PITTSTON TWP. – A series of forfeits for a pair of shorthanded teams boiled the Wyoming Area/Pittston Area, non-league wrestling finale down to four bouts and just 10:04 of action on the mat Thursday night.
Adam Buczynski and Tyler Martin produced pins and freshman Corey Mruk took his match the distance to avoid giving up bonus points as the visiting Warriors pulled out a 36-33 victory.
“Whether there’s 14 bouts, 12 bouts or four bouts, you still go out and do your best and work on the things you’re working toward at the end of the season,” Wyoming Area coach Jason Prokopchak said.
Individually and collectively, the Warriors hit the transition from regular-season team competition to postseason individual pursuits doing almost as well as a nine-wrestler team can expect. They won their last four matches to finish the season 7-11.
“With the individual district tournament right around the corner and this being our last team meet, now we change our focus to the individual side of things,” Prokopchak said. “Expectations are that the wrestlers I had were going to be better at the end of the year.
“They’re starting to get ready to peak at the right time, in the next couple of weeks. I’m looking forward to what they bring in the districts, regional, and hopefully, state tournaments.”
The District 2 championships are Friday and Saturday at the Kingston Armory. Wyoming Area competes in Class 2A where the top three in each class advance to Northeast Regionals in Williamsport. Pittston Area is in Class 3A where the top four move on to Northeast Regionals in Bethlehem.
Each team received four forfeits and there were two no contests Thursday. Each won two of the four matches wrestled.
Buczynski bumped up to win by second-period pin at 220 pounds.
Martin used a cradle to produce a 22-second pin in his bout at 132, assuring that the Warriors could do no worse that have the match come down to tiebreaker criteria.
“Basically, you just want to go out there, do what you know you can do and score points for your team,” said Martin, a sophomore who used the win to become the eighth member of the nine-man team to reach double figures in victories for the season.
After losing four straight, Martin will head into districts on a three-match winning streak – two on pins in the first minute and another by major decision.
“I’m just working on my conditioning, getting better in the room, practicing any moves I need to work on,” Martin said.
Buczynski, who finished fourth in the district as a sophomore and third as a junior, extended his winning streak to nine for a team-best, 23-7 record. Three of those wins came by forfeit, but Buczynski finished five of the six opponents in the streak with pins in 3:11 or less.
Josh McGilvary had a pin in 41 seconds for Pittston Area at 152.
Jason DeBoard defeated Mruk, 7-3, at 160.
The Patriots finished 1-15.
McGilvary, DeBoard, Brandon Lopez and Ryan Lombardo take winning records into districts. DeBoard placed fifth in last year’s tournament.
