Waynesburg vs Canon McMillan Alumni Match

In an effort to support both the Waynesburg Wrestling Association and the CCNS youth program, alumni from both schools got together on Saturday October 14th at Waynesburg Central High School. It was a pre-season event unlike any other. A time for some once-upon-a-timers to relive life on the mat and remember how difficult wrestling one minute periods actually were. With that effort, these guys were able to PACK the gym! The “Dual Meet”, as it is, would see some blood times, injury times, overtimes, and just some heavy breathing times.

For Canon McMillan, wrestlers ranged from 1983 to 2018 graduates. Waynesburg was able to round up wrestlers ranging from 1980 to 2012. All of these guys include NCAA All Americans, NCAA wrestlers, PIAA place winners, and current coaches. There was even an “exhibition” style match with a couple 8 year old wrestlers.

While Waynesburg ended up winning the “dual” meet, by my count, 37-12, it was an honor to see all these men get together and help support their youth programs. Hopefully, this is something that can continue for more years and we can bring out more alumni to participate. See the individual results below.

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Wrestling began with a fun matchup of two 8 year olds. It was a showdown of Owen Bosworth of WBG and Cora Studd of CM. Owen capitalized with an early takedown. He moved Kora to her back. While Kora fought hard, Owen was able to complete the fall at 42 seconds.

The first bout of the alumni featured Clint Podish, WBG class of 2007, and Joey Proie, CM class of 2002. Early in the first, Podish registered a takedown. Proie stands out for an escape. Podish finishes off the period with an ankle pick to end the first 4-1. Podish chooses bottom to start the second. He starts with an escape. Proie pushes in and is able to secure his own takedown. Before the period let out, Podish was able to hit a switch for a reversal. Second ends 7-4. They start neutral in the third. After trading takedowns and escapes, the match wrapped at 10-7.

Next up showcased Jeremy Ellis, WBG class of 2011, and Nate Santelli, CM class of 2002. Ellis fought off a shot from Santelli and spun behind to take the lead. He rode out the period to finish the first a 2-0. They went neutral for the second where Ellis again spun around and rode out the period. 4-0. Ellis would take top in the third. After a few turning attempts, the match would wrap up 4-0.

They moved to Mark Throckmorton, WBG class of 2004, and Aaron Jennings, Jefferson-Morgan class of 2004 wrestling for CM. This was stalemate of a match with both wrestlers trading some shot attempts and defenses. Each scored an escape during the periods they chose bottom. At one point, Throckmorton garnered some suspenseful gasps on throw attempt but, ultimately, he slipped off. They moved onto OVERTIME! About halfway into the overtime, Throckmorton exploded in on a single that he was able to finish on the edge of the mat to take a 3-1 victory.

Next saw Justin Smith, WBG class of 1998, against Kevin Brooks, CM class of 1993. Smith started strong with a takedown that was close to the edge and ultimately called out of bounds by the referee. Brooks came back with a shot of his own. Smith’s defense was strong though and tilted Brooks for a takedown and near fall. Ending the first at 4-0. An escape in the second pushed the lead to 5-0. A neutral start in the third saw Brooks slip off the top on a shot defense and ended the match at 7-0.

The next matchup was Tommy Henderson, WBG class of 2012, against Albert Miles, CM class of 2003. Miles put Henderson down into a front headlock early where he moved behind for the takedown. After a few tilt attempts, the period closed 2-0. After riding out Henderson throughout the second, Miles went down to start the third. Henderson tries to roll over the front on a side headlock. Miles slips it for a reversal and eventually lets him up. Towards the end, Miles fights off a chancery attempt and winds up with the first victory of the day for CM. 4-1.

JD Higgins, WBG class of 2006, matched up with Matt Luba, CM class of 2003. Luba flashed early with a takedown and Higgins escapes out. 2-1. The second period was on the feet with hand fighting and positioning. There were a couple shots pushed aside by both. Higgins took bottom for the third in which Luba rode the period out for the 2-1 victory.

Dustin Henderson, WBG class of 2006, took on Dustin Dunkovich, class of 2000. Through the first two periods, there was an escape by Henderson and loads of hand fighting. In the third, Dunkovich went to the bottom. Henderson locks a cradle and get a few swipes. Dunkovich rolls the cradle through and ends up on top. Henderson escapes from bottom and the match with a 4-2 win.

Up next were Joe Throckmorton, WBG class of 1980, and Ray Phillips, CM class of 1983. They circled through a scoreless first period. Throckmorton escaped in the second period. Phillips tried to return the favor in the third but Throckmorton rode with the college style near ankle lace. Throckmorton used a late period arm bar to turn Phillips and gathered a 3-0 win.

To the mat was Zach McGinnis, WBG class of 2011, and Mike Binni, CM class of 2018. This was an even first period with no score. Binni went on bottom in the second where McGinnis fought off an early flurry from Binny to stay on top. McGinnis put in the legs but Binni was able to slip out and get a reversal. McGinnis went down for the third. He popped up and went to work to catch up. A late takedown gave McGinnis the win 3-2.

Jeremy Snyder, WBG class of 2001, wrestled off with Dennis Cole, CM class of 2005. Cole fights off shots with front headlocks and go-behinds in the first and second period to take a 4-0 lead. The third was another neutral period that saw a few shot defenses but no points. Cole wins 4-0.

