Denny, Donahue spark
Neshaminy to title
District One wrestling
fans got their money's worth last night in
the 112-pound championship bout.
By TOM WARING
Courier Times
AMBLER - District One
wrestling fans got their money's worth
last night in the 112-pound championship
bout.
The matchup featured a
defending district champion in Pennsbury
High School's Brian Sellers and a former
eighth-place state finisher in Neshaminy's
Jon Denny.
Sellers, whose only losses
have been to Easton standout Chad
Sportelli and two-time PIAA champ Jermaine
Jones of Henderson, scored the first three
takedowns.
Denny, plagued with a
series of injuries and illnesses since
last postseason, took the lead with a
five-point combination. The bout went into
overtime when Sellers earned a takedown
with two seconds on the clock.
But Denny needed just 17.4
seconds in overtime to take down Sellers
to pull out a dramatic 13-11 victory,
giving the senior his first District One
North title.
"It's pretty special,"
Denny said. "I could not have dreamed of a
better way to win it. It's the most
exciting match I've ever been in,
probably.".
Denny was one of only two
local champions. The other was his
teammate, heavyweight Geoff Donahue. Denny
and Donahue led the way as Neshaminy held
off North Penn for the team
championship.
The two champs qualified
for the Class AAA Southeast Regional,
which will be held Friday and Saturday at
Norristown. Other Redskins who qualified
for regionals are Bob Ireland (second at
135), Jeremy Kershbaumer (third at 125),
Pat Warusz (third at 145) and Bill Hunt
(fourth at 160).
"We're working hard, and
everybody's peaking at the right time,"
Donahue said.
Pennsbury finished third
in the 26-team field. The Falcons will be
represented at regionals by four wrestlers
- Sellers, Dan Vagnozzi (second at 119),
Joe Bowman (third at 140) and Pat Frain
(fourth at 171).
Harry S Truman finished in
a tie for 11th. Kevin Moore (second at
152) and Matt Rizzo (third at 112) are
headed to the regional.
William Tennent tied for
13th place. The only Panther still alive
is Dave Schreiner, who lost to eventual
152-pound champion Brandon Hill of North
Penn in the first round before winning
three consolation bouts to take
third.
Council Rock settled for a
three-way tie for 15th place. The only
Indian advancing is Ryan Collins, the
189-pound runner-up. Collins erased a 7-1
deficit to Paul Weibel in the final,
almost pinning the Quakertown star with a
second-period cradle. Weibel, though,
recorded two takedowns in the third period
to prevail, 12-11.
Bensalem finished in 18th
place. The lone Owl at regionals will be
Scott Miller, who finished third at 130
pounds.
The tournament belonged to
Neshaminy, which nipped Pennsbury last
week to capture the Section One
crown.
"All around, it was
another great effort," said coach Mike
Ortman Jr., delighted to be taking six
wrestlers to regionals.
Neshaminy was one of the
pre-tournament favorites, having 11 of its
13 wrestlers in the brackets. Besides
those advancing, three others placed
sixth.
"We are really stepping it
up," Denny said.
Denny was trailing in all
three of his bouts. Besides the comeback
against Sellers, he also decisioned Rizzo
and Methacton's Nick Collins after falling
behind. He beat the second-, third- and
fourth-place finishers, giving him a
chance at the Outstanding Wrestler Award.
Upper Perkiomen's Mark Smith won the
OW.
Denny credits his brother,
Mike, with inspiring him from the
bleachers when he's behind. He didn't have
much time to look for his brother after
Sellers took him down at the end of
regulation. Denny won 27 bouts as a
freshman at Truman and advanced to states
as a sophomore, but saw his junior season
end with a back injury.
"It's my senior year, my
last year, I didn't want to give it away
again," he said of winning
districts.
Ortman was impressed with
Denny's effort. "He came up huge," the
coach said. "Not too many people had him
winning on paper."
Donahue continues his
dominant ways. He pinned all three of his
opponents, decking Pennridge's Doug
Weidner in 2:14 with a half-nelson in the
final.
Donahue, a star on the
state-champion Neshaminy football team,
lost four matches early this season. Now,
he's looking unbeatable heading to
regionals. "I feel great now. I feel fresh
and I want to keep going and going," he
said.
Donahue went 0-2 at last
year's regional. His goal is to win it
this time. Ortman thinks he can do
it.
"Geoff is clicking on all
cylinders," he said.
Sunday, February 24,
2002
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