HERSHEY, Pa. (D9Sports) – HERSHEY, Pa. —Brookville’s Tate Ortz beat Bishop McDevitt junior John Pipa, 7-2, at 132 pounds to win his first PIAA Class AA championship Saturday at the Giant Center in Hershey.
Ortz was third the last two years, but Saturday he came out strong and built a 5-0 lead after one period and 7-0 after two.
“It’s really nice to win a state title and it’s that much better to be undefeated,” Ortz said. “After placing third the last two years, making the finals and winning was a big load off my shoulders. It’s something I’ve wanted to do since I was a little kid.
“After losing in the semis last year, I was heart-broken. It gave me the drive to not let it happen again and it didn’t.”
Watch full interview with Ortz here
Ortz finished 44-0 and his championship helped lead the Raiders to the team title with 72.5 points, two ahead of runner-up Huntingdon. The Raiders also had four other medalists, including Keelan Kunselman at 106, Gavin Park at 113, Cole Aaron at 138 and Caleb Hetrick at 152.
Another District 9 wrestler came up just shy of his quest to win a state title, as Smethport’s Jimmy Duffy placed second Saturday at 145 pounds dropping a 3-1 decision to South Fayette senior Mike Carr in the finals.
Duffy entered the finals at 36-0 and his runner-up finish is the best ever at Smethport. Prior to Duffy’s silver medal finish, he and Kirk Gregory were third-place finishers. Duffy was third at 145 in 2015 while Gregory was third in 1991.
“I thought I wrestled fairly well. It was a tough match in the finals,” Duffy said. “It feels great and it hasn’t really hit me yet, but it feels good.”
Story by Scott Shindledecker