"It was pretty cool," said Galka, whose first-period pin at 220 pounds helped spark the Blue Streaks to a season-opening 44-21 victory over North Warren on Friday at the Middle School gym on the campus of the old Washington High School.
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| Warren Hills warms up before Friday night's match. |
Among the notables on hand were former state champion Dan Slack (heavyweight in 1977) and state runner-up John Rhinehart (1969), along with Dave Detrick (three-time district champion from 1965-67) and Rob Rhinehart (district and region champion in 1976).
Our great past Warren Hills wrestlers....TRADITION.... pic.twitter.com/9PAxNSv2k2
— WHRSD Athletics (@WHRSDAthletics) December 15, 2018
The victory was the first for rookie head coach and former Warren Hills wrestler Dave Sbriscia, a two-time district champion who has made an effort to get the alumni and the community behind the program. This throwback match was conceived right after he was hired last spring.
"It came about a week after I took the job," said Sbriscia, who also served as an assistant coach at North Warren before coming back to his alma mater. "We wanted to do some kind of Alumni Night. What better than to wrestle in the old Washington High School. The place was packed and we had a lot of community support. That's what we were going for. It was nice [to get that first win].
"This is Washington-Warren Hills. We're a wrestling school. We need to get back to that toughness, and I think we showed that tonight."
North Warren (0-1), which won 13 matches last season, also has a new head coach in Kellen Bradley, a former Kittatinny standout and High Point assistant. The Patriots started off strong by winning the first two bouts with junior Rob Fletcher's 7-2 come-from-behind win at 160, followed by senior Joseph Voitek's pin at 170.
But Warren Hills won the next seven bouts and 10 overall to take command of the independent matchup and give the Streaks, who have won eight in a row against the Patriots and own a 29-4 lead in the all-time series dating to 1975. North Warren's last victory was 38-33 in 2008.
Tyler McCatharn, one of four freshmen in the lineup, started Warren Hills' run with a pin at 182. After a forfeit win at 195, Galka, a state qualifier last season, needed just 1:08 to flatten sophomore Dylan Lobycz for his 73rd career win, and the Streaks were on their way to making it a successful night for their new head coach.
That's an introduction....!!!! pic.twitter.com/xzdvOoCUxK
— WHRSD Athletics (@WHRSDAthletics) December 15, 2018
"I think it's great. We needed some good change and he's a great person for the spot," Galka said of Sbriscia. "He's brought a different culture and school spirit. This is the biggest crowd I've wrestled in front of [at a home match]."
Two other freshmen -- Jared Lee (106) and Noah DiNapoli (113) got their first varsity wins, while junior Greg Slivka capped the run with a 9-4 win at 120, losing a major decision by giving up an escape and a takedown in the final 22 seconds. The Streaks also lost tough ones at 132 and 152, bouts in which they were winning at one point.
But junior Logan Nauta, a dangerous mat wrestler, clinched it with a pin at 138 -- reversing Ben Lilly to his back after trailing by a point heading into the second period. Senior Chris Ostir, a two-time region qualifier, followed with a pin at 145.
"We're not a team without flaws. We're a young team with a lot of freshmen and sophomores," Sbriscia said. "But I love their passion, and they work hard. It was nice to see [Nauta and Ostir] get pins. Our goal is to get better every day. It was nice for them to see their hard work pay off."
Warren Hills is back in action on Saturday at the Nottingham Tournament, while North Warren looks to bounce back in the Dover Tournament.
WARREN HILLS 44, NORTH WARREN 21
160 -- Jr. Rob Fletcher (1-0), NW, d. Jr. Nick Hildebrant (0-1), 7-2.
170 -- Sr. Joseph Voitek (1-0), NW, p. So. Cameron Rothstein (0-1), 3:52.
182 -- Fr. Tyler McCatharn (1-0), WH, p. Sr. Jason Zilderfarb (0-1), 1:23.
195 -- So. Logan Polcari (1-0), WH, forfeit.
220 -- Sr. Nick Galka (1-0), WH, p. So. Dylan Lobycz (0-1), 1:08.
285 -- Sr. Duro Ajayi (1-0), WH, md. Sr. Matthew Luque (0-1), 9-0.
106 -- Fr. Jared Lee (1-0), WH, md. So. Tanner Thatcher (0-1), 9-1.
113 -- Fr. Noah DiNapoli (1-0), WH, d. Fr. Sean Bodine (0-1), 6-0.
120 -- Jr. Greg Slivka (1-0), WH, d. Jr. Justin Gerkhardt (0-1), 9-4.
126 -- So. Alex Davila (1-0), NW, d. Fr. Max Pagano (0-1), 10-5.
132 -- So. Devin Collett (1-0), NW, p. Jr. Nickolas Gorab (0-1), 3:17.
138 -- Jr. Logan Nauta (1-0), WH, p. Jr. Ben Lilly (0-1), 2:46.
145 -- Sr. Chris Ostir (1-0), WH, p. So. Austin Collett (0-1), 1:57.
152 -- Jr. Brandon Casey (1-0), NW, d. Jr. Geir Nemeth (0-1), 7-5.
Records -- North Warren 0-1; Warren Hills 1-0.
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