep’s No. 8 Robert Kucharczk in the gold medal bout. Kucharczk blanked his foe but was unable to add bonus points with a 4-0 win.

Kucharczk’s efforts gave the Highlanders the lead by three points, 198-195. At 215 and 285, Lake Highland Prep was the only program that would be sending wrestlers out, so an opportunity to build on that lead was there.

The Highlanders completed the three-match win streak but could not muster any bonus points in their victories that saw heavyweight, No. 10 Jacob Levy capture their second title with a 5-2 decision of No. 25 Lukas Zalota (Malvern Prep, PA). No. 22 Alex Smith won his fifth-place match at 215lbs, 1-0, over unranked Cooper Roscosky (Kiski Area, PA).

Given the disparity of their opponents’ national standing compared to theirs, the success was a bit bittersweet as bonus points were severely needed and this could end up being a turning point in the team race as the Highlanders’ lead still grew but only to a nine-point edge, 204-195.

The turnaround to the little guys didn’t provide McCort with any immediate relief as No. 11 Keegan Bassett was set to face No. 5 Justin Farnsworth (Malvern Prep) in his 107 lb consolation final and the rankings were proven true with Farnsworth posting a 12-0 major decision to keep McCort from adding to their tally.

One point was gained by the Crushers at 114 when No. 30 Eli Herring pulled off a mild upset of No. 20 Charlie Esposito (St. Joseph Regional, NJ), 7-1, in the battle for seventh. Neither team had a representative in the placement matches at the next two weights, so the scoreboard watchers were able to take a short break from their mathematical endeavors.

With bonus point machine, No. 1 Jax Forrest, slated to fire-off at 133 lbs, the Crushers were hoping this would be the beginning of their own reclamation of the lead. An eight-point deficit awaited the junior, who had teched all four of his foes leading up to the finals where he encountered No. 6 Matthew Botello (Wyoming Seminary, PA). Forrest was held in check a small bit in this match as he could only secure an 11-3 major decision, but with that, Forrest’s third PowerAde crown cut the deficit to three, 204-201.

Both had grapplers competing at 139mlbs, with both favored to deliver a win. No. 9 Jayce Paridon added a third championship to the Highlanders’ count with an 8-0 major decision of No. 25 Drake Hooiman (SLAM! Academy, NV). No. 6 Sam Herring answered Paridon with an 8-0 outcome of his own over Honorable Mention Dale Corbin (Wyoming Seminary).

The difference was, Paridon’s win put five more on Lake Highland’s count and Herring added just three to his troop’s total, extending the Highlanders’ edge to five, 209-204. Paridon and Herring have developed quite a rivalry this season with them splitting matches. They traded wins at Super 32. Herring gained the edge at Ironman hence his higher ranking, but watched as Paridon took it back with a 3-1 overtime tiebreaker win in the semis.

Next up for McCort was No. 1 Bo Bassett at 145 lbs. Bassett’s style tends for him to typically win his matches by technical fall, but for this affair the junior turned into a pinning machine as he decked all five challengers that stepped on the mat with him including a 2:31 flattening of unranked Declan O’Byrne (Malvern Prep) for the junior’s third PowerAde title.

O’Byrne stole points from Lake Highland when he surprisingly defeated No. 25 Charlie DeSena, 5-3, in the round of 16. Advancement in the championship bracket earns more team points than those in the consolation rounds, so although DeSena came back to place, most of his wins gained less points than expected. Plus, DeSena landed in the seventh position despite being seeded third and being the third highest ranked guy in the bracket.

DeSena’s 12-3 win in his seventh-place match allowed the Highlanders to hold onto first place despite Bassett adding six points to his team’s total, 211-210. Two more rounds were left to determine the winner, and it was obvious that the race would go down to the last one.

No. 6 Zeno Moore was the underdog in his 152lb showdown with No. 2 Jayden James (Delbarton). That fact held true as James rolled to an easy 16-4 major decision. Moore kicked McCort’s Devon Magro (No. 7 at 157) into the consolation bracket with a 7-6 semifinal win. In a cruel twist, the bonus points Magro gained in his third-place match over No. 19 Gabriel Delgado (SLAM! Academy) took away the Highlanders lead and left McCort atop the standings, 213-211.

PowerAde uses PIAA weights, so there are only 13 instead of 14 and instead of 157, 165, and 175, there is 160 then 172. This situation forced both McCort’s No. 4 Melvin Miller and Delbarton’s No. 5 Alessio Perentin to come down to 160 from their usual 165lbs.

