Tigers tearing through Kiwanis Tournament

TUNKHANNOCK – Tunkhannock was supposed to be in a rebuilding mode this season.

The Tigers didn't look like a squad going through transition on the first day of the Tunkhannock Kiwanis Wrestling Tournament on Friday. The team advanced a Wyoming Valley Conference-high five wrestlers to the semifinals of the tournament and are tops among WVC teams in the team standings with 81 points, currently in third place overall. Tunkhannock trails leader Pocono Mountain East (105 points) and Wyalusing (91.5).

After Tunkhannock, Coughlin is the next highest team from the WVC with 69.5 points in sixth place. The Crusaders have three semifinalists.

GAR, Lake-Lehman and Wyoming Area each have four semifinalists when the final four of each bracket begins this morning at 10 a.m. vying for a spot in the finals, slated for approximately 5 p.m. The Wyoming Seminary B team advanced two grapplers to today's semis and Nanticoke rounds out the locals with one semifinalist.

Coughlin's Bobby Hawkins (113) and Brad Emerick (285) and Lake-Lehman's Austin Harry (132) are in the semis and attempting to repeat as champions from last year. Wyoming Area's Andy Schutz, who advanced to the semifinals at 126, was runner-up at the 2011 tournament.

Tunkhannock's five semifinalists are highlighted by three freshmen as Elliott Hammersely (106), Jake Richards (113) and Dalton Ray (145) are all ninth-graders. Ben Siegel, a 152-pound junior, and 195-pound senior Andrew Muckin also moved on in the championship brackets.

Tunkhannock Kiwanis Wrestling Tournament

Local Semifinalists

106: Pat Heck, Wyoming Area; Elliott Hammersely, Tunkhannock

113: Bobby Hawkins, Coughlin; Jake Richards, Tunkhannock freshman

120: A.J. Luton, GAR

126: Andy Schutz, Wyoming Area; Billy Poray, Coughlin

132: Austin Harry, Lake-Lehman; Carmen Mauriello, Wyoming Area; Troy Edwards, Wyoming Seminary

138: Nick Heck, Wyoming Area

145: Josh Winters, Lake-Lehman; Dalton Ray, Tunkhannock

152: Ben Siegel, Tunkhannock

160: Maurice Wood, Nanticoke; Jamaar Taylor, GAR

170: Sal Diaz, Wyoming Seminary; Derek Dragon, Lake-Lehman