Growling back

by Guy Cipriano

Posted on January 21, 2009

BELLEFONTE — Bellefonte sophomore Brandon Grau and junior Jake Mueller entered Tuesday's critical match against Altoona with a combined five wins.

Well, if you listen to coach Mike Maney, the records were primed to be hurled down Bishop Street.

Grau methodically dissected Mitchell Colombo 12-3 at 135 and Mueller used a big third period to defeat Jesse Davis 7-3 at 215 as the Red Raiders earned a 47-19 victory to ensure a spot in next week's District 6 Class AAA team duals.

"I told Brandon after the match he's capable of those matches all the time," Maney said. "As a sophomore, he lacks confidence and that's something we talk about in the practice room. The same thing with Jake. It's a confidence booster. In the practice room, we see what he's capable of."

The same thing can be said about Maney's team.

The Red Raiders entered the match with a 4-4 record. Yet they have spent most of this month trying to fulfill vast potential.

"We would like to see the four squads that have beat them," Altoona coach Joel Gilbert said. "With that kind of squad, it's surprising they have that many loses."

Bellefonte, which still competed without a 103-pound and heavyweight and veteran 135-pounder Garrett Singer, will quickly eliminate frustrating setbacks if it duplicates Tuesday's performance against an improved Altoona (8-5) squad.

Bellefonte (5-4) won nine bouts and Mitchell Port, Dan Dreibelbis and Josh Fishburn opened the match with three straight pins from 119 to 130. Grau watched every second of Port, Dreibelbis and Fishburn's abbreviated victories.

"I was psyched when I went out there," Grau said.

Colombo (10-11) took Grau (3-9) down during the opening minute. But Grau escaped, recorded his own takedown and prevented Colombo from escaping to enter the second period with a 3-2 lead. Grau converted a low-single early in the second period before hitting a five-point lateral drop.

"That was big for me," he said. "I really opened up. I didn't hold anything back."

A third-period reversal helped Grau earn a major decision and gave Bellefonte a 22-0 lead after four bouts.

Mueller's victory included more drama. He entered the third period trailing 1-0. But he escaped, took Davis down with a single and converted a two-point cradle. Mueller (4-13) then took Davis (9-15) down again with 13 seconds remaining.

Mueller said the combination of a rugged schedule and extensive work with senior 171-pounder Christian Oberle were key factors in the victory.

"You have to beat the guys you know you can beat," he said. "The tough matches will follow if you work hard. I have been working harder in practice and it's really important to have a good practice partner. That helped me come out and win tonight."

Both Grau and Mueller said they were aware of Tuesday's stakes. Bellefonte has a policy that prevents teams with below .500 records from entering district tournaments, so a loss to Altoona would have nixed a potential rematch against nationally-ranked Central Mountain many Red Raiders. Now, Bellefonte, which won seven bouts in the season opener against Central Mountain, will likely enter the district duals as the No. 3 seed.

"We were really, really desperate," Mueller said. "We had to get this one. We came out and knew Altoona was a team we could beat if we wrestled good. We came out and wrestled the way we had to win."

Bellefonte received another a key victory at 160 where sophomore Brad Grieb reversed senior Nik Zimmerman, leaned back and recorded a third-period fall. Grieb (14-8) and Zimmerman (18-3) entered Tuesday with contrasting records.

"It was a surprise," Gilbert said. "Zimmerman has had a very good season, but that young kid, Grieb, is a real good wrestler who has been around a long time for a sophomore. I give kudos to Grieb. He wrestled a nice match and did a nice job."

Seniors Shane Alterio and Oberle added falls for Bellefonte while Tom Traxler ended the match with a 9-0 victory over Wendell Myers at 112.

The match's most entertaining bout occured at 140 where Altoona senior Chris McCarthy rallied to defeat sophomore Nate Alterio 11-10. McCarthy (16-1) scored seven third-period points and took Alterio (11-9) down twice in the final 45 seconds to avoid recording his second loss.

Before the match, Bellefonte held a Military Appreciation ceremony and inducted former wrestlers Richard Houser, Roger Port, Bill Wort-man and Harry Whitehill into the program's hall of fame.

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