Mar 10, 2025
Altoona’s Luke Sipes, back, tries to fight off a takedown attempt by Quakertown’s Collin Gaj iin the second period of Class 3A 160-pound finals match Saturday in Hershey. Gaj beat Sipes, 11-2, to capture the second gold mnedal of his career.
HERSHEY — Senior 160-pounder Luke Sipes will leave Altoona as one of the most accomplished Mountain Lions in program history.
The four-time District 6 Class 3A champion, four-time regional champion and four-time state medalist is the current record holder for career wins with 155.
Sipes and the Altoona wrestling community were hoping to add one more win to that list and become part of history again as the first Mountain Lion to win a state title since Steve Maurey in 1974.
While he was able to get to the championship finals of the PIAA Championships for the first time, a state title wasn’t in the cards.
An ill and hobbled Sipes had to settle for second place after he suffered an 11-2 loss to Quakertown’s four-time medalist, three-time finalist and now two-time state champion Collin Gaj.
“No, it was definitely not a story-book ending,” Sipes said. “I gave it all I had out there. He’s a great wrestler. I knew it was going to be a tough match going into it.”
“Luke was a true warrior all week-long,” Altoona coach Joel Gilbert said. “When you come in sick, twist your ankle the first match and get your way to the state finals is remarkable in itself. He’s blazed a trail for these young kids within the program. I can’t say enough about him.”
Sipes is the seventh Altoona wrestler to be a state runner-up and the first since Parker McClellan in 2018.
Altoona junior Braiden Weaver, another gold medal hopeful, was able to bounce back from his frustrating 4-1 to loss to Cedar Cliff’s eventual runner-up Kavin Muyleart in the semifinals to finish third at 121 for his second state tournament medal in his third appearance.
Weaver went 2-0 on Saturday with a technical fall and a 5-1 decision over Greater Latrobe’s Leo Joseph in the third-place bout.
“It feels good after a tough loss,” Weaver said. “Coming back from that really showed the type of person I am. I’m just going to go out, score points and wrestle. I wanted to be a state champ of course. After the loss, I threw it out the window and got the next best thing.”
Tyrone junior Kyle Scott rebounded from his 21-5 technical fall loss in 5:20 to Faith Christian Academy’s now three-time state champion Adam Waters in the semifinals to place fourth at 189 for his second state medal.
Scott went 1-1 on Saturday with a 12-0 major decision and an 11-5 loss to Port Allegany’s Aiden Bliss in the third-place bout.
Altoona sophomore Gavin Ciampoli placed seventh at 139 for his first Class 3A medal in two Hershey appearances. Ciampoli earned a 3-2 win over Central Dauphin’s C.J. Ferree in the seventh-place bout. The three medalists are the most in a single state tournament in the program’s history.
“These young men have set the bar for future teams,” Gilbert said. “I can’t say enough about all of them. I’m happy for them. I’m happy for the program. I’m happy for their families because their families put a lot of time and effort into it all.”
The Mountain Lions finished in sixth place in the team standings with 57 points. Bethlehem Catholic won the team title by 12 points over West Regional champion Thomas Jefferson, 88-76.
Gaj was aggressive and attacking Sipes nearly the entire finals bout. He notched a takedown in all three periods, including the last with 2 seconds remaining.
“Collin is a really good hand-fighter, and he takes ground really well,” Sipes said. “That’s something that I’m definitely going to work on, kind of being more offensive and holding the center a little bit better.
Afterward, as he was giving an interview to an Altoona Mirror reporter, he had to take multiple breaks to cough. Sipes, who sprained his ankle in his first bout on Thursday, appeared sicker on Saturday than he was on the first two days.
“It was pretty bad after my (finals) match,” Sipes said. “I couldn’t get a breath, and throughout my match it was really hard to breathe. I was even puking a little bit. It’s tough. I need to go to a doctor. I was battling it. It’s all I can do.”
Sipes finished his senior season with a 42-5 record and his career with a 155-20 mark. He’ll continue his wrestling career at the University of North Carolina.
