NEW HOLLAND: Solanco's Alec Proffit was a bit frustrated with himself in the opening stages of his Lancaster-Lebanon League Championship quarterfinal.
Forget that he was a seventh seed facing No. 2 seed Josh Renninger, of Annville-Cleona. Proffit wasn't pleased that he fell behind.
But instead of losing his head, letting emotion set in, Proffit went to work. And not only did he storm back to regain the lead, he pinned Renninger in 5:18 to blast his way into Saturday's 120-pound semifinal.
“I shouldn't have been down in the first place,” Proffit said. “I should have had a takedown in the first period.
“I just had to keep working and staying positive.”
Proffit, a senior, erased a three-point deficit to head to the third period knotted at 3. He escaped off bottom and took his first lead 4-3.
Renninger never recovered. Proffit landed a takedown and put the A-C sophomore on his back to earn the fall.
“I had a good feeling that I was going to get the pin and if nothing else, I was going to get the win,” Proffit said. “There's been a lot of wrestling, and it's tough cutting weight. This makes it all worth it.
“Last year, I was seeded seventh and finished third. It was a disappointment to be seeded where I was, but that's the way it works. Sometimes you get a higher seed, sometimes, you don't. You have to beat all the guys if you want to win.”
The Mules placed five wrestlers in the semifinals.
Top seeded Connor Sheehan was the first at 106. Proffit was next, followed by Wyatt Jennings (126), who survived a late flurry by Garden Spot's Tyler Marburger to take a 15-10 quarterfinal decision.
Bo Spiller (220) spent a total of 29 seconds on the mat in his two wins. Thomas Haines (285) gave the Mules, who holds the lead in the team standings by 9.5 points over Manheim Central, more bonus points with a 50-second pin over Penn Manor's Mark Conrad.
Lancaster-Lebanon Championships (Jan. 24-25)
Event news and team scores
Winners brackets:
106 | 113 | 120 | 126 | 132 | 138 | 145
152 | 160 | 170 | 182 | 195 | 220 | 285
New Oxford Invitational (Jan. 24-25)
Event news and team scores
Winners brackets:
106 | 113 | 120 | 126 | 132 | 138 | 145
152 | 160 | 170 | 182 | 195 | 220 | 285