Stock Report: Five Pennsylvania Wrestlers Who Made Moves at The Journeymen Fall Classic
Name: Patrick Noonan
High School: Stroudsburg
Year: Senior
College: Uncommitted
Club: Dark Knights
If Patrick Noonan wrestled like he does in New York at the GIANT Center – he could very well have a State Championship to his name. The Stroudsburg senior claimed his third Journeymen Hammer at the renowned tournament after a season where he made his second trip to Hershey. In Round #1 Patrick downed 2-time North Carolina State Champion Jaxon Maroney 11-5 before pinning Rhode Island’s Christopher Gomez in the first period of Round #2. Next up he got 3-time Georgia State Medalist and 2-time State Finalist Julian Farber – grinding out a 4-2 win in Round #3. Noonan finished on a single-leg in the first period and added an escape in the second period to go up 3-0. In the third period Farber collected a takedown but Noonan escaped to hold on 4-2.
In the semifinals of the round-robin pool Noonan, a senior who is uncommitted, downed 2-time Massachusetts State Champion Maximilian Leete by a 7-2 score. That set up a meeting with former Wyoming Seminary grappler Timothy Levine who now competes for St. John Bosco in California. Levine entered the Journeymen ranked #19 in the Nation by Flo at 126 pounds – whereas Noonan was Honorable Mention. In a lopsided match Noonan secured his third career Journeymen Hammer award with a 12-2 major decision in the finals. In their updated high school rankings, Flo now ranks Noonan #19 in the Nation at 126 pounds.
Name: Kaden Cassidy
High School: Bedford
Year: Senior
College: George Mason
Club: Quest
Entering his senior season at Bedford, Kaden Cassidy is looking for the final touch on an up-and-down career. He was third in the State at 106 pounds his rookie season at Bishop McCort before heading to Chestnut Ridge his sophomore season. Despite a promising outlook for the sophomore, Kaden suffered a season ending injury that limited him to a 6-1 record. After moving back to Bedford, where he attended elementary and junior high, Cassidy got back on track competing at 132 pounds. His only defeat at the 2019 State Tournament came at the hands of eventual State Champion Josh Jones (Saucon Valley) in the semifinals. Ironically, Jones left for George Mason after racking up 154 career wins for Saucon Valley, the same place Cassidy plans to enroll after his high school career.
At the 2019 Journeymen, Kaden went 3-1 competing at 135 pounds, but showed his ability to battle. In the first round he faced fellow Pennsylvania wrestler Patrick Edmoundson (Southern Columbia) who was 6th in the State as a freshman in 2018. Cassidy connected on a low-single right off the whistle and added two back-points off a well executed roll-through tilt. Edmoundson reversed Cassidy in the second but Cassidy escaped in the third to win it 5-2. His next two matches weren’t much of any competition as he outscored his two opponents 29-1. He earned a tech-fall over Jacob Dease (Alabama) in the first period 15-0 and followed that up with a 14-0 major decision over New York’s Gavin Damasco. In the finals Cassidy took on Frankie Tal-Shahar of Florida who entered ranked #5 in the Nation by Flo at 132 pounds. The 2019 Florida State Champion was a FloNationals Champion and also a Fargo Cadet All-American.
In the Journeymen finals Cassidy struck first with a low-single that he finished on the edge. Once again Kaden’s top game was on point when he hit a roll-through tilt for five swipes to up 5-0 on Tal-Shahar. The Northwestern commit escaped and quickly connected on a high-crotch to cut Cassidy’s lead to 5-3. An escape by Cassidy ended the first period with him ahead 6-3. In the second period Cassidy escaped to extend his lead 7-3 but it would be the last points he’d score of the match. Tal-Shahar got a hold of Cassidy’s ankle on the edge and he dragged him back in for another takedown. Tal-Shahar took bottom in the third period and escaped cutting Cassidy’s lead to 7-6. Another high-crotch connection brought him ahead 8-7 late in the third as Tal-Shahar closed it out for the win. Despite not winning the Championship it brought him up a spot in Flo’s National Rankings to #15 at 138 pounds.