Lake Highland needed Perentin to come out ahead and for their own grappler, No. 11 Lucas Boe, to win his consolation final versus No. 18 Joey Canova (Bergen Catholic). Neither of those things happened as Miller prevailed, 4-2, and Boe fell, 4-2. The crown now belonged to McCort, 217-211. Boe lost his match before Miller’s fate was decided, so the title was secured prior to Miller’s win.

In addition to James, Delbarton crowned one other champ in No. 4 Cameron Sontz, who pocketed top honors at 114 lbs with a 9-2 decision of unranked Matteo Gallegos (DuBois, PA). Other Green Wave placers were Chase Quenault (6th at 139), seventh-place finishers No. 18 PJ Terranova (107) and Tommy Marchetti (121), and Nick Schwartz, who was eight at 145 lbs. Schwartz pinned No. 12 Eren Sement (Council Rock North, PA) in the round of 16 to propel his run to the podium.

A third wrestler captured PowerAde title number three, and he also competes for a Pennsylvania school, No. 1 Jude Correa (Wyoming Seminary). The senior locked down the gold with a 4-0 shutout of No. 7 Austin Johnson (Muncy, PA).

A Pennsylvania sophomore finds himself on the same path as Bassett and Forrest as Norwin’s Landon Sidun brought home his second consecutive championship. Sidun, who is No 4 at 120, won the 121lb final in an overtime tiebreaker, 7-6, with Paul Kenny (Christian Brothers Academy, NJ). Kenny is ranked 21st at 126 lbs and was down at 120/121 for the first time this season.

A Keystone State freshman claimed top honors at 107 lbs. as No. 8 Chase Karenbauer won a 5-3 ultimate tiebreaker showdown with No. 26 JoJo Burke (St. Joseph Regional). Karenbauer upset Farnsworth to reach the finals. Burke used two unexpected wins over No. 4 Sean Kenny (Christian Brothers) and No. 13 Wyatt Stauffer (Wyoming Seminary) to ice his trip to the finals.

Two wrestlers who were runners-up last year fill out the champions count with No. 12 Karson Brown (St. Edward, OH) gaining a surprise win over No. 6 Matt O’Neill (Malvern Prep), 6-4, in the 127 lb. final, and No. 2 Ryan Burton (St. Joseph Regional) decking No. 4 Asher Cunningham (State College, PA) at 172 lbs.

Team Scores (Top 15)

1-Bishop McCort (PA) 217

2-Lake Highland Prep (FL) 211

3-Delbarton (NJ) 195.5

4-Malvern Prep (PA) 174

5-St. Edward (OH) 154.5

6-Wyoming Seminary (PA) 151

7-Bergen Catholic (NJ) 110-5

8-Bishop McDevitt (PA) 104.5

9-Thomas Jefferson (PA) 104

10-SLAM! Academy (NV) 98.5

11-Christian Brothers Academy (NJ) 96

12-St. Joseph Regional (NJ) 88

13-Cleveland (TN) 86.5

14-Notre Dame-Green Pond (PA) 78.5

15-Connellsville (PA) 77

Finals

107-Chase Karenbauer (Grove City) DEC Jojo Burke (St. Joseph Regional-NJ), 5-3 UTB

114-Cameron Sontz (Delbarton-NJ) DEC Mateo Gallegos (DuBois), 9-2

121-Landon Sidun (Norwin) DEC Paul Kenny (Christian Brothers Acad.-NJ), 7-6 TB1

127-Karson Brown (St. Edward-OH) DEC Matt O'neill (Malvern Prep), 6-4

133-Jax Forrest (Bishop McCort) MD Mathew Botello (Wyoming Seminary), 11-3

139-Jayce Paridon (Lake Highland Prep-FL) MD Drake Hooiman (Slam Academy-NV), 8-0

145-Bo Bassett (Bishop McCort) F Declan O'byrne (Malvern Prep), 2:31

152-Jayden James (Delbarton-NJ) MD Zeno Moore (Lake Highland Prep-FL), 16-4

160-Melvin Miller (Bishop McCort) DEC Alessio Perentin (Delbarton-NJ), 4-2

172-Ryan Burton (St. Joseph Regional-NJ) F Asher Cunningham (State College), 5:15