Matt Blair, WBG class of 1989, squared off with Bobby Owens, CM class of 1993. Blair defended a shot and spins for the takedown and finishes the first on top. 2-0. Blair goes bottom for the second. He escapes and they finish the second on their feet. Unfortunately, before the third period could start, Owens has an issue with is shoulder and defaults out of the match.

Following that, Luke Lohr, WBG class of 2010, sparred with Bryan Milligan, CM class of 2017. Lohr gets in deep on both a double and a high crotch in the period to end the first 4-1. A neutral start sees Lohr snap down Milligan to go up 6-1. Again a neutral start where Lohr ducks for a takedown and then defends a Milligan shot to score another. Lohr wins 10-2.

Next, Phil Stoneking, WBG class of 1992, met up with Nate Frantz, Chartiers-Houston class of 2005 for CM. A scoreless first led into a second period on their feet. There was a shot/reshot flurry where Frantz finishes on top and the period. 2-0. Stoneking chose bottom for the third. Frantz put the legs in to try to ride Stoneking out. Stoneking slides through the back when Frantz went too high and straight to Frantz back. Stoneking marks the first fall for the old guys at 2:44.

For the last match of the day, the stakes were raised. Nick Garber, WBG class of 2007, and Dalton Macri, CM class of 2014, would wrestle a two minute first period followed by one minute second and third periods. In the first period Garber and Macri would trade nice looking takedowns and matching escapes for a tied 3-3 affair. In the second, Macri chooses bottom. He scrambles a reversal and lands straight to Garber’s back. After the near fall, they go into the third 8-3. Garber goes to the bottom, but he wouldn’t mount the comeback as Macri rides the period. Macri wins 8-3.

A Farewell to the CMWAA

The clock has finally reached 0:00 in the third period of the wrestling season, and with the end comes an announcement: I’m taking off my metaphorical ankle bracelets for the last time as I write my final blog post for the Canon-McMillan Wrestling Alumni Association.

The journey began in July of 2016 when the CMWAA decided that a website would benefit the program. With the help of previously compiled statistics from Slack, Paul Amic, and other internet sources, I built the website. Around the same time, I decided to pursue a degree in Marketing, mostly focusing on the digital field. The summer of 2017 came, and I was, unfortunately, rejected from many internships that I worked hard to get. Luckily I received advice from a professor to “create my own internship.” Thinking back to my days as a wrestler, I brought back a fire within myself to push forward and find a way to win. I found my “win” on the CMWAA website by increasing my knowledge in the field of Digital Marketing while also helping out the wrestling program.

Those who have followed the site this season know that it was a historic season. The program celebrated 90 years, hired a new head coach, took 4th at the PIAA team tournament, and crowned an individual State Champ. Personally, it was one of my favorite seasons to watch as a fan of the sport. Throughout the season, the Alumni Association highlighted wrestlers of the past, present, and future with individual bios, video interviews, and performance updates.

Creating and curating the content of such a historic program has been an honor. Over the past few years as the Founder of the Alumni Wrestling Camp and Content Marketer of the CMWAA, I had the opportunity to meet many fantastic people. I also came to realize that those people carry many awesome stories that flow through the program and tie the different generations together. Though I heard my fair share of stories this year, I haven’t even cracked the surface.

Since June of 2017, we’ve published over 50 articles and 26 videos that have highlighted many of the community’s stories. Additionally, the fans participated in the 12 Days of Chris-Mas, Mat Madness, Fantasy Wrestling, Alumni Night, and our camp and golf events that showed off the program. With the support of the fans on the website and an incredible performance by Havelka’s squad, crowd attendance grew this season for all home matches.

When I was not in class, I was finding a way to improve the website and please the fans. It was my goal to engage the many different eras and circles within the CM wrestling community through the different mediums in the digital spectrum. This website has been recognized by the local community, but also by members of PA Power Wrestling and FloWrestling, two major wrestling news outlets. By working hard on the website I was able to earn my current job right out of college.

Making the journey from having no website to creating weekly content has been very memorable and fulfilling in my professional career and personal life. After three years of helping the program as much as I could, it’s time for me to move on. I’m proud of my work, and I’m glad that I could share all of the content that I did in CM’s historic season. My aspirations for this season was to inspire the youth, teach the current generation, and spark up old conversations, and I hope that I accomplished that.The website will continue to be available, but I will not be producing any additional content.

From the bottom of my heart, I want to thank the Canon-McMillan wrestling fans and the 8.3 thousand people who have visited the site since 2016. I want to personally thank the coaches, wrestlers, parents, fans, and my family who have taken this journey with me and the CM Wrestling Alumni Association for allowing me to create this website. If you bought the 90th anniversary gear or donated to the program, thank you. Whether you read the content daily or watched a video once, thank you. If you came to the matches or watched via our live stream, thank you. To those who took the time out of your busy days to message or talk to me about wrestling, thank you. I have appreciated every conversation that we have had together about wrestling.

My departing piece of advice for the fans is to embrace the history flowing throughout the local community because you don’t know when those stories will be gone and forgotten.

Sincerely,

Josiah Hritsko

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My favorite articles:

• Which State Has the Most NCAA Championship Titles

• A Brief History of the Canon-McMillan Wrestling Program

• Canon-McMillan’s Top 8 Greatest Team Rivals

• The Top 7 Wrestling Movies of All Time

Wrestler of the Week: Dimitri Pihiou

All good things must come to an end, so the CMWAA is concluding our WotW series with one final installment. We’ve highlighted more than half of the starting wrestlers on the HS team, and now we’re moving into our ninth line-up spot at 152 lbs. Congrats to our final Wrestler of the Week, Dimitri Pihiou!

