Panther Valley picked up a hard-fought Schuylkill League Division 2 road victory Wednesday night, edging Tamaqua 33-30 in a back-and-forth dual meet at Tamaqua Area High School.
The match came down to key bonus points and forfeits, as Panther Valley used three forfeits and a pair of pins to secure the narrow win. Tamaqua stayed within striking distance all night behind four falls of its own, but ultimately came up just short.
Panther Valley opened the night with a forfeit win by Ixsaiah Bracero at 107 pounds to take an early 6-0 lead. After no match at 114, the Blue Raiders tied things up at 121 when Terran Wakefield received a forfeit.
Tamaqua grabbed its first lead at 127, as Rylan Reitz pinned Landon Hunsicker in 2:57. Panther Valley answered with a forfeit win by Hayden Matula at 133 to even the team score once again.
At 145, Tamaqua’s Brody Schlier delivered a quick pin over Cayden Moore in just 1:00 to put the Blue Raiders back in front. Panther Valley responded with a narrow 14-13 decision by Nathan Rolon over Francis Hill at 152, keeping the dual within reach.
Momentum swung in Panther Valley’s favor at 160, as Cameron Rolon pinned Angelo Cerimele in 1:36 to give the Panthers the lead. Tamaqua countered immediately at 172 with a fall by Troy Hartman over Joseph Zarsky in 1:34 to reclaim the advantage.
The turning point came at 189 and 215, where Panther Valley collected a forfeit from Ralph Vazquez Matta and a first-period pin by Carlos Maldonado-Rosa over Dylan Garcia in just 51 seconds to build a 33-24 lead.
Tamaqua closed strong at heavyweight, with William Behun pinning Nathan Blose in just 20 seconds, but the late fall wasn’t enough to overcome Panther Valley’s earlier bonus points.
Panther Valley finished the night with six total wins (three forfeits, two falls, and one decision), while Tamaqua recorded five wins, highlighted by four pins.
Team Score:
Panther Valley 33, Tamaqua 30