Rising Golden
Tornado seek greater heights

By John Enrietto
Eagle Sports Editor

From good to great?
The numbers are pointed in that direction for the Butler varsity wrestling program.
The Golden Tornado set a school record for dual match wins for the second straight year with 23. They sent a school-record 12 wrestlers to the WPIAL Tournament and produced the program's first WPIAL champion: Cole Baxter at 152 pounds.
Baxter went on to place fifth in the PIAA meet as a sophomore. Only a junior, he holds a 78-10 career record.
"Our goals this year include winning the section, something we've never done," 17th-year Butler coach Scott Stoner said. "We're going to have to get through North Allegheny to do it.
"That's a high-quality program that had a state champion last year. Jake Herbert, a two-time national champion, went there. My dream has been to elevate our program to theirs and maybe this is the year."
Here is a look at Butler County area wrestling this season:

Butler
Coach: Scott Stoner, 17th year
Last Year: 23-6
Key Losses: Derek Hays (152-171), Alex Truman (275) and Marino Quercio (215)
Projected Lineup: 103 pounds-Blake Caudill (Fr.); 112-Nick Sutton (So.) 5-20 or Brendon Bauer (So.) 18-15; 119-Zach Reges (So.) 23-19; 125-Zach Collins (Fr.); 130-Cody Hartman (Jr.) 29-12; 135-Dillon Weston (Jr.) 23-11 or Jesse Spohn (So.); 140-Eric Tuck (Jr.) 29-13); 145-Mike Crawford (Jr.) 29-11); 152-Dakoda Collins (So.) 28-15; 160-Matt Pribis (Jr.) 13-17, 171-Cole Baxter (Jr.) 45-2, 189-Mike Scialabba (Sr.) 7-16, 215-Chris White (Sr.) 30-14, 275-Tim Fulks (So.) or Jordan Allen (Jr.)
Stoner says: "We don't have a senior in our lineup until 189 pounds, so I'm excited about what these guys can do. We're in a couple of dual-meet tournaments and we want to win those. Some think we're the odds-on favorite to win our section and I'd love to qualify all 14 of our starters to the WPIAL Tournament. It's within our reach."