Power rankings: 3 new teams enter top-five
It's been about a month since we rolled out our initial York-Adams wrestling power rankings. While it's still early, we've seen a few teams vault themselves into the division title conversations while some other typical powerhouses have fallen off.
Not much has changed at the top of our rankings, but there are a few changes with the bottom three spots. Here's how the top five looks right now.
Honorable mention: New Oxford (1-1), South Western (2-1), Kennard-Dale (2-1)
5. Delone Catholic (2-0): The Squires have a more complete lineup than in years past, and have several seniors primed for big seasons, including Brady Repasky (195), Brian Shermeyer (160/170) and Bryce Perkins (285). Delone Catholic has already rolled to victories over Hanover and Dover and posted a 10th place performance at the Solanco Mule Classic. With Biglerville rebuilding, the Squires may be the only team that can potentially challenge Bermudian Springs in Division III. The match between the two teams on Jan. 19 could be interesting.
4. Gettysburg (2-0): Kennard-Dale has owned Division II the past two seasons, but the Warriors sent a message on opening night by beating the Rams, 46-20. A year after going 5-6, Gettysburg looks like the early favorite to win its first YAIAA division title. Returning sectional champion and 145-pounder Joe Pecaitis highlights a lineup that has gotten strong performances from Dan Ziegler (152), Josh Paul (170) and Luke Cross (195) among others. The Warriors also earned a fifth place finish at the Carlisle wrestling tournament, and have important dual meets against York Suburban and Eastern York, coming up on Jan. 10 and Jan. 12, respectively.
3. Dallastown (2-0): While Dallastown went 7-10 in dual meets last season, the Wildcats brought back a majority of its lineup and looked like potential contenders. So far, they've lived up to that billing, beating quality teams in New Oxford (38-20) and Northeastern (43-19) and finishing second at the Solanco Mule Classic. The team's top highlight so far has come from senior Bryce Shields, who bumped up from 220 pounds to 285 to beat Northeastern's defending district champ Blaine Yinger, 5-2. With a number of strong wrestlers around Shields including Drake Pew (170) and Cameron Green (195), the Wildcats look formidable. They're biggest challenge will come against Spring Grove on Jan. 17.
2. Bermudian Springs (3-0): No surprise here. The Eagles once again look like the class of Division III, but have yet to be challenged, blowing out Littlestown (69-6), Biglerville (68-3) and Hamburg (67-9). Bermudian might get a good match from Delone, but once again its top competition in the dual meet season will likely come from Big Spring (Jan. 21) and Boiling Springs (Jan. 28). Individually, the Eagles have plenty of wrestlers worth following, including Austin Clabaugh (132), Ashton West (160) and Noah Fleshman (195).
1. Spring Grove (7-1): As expected, the Rockets are still No. 1. After losing an out-of-state match against Mount Saint Joseph in Maryland to start the season, Spring Grove went 5-0 in the Ephrata duals and easily outclassed Red Lion (53-21) and Central York (50-13) in dual meets. While 113-pounder Dalton Rohrbaugh has gotten most of the attention, the Rockets also feature Nate Young (220/285) and Chance Jackson (145). It remains to be seen if any teams in Division I can prevent Spring Grove from repeating as division champs.