Source: Instagram

While the wrestler does not have any shoe collecting habits like some of his other teammates, Dimitri does tie his wrestling shoes a certain way before each match for luck. Another part of his warm-up ritual is listening to his favorite type of music. For those unfamiliar with his taste, he listens to Migos. As for his taste in food? Greek is the obvious answer, but Dimitri considers Ichiban Hibachi Steakhouse his favorite restaurant. With his culturedness in Asian food also comes a hankering to play his favorite sport, Ping Pong, which is a national sport in certain Asian countries.

Fans may be familiar with his older brothers Christos and Will, both of whom also passed through the wrestling program. This is the third Pihiou’s final year of wrestling.  With 12+ years of total experience under his belt, this is Dimitri's fourth year starting for the Big Macs. Of those many years, the Big Mac still considers his favorite memory as going to the team PIAA State tournament and wrestling with his teammates. He is hoping to make a few more great memories this year with his team by winning a WPIAL title and placing at the State level. The Senior has helped his team this year by winning dual matches; furthermore, Dimitri placed 3rd at the TRICADA tournament earlier this month.

Dimitri plans on pursuing a Business degree at a four-year university after he graduates in June.

Cover Photo Source: Instagram

Alumni Spotlight: Angelo Broglia

Last week we highlighted Mike Hull, an athlete that had successes in a sport other than wrestling after HS. This week, we’re taking a similar approach with our Alumni Spotlight on Angelo Broglia.

Source: Instagram

Angelo graduated from Canon-McMillan HS in 2013. He was a dual athlete on the football field and on the wrestling mat. While Angelo struggled to make the lineup behind heavyweight Cody Klempay, he earned major successes as a senior. In the 2012-2013 season, Angelo won a heavyweight Section title; additionally, he made it to the WPIAL finals and qualified for the PIAA State tournament. The Big Mac excelled in other tournaments in his senior year by placing 7th at Powerade and 3rd at Reno Tournament of Champions by winning 8 straight matches after an early loss in the tournament, making him a high school All-American. The heavyweight was also selected to wrestle on the WPIAL team in the Dapper Dan Wrestling Classic. On the team side, he was a part of 3 WPIAL team titles and 2 PIAA State titles.

Source: Instagram

Angelo continued his education at St. Francis, playing on the football squad for one year. Realizing that he missed the sport, Angelo transferred to Clarion University to wrestle. He ultimately ended up participating in a club sport instead. While Angelo has been pursuing his Marketing degree at Clarion, he has also been working on his mixed martial arts skills with his collegiate club: Clarion MMA. This past October, the Golden Eagle brought home a gold medal at the Western PA BJJ State Grappling Championship. Some of his highlights from the tournament can be found by clicking on the linked video here. Over the summer the grappler showed off some of his skills when he taught Jiu-Jitsu to the current generation of wrestlers at the CM Alumni Wrestling Camp, which was a lot of the camper’s favorite session.

Angelo has been honing his skills, working with old CM Head Coach Jason Cardillo and other MMA champions, such as Renato Canuto and Jean Jacques Machado. The former heavyweight thinks that there are many opportunities in MMA for wrestlers after they finish their wrestling careers. The CMWAA talked to Angelo in one of our funniest and most enjoyable interviews, found below:

Cover Photo Source: Facebook

Canon-McMillan’s Top 8 Greatest Team Rivals

Penguins versus Flyers, Yankees versus Red Sox, Rocky Balboa versus Apollo Creed; these are some of the greatest sports rivalries of all time. A rivalry is filled with competitions that have a sense of familiarity between opponents. Wins and losses are shared back and forth throughout years of history. Fans cheer loud when nemeses compete because emotions rise when the stakes are high. With a rivalry, bragging rights are sometimes more important than the trophy itself.

Canonsburg/Canon-McMillan High School Wrestling has had its fair share of rivals over the years. Some have lasted for nearly a century, while others have just recently emerged. Others started, died out, and resurfaced, with a feeling of competition lingering in the background. Because CM has been a wrestling powerhouse in the Section, WPIAL, and State of PA, the program seems to continuously be the “team to beat.” While many opponents fear the face of any Big Mac wrestler, others jump at the chance to grapple with one just to be able to boast a victory. With a program as old as Canon-McMillan, there have been many rivalries; for that reason, the CM Wrestling Alumni Association is ranking the Top 8 Greatest Rivalries over its 90 year history. Disclaimer: this is a list based upon length, win-losses, fan stories, and a personal opinion.

Honorable Mentions:

Within the WPIAL alone, there are some tough competitors. CM beat North Allegheny in the 2012 WPIAL team finals to three-peat, yet the same team took away the Big Macs’ chances at a PIAA team title three-peat in 2014 by beating CM in the consolation finals of the WPIAL tournament. NA was also a tough team in the 80’s, when they won 3 State titles and 5 WPIAL titles, defeating CM for 3 of them. Some fans might argue that Latrobe is a major foe; however, the only accomplishment that the wildcats can boast is ending CM’s 62 match win streak in 2014. More recent quasi-rivals include Belle Vernon and Franklin Regional. Nazareth and Easton have posed threats on the state level, while Walsh Jesuit and South Plainfield have been dangerous opponents for the Macs on a national level. The biggest issue with all of these opponents is that there were not enough major matches or big enough stakes to consider any of these teams true rivals.

