Warriors take aim at District 3 wrestling team title

Gettysburg, on the other hand, has been a program that unloads both barrels as quickly as it can, putting opponents on the defensive from the opening whistle. And while Warrior head coach Chris Haines sees a calculated CD team across the mat, it’s his squad that is offering a break from the norm.

“This team has made me become a better coach and adapt philosophies and how I approach things,” said Haines, who has led Gettysburg to three straight district finals. “It used to be we’d hit your first and keep hitting you, but now there’s a little rope-a-dope. You can hit me first but I’m going to hit you last, and when I do, it’s done.”

Gettysburg (20-0) is passive by no means, rather a bit more measured. The Warriors still pin opponents at an alarming rate – 194 falls as a team – but don’t blink when trailing into the second or even third period. That has been evident in team tourney wins over Carlisle and Hempfield.

“They’re different from a group standpoint and an individual standpoint,” said Haines. “It took until August for this to start to come together. They started developing their own identity this fall. We’re a mixture of uniqueness with kids of different makeups. As the season progressed they keep molding each other and coming together.”

Mainstays from last year’s 24-1 squad include seniors Jacob Cherry (32-4), Sam Rodriguez (26-2) and Trevor Gallagher (31-3), who have combined for 65 falls at the top of the lineup. Tyler Withers has exploded, going 31-5 with a team-best 26 falls splitting time between 172 and 189.

A key has been the meteoric rise of senior Logan Newell, who was just 2-6 over the last two varsity seasons but stands at 26-3 entering today’s match. Sophomore Jaxon Townsend (27-9, 22 falls) and Newell have solidified the middle of the lineup, taking the baton from Dalton Redden (24-7) who has done a nice job at 138.

And then there are the lightweights, led by sophomore Gabe Pecaitis (26-6) at 120. Pecaitis has a running mate in freshman Wyatt Sokol (20-9, 126), who has icewater in his veins. Toss in fellow freshman Zoey Haines who is 17-6 with time spent at 106 and 113, and Gettysburg possesses both tremendous firepower and lineup balance.

On paper, Central Dauphin (14-1) is far more measured. Sure, junior Matt Repos, a two-time state placewinner and 96-14 overall is a superstar. Sophomore Ryan Garvick, 50-9 through less than two full seasons and a state qualifier last year, is well on his way to that territory. But what makes the Rams so effective is their ability to win where they should, and not give up gobs of points where they are serious underdogs. That formula could be tested early and often today.

“They look to slow things down and keep it close,” said Haines. “They’re a team in the aspect that their kids know their roles, they know how to save points. Where they’re dangerous to us, is can they score early and hang on?”

In addition to Repos (132) and Garvick (160), CD brings heavy lumber at 106 with sophomore Liam Flanagan (22-2), 138 with Michael Beers (19-6) and 285 with Ben Stewart (21-5). The Warriors are quite familiar with Beers and Stewart, who played integral roles in last year’s triumph over Gettysburg in the D3 finals. Stewart pinned Gallagher to provide a massive swing at 285, and Beers rallied past Redden in the final bout, 11-8, to secure the match.

Haines said his team needs no reminders regarding how things unfolded last year. The loss to CD brought an abrupt end to Gettysburg’s dual-meet season as only the district champ moved on to states due to shortened brackets in the wake of the pandemic.

“We’ve carried enough kids over from last year and they didn’t like the way it ended,” he said. “We’re going to sit back and do our thing. I made it very clear about our goals and objectives. We’re 0-0 and haven’t achieved anything yet.”