PHOTO GALLERY | Bishop McCort crowns 4 champs, Chestnut Ridge has 2 at Southwest AA Regional
· Yahoo Sports
ALTOONA, Pa. – Bishop McCort Catholic didn’t quite climb to the lofty heights it got to last year in the Southwest Regional Class 2A tournament, but the Crimson Crushers were head and shoulders above everyone else.
The Crimson Crushers had seven finalists, finished with four champions and won the team title for the third straight year Saturday night at Altoona Fieldhouse.
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“I think we did pretty darn good with bringing a young team and having a lot of young kids step into the lineup for the first time," Bishop McCort coach Bill Bassett said.
Bishop McCort’s Bo Bassett (145) and Melvin Miller (160) cruised to their third regional titles. In the finals, Bassett rang up a 21-6 technical fall over Bald Eagle Area’s Caden Judice in 2:43, and Miller rolled to a 21-5 technical fall in 3:39 over Derry Area’s Ewan Olson.
“It feels really good,” Bo Bassett said. “It’s a little bittersweet because this is the last one. I just gave my dad a big hug at the podium. He’s been a huge inspiration and role model for me. I’m just grateful to wrestle in such an amazing event for three years.”
“Melvin has a different gear,” Coach Bassett said. “When Melvin wants to, he can do pretty much do whatever he needs to do on the mat.”
McCort is competing this postseason without standout Jax Forrest – a two-time PIAA gold-medalist and junior world champion who ended his senior season early and enrolled at Oklahoma State in January, joining the Cowboys wrestling program.
Sophomore Keegan Bassett (121) had to eke out a 2-1 win over Penns Valley’s Max Dinges in another District 6 rematch for his first regional title. Junior Emory Gunby (172) also won his first regional title, taking Derry Area’s Mason Horwat down in overtime to win, 4-1.
Austin Carfley (133), Marquez Gordon (215) and Caleb Rodriguez (285) each finished second.
Chestnut Ridge returning state champion Dominic Deputy (127) put last year’s regional final loss in the rearview mirror by claiming his third title with a 4-2 win over Burrell’s Cameron Baker.
Younger brother Kooper Deputy (107) won his first title in dominating fashion. Kooper pinned his way through the tournament, notching four falls in 2:18 or quicker. He pinned Derry Area’s Mason Keesecker in 1:15 in the final.
Chestnut Ridge’s Carter Ickes wasn’t able to follow in his teammates’ footsteps, losing 1-0 to Derry Area’s Patrick Bulger in the final.
Bishop McCort had, as always in the District 6 and Southwest Regional, wrapped up the team title before the evening session began, amassing 233.5 points. The Crimson Crushers finished with 259.5 points, outdistancing Derry Area (151) and Chestnut Ridge (144.5). In 2025, the Crimson Crushers set a regional record with 314 points.
The Crimson Crushers qualified 10 of their 12 wrestlers for the state tournament. Bishop McCort’s Owen McMullen (third, 139), Jackson Butler (third, 152) and C.J. Pensiero (fourth, 189) finished in the top seven to qualify for the PIAA championships. McMullen earned his 100th career win.
The state tournament starts Thursday at the Giant Center in Hershey.
Ethan Cotchen (107) placed eighth, but didn’t qualify.
McMullen lost a 1-0 battle to Bentworth’s Drake McClure in the semifinals, while Pensiero took an injury default without taking the mat against Derry Area’s Brady Brown. Pensiero, who has a shoulder issue, did the same thing when he made the District 6 final against Tyrone’s Kyle Scott.
Bo Bassett (40-0) racked up four technical falls to push his career total to 108. Bassett had seven takedowns of Judice in the finals.
Now he gets to look forward to Hershey, where everyone is anticipating him to wrestle Montgomery’s two-time state champ Brandt Harer in the finals.
“I know a lot of people are hyping up next week’s finals,” Bo Bassett said, “but I’ve got three matches I’ve got to win before that. Some would say (Harer) is the greatest of all time to wrestle in the greatest state of all time.
“It’s going to be a huge challenge. I’ve wrestled Brandt before. I just think if I wrestle hard and I trust in God’s plan, I’ll be ready.”
Miller (50-1) also had four technical falls. He racked up six takedowns, a two-point nearfall and an escape in the final.
“Scoring points is probably one of my favorite things to do,” Miller said. “That’s what we preach in the room all the time.”