189-Robert Kucharczk (Lake Highland Prep-FL) DEC Carl Betz (Delbarton-NJ), 4-0

215-Jude Correa (Wyoming Seminary) DEC Austin Johnson (Muncy), 4-0

285-Jacob Levy (Lake Highland Prep-FL) DEC Lukas Zalota (Malvern Prep), 5-2

3rd Place

107-Justin Farnsworth (Malvern Prep) MD Keegan Bassett (Bishop McCort), 12-0

114-Easton Mull (Chestnut Ridge) DEC Wyatt Spencer (Wyoming Seminary), 8-5

121-Ethan Timar (St. Edward-OH) F Lukas Littleton mascaro (Malvern Prep), 4:58

127-Dominic Deputy (Chestnut Ridge) DEC Nico Fanella (Indiana), 7-6

133-Manuel Saldate (Slam Academy-NV) DEC Tyler Dekraker (Chantilly-VA), 4-0

139-Sam Herring (Bishop McCort) MD Dale Corbin (Wyoming Seminary), 8-0

145-Eren Sement (Council Rock North) DEC Adam Butler (St. Edward-OH), 8-2

152-Devon Magro (Bishop McCort) MD Gabriel Delgado (Slam Academy-NV), 10-1

160-Joseph Canova (Bergen Catholic-NJ) DEC Lucas Boe (Lake Highland Prep-FL), 4-2

172-Bode Marlow (Thomas Jefferson) MD Maximus Norman (Baylor-TN), 10-2

189-Aiden Peterson (St. Edward-OH) MD Hunter Snyder (Greater Latrobe), 12-4

215-Lucas Lawler (Bishop McDevitt) MD Landon Jobber-spence (Stauntion River-VA), 16-5

285-Benjamin Shue (Bergen Catholic-NJ) DEC Tyson Russell (Cleveland-TN), 1-0

5th Place

107-Sean Kenny (Christian Brothers Acad.-NJ) DEC Wyatt Stauffer (Wyoming Seminary), 3-1

114-Connor Whitley (St. Edward-OH) DEC Kael Davis (State College), 2-1 UTB

121-Shamus Regan (Wyoming Seminary) DEC Braiden Weaver (Altoona), 1-0

127-Sebastian Degennaro (Jensen Beach-FL) DEC Brenden Agcaoili (Slam Academy-NV), 13-7

133-Luke Satriano (Valley Central-NY) MD Robert Duffy (Christian Brothers Acad.-NJ), 10-1

139-Camden Baum (Bishop McDevitt) DEC Chase Quenault (Delbarton-NJ), 4-2

145-Hudson Hohman (Grove City) DEC Patrick Kelly (Central Bucks West), 4-2

152-Evan Petrovich (Connellsville) DEC Griffin Laplante (St. Francis-NY), 7-6

160-Luke Sipes (Altoona) TF Titus Norman (Baylor-TN), 16-1 3:54

172-Dominic Sumpolec (Notre Dame GP) MD Gage Wentzel (Montoursville), 12-2

189-Tavio Hoose (St. Francis-NY) DEC Tasso Whipple (Penn Trafford), 8-3

215-Alex Smith (Lake Highland Prep-FL) DEC Cooper Roscosky (Kiski Area), 4-1

285-Shepherd Turk (Thomas Jefferson) F William Wortkoetter (St. Francis-NY), 2:43

7th Place

107-Pj Terranova (Delbarton-NJ) DEC Cade Collins (Southern Regional-NJ), 5-2 TB2

114-Eli Herring (Bishop McCort) DEC Charles Esposito (St. Joseph Regional-NJ), 7-1

121-Tommy Marchetti (Delbarton-NJ) FOR Leo Joseph (Greater Latrobe)

127-Anthony Mucci (Derry) DEC Shai Sabag (Germantown Academy), 11-4

133-Ty Conroy (Malvern Prep) DEC Brody Gobbell (Father Ryan-TN), 7-0

139-Tyler Roark (Woodrow Wilson-WV) DEC Ryan Kennedy (Spire Academy), 8-7

145-Charlie Desena (Lake Highland Prep-FL) MD Nick Schwartz (Delbarton-NJ), 12-3

152-Beau Lewis (Great Bridge-VA) DEC Billy Tyler (Brentsville-VA), 6-3

160-Keegan Ramsay (Notre Dame GP) MD Lonzy Vielma (Connellsville), 8-0

172-Cy Fowler (Cleveland-TN) DEC Chancery Deane (Father Ryan-TN), 2-1 TB2

189-Mark Gray (Kiski Area) TF Connor Smalley (Notre Dame GP), 19-4 2:36

215-Myron Mendez (Southwest Miami-FL) DEC Kendahl Hoare (DuBois), 8-6

285-Colin Whyte (West Greene) DEC Ben Lloyd (Mt. Lebanon), 2-1 TB2