Ecklof triumphant in quest for third title, three defending champs fall in finals

By David Ackley

For PA Wrestling Website/PIAA

HERSHEY – Donnie Jones and Joey Ecklof knew who each other was. They had seen each other up close in the past two PIAA Class AAA championships.

Jones, a senior from Greensburg-Salem High School, in Westmoreland County came to Hershey and won the 130 pound championship in 2003. Last year, Jones moved up two weights and again triumphed. Ecklof, a senior at Northampton High, won a title at 135 in 2003 and last year, the 145 pound title.

Saturday night, Jones and Ecklof faced off for the 152-pound title with Ecklof dominating from the start for a 10-3 win. The Konkrete Kid needed just 12 seconds to score the opening takedown. He added two more takedowns and cemented his third title with a three-point near fall to end the second period.

“All these people (8,685) were here to watch this, it’s unbelievable to be out in front of this many people.” Ecklof said. “You don’t want to hold back. I wanted to make my point right away.”

While the win was his third, Ecklof said he didn’t three-peat.

“You can only repeat.”

Ecklof also added he expected a closer match and knew the third gold medal was his with the tilt.

Jones wasn’t the only state champ to fall in the finals.

Upper Perkiomen’s Chris Sheetz downed Council Rock South’s Rick Rappo 3-2 for the 112-pound championship. The loss was the first of the season for Rappo. It was also Sheetz’ first win in three tries against Rappo. Sheetz was the District 1 and Southeast Regionall runner-up.

Just minutes after Rappo lost, his brother Mike defeated Clearfield’s Brad Pataky, 9-3 to claim the 119 pound title and deny Pataky his second and Clearfield its 40^th.state champion. Like Rick Rappo, Pataky’s loss was his first this year.

Waynesburg’s Cobin Semple doubled-up Parkland’s Nick Guida for the 171-title and denied Guida his second championship.

Pataky’s teammate Matt Kyler shutout Easton’s Jordan Oliver, 5-0 for the 103-pound crown.

Connellsville added the team title to the state dual meet championship it won last month tying Council Rock South, 69-all with Eason finishing third with 67. The Falcons needed an upset by Steve Bell at 125 and bonus points in the 135 pound bout.

They got both.

Bell responded with a 7-5 win over Sean Clair of Plum and bonus points in the 125-pound final, after losing a week ago by a 5-4 score. Ashtin Primus then pinned Big Sring senior Josh Barrick in 3 minutes and 15 seconds. The pin was the 35^th this year for the Connellsville junior.

“My coach (Tom Dolde Jr.) told me to just go out and win for myself,” said Primus who did not allow point in his four bouts here. “It wasn’t until after the pin that he told me he thought that it clinched the team title.”

It didn’t . After finding a scoring error in an earlier round (two bout sheets had two different scores), it made a tie and sent Easton to third.

Nazareth picked up two gold medals as Tim Darling decisioned Quakertown’s Nate Nauroth 5-2 at 130 pounds and Joe Caramanica at 145.

It was the second title for Caramanica, a 5-0 winner, and it was the third-straight week he’s defeated Whitehall’s Tim McGoldrick in the finals.

Honesdale’s Josh Arnone became his school’s first state champ winning the 189-pound title.