Pittston Area senior Dominic Innamorati reached a milestone by taking his 100th career win. Celebrating with Innamorati is Head Coach Dave Krantz, left, and Assistant Coach Jared Fluginiti.
Tony Callaio | For Sunday Dispatch
At 160 lbs., Pittston Area’s Dominic Innamorati lifts Crestwood’s Jack Hoover on his way to pinning him at 1:05. Innamorati scored his 100th high school career win in defeating Hoover.
Tony Callaio | For Sunday Dispatch
Pittston Area’s Shawn Shimonis, top, pinned Crestwood’s Mason Ford at 1:07 in the 133 lb. division.
Tony Callaio | For Sunday Dispatch
The Patriots’ Jahiem Butler, front, is about to pin Crestwood’s Matteo Belanchik at 127 lbs. Butler did score the pin 1:30.
Tony Callaio | For Sunday Dispatch
Pittston Area’s Tibor Toth, right, looks to turn over his Crestwood opponent, Anson Jumper at 127 lbs. Toth took the match 10-2.
Tony Callaio | For Sunday Dispatch
YATESVILLE — Pittston Area had a wrestler reach the 100-win mark for his career for the third straight year.
While Dominic Innamorati was arriving at that milestone Wednesday night, however, the Patriots were losing their hold on the Wyoming Valley Conference Division 1 wrestling lead.
Crestwood followed up Innamorati’s victory by winning six of the final seven bouts to complete a comeback to a 36-25 victory and move into a share of first place.
The match left the Patriots and Comets tied at 3-1 in the division. Wilkes-Barre Area is in the title hunt with a 2-1 record.
The Patriots are 16-4 overall.
Innamorati needed four, four and five seconds in neutral position to score three takedowns before pinning Jack Hoover in 1:05 of their 160-pound bout to give the Patriots a 22-15 lead.
“Very impressive,” Pittston Area coach Dave Kranz said. “I loved seeing him get his 100th win.”
The Kutztown University baseball commit follows Jimmy Spindler and Julian Everitt, who got to 100 wins the past two seasons. Innamorati is 22-5 on the season and 100-47 in his four-year career.
Brody Spindler appears to be next in line with 86 wins, but he was on the other end of another 100-win milestone Wednesday.
Lincoln Bibla won for the first time in four meetings with Spindler, who had beaten him 6-2 late in the WVC Tournament finals to fuel a half-point tournament title by the Patriots over the Comets.
This time, Bibla won their 215-pound bout 7-2.
“I’ve learned from the past matches,” said Bibla, who scored a key takedown midway through the second period for a 4-0 lead and added another at the final buzzer.
The Comets outscored the Patriots 21-3 after Innamorati’s pin.
“They wrested really well in the key matchups and they got the bonus points where they needed them,” Kranz said.
Mariusz Bibla got it started and Nathan Wisniewski gave Crestwood its first lead with consecutive technical falls at 171 and 189.
Heavyweight Kyle Draina added another after Lincoln Bibla’s win.
When Dylan Bellas fought off a possible pin by Pittston Area’s Mikel Roman in the 107-pound bout the win was clinched.
Freshman Liam Kakalecik had given the Comets an earlier boost with a comeback at 139 when he won by pin in a bout in which he had trailed by 13 points at one time.
Kakalecik’s win came with Pittston Area trying to add to the 16-0 lead it built in the first three bouts.
This time, Pittston Area jumped out to a 16-0 lead after three bouts.
Tibor Toth had the opening bout’s only three takedowns, including two in the final 40 seconds to turn a 4-1 battle into a 10-2 major decision of Anson Jumper at 121 pounds. The victory allowed Toth to becoming the fifth Patriot with at least 20 wins this season, joining Spindler, Noah Gruber, Innamorati and Tim Riefler.
Jahiem Butler and Shawn Shimonis followed with first-period pins at 127 and 133.
Chulada Duals
Pittston Area went 4-2 in the Richard “Chooch” Chulada Duals Jan. 11 at Honesdale.
The Patriots began the day by defeating Scranton 39-32 and Lake-Lehman 60-17.
Pocono Mountain West ended Pittston Area’s 10-match winning streak 37-28.
The host Hornets scored the first 27 points on the way to a 45-27 victory over the Patriots.
Pittston Area bounced back to beat Hanover Area 40-34 and Montrose 63-9.
Noah Gruber, Brody Spindler, Dominic Innamorati and Tim Riefler all enjoyed 6-0 days.
Gruber had five first-period pins and a forfeit.
Spindler, who received two forfeits, also stopped each opponent in the first period. He had pins of 12 and 14 seconds among his four.
Innamorati had two pins and a technical fall along with three forfeits.
Riefler pulled out a one-point decision and had a 22-second pin.
Tibor Toth, who posted two technical falls, and Chase Baron each won four times on the day.