8. Washington

Wins: 42, Losses: 14, Points Scored: 1508, Points Against: 863
Length: 76 years, Last Loss: 1980-1981

Considering Wash High a rival team may seem crazy, especially since the HS is a AA team now. However, back in the 40’s and 50’s, fans flocked in droves just to see the Prexies take on the Gunners. In the early days of wrestling, Canonsburg wrestled each team in the section twice a year, adding Washington to their schedule in 1941 when Canonsburg won 48-5. From 1947-1953 the only two teams to win WPIAL titles were either Canonsburg or Washington, during which time the Gunners went 7-3 against the team in duals. Washington also proved a formidable foe in the mid-70’s. The Prexies were eliminated from Canon Mac’s schedule in the late 80’s when they switched from AAA to AA, but the team deserves a spot on this list as an old-time rival.

7. Connellsville

Wins: 4, Losses: 13, Points Scored: 392, Points Against: 452
Length: 27 years, Last Loss: 2008-2009

The Connellsville rivalry is one that anybody who followed CM wrestling in the 2000’s knows well. From 1999 to 2009, the Falcons appeared in 8 WPIAL finals, earning a PIAA team State title in 2005. Connellsville is one of the only teams that the program has a losing record to, making it tough to consider the team a true back and forth rival. One of the biggest components to this team’s placing on the list is the controversial 2008 WPIAL semi-finals when Connellsville injury defaulted a wrestler out of a match. This move sent the Falcons forward to win a WPIAL title and made Big Macs fans very upset.

6. Kiski Area

Wins: 7, Losses: 8, Points Scored: 432, Points Against: 429
Length: 22 years, Last Loss: 2016-2017

One of the most recent rivalries for CM is Kiski, although the first match against the team was in ‘95-’96. The Big Macs have been fighting back and forth with the Cavaliers for the past ten years for a WPIAL team title. The Big Macs have won 5 out of the 11 dual meet encounters with the team from 2010-2017, unable to ever beat them at the PIAA State tournament. Canon Mac beat Kiski in the 2010 WPIAL finals, and Kiski returned the favor by beating CM in the 2017 finals. Fans might remember the 2010 finals as CM’s first WPIAL title out of four straight when Mike Hull came back from a shoulder injury to defeat the Cavaliers 33-27. The rivalry was so heated that fights began to break out in the stands. With tit-for-tat wins against each other, the record could be tied by the Macs next week when the teams will likely face off in the WPIAL finals for the third time in history.

5. McGuffey

Wins: 48, Losses: 11, Points Scored: 2160, Points Against: 1043
Length: 57 years, Last Loss: 2002-2003

The McGuffey rivalry started out hot in ‘60-’61, when the team beat the Macs in their first encounter. However, this was just one of eleven losses to the team. This rivalry intensified in the 1990’s, when CM went 8-8 against the Highlanders from ‘90-’00. During that time, McGuffey appeared in 7 WPIAL finals, winning 3 of them. The team traded titles with Canon-McMillan in back-to-back finals. In the 90’s McGuffey won 2 Section titles, while CM won 7. Unfortunately, the competition died out in the mid-2000’s, and the Highlanders switched to AA in the ‘14-’15 season.

4. Central Dauphin

Wins: 2, Losses: 1, Points Scored: 82, Points Against: 92
Length: 7 years, Last Loss: 2010-2011

This team rivalry had one of the most difficult placements on the list because of its recency and low amount of matches. So, is Central Dauphin truly a rival? Absolutely. After CM beat CD at the 2010 Powerade tournament, the teams dualled for the first time in ‘10-’11 when the rams knocked the Macs out of State title contention. A year later, Canon-McMillan ended Central Dauphin’s 95 match win streak and reign as 4X State Champions and went on to take the title from them. The following year CM bested CD again in, perhaps, the greatest match in program history when the Big Macs defeated the Rams in Brendan Price’s final bout of the 2013 State Championship to win 34-31. This is the shortest rivalry on the list, but it deserves its placement because of the high stakes.

3. Chartiers

Wins: 58, Losses: 9, Ties: 3, Pts Scored: 2054, Pts Against: 1055
Length: 77 years, Last Loss: 1981-1982

Ask anybody from the 1980’s who the biggest competitor was in the WPIAL, and he’ll tell you it was Chartiers-Houston. While the rivalry started in 1940 -- making this the 3rd longest -- it did not pick up speed until the 50’s when Chartiers first defeated the Macs in ‘50-’51. Things heated up heavily in the late ‘70’s into the 80’s when the Buccaneers won a Section title, a pair of WPIAL titles, and a State title. 1983 is the year that held one of Canon Mac’s other biggest matches, when CM defeated CH 29-17 in a HS so packed to the limit that fans had to watch the dual on tv’s in the cafeteria because they could not fit in the gym. Interestingly enough, this is the second major match to include Chris Mary, yet he was wrestling for Chartiers at the time. This is the third team rivalry on the list to die out over time as Chartiers did not grow and had to switch to AA in the late 90’s.

