Cover photo courtesy of Jeff Pataky
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Clarence completed the 2024-2025 ECIC I wrestling slate on Thursday at home with a 45-19 win over archrival Lancaster in the latest edition of the Border Brawl.
With the win, the Red Devils secured the outright division championship finishing unbeaten in league duals at 7-0 for the first time since the 2018-2019 season under previous head coach Jason Chase.
As well, defending Section VI champion and NYS 8th place winner AJ Didas became the 3rd wrestler in program history and the 48th in WNY history to reach the 200 career wins mark with a first period pin to end the dual.
“The kids bought into the mentality of ‘if you work hard good things will happen,’ and they worked hard,” said Clarence head wrestling coach Keith Stoerr after the match. “It takes leadership from kids like AJ, it takes buy in from kids like Trevor [Mueller] and Zach Didas, it takes a little bit of luck with staying healthy. This championship didn’t start in November…it started in practices last June.”
Clarence coaches // Pataky
The WNY #3 ranked Red Devils remained perfect in league matches this season in perhaps the deepest division in WNY as six of the league’s eight teams are featured in the top-10 and honorable mention of the current large school dual team rankings. In addition to claiming the outright division title, Clarence reached the Section VI Division I Dual Meet Championships final for the first time in the program’s eight appearances at the Duals.
Against the #8 Legends, Clarence won the first seven matches in a forfeit-less showdown of WNY blue-blood rivals and teams perennially in the top-3 of the league standings. Starting with a Mueller pin at 152-pounds, the Red Devils jumped out to a 33-0 lead before Lancaster’s first points courtesy of a Noah Schaal decision at 108.
Clarence's Gianmarco Ballarin // Pataky
“We are lucky to have a key part of our lineup in our upper weights. Austin Parlato and Kaius Mattoon stepping up and grinding out tough decisions was the cushion that we needed to feel safe in this dual,” said Stoerr. “Mueller did his job. Matt Cox did his job. Charlie Fleming did his job. Timofey Dolovskiy did his job.”
Fleming // Pataky
Dolovskiy // Pataky
Mattoon // Pataky
152: Trevor Mueller (C) p.
Michael Jackson (L), 1P
160: Austin Parlato (C) dec.
Isaac Black (L), 9-7
170: Matt Cox (C) p.
Dylan Pierce (L), 2P
190: Charles Fleming (C) p.
Andrij Petryshyn (L), 3P
215: Timofey Dolovskiy (C) md.
Santiago Rendon (L), 12-4
285: Kaius Mattoon (C) dec.
Brayden Campbell (L), 1-0
101: Zach Didas (C) tf.
Lawson Chrapa
108: Noah Schaal (L) dec.
Gianmarco Ballarin (C), 5-1
116: Isaiah Harry (L) p.
Charlie D’Amico (C), 3P
124: Josh Randolph (C) p.
Yoseph Alshamary (L), 2P
131: Wyatt Griffith (L) md.
Phil Gulisano (C), 10-2
138: Ricky Andres (L) p.
Gavin Ketcherside (C), 1P
145: AJ Didas (C) p.
Josh Rosenberg (L), 1P
Clarence's Zach Didas // Pataky
Senior AJ Didas joined program wins leaders Aiden Rabideau (212 wins) and Nate Schwab (204) atop the all-time Clarence Wrestling wins list with his pin against the Legends on Thursday. Didas has been on the varsity team since 7th grade and has been a leader both on and off the mat for the Red Devils throughout his career.
Didas // Pataky
“AJ showed us the blueprint of what it means to be great,” said Stoerr on his star senior. “In the classroom, in the hallways, at his job, he’s excellent at every facet of the game. He runs every morning and every night, he lifts, he keeps his diet under control, he does all the right things all the time. He doesn’t have ‘off days.’ If he’s not having his best day, he works through it until it is. The way that he works in the practice room is the reason why Parlato and Cox got better, is the reason why Mueller continues to get better. If you look at the kids AJ drills with, they’re the ones that get better just by being around him and his level of intensity.”
Clarence assistant coach Anthony Libertore (l), Didas, and Stoerr (r) // Pataky
The Red Devils finish the 2024-2025 season at 7-0 in the league and 20-3 overall. Clarence was truly tested in the first week of January when the team reached the Duals final for the first time falling by a narrow 3-point margin to #2 ranked Niagara Wheatfield on Jan. 4 before traveling to one of the toughest home gym environments in WNY for a non-league dual against Pioneer on the 7th, only one night before a crucial road showdown at Frontier with big league implications on the line on the 8th. The Red Devils gutted out four wins over ranked teams in those four days.
2024-2025 Clarence scores vs. league opponents:
Dec. 11: Clarence 42
HM West Seneca/Depew 20
Dec. 18: Clarence 38
HM Orchard Park 28
Jan. 8: Clarence 43
#6 Frontier 21
Jan. 15: Clarence 54
Sweet Home 16
Jan. 29: Clarence 48
#10 Jamestown 27
Feb. 5: Clarence 60
Williamsville North 16
Feb. 6: Clarence 45
#8 Lancaster 19
2024-2025 ECIC I final standings:
1. Clarence 7-0
2. Frontier 6-1
3. Lancaster 5-2
4. Jamestown 3-4
5. Orchard Park 3-4
6. West Seneca/Depew 2-5
7. Williamsville North 1-6
8. Sweet Home 1-6
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