Tri-Valley's Owen Wolfgang, top, pins Burrell's Carl Thomas in a 107-pound preliminary bout at the PIAA Class AA Wrestling Championships on March 5, 2026, at the Giant Center in Hershey. (Photo by Bob Lipsky)

HERSHEY — The Schuylkill League hit the wall as the Class AA boys’ session opened the PIAA Wrestling Championships on Thursday morning at the Giant Center.

Of the nine local qualifiers, none of them advanced to the quarterfinals, and just four remained competing in the second round of consolations.

Tri-Valley senior Owen Wolfgang (107), Pine Grove junior Zach Kurtz (215), Mahanoy Area senior Kyler Quick (215) and North Schuylkill senior Cadyn McGraw (215) split their bouts to be one of the 16 wrestlers contending for one of the eight medals in their respective weight classes. They will have to win two more bouts apiece to clinch a medal.

North Schuylkill senior Gaige Mentusky (36-12) at 107, Tamaqua freshman Rylan Reitz (39-10) at 114, Mahanoy Area freshman Arturo Reyes (37-8) at 121, Marian/Mahanoy Area junior Rory Dixon (48-7) at 152 and Tri-Valley junior Hunter Updegrave (33-18) at 172 dropped both of their matches and bowed out of the tournament. A PIAA official said Reyes did not make weight.

Dixon led in both of his matches but gave up late takedowns to fall to Elizabeth Forward’s Lucas Boyer 8-4 and Bald Eagle Area’s Dawson Lomison 5-4.

Wolfgang got off to a strong start by pinning Burrell’s Carl Thomas in 2:40 of a round-of-32 bout. Wolfgang took control right away and used his leg wrestling on the mat to turn Thomas. In the round of 16, No. 1 seed Nathan Shuman of Honesdale pinned Wolfgang (39-10) in 23 seconds.

Kurtz also won his preliminary match, overcoming an early takedown to pin United’s Max McConville in 3:16. Trailing 4-2, Kurtz took McConville down to his back and flattened him quickly for the fall.

“I gave up a stupid takedown at the beginning,” Kurtz said. “After he took me down in the first period, I got the jitters of being at states out of my head, and then it was my match from there.

“Last week when I went to the regional tournament, I never even thought I’d make it to states. … To win a match is even better of a dream,” Kurtz added. “It’s an awesome feeling (being at states). It’s better than Fargo (Nationals). Fargo has so many mats, nobody’s watching. Here, everybody’s watching. Everybody from your town comes to support you.”

In the round of 16, No. 1 seed Aiden Bliss of Port Allegany defeated Kurtz by technical fall, 19-4 in 4:09.

On an adjacent mat, Quick used a pair of takedowns to stop Laurel’s Kolton Carlson 9-4. No. 3 seed Landon Tucker of Mifflinburg pinned Quick in 1:03 in the round of 16.

“It feels great,” Quick said after his win. “I’m a little banged up. I just have to push through it. It was a close match, but I won, and that’s all that matters.

“I came here the past two years, so I know what the environment is like,” Quick added. “It wasn’t as nerve-wracking as the past years.”

McGraw dropped his first match, getting pinned in 2:32 by North East’s Logan Latimore. In the consolations, McGraw (36-12) rebounded by scoring a takedown and a reversal before pinning McConville in 3:40.

“I knew I had to show up or I was going home,” McGraw said. “The coaches told me to win the hand fight and I’d be fine, and I feel like I did that. Everybody here is good. … I wasn’t happy with the first one, but I feel like I came back (better) in the second one.”

Action resumes at 8 a.m. Friday with the championship quarterfinals and second round of consolations. The third round of consolations will follow at 10:30 a.m. After a break, Class AA wrestlers will return for the championship semifinals at 7 p.m. and the fourth round of consolations at 9 p.m.

PIAA Wrestling Championships

At the Giant Center, Hershey

CLASS AA BOYS

Thursday’s local results

Round of 32

107 — Owen Wolfgang (Tri-Valley) pinned Carl Thomas (Burrell), 2:40

107 — Ty Matthews (Central) tech. fall Gaige Mentusky (North Schuylkill), 15-0, 2:47

114 — William Edwards (West Branch) tech. fall Rylan Reitz (Tamaqua), 17-0, 4:25

121 — Bruce Anderchak (Quaker Valley) forfeit over Arturo Reyes (Mahanoy Area)

172 — Brayden Lisowski (Penns Valley) pinned Hunter Updegrave (Tri-Valley), 2:47

215 — Zach Kurtz (Pine Grove) pinned Max McConville (United), 3:16

215 — Kyler Quick (Mahanoy Area) dec. Kolton Carlson (Laurel), 9-4

Round of 16

107 — Nathan Schuman (Honesdale) pinned Owen Wolfgang (Tri-Valley), :23

152 — Lucas Boyer (Elizabeth Forward) dec. Rory Dixon (Mahanoy Area), 8-4

215 — Aiden Bilss (Port Alleghany) tech. fall Zach Kurtz (Pine Grove), 19-4, 4:09

215 — Landon Tucker (Mifflinburg) pinned Kyler Quick (Mahanoy Area), 1;03

215 — Logan Latimore (North East) pinned Cadyn McGraw (North Schuylkill), 2:32

First-Round Consolations

107 — Max Jovenitti (St. Marys) pinned Gaige Mentusky (North Schuylkill), 2:23

114 — Carter Ickes (Chestnut Ridge) maj. dec. Rylan Reitz (Tamaqua), 11-1

121 — Davion Edmund (Erie Cathedral Prep) forfeit over Arturo Reyes (Mahanoy Area)

152 — Dawson Lomison (Bald Eagle Area) dec. Rory Dixon (Mahanoy Area), 5-4

172 — Nolan Savage (Line Mountain) tech. fall Hunter Updegrave (Tri-Valley), 17-1, 1:59

215 — Cadyn McGraw (North Schuylkill) pinned Max McConville (United), 3:40

Friday’s local matches

Second-Round Consolations

107 — SE-4 Owen Wolfgang, Tri-Valley, sr., 39-10 vs. NW-3 Max Jovenitti, St. Marys, fr., 42-3

215 — SE-2 Cadyn McGraw, North Schuylkill, sr., 36-12 vs. SW-7 Tyson Grove, Everett, sr., 37-11

215 — SE-5 Kyler Quick, Mahanoy Area, sr., 47-6 vs. NW-2 Colton Tupper, Reynolds, sr., 43-6

215 — SE-4 Zach Kurtz, Pine Grove, jr., 39-10 vs. NE-2 Jacob Schwalm, Line Mountain, sr., 38-15