2. Trinity

Wins: 73, Losses: 28, Ties: 2, Pts Scored: 2717, Pts Against: 1785
Length: 86 years, Last Loss: 2000-2001

Trinity a rival? Yes. Trinity is Canonsburg/Canon-McMillan’s oldest and longest-lasting rival. Dating back to 1932, the Gunners added the Hillers to their first official schedule. Unofficially, Trinity handed Canonsburg its first loss in 1931 before the national record counted. The Hillers were tough opponents from ‘65-’80, handing the Macs 8 losses out of 16 matches and capturing 5 WPIAL titles. During that time the Section title was won by either the Big Macs or Hillers, each winning 7 titles a piece. Canon-McMillan and Trinity have faced off over 100 times, with the biggest win deficit in ‘11-’12 with a score of 67-9 and the biggest loss deficit in ‘79-’80 with a score of 11-47. This long feud explains why CM is always so eager to trounce Trinity, yet the Hiller’s last win against the Big Macs was in 2001.

1. Waynesburg

Wins: 66, Losses: 38, Ties: 4, Pts Scored: 3044, Pts Against: 2141
Length: 79 years, Last Loss: 2006-2007

We’ve finally arrived at the biggest team rivalry in Canon-McMillan history: Waynesburg. Canonsburg and CM have been facing off with the Raiders since 1938, when the Big Macs crushed them 32-10. This long history is the second longest on this list. From ‘39-’47 either the Raiders or Big Macs won a WPIAL title, and each team won a State title. Waynesburg has been first or second in the WPIAL 24 times, with 13 of those being encounters with Canon Mac. Of the 108 times that the teams have met, Waynesburg has won 38 times -- the most victories over Canon Mac by any team. The largest win streak by an CBG/CM team was from 1932-1940 with 87 wins, which was brought to an end by Waynesburg giving Canonsburg its first official program loss by a score of 15.5-18.5. The Big Macs returned the favor in 1960, when the team ended Waynesburg’s three year, 42 match win streak in 1960. The Raiders are also responsible for one of CM’s biggest loss deficits of all time by a score of 9-50 in ‘79-’80. Additionally, the team has the most points scored against the Big Macs, while we have the most points scored on any team against Waynesburg. While they have not beat CM since ‘06-’07, Waynesburg is looking for vengeance in the Section team title race this year.

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90 years and 8 great rivalries. These opponents have shaped Canonsburg/Canon-McMillan Wrestling into the program that it is today with outstanding victories, humbling defeats, and controversial calls. This list is meant to spark some controversy, so make sure to leave your thoughts about this list and share your own personal lists. CM has battled with many teams for nearly a century; however, new rivals are sure to emerge, and the HS boys will be ready to face them when they do.

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Alumni Spotlight: Dalton Macri

The Alumni Association is back with our Alumni Spotlight series, this week showcasing Dalton Macri. The redshirt sophomore is wrestling 125 lbs. at the University of North Carolina.

Photo Source: UNC Instagram

As a Big Mac, Dalton was a 3X PIAA State placer and a PA State Champion at 126 lbs. in his senior year. He was a 3X Section Champion, as well as a WPIAL Champion and Outstanding Wrestler at the tournament. Furthermore, the grappler earned the Outstanding Wrestler award at the Dapper Dan Wrestling Classic in 2014 when he shut out #1 ranked Nathan Boston. Fans may also remember Dalton winning a Powerade title his senior year by hitting a lat drop in the final seconds of the match. In addition to his individual accomplishments, Dalton was a member of 3 WPIAL team titles (2011-2013) and 2 PIAA State team titles (2012-2013). His career record ended 133-15, and he finished as the #7 pound-for-pound nationally ranked high schooler by FloWrestling.

In college, Dalton placed at the EIWA championships and earned a wild card bid to the NCAA Championships in his rookie season when he wrestled for Cornell University. At the NCAA tournament, Dalton upset #11 seed Ronnie Bresser of Oregon State, a wrestler who just recently beat the “Iron Man” Spencer Lee.  In his true freshman year, he earned a unanimous first-team All-Ivy League selection. Throughout his college career, Dalton has carried on his wrestling style from high school by winning more than 50% of his matches by bonus decision; he is hungry to pin his opponents so he can wear his team’s new “Pin Chain.” At the end of the 2016-2017 school year, Dalton made the decision to transfer to the University of North Carolina to carry out his wrestling career. While battling injuries over the past few years, the Tar Heel still has over 20 wins overall and is looking to win an ACC Championship to earn a 2018 NCAA Championship berth.

We caught up with Dalton over the summer at the CM Alumni Wrestling Camp, where he shared his thoughts on wrestling. Check it out:

Cover Photo Source: FloWrestling

Mid-Season Canon-McMillan Wrestling Updates (CCNS, JH, HS, College)

College

• Dalton Macri (UNC) [125 lbs] - 2-2 record, #9 in NCAA
• Brendan Price (Pitt) [125 lbs]
• Connor Schram (Stanford) [125 lbs] - Hokie Open (1st), CKLV (6th), #16 in NCAA
• Tony Mastrangelo (Waynesburg) [133 lbs]
• Matt Oblock (Wheeling Jesuit) [141 lbs]
• Solomon Chishko (Virginia Tech) [149 lbs] - 5-2 record, #8 in NCAA
• Brendan Furman (Finger Lakes) [285 lbs] - 9-6 record, Cleveland Open (6th)
• Nick Konyk (Mercyhurst) [184 lbs] - Ohio Intercollegiate Open (3rd)

The Big Macs place 4th at the North Canton Tournament.

HS Matches (3-0 Record)

Montour 

CM wins 71-9.
Gardner (120), Ross (132), Hritsko (138), Rohaley (145), Nijenhuis (160), Miller (170), Hendal (195), Minis (220) and Ramos (Hvy) all won by fall.

