Derry senior Jimmy Gulibon (No. 3 @ 126) was in tears after his fourth appearance in the finals of the Powerade Christmas Wrestling Tournament Friday at Canon-McMillan High School, but it wasn’t due to a loss.
Gulibon, a three-time PIAA champion, dominated the 126-pound title match, winning his fourth Powerade Tournament title with a convincing 7-2 victory against Maxwell Hvolbek (H.M. @ 126) of New Jersey’s Blair Academy. After the bout, Gulibon limped off the mat with a knee injury.
“I’m not sure what happened,” said Gulibon, who became only the fourth four-time champion in the 45-year history of the tournament. “I tweaked my knee in the second period. I should be all right. I just have to get it checked out.”
Derry coach Mike Weinell carried Gulibon piggyback from the awards stand to Canon-McMillan’s training room to have the knee checked out. He returned after the tournament to accept the Outstanding Wrestler Award.
“He’s just scared,” Weinell said. “He’s worried he won’t be able to wrestle for a while. We will have to set up an appointment and get his knee checked out.”
Gulibon’s match came after Brashear’s Godwin Nyama became the first City League wrestler to win a title with his 6-3 victory against Blair Academy’s P.J. Klee in the 120-pound final.
“This is clearly the biggest win of my career,” Nyama said. “This tournament is like going through a meat-grinder. It’s such an incredible feeling to win this tournament.”
Canon-McMillan’s Cody Wiercioch made a third consecutive appearance in the finals and captured his second title with an 11-3 win against Tyler Rill of Mount St. Joseph, Md., in the 170-pound final. Wiercioch won at 152 as a freshman and placed second at 160 last year.
Wiercioch was one of five Canon-McMillan wrestlers in the finals. He was joined atop the winners platform by teammate Solomon Chishko, who claimed the 145-pound title with a 7-2 victory against Blair Academy’s Dylan Milonas. Chishko placed second at 130 last year.
Placing second for the Big Macs were Dalton Macri, Alex Campbell and Cody Klempay. Macri dropped an 11-5 decision to Franklin Regional’s Michael Kemerer in the 113-pound final. Campbell was pinned at 1:04 in the 220-pound final by Solanco’s Thomas Haines. Klempay made a return trip to the finals, but failed to defend his 285-pound title after dropping a 2-1 decision to Blair Academy’s Brooks Black.
A total of 13 WPIAL wrestlers advanced to the finals and eight claimed a gold medal. Also winning titles were Central Catholic’s Vincenzo Joseph, Burrell’s Dakota DesLauriers and Hampton’s Jacob Hart.
