State Wrestling Contenders

State Wrestling Contenders

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Numerous area wrestlers likely will win matches this weekend - even place in the top eight, thus earning state medals - but who can make a run at a gold medal? Here they are in order, beginning with the greatest likelihood.

113: Billy Rappo (Council Rock South), a state champion at 103 pounds last year, is the clear favorite to bag another gold medal. He has wrestled as tough a schedule as anyone this season and, at 38-2, is primed for a title run. A victory here would give the Rappo family - in which there are five brothers - a sixth state title and end a true era in Pennsylvania wrestling in style.

152: Casey Kent (La Salle) took bronze as a sophomore, but last year, ligament damage in his elbow derailed his title hopes. Fully healthy, Kent (44-4), bound for Penn, is favored by many to stand atop the podium.

138: Matt Cimato (La Salle) hopes to parlay a bronze medal at last year's event into something greater. He is 45-2 this season and eased through the regional field with three major decisions last weekend. Cimato, headed for Drexel, will have to get through Soloman Chisko (Canon-McMillan), who beat him in December, in the second round.

195: PJ Steinmetz (Council Rock South) is making his first appearance at states as a junior, but still ranks as one of the top contenders. PA Power ranks him No. 2 overall in the state as he rides a 21-match win streak into the weekend. He likely will have to get through No. 1-ranked Perry Hills (Pittsburgh Central Catholic), a Maryland football recruit, in the semifinals.

182: Chris Jastrzebski (Central Bucks West) hasn't competed at all the top tournaments this season, but with a spotless 34-0 record, the Bucks senior is brimming with confidence. With his draw, a run to the finals looks like a solid bet.

106: On opposite sides of the bracket, Scott Parker (Pennridge) and Zach Fuentes (Norristown) could be on a collision course for the championship. The two split district and regional titles, each besting the other on consecutive weekends. Parker has a ton of offense, but the defensive-minded Fuentes has the tougher road: He would likely have to get through last year's state runner-up at 103, Ethan Lizak (Parkland), in the semifinals.

170: Shane Springer (Norristown) finished top-five in the state the past two seasons, garnering a silver medal as a sophomore at La Salle. He might not be the favorite to win it all this year but looks like a shoo-in for a semifinal berth. He is Pennsylvania's all-time leader in pins.

160: Brett Harner (Norristown) is one of two Pennsylvania wrestlers in the class of 2013 to medal at states in each of his first two years of high school. As a freshman, he took eighth. As a sophomore, he took fourth, despite wrestling with a sprained anterior cruciate ligament. Standing in his way are two of the very best around, weight class notwithstanding: Chance Marsteller (Kennard Dale) is undefeated in two seasons and won at 152 last year; Brian Brill (Central Mountain) hasn't lost in two years, winning at 145 last year. Harner would meet Brill in the semifinals.

120: Three times has Corey McQuiston (West Chester Rustin) made the trip to Hershey for championship weekend, and three times he has come away empty. That's the burden the three-time Southeast Regional champ carries with him into the weekend: the quest for an elusive state medal. Expect McQuiston (37-2) to use his desperation as an advantage. For gold, he likely would have to beat state titlist Connor Schram (Canon-McMillan) in the finals.

- Evan Burgos

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