Chartiers Valley

CM wins 66-6.
Binni (113), Hayman (120), Hritsko (138), Rohaley (145), Pihiou (152), Wolfgramm (160), Miller (170), Hendel (195) all pinned for the Big Macs.

Kiski Area

CM wins 36-27. Alumni Night honors wrestlers from the past 90 years, Gunners & Big Macs alike. Coach Mary's 2012 & 2013 State Championship teams were also honored.

Baxter (106), Binni (113), Macri (126), and Rohaley (220) had pins for CM. Hayman (120) had big win over #2 in the WPIAL, Miller. Nijenhuis (160) and Ramos (Hwt) also had decisions.

HS Tournaments

Cumberland Valley Kickoff Classic

CM places 4th overall behind Cumberland Valley, Easton, and Bishop McDevitt.

120 - Kenny Hayman (3rd)
126 - Logan Macri (3rd)
138 - Tim Hritsko (4th)
160 - Gerrit Nijenhuis (1st)

North Canton Tournament

CM places 4th overall behind Wadsworth, Cuyahoga Valley, and Louisville.

106 - Jimmy Baxter (3rd)
113 - Michael Binni (4th)
120 - Kenny Hayman (1st)
138 - Tim Hritsko (3rd)
160 - Gerrit Nijenhuis (2nd)

Powerade Tournament

CM place 8th overall, beating out Waynesburg and Kiski.

JV
145 - Skylar Adams (3rd)
170 - Evan Miller (1st)
195 - Alec Hendal (2nd)
285 - Giomar Ramos (4th)

Varsity
120 - Logan Macri (1st)
138 - Tim Hritsko (6th)
160 - Gerrit Nijenhuis (3rd)

WPIAL Rankings (As of 1/2)

Team - CM (#1)
106 - Jimmy Baxter (#7)
113 - Michael Binni (#5)
120 - Logan Macri (#1)
126 - Kenny Hayman (#3)
138 - Tim Hritsko (#3)
160 - Gerrit Nijenhuis (#2)
195 - Alec Hendal (#10)
220 - Zach Rohaley (#4)

CM's Junior High wins the Greensburg Salem Tournament

Junior High (11-0 Record)

Matches

• 88-9 (Montour)

• 72-24 (Chartiers Valley)

Seneca Valley Duals Champions

• 68-24 (Hempfield)

• 78-21 (Burrell)

• 51-39 (Kiski)

• 85-16 (Quaker Valley)

• 90-9 (South Fayette)

Greensburg Salem Dual Meet Champions

• 87-15 (Mt. Pleasant)

• 104-0 (Latrobe Orange)

• 72-21 (Greensburg Salem)

• 58-39 (Kiski)
   

CCNS/JH

Viper Duals Champs (K-8)

• 88-12 (MD Eagles)

• 62-21 (Central MD)

• 91-0 (Vipers Wrestling Club)

• 70-24 (Naval Academy)
   

Other CM Happenings

• Colin Johnston named head wrestling coach at Pitt-Bradford
• Coach Mary celebrates the 12 Days of Chris-mas

Sources: Finger Lakes, FloWrestling, Mercyhurst,  Observer Reporter, Pitt, Pittsburgh Tribune, Stanford, Track Wrestling, UNC, Virginia Tech, Waynesburg, Wheeling Jesuit, WrestleStat

Wrestler of the Week: Gerrit Nijenhuis

For his work in winning the Cumberland Valley Kickoff Classic this past weekend, Gerrit Nijenhuis is being recognized as the Wrestler of the Week. Gerrit cruised his way to the 160 lb. finals with 3 straight pins; he earned a spot on top of the podium with a 14-1 major decision in the championship match.

Photo Source: Youth 1

This is not Gerrit’s first tournament win; among his others, the sophomore says that winning the Jr. High State Tournament is his favorite victory and wrestling memory. In addition to wrestling, he also plays football for the Big Macs. One of the upsides to football compared to wrestling is that Gerrit doesn’t have to cut weight for the former. In fact, he actually gets to indulge in his favorite restaurant, McGrogen’s, and favorite drink, McDonald’s Caramel Frappe, when it’s not November through March. Other than competitive sports, the grappler enjoys riding horses at his grandparents and rooting for the Steelers and Detroit Red Wings (uh-oh Pens fans!).

Much like Louden Swain in his favorite movie, Vision Quest, Gerrit is on a journey of his own to become a PIAA State Champion. After a 3rd place finish at 152 lbs. last season, he has his eyes set on the gold. With a 50-7 high school career record, we are sure to see great things from him in the future. Local fans can see great things from him as early as this Wednesday, when Gerrit and the rest of the team take on Montour in the Big Mac’s first home match of the season.

Cover Photo Source: Facebook

Alumni Spotlight: Connor Schram

Alumni Spotlight this week is on a CM wrestler who is still in college. Connor Schram entered his final year in the sport as a redshirt Senior at Stanford University, pursuing a degree in Science, Technology & Society.

Source: Wrestlers are Warriors

Before he graduated CMHS in 2013, Connor was a 2X Powerade champ, 3X WPIAL champ, and Fargo All-American. At the top of his HS accomplishment list is his participation in four straight PIAA State finals, in which he came away with two titles at 103 lbs. and 126 lbs. In addition to his individual accolades, he was also a large part of the 4X WPIAL, 2X PIAA State, and 3X PIAA State-Individual champion teams from 2010-2013. Connor finished his career by being ranked #3 nationally with a 159-11, the third most wins in CM history.