Name: Avery Bassett
High School: Midd-West
Year: Junior
College: Uncommitted
Club: Team Nauman
The 145 pounds Group A bracket was chalked full of Pennsylvania wrestlers with State Champion Ed Scott claiming the Hammer award. One of the most impressive performances, however, came when Avery Bassett, a 2-time State Qualifier from Midd-West, took seventh with a 3-2 record in New York. Despite a 15-6 major decision defeat at the hands of Ed Scott (Dubois), Bassett rebounded with a 12-5 win over New York State Champion Ryan Burgos of Hilton, NY in Round #2. He defeated yet another State Champion in Round #3 when he took out Dallas Wilson of Wichita, Kansas by a 6-3 score.
He fell in Round #4 to Lake Highland Prep stud Noah Castillo of Florida 8-3, which sent him into the seventh place match. There he faced off with Team Nauman teammate Ty Linsenbigler (Hempfield Area) who last year was 4th in the State Tournament. After a scoreless first period Linsenbigler escaped but Bassett hit a slick low-single, finishing it for a 2-1 lead. In the third period Bassett reversed Linsenbigler and rode him out for the remainder of the period, earning a stalling point along the way, to win it 5-1.
Name: AJ Tamburrino
High School: Hatboro-Horsham
Year: Senior
College: Uncommitted
Club: PRTC
Unsigned senior AJ Tamburrino didn’t leave New York with a Journeymen Hammer but he did have four impressive matches where he went 3-1 on the day and finished as the runner-up. AJ defeated two top ten ranked wrestler in the Nation by Flo at 152 pounds and fell to the #2 ranked wrestler in the Nation at 145 pounds – Peyton Hall (West Virginia). In his first match Tamburrino took on Matt Lee (Indiana), a Penn State commit who entered ranked #10 in the Nation by Flo. AJ, who last season was third in the State during his first trip to Hershey, took it to Lee winning the match 5-0. He next majored Virginia’s Keegan Coon by a 10-1 score in Round #2.
In the semifinals he took on N.C. State recruit and the #9 ranked wrestler in the Nation AJ Kovacs (New York). The two exchanged takedown attempts in a scoreless first period before Kovacs escaped to start the second period. Tamburrino brought it to 1-1 after earning an escape in the third period. With time in regulation running out Tamburrino hit a head-outside single, which he quickly doubled off, and cleanly finished the takedown to go up 3-1. An escape was awarded to Kovacs but time expired with Tamburrino earning the win and a spot on the finals. There he took on West Virginia’s Peyton Hall who competes for Pennsylvania based club Quest School of Wrestling. After a scoreless first period – Tamburrino took down to start the second and escaped to go ahead 1-0. Hall, who entered ranked #2 in the Nation by Flo at 145 pounds, connected on a head-outside single leg after a flurry, which he converted for two. In the third period Hall escaped and held AJ off winning it 3-1. His two wins over two top ten Nationally ranked wrestlers landed Tamburrino all the way from unranked to #10 in the Nation by Flo at 152 pounds.
Name: Mac Stout
High School: Mount Lebanon
Year: Sophomore
College: Uncommitted
Club: Quest
The youngest of three Stout brothers, Mac was a regional qualifier as a rookie last year going 32-10 and taking seventh at the POWERade. The Mount Lebanon sophomore had a terrific Journeymen going 4-1 finishing third at 160 pounds in Group A. In the first round he pinned New Jersey’s Robert Woodcock in the second period before defeating Camden Catholic, NJ wrestler Harrison Hinojosa in Round #2 by decision 7-1. In the third round he upended Delaware State Champion Nicholas Hall 3-1.
In the semifinals Stout took on California’s Cael Valencia who entered the Journeymen ranked #6 in the Nation by Flo at 160 pounds. Stout, a 2019 Fargo Cadet Finalist, fought-off a takedown attempt by Valencia in a scoreless first period. Valencia escaped in the second but Stout started pushing the pace and ended up dumping Valencia to his hip and quickly spun around for a takedown. Valencia never stopped moving and was able to reverse Stout near the edge to go ahead 3-2. Mac tied it up 3-3 with an escape late in the second but Valencia countered a half-shot from Stout and earned a takedown to go ahead 5-3. Stout would escape in the third but Valencia held on for the 5-4 win – advancing into the finals where he defeated Stout’s Quest teammate Thayne Lawerence (Fraizer). In the third place match Mac rebounded by defeating Massachusetts wrestler Christian Cassella by decision 3-2. In Flo’s updated National Rankings, Stout moved into the Top 20 for the first time in his career coming in at #19.