Before the Class 2A PIAA Championships, people already knew that Faith Christian Academy's Joey Bachmann and Adam Waters were exceptionally talented.
The heavy expectations and predicted outcomes did not reduce the excitement when the two actually achieved success.
Not at all.
Bachmann comfortably won his first state championship, while Waters pinned his opponent in the finals for the second year in a row. Once again, the Lions dominated and secured the team title at the Giant Center in Hershey on Saturday.
“That's a quality of a champion,” said Faith coach Ben Clymer. “Even when no one is watching, they keep working hard and finding new ways to push themselves. In most situations, they are expected to win, but that doesn’t determine how their week or offseason goes. They continuously seek out new training partners and coaches with different perspectives, which helps them improve.”
Faith had nine total medal-winners, the same as last season.
Bachmann set the tone by using a move from Waters’ playbook from the previous year, executing a headlock against Dom Deputy from Chestnut Ridge to take a five-point lead. He maintained the lead and won 6-1.
“It feels really good,” Bachmann said. “Lot of pressure off my chest and can’t wait to do it again.”
Waters knows the feeling, defending his title as a sophomore. He achieved three technical falls before pinning Luke Fugazzotto from Northwestern Lehigh in the first period of the finals.
“I just wanted to score points on top,” Waters said. “I just wanted to score and win big matches and not let anyone be close to me. I don’t want anybody to be close to me. I want to be the best dude by a lot.”
Unlike last year, when all nine of the Lions won their placement bout, Faith experienced some disappointment on the third day of this season.
Max Stein lost by a narrow margin of 2-1 to Bishop McCort’s Melvin Miller in the 152-pound final, and Cael Weidemoyer (160) fell short by one point against Conner Harer from Montgomery, in the midst of Faith’s three consecutive finalists.
“Last year was a celebration,” Clymer stated. “We won all nine matches and it was a joyous occasion. However, humility and the struggles that come with the sport are crucial defining moments for the kids. Even though they can be painful, we are still very grateful. We have a teammate, Owin (Brunner), who’s fighting leukemia, and here we are able to compete in a sport, so we’re extremely thankful.”
Weidemoyer was losing 4-1 at the beginning of the third period but managed to score a reversal just eight seconds in. He couldn't do much on top and now heads into his junior year after finishing third and second in the state.
“I have found small victories throughout the whole weekend,” Weidemoyer shared. “I am grateful for my wonderful life. I have a healthy family. It was definitely a good weekend. I will wake up on Sunday morning knowing that wrestling is not where I find my identity.”
Mark Effendian (285) took third place, making him the next-highest finisher for the Lions. Chase Hontz (145) and Jason Singer (215) finished fourth. Hontz won five matches in a row after losing the first one to reach the consolation final.
Gauge Botero (121) re-injured his ankle during a quarterfinal loss to Reynolds’ Louie Gill on Friday, and ended up sitting out his last match, settling for sixth place after winning gold as a sophomore.
Cody Wagner (189), the only senior on Faith’s roster, earned his spot on the podium with an eighth-place finish.
