Kaemen Smith contributes to Cathedral Prep's wrestling win at McDowell
Cathedral Prep's Kaemen Smith credited less running – not more – as the reason he's in shape.
Wrestling shape.
"I quit cross country (this past season) because I wanted to be really good at wrestling," he said. "I thought cross country made me too skinny and not have as much strength. The best kind of conditioning for wrestling is more wrestling."
Smith's theory remains valid halfway through his senior season with the Ramblers. The 152-pounder won his team-leading 17th match during Wednesday's 42-23 victory vs. the rival McDowell Trojans at Paul Goll Gymnasium.
Prep improved to 4-0 atop the Region 5 standings and 8-1 overall. A Jan. 26 against Warren is all it needs to clinch first place in the region, plus the top seed for District 10's Class 3A team tournament on Feb. 3.
McDowell dropped to 2-2, 3-6.
Smith's latest victory was by fall, his 11th this season. The middleweight was up 16-4 when he pinned McDowell's Artis Simmons late in the third period.
The loss left Simmons, a junior, at 9-3.
"I knew Artis was a pretty good athlete, so I just wanted to go out there and show what I could do," Smith said. "I wanted to wrestle to the best of my ability, and I think I did that."
Smith's pin was the second of Prep's five straight victories. Classmate Kelyn Blossey capped that run with a 39-second pin of the Trojans' Ray Jackson in their 189 match.
The Ramblers prevailed despite the absence of University of Nebraska recruit Jake Van Dee. The senior lightweight, a returning PIAA gold medalist, said he sat out the dual to recover from nagging injuries.
Van Dee's record remains at 12-0 this season and 103-20 overall.
Blue wins for blue and white
Bobby Blue and Jack Sroka accounted for McDowell's on-mat victories.
Blue tied the dual at 12-all when he pinned Prep's Ian Irvin with nine seconds left in the first period of their 138 match. Sroka, the Trojans' heavyweight, pinned the Ramblers' Caden Pustalek.
Blue's season and overall record as a Trojan are both 10-6. The sophomore mentioned an ulterior motive for his return to the sport.
"I wrestled when I was younger, so I thought it would be better to come back and stay in shape for football," Blue said. "It's been good so far. There have been a couple losses, but I'll come back to practice, work harder and win some more."
Upcoming action
Prep will travel to West Virginia's northern panhandle for its next competition. The Ramblers are one of five Pennsylvania programs scheduled to appear in the Frank Ferguson Brooke Classic, which starts Friday at Brooke High School.
The Trojans remain in Pennsylvania, but will travel a similar distance as Prep.
McDowell, along with General McLane and Union City, are district schools listed in the 16-team field for Saturday's Bison Duals at Clearfield.
Contact Mike Copper at mcopper@timesnews.com. Follow him on Twitter @ETNcopper.
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Region 5
Cathedral Prep 42, McDowell 23
120 pounds: Sallot (Mc) by forfeit; 126: Domkowski (CP) p Dvorak :48; 132: Staab (CP) p Neavins 3:13; 138: Blue (Mc) p Irvin 1:51; 145: Lynch (CP) d Carrick 8-4; 152: Smith (CP) p A.Simmons 5:13; 160: Mallory (CP) d Butterfield 5-4; 172: Shetler (CP) by forfeit; 189: Blossey (CP) p Jackson :39; 215: Peterson (Mc) by forfeit; 285: Sroka (Mc) p Pustalek 1:22; 106: double forfeit; 113: Oler (CP) p N.Simmons 3:51
Note: McDowell was deducted one team point for unsportsmanlike conduct after the 113 match.
Cathedral Prep 8-1, 4-0; McDowell 3-6, 2-2,
This article originally appeared on Erie Times-News: Kaemen Smith contributes to Cathedral Prep's wrestling win at McDowell
