.

Redskins enjoy big finish .LANGHORNE - Joe Mitskas capped a perfect afternoon for the Neshaminy Redskins. Neshaminy's unbeaten wrestling team had already clinched a victory over Harry S Truman yesterday by the time Mitskas stepped on the mat for his heavyweight bout against Joe Champey. Still, it was an important bout for Mitskas. How would he stack up against Champey, who was undefeated and ranked first in southeastern Pennsylvania? Mitskas, known more for his prowess on the football field, held his own. In fact, he did more than that. The Neshaminy senior earned an escape in the overtime rideout period to post a 2-1 victory, sending Champey from the ranks of the unbeaten and sealing Neshaminy's 43-14 win over Truman. "He's a great wrestler. I knew it would be close the whole way," said Mitskas, who is 15-4. "I felt I had the conditioning. That's what Neshaminy prides itself on." Champey fell to 21-1, but he'll probably have a chance for revenge on Feb. 19 in the Section One Tournament. Neshaminy coach Vic Stanley said the victory by Mitskas was particularly impressive considering he was giving up considerable size. Mitskas is 6-1 and 226 pounds. Champey is 6-4, 276. "Try going under 276.4 pounds," Stanley said. Mitskas and the Redskins improved to 9-0 overall and 8-0 in the Suburban One League Patriot Division. They'll be going for the division crown on Friday against unbeaten Council Rock. The Redskins, though, don't want to look ahead. Mitskas noted that Neshaminy on Wednesday will face William Tennent, a winless team that has been outscored, on average, 63-8. Assuming the Redskins get by Tennent, they'll get a crack at snapping Rock's three-year stranglehold on the division title. The match is expected to be close, meaning Mitskas could play the role of hero. The victory over Champey could pale in comparison to a win that would clinch a championship for Neshaminy. "This is a nice one, but my biggest win would be if I beat the guy from Rock," Mitskas said. "All the seniors are really psyched up for the Rock match. We're sick of this second-place crap." Truman fell to 8-6 and 4-5. Coach Steve Given drew the ire of Stanley and the Neshaminy fans by forfeiting at 152 pounds. That meant Michael Pirozzola, a defending PIAA champion and two-time runner-up, did not get to wrestle in his final home match. His parents, Gary and Diane, simply saw referee Bill Stecklein Jr. raise his hand in victory in the middle of the mat. "I think that stinks," said Stanley, who did not speak with Given after the match. Given explained that George Albright was one-tenth of a pound over the 152-pound limit. So, he substituted Chris Zeek, who was sick and didn't practice all week. The Truman coach said he made a strategic move to prevent Neshaminy from bumping Pirozzola to 160 pounds in case the match was close. He never planned to use Zeek. "They can boo me all they want," he said. One of Given's former wrestlers, Jon Denny, had a pretty good day. Unfortunately for Given, Denny traded in his Truman singlet for a Neshaminy one in the off-season. Denny, a sophomore 112-pounder who just missed making states as a freshman, notched a 10-6 victory over an old pal, Larry O'Connor. "It was a pretty fun match going against my old teammates," Denny said. "But, I treated it like a regular match." Denny is more interested in seeing Neshaminy finish the season with two victories. "All we want is to be SOL champs. It's hard to do. There are so many good teams," he said. Former Harry S Truman wrestler Jon Denny (bottom), who now wrestles for Neshaminy, defeated his former teammate Larry O'Connor, 10-6, at 112 pounds. ART GENTILE/COURIER TIMES By TOM WARING Courier Times E-mail Sunday, February 6, 2000