Youth Wrestling: Mahanoy Area grapplers excel at states
Mahanoy Area's PJW placewinners gather for a photo. (Submitted Photo)
The Mahanoy Youth Wrestling Team had a strong showing at two state wrestling tournaments in March.
On March 15-17, 12 wrestlers competed at the Bryce Jordan Center at Penn State in the Keystone State Wrestling Championships. Eight wrestlers finished in the Top 8:
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John Cambra IV – Champion 10U 65LBS
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Arturo Reyes – Champion 16U (13 years old) 130LBS
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Ava Weeks – Champion 6U Girls 55 LBS
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Blake Brassington – 2nd Place 8U 82 LBS
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Stanley Boris – 3rd Place 14U 167 LBS
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Keegan Sullivan – 4th Place 8U 60 LBS
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Asharia Weeks – 6th Place Girls 115 LBS
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Liam Sullivan – 7th Place 6U 44 LBS
Then, on March 21-23, eight wrestlers competed at the Harrisburg Farm Complex in the Pennsylvania Junior Wrestling (PJW) State Championships, with five wrestlers finishing in the Top 8:
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John Cambra IV – Champion 10U 65 LBS
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Keegan Sullivan – Champion 8U 60 LBS
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Arturo Reyes – 3rd Place JH 132 LBS
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Evan Yutko – 5th Place 8U 50 LBS
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Blake Brassington – 5th Place 8U 90 LBS
As a team, Mahanoy Area finished tied for sixth in the state with five state placewinners.
Cambra IV, a Barnesville native, became a double gold medalist at 65 pounds in the 10U division.
In the Keystone State Championships, Cambra IV went 5-0 with three technical falls, one fall and a 6-4 decision in the finals. After placing third last year, he reached a goal to make it to the top of the podium.
At the PJW (Pennsylvania Junior Wrestling) Youth State Championships, Cambra IV went 5-0 with two technical falls, a pin, a decision and a major decision. He faced his finals opponent from the previous week in round of the 16, winning 3-0, had a pin in the semifinals, then took it all with a 10-1 win.
Earlier this year, Cambra IV won Tulsa Nationals in Oklahoma.