“We’re very, very proud of what Luke has done at Altoona,” Gilbert said. “We look forward to seeing what he’s going to do at the next level.”
Weaver came back with a vengeance from his semifinal loss, rolling to a 20-4 technical over Northwestern’s Elijah Hewitt in 4:45.
In a rematch of the West Regional finals, Weaver broke open a scoreless bout with Joseph with an escape and takedown in the first 33 seconds of the second period. Weaver rode the final 1:27 of the period and all but 11 seconds of the third before Joseph escaped. Weaver got a stalling point with 27 seconds left.
“He came back strong today,” Gilbert said. “He showed a lot of resilience coming back. Sometimes when you lose that semifinal, you kind of lose your head a little bit. He didn’t. He came back and got the next best thing. Third place is nothing to blink an eye at. It’s just a remarkable achievement.”
Weaver was already looking forward to next season and another run at a state title.
“I’m kind of sad the season is over,” Weaver said. “Even though I lost, I’m still happy to get the opportunity to wrestle. I could wrestle another season right now. I’m ready to go.”
Scott had been looking forward to wrestling Waters, who beat Bald Eagle Area’s Caleb Close, 11-1, in the finals. Even though he lost by technical fall, Scott was glad he got a chance to wrestle him.
“It was fun,” Scott said. “I love scrapping. He’s the best in the country.”
On Saturday, Scott put Brookville’s Easton Belfiore on his back twice for eight points in the second period en route to a 12-0 major decision.
Scott, who placed eighth as a sophomore, was attacking Bliss for most of the final minute losing 6-5. With less than 20 seconds left, Scott took a shot and Bliss countered by taking him down to his back for a five-point move.
“In my heart, I don’t think I’m fourth. I think I’m third,” Scott said, “but it was just the wrong place at the wrong time. It was a good tournament. I had a lot of fun. I love wrestling, so I can’t complain.”
“He got caught in the last second,” Tyrone coach Quentin Wright said. “Sometimes one little mistake can change the whole match. He had a great tournament. I’m really proud of the way he wrestled.”
Scott, who was 42-6 this season and is 117-26 in his career, will begin prepping for next season. Soon, he’s wrestle in the U.S. Open in Las Vegas to try to make the World team.
“This is what I do all year-round,” he said. “This is my joy, my passion. Getting better is not hard for me. It’s pretty easy.”
Ciampoli, who had a couple comeback wins in the tournament, scored his decisive takedown of Ferree with 16 seconds left in the first period. Ferree only managed an escape with 7 seconds remaining in the first and 41 seconds left in the third.
“It’s nice to end on a positive note,” Ciampoli said. “I had a couple close matches I had to dig deep in, but I’m just proud of my effort. I’m glad I could get it done.”
“He’s just a scrappy kid who finds a way to win,” Gilbert said. “Sometimes that makes a huge difference when you’re down here wrestling this top-level competition. He has a great upside for the next few years.”
Deputy wins title
In his third Class 2A finals appearance, Chestnut Ridge’s two-time runner-up Dominic Deputy won his first title at 121 with a 4-2 win over Faith Christian Academy’s Gauge Botero.
“I fell short so many times here, so to finally get it done is amazing,” Deputy said. “I heard the roar of people right when I walked out and then on the podium. Everyone was pushing for me to get that done.”
Dominic hugged his coach and dad Josh afterward as time expired. Josh screamed and pounded the chair he had been sitting in.
“I just would have loved for my dad (Richard, who passed away two years ago) to be here to see it,” Josh said. “We were pulling in today to the Giant Center and Bon Jovi came on the radio, and that’s what my dad used to always play when taking me to wrestling tournaments. There were just a lot of emotions. Dom is such a good boy. I’m very lucky.”
Chestnut Ridge senior Easton Mull (114) took seventh, and Garrett Weyandt (107) placed eighth. Mull (46-9), who finished with 164 wins and 99 pins, earned his second state medal. Tussey Mountain’s Dakota Santamaria (107) placed fifth.
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