HERSHEY: Cody Miller approached the mat with the weight of his team's fortune and a raucous fan base on his shoulders.
The task was simple. Earn a pin over Brookville's Noah Cielseski in the last bout, and the Hawks tie favored Brookville, the third-ranked team in the state, and win on criteria.
No pressure, kid.
With the chant of “Cody, Cody, Cody” ringing through the Giant Center, Miller planted Cielseski — he put him on his back twice — and scored a fall a mere 20 seconds from the final whistle to bring the score to 33-33.
Hamburg advanced to Friday's 8 p.m. Class AA semifinal round against Bethlehem Catholic on Criteria D, most bouts won (8-6).
“I came out excited in the first period,” the Hawks senior said. “I think I tired myself out, and it started to get to me.
“I looked at the clock and saw there was only 58 seconds left. I'm a captain on this team, so I needed to step up.”
Continued Miller, “I hit a cement throw and gave it all I could. I'm dead right now and can barely talk.”
It's been a big season for the Hawks.
They carved their way through the schedule, scoring victories over Schuylkill Valley and Class AAA state qualifier Exeter Twp.
Still, many thought this squad didn't belong because the power ratings system pitted powerful Bermudian Springs against Boiling Springs in the semifinals. It ended up leading to the Hawks as the No. 2 qualifier from District 3.
Bermudian Springs may be better than Hamburg. Maybe not. But the Hawks have shown to be worthy of their standing.
That was evident in bonus-point victories by Luke Kamp (195), Chris Kummerer (132), Nick Oswald (138) and Miller (182), who carried this team past Brookville.
“I always dreamed of making the semifinals of state team, but I never thought we would actually get this far,” Miller said. “We have all started to wrestle better and have come together as a family.
“People don't think we should be here. Bermudian is a great team and they deserve to be here, but there are some teams that don't deserve to be here. We're not one of them.”
Live brackets:
Class AAA: Winners' bracket | Consolation bracket
Class AA: Winners' bracket | Consolation bracket