In his collegiate wrestling career at Stanford, Connor won the Reno Tournament of Champions, a Pac-12 title, has earned PAC-12 Wrestler of the week, and has been ranked up to #4 nationally at 125 lbs. Last year, he bumped up in weight to wrestle at 133 lbs., a weight at which he qualified for the NCAA tournament for the 3rd time. Connor was an NCAA All-American in 2016 and is also an NWCA Academic All-American. For the 2017-2018 season, he is back down to 125 lbs.; this weight change has worked in his favor, as Connor won the Hokie Open and placed 6th at Cliff Keen Las Vegas last weekend. With over 60 collegiate wins, the Cardinal is currently ranked #16 in the country at 125 lbs by FloWrestling. Unfortunately, Connor suffered an undisclosed knee injury last weekend, and it is unknown whether he will be wrestling this weekend. We certainly wish him the best on his road to recovery!

To discover more about the Cardinal, make sure to watch the video:

Cover Photo Source: Stanford Athletics

Wrestler of the Week: Kenny Hayman

Source: Trib Live

This week we shift our focus from the Senior class into the Junior class at CMHS with our newest Wrestler of the Week, Kenny Hayman.

Kenny enjoys practicing and watching his favorite sport of wrestling, but he likes to spend his time off the mat playing wiffle ball with his buddies. And when he’s not outside hitting home runs, he is probably inside watching The Other Guys movie or the Game of Thrones tv series. Last season Kenny wrestled 113 lbs., but he might have put on a few pounds while eating his favorite steak at Texas Roadhouse over the summer.

Kenny is a veteran of the sport, having wrestled for the past eleven years of his life from CCNS all the way to the HS level. Before his matches you may find him doing “stance-motion” drills or jamming out to Kendrick Lamar to prepare himself for battle. Kenny’s favorite wrestling memory thus far was wrestling at the Team PIAA State Tournament. Being the team-oriented person that he is, Kenny is looking forward to making the team tournament again; yet, he has lofty goals for himself of making his own trip to Hershey in March. Good luck this season, Kenny!

Cover Photo Source: Trib Live

Alumni Spotlight: Bobby Patnesky

Source: Penn State News

As another way to discover the history of the Canon-McMillan Wrestling program in its 90th anniversary year, the CMWAA is rolling out a new video series. On Monday, we unveiled the Wrestler of the Week series, which will help to connect the CM wrestling community to the current high school wrestlers. Today we are launching the Alumni Spotlight, which will catch the community up with some of Canon Mac’s finest wrestlers whom have graduated.

In this first edition, the Alumni Association is shining the spotlight on Bobby Patnesky for propelling the Penn State Behrend wrestling team to its first dual meet victory in 40 years as the new head coach. Having transferred as a head coach at Davidson College, Bobby enters his first year coaching at the school that just relaunched its program after a 38 year hiatus.

Bobby’s time at CMHS consisted of winning a WPIAL championship, placing 3X at the PIAA State tournament -- making the finals once -- being a 3X Junior Nationals All-American and National finalist, and becoming a 2X Cadet Nationals All-American -- earning 3rd place in the Cadet World team trials. In addition, he was a part of the 1995 WPIAL Championship team. His career record ended 141-28. Bobby went on to wrestle at West Virginia University where he had over 100 college wins, won the EWL championship, and qualified 3X for NCAAs. Bobby was a DI head coach for over 10 years and was inducted into the Washington-Greene County Chapter PA Sports Hall of Fame in 2015.

Make sure to watch the Alumni Spotlight video below to learn more about this Big Mac wrestler!

Cover Photo Source: Davidson Wrestling News

Wrestler of the Week: Logan Macri

Source: PA Power Wrestling

The 2017-2018 High School wrestling season has officially begun, and the best way to start it off is with our new “Wrestler of the Week” series. Each week throughout the course of the season, the CM Wrestling Alumni Association will highlight one of the Big Mac's wrestlers.

Congrats to our first Wrestler of the Week, Logan Macri! This recognition comes after the announcement of the recent news of his college commitment. For more than twelve years, Logan has been polishing his wrestling technique. Fans may be familiar with his older brother, Dalton, who went through the program and is currently wrestling at UNC. Like many fans, Logan also enjoys watching his brother wrestle; one of his favorite memories in the sport was watching his brother wrestle in Madison Square Garden at the 2016 NCAA tournament.

When he is not on the mat, Logan enjoys eating at his favorite restaurant, Outback Steakhouse -- or daydreaming about the steak when he is cutting weight. In the off-season he is a bit of an outdoorsman, taking part in wake-surfing and downhill mountain-biking. Logan also likes to cheer on all of the Pittsburgh sports teams with his friends.

Logan enters his last season at Canon Mac with a career record of 113-28 and as the #34 ranked senior in Pennsylvania by PA Power Wrestling. While he made the Powerade finals and placed 5th at the PIAA state tournament in 2016-2017, Logan has ambitious goals of winning both the Powerade and PIAA state tournaments this season. Logan will be continuing his wrestling career in college at the University of Tennessee Chattanooga.

