Berwick Captures Team Title At Jim Thorpe Christmas Tournament On December 30
A Simply Great Day As Dawgs Crown 6 Champions & Place Total Of 10
Josh Walsh Takes 1st & Wins Outstanding Wrestler Award
Yantorn, Ney, Perry, Venditti, & Karns Also Win Gold
Johnson & Bankes Take 3rd Place - Prebola & Ferguson Take 6th Place

The Dawgs traveled to compete at the 35th Annual Jim Thorpe Christmas Wrestling Tournament on Friday, December 30.

Berwick had an outstanding 6 wrestlers get to the championship final and impressively all 6 won championship titles.  Berwick also had 2 wrestlers win the consolation finals.

The Dawgs were led by senior Josh Walsh who not only won gold, but was also named the tournament's outstanding wrestler.  Also taking first place honors were freshman Dominick Yantorn, sophomore Lou Ney, junior Tyler Perry, sophomore Nick Venditti, and sophomore Aaron Karns.  Sophomore Chris Johnson and senior Zeb Bankes pocketed third place honors.  Freshman Steve Prebola and senior Steve Ferguson also walked away with 6th place honors.

It was simply one great day to have the Dawgs claim the team championship title, win individual championship titles in almost one-half of the fourteen charts, have several Berwick grapplers defeat #1 seeds, have 2 others win the consolation finals, and also take hold of the tournament's outstanding wrestler award.

Teams that competed at this year's Jim Thorpe Christmas tournament included::  Berwick, Allentown Central Catholic, Chambersburg, Williams Valley, Jim Thorpe, Lehighton, Mahoney Area, Wyoming Area, Tamaqua, Schuylkill Haven, Perkiomen Valley, and Stroudsburg.

Josh Walsh, Senior, 145lbs., 1st Place, Wins "OW" Award
Senior team captain Josh Walsh trimmed down from 152lbs to 145lbs and the drop paid huge dividends.  Walsh exploded through his side of the bracket recording wins by first period fall and a 16-7 major decision before nailing the championship final with an electrifying 3-2 win over Lehighton's top seed Derek Brownmiller.  For his big time showing, Josh was awarded the tournament's Outstanding Wrestler Award.  Brownmiller was a 2005 District 11 AA District Champion, Regional 3rd Placer, and a PIAA Class AA state championship qualifier.
Congratulations Josh!!

Dom Yantorn, Freshman, 103lbs., 1st Place
Freshman Dom Yantorn ripped through his bracket and also ended the day with a huge win.  Yantorn recorded impressive second and first period falls against his first two opponents.  In the championship final, Yantorn squared up against the bracket's #1 seed, Jim Thorpe's Ethan Smith. Dom upended the chart seeding by taking gold with a 6-2 decision in the final to capture his first varsity tournament championship title.
Congratulations Dominick!!

Lou Ney, Sophomore, 119lbs., 1st Place
Sophomore Lou Ney slimmed down from 125lbs to 119lbs and his cut also proved beneficial as Ney stuck a tournament championship title in his pocket.  Lou tore through his chart with unrelenting drive by winning by fall and a 6-3 decision to gain entry to the bracket's title match-up.  In the finals, Lou posted a 14-2 major decision over Tamaqua's Matt Brode to claim his 1st place victory.
Congratulations Lou!!

Tyler Perry, Junior, 130bs, 1st Place
Junior team captain Tyler Perry, back in the lineup after a 3-week injury lay-off and with only a couple days of practice prior to the tournament, made the most of his return debut by capturing gold at the Jim Thorpe tournament.  Tyler opened up with wins by first period fall and and a 6-0 decision that placed him in the championship final.  In the final, Perry upended Brian Kartesky of Mahoney Area with an exciting 5-4 decision.
Congratulations Tyler!!

Nick Venditti, Sophomore, 135lbs., 1st Place
Sophomore Nick Venditti showed guts, sheer determination and outstanding wrestling in claiming his first career championship title.  Venditti, who had to take the hard and bumpy road to gold, won his first match by technical fall before defeating the bracket's #1 seed in the semifinal by a 2-0 decision.  With one huge win in his pocket, Nick didn't relax and came out on fire to defeat David Plum of Chambersburg in a thrilling 6-4 overtime victory in the championship final.
Congratulations Nick!!

Aaron Karns, Sophomore, 171lbs, 1st Place
Sophomore Aaron Karns has been wrestling superb this season and took his performance to the podium's top step in capturing his first career tournament championship title.  Aaron won his first two matches by fall and a close 6-5 decision to rocket to the championship final.  In the final, Karns was another Dawg that scuffed-up bracket seeding when he nailed the #1 seed's singlet to the mat with a gold-winning devastating pin at the buzzer over Mahoney Area's Shane McCabe.
Congratulations Aaron!!

Chris Johnson, Sophomore, 152lbs, 3rd Place
Sophomore Chris Johnson dropped to 152lbs for the tournament and his physical and aggressive wrestling earned him impressive 3rd place honors.  Johnson opened up with a win by fall before falling to the consolation bracket.  In consolations, Chris was simply not-to-be denied and built off his prior loss to capture two consecutive victories by fall including an outstanding first period fall in the consolation final.
Congratulations Chris!! 

Zeb Bankes, Senior, 275lbs, 3rd Place
Senior Zeb Bankes put on a brilliant display of wrestling in placing bronze honors in his coat pocket before leaving the gymnasium at Jim Thorpe.  Bankes won his first match with an exciting 7-6 decision before slipping to the consolation bracket.  In consolations, Zeb also showed the all-important winning mental desire and determination by winning by a first period fall and a 6-4 decision to claim victory in the consolation final.
Congratulations Zeb!!

Steve Prebola, Freshman, 112lbs, 6th Place
Freshman Steve Prebola notched his first varsity career tournament place winning honors by going 3-3 to capture 6th place at Jim Thorpe.  Prebola won his first match by a 9-5 decision before dropping to the consolation bracket.  Steve turned up the heat and was victorious in his next two matches winning both by fall before losing a close 8-10 decision and then forfeiting the 5/6 final.
Congratulations Steve!!

Steve Ferguson, Senior, 160lbs, 6th Place
Senior Steve Ferguson slapped a pair of wins into his shirt pocket to claim 6th place honors at Jim Thorpe.  Ferguson opened up winning his first match by fall before losing a close 3-6 decision.  In the consolation bracket, Steve recorded an excellent 11-2 major decision before dropping two very close matches, one of which was by overtime ride out.  Those close loses can be easily turned around.
Congratulations Steve!!

TEAM SCORING
1.   Berwick:  219.50
2.   Tamaqua:  184.50
3.   Chambersburg:  182.50
4.   Lehighton:  177.00
5.   Mahanoy Area:  136.00
6.   Wyoming Area:  135.00
7.   Jim Thorpe:  114.00
8.   Schuylkill Haven:  100.50
9.   Perkiomen Valley:  67.00
10. Stroudsburg:  55.50
11. Allentown Central Catholic:  55.00
12. Williams Valley:  11.00

Congratulations  Dawgs!!