Dominic Deputy (49-2) had no problem getting to the final, recording two falls and a technical fall. It was a little tougher in the finals for Deputy, who notched a takedown in the first period and escaped in the second. He held a 4-0 lead until Baker reversed with two seconds left.
“The goal was to score more points,” Dominic said, “but at the end of the day, it’s postseason. You just do what it takes to come out on top. I’m just grateful to come out on top.”
“I’m tired of wrestling Cam Baker. That’s the 15th time in high school,” Josh Deputy said. “Cam is a great competitor, and it’s hard to beat a multiple-time state medalist that many times.”
A loss to Bald Eagle Area’s Tanner Guenot in the 2025 regional final has stuck with him as motivation this postseason.
“It’s crazy,” Dominic said. “I was thinking about this the other day. They tell you this is a roller coaster and you really don’t know what it means. It’s fun to see where it all plays out.”
The top-ranked Kooper Deputy (48-0) was up 6-1 on Keesecker when he stuck his shoulders to the mat for his 41st fall of the season.
“I’ve never coached anyone who works harder than him,” Chestnut Ridge coach Josh Deputy said. “He’s a gift. He really is a gift, and he broke the PIAA season pin record today. He’s stepped into this role as a freshman and all the accolades he came in with and hit his varsity career head-on.”
Keegan Bassett (34-4) rolled to the final with two falls and a technical fall, but points were at a premium in the title bout. Bassett piled up 14 points in the district finals against Dinges, but he could only manage an escape in the second period.
The bout was tied 1-all when Dinges was called for stalling the second time with 20 seconds remaining in the bout, giving a point to Bassett. He avoided any danger on his feet in the final 20 seconds to win.
“It definitely was a lot harder,” Keegan said. “This time, I think we both wrestled a little bit tighter and more positionally. I felt like I was pushing the pace the whole time. When he gave up that stall, I wasn’t too surprised. Getting matches like that before states is huge.”
“Dinges is a great wrestler,” Coach Bassett said. “Those two have been battling since they were younger. We know every time those two wrestle, it’s always going to be a great match.”
Gunby (37-11) had a technical fall, decision and fall to get to the final. With the score tied at 1-all in overtime, Gunby took Horwat down with five seconds remaining to win.
“It feels great,” Gunby said. “I trusted my training. I trusted my partners. I trusted my coaches. I’ll take them to deep waters to get that win every time.”
“What a jump for Gunby,” Bill Bassett said. “When the year started, he was third string. We had two injuries and he got into the lineup. Man, did he take advantage of it.”
Carfley recorded a technical fall, major decision and a decision to get to the final to face Guenot for the second finals in a row. Carfley beat Guenot 4-3 in the district final, but Guenot made a second-period takedown stand in a 4-2 avenging win.
Rodriguez, who was fourth in last year’s regional, had to eke out a 2-1 tiebreaker win over Laurel’s Casey Wilson in the semifinals. In the final, he couldn’t get any offense going in a 1-0 loss to West Greene’s Colin Whyte.
Gordon rolled to the final with two technical falls and a major decision, but Huntingdon’s Landon Erdman rolled up a 16-0 technical fall in a rematch of the district final.
Ickes had a technical fall, major decision and a decision to get to the final, where he suffered a frustrating 1-0 loss to Bulger.
“It was pretty tough,” Ickes said. “I’ve just got to go back at it next week at states and hope for the best. I just know that I’m right there and can hang with the best.”
Chestnut Ridge’s Garrett Weyandt (fourth, 121), Trenden Willey (sixth, 139) and Jayden Imler (third, 189) advanced to Hershey.
United’s Josef Garshnick (third, 145) and Max McConville (fifth, 215), Westmont Hilltop’s Owen Dluhos (sixth, 127), Richland’s Brady Kostick (sixth, 133), Berlin Brothersvalley’s Lukas Smith (fifth, 127) and Meyersdale’s Cooper Porter (third, 172) placed in the top six.
Forest Hills’ Santino DiPaola (114), Chestnut Ridge’s Austin Bernash (133), Berlin Brothersvalley’s Dawson Shaffer (152) and North Star’s Kasey Yoder (189) placed seventh to qualify for Hershey.
Placing eighth and not qualifying were Meyersdale’s Brenden Schardt (145), Penn Cambria’s Nate Mack (160), Berlin Brothersvalley’s Carter Durst (172) and Richland’s Grayson Mahla (189).