Cover photo source: PA Power Wrestling

A Brief History of the Canon-McMillan Wrestling Program

In a year that saw Charles Lindbergh fly across the Atlantic Ocean, Ford Motor Company produce its last Model T, and the Yankees sweep the Pirates in the World Series (typical), 1927 also brought the start of a dynasty when R.J. O’Connell journeyed from Penn State University to Canonsburg, PA to teach science. While Penn State was not the power house in wrestling that it is today, O’Connell brought his knowledge from the university’s program to Canonsburg High School when he started an intramural program.

The program started success early for Canonsburg from its first matches in 1933 into the 1959 merger between Canonsburg, Cecil, and North Strabane areas to form Canon-McMillan High School. The CM wrestling program has had over 2,000 wrestlers and 16 head coaches come into the mat room. As this year marks 90 years since R.J. O’Connell first stepped foot in Canonsburg, it’s time to take a look back at some of the history and stats of the whole program.

Wins & Losses

1,060 wins, 242 losses, 15 ties. The record of Canonsburg and Canon-McMillan HS helps the program stand tall as the team with the most dual meet wins in Pennsylvania. At more than 100 matches behind, Waynesburg and Easton come in at second and third most wins. Coaches O’Connell and Mason lead the “Gunners” on an 87 win streak in their first eight official seasons. With his own 45 match win-streak, Coach Chris Mary holds the record for most CM dual meet wins with 214, with notable victories over Erie McDowell and Central Dauphin in the 2012 and 2013 PIAA State Finals. While the wins are great, the program has also suffered many heartbreaking losses to teams that have become certain rivals like Waynesburg, Trinity, North Allegheny, and Latrobe, among others.

Coach Chris Mary gets psyched after a big WPIAL win

Coaches Cardillo and Haynes at the state tournament

Team Titles

8 is the number of times the “Big Macs” have gone a full season without a single team loss. The program boasts other team credits such as 39 Section titles, 20 WPIAL titles, and 8 State titles. Canon Mac has won the last 16 Section titles, dating back to Mary’s second season as a coach in 2002. If he accomplishes nothing else, new Head Coach Jeff Havelka must continue to dominate the Section, as he has big shoes to fill. As for WPIAL? CM won 4 straight WPIAL titles from 2010-2013. However, what most fans don’t know is that the “Gunners” won 6 straight WPIAL titles from 1936-1941, starting by capturing the first ever WPIAL Team Championship. At the state level, CM won 8 straight State titles from 2010-2013, including three team-individual titles.

Canonsburg "Gunners" wrestling team under Coach Phil Ahwesh (1947)

Individual Titles

Jason Dami after winning PIAA quarterfinal (1994)

There is nothing that has made CM Wrestling the program it has been more so than the individuals that have wrestled in it. From 1927-2017, over 220 wrestlers -- including myself -- have brought home Section titles. At the WPIAL level, there have been 150 titles won by “Gunners” and “Big Macs,” with twenty-four of those coming from 4X Champs Andy Puchany (a future head coach), Don Haney, Manuel Pihakis, Mark Angle, Colin Johnston, and Solomon Chishko. While there have been no 4X State Champs from the school, George Custer and Manuel Pihakis have each brought home 3 titles of the program’s 43 total. CM has qualified over 170 wrestlers and claimed 134 state medals.

Accolades

Other than big high school stats, the “Big Macs” have sent 20 wrestlers, 4 coaches, and 3 teams into the Pennsylvania Sports Hall of Fame. 39 wrestlers have also made the prestigious achievement of being a part of the “100 Win Club.” At the collegiate level, the school has been a part in helping twelve individuals win 22 NCAA medals, including 5 NCAA Champions. In the 2017-2018 season, be sure to look out for Dalton Macri (12), Connor Schram (10), and Solomon Chishko (4), as they are all ranked in FloWrestling’s Top 20 and looking for NCAA titles. In other areas, the CM Alumni Wrestling Camp has molded the current generation of CM wrestlers for 3 years, while the Mac Open Golf Scramble brought together past generations of wrestlers and fans in its first year.

Canon-McMillan Wrestling has built up a tradition of continued excellence carried on from the “Gunners” to the “Big Macs.” These statistics show that CM started strong and has been a team to reckon with for nine decades, and that will continue into the future with the support of fans, families, and previous generations of wrestlers. As this upcoming season starts up, the Alumni Association will be taking a closer look back at the history of the program with analysis, history lessons, and interviews, so be sure to come back often for new articles. Check out the Infographic below, and look forward to an eventful season!

View fullsize

*All outside information is referenced from http://www.cmwrestlingalumni.com/ or “A History of Canonsburg Canon-McMillan High School Wrestling” by Paul Amic.

90 Days Until CM Wrestling's Home Opener

It's the 90th anniversary of the Canon-McMillan wrestling program, and what better way to kick off this season's events than with a countdown to the first home match! In just 90 days, the Big Macs will face off against Montour in its home opener on Wednesday, December 13. 

The high school team will compete in six dual meets this year, with four home matches against Montour, Kiski, Waynesburg, and Central Catholic. The team will also wrestle at the Cumberland Valley, North Canton, Powerade, TRICADA, and Escape the Rock tournaments throughout the season. Make sure to check out CM's full schedule here, including important dates for scrimmages, matches, and tournaments.

With the first match quickly approaching, the Alumni Association had the opportunity to sit down with new Head Coach Jeff Havelka to get his thoughts on the upcoming season. Coach Havelka was hired back in May of this year, and the wrestlers had the chance to meet him at a picnic in June. Watch the video below to understand his coaching mentality, and get ready to support him in 90 days as he leads the CMHS Big Macs into battle.