Bethlehem Press

Jeff Karam couldn’t remember the last time Bethlehem Catholic’s wrestling program lost two dual meets in one day, but that’s how Sunday afternoon unfolded for the Hawks at FloWrestling’s Who’s #1 Duals at Easton Area Middle School, as Becahi dropped their final two dual meets of the national showcase.

Liberty made their annual trek to the Virginia Duals over the weekend and the Hurricanes came home with a new found understanding of their potential.

The ’Canes finished 1-2 in the National Division, losing tight bouts to Christianburg (Va.) 35-28 and Erie Cathedral prep 31-30.

Not being able to pull out wins in those matches may have been disappointing to Liberty head coach Jody Karam, but it showed what his team is capable of in taking on two power programs.

Freedom came home from Maryland over the weekend with a sixth place team finish from the War on the Shore tournament, as the Patriots placed 10 wrestlers in the event.

Ryan DeLoach (182) and Andrew Evans (132) led the way with third place finishes for the Pates, as it was a positive weekend for the team heading into a tough slate of matches this week against Northampton and Liberty.

When it comes to taking part in basketball events, there’s one that stands out above the rest for Liberty head coach Chad Landis. Taking part in the Yasso-Rothrock Christmas City Classic has a deeper meaning for the Hurricane coach, who worked under Todd Rothrock as an assistant at Liberty before taking over as head coach of the program nine years ago.

Bethlehem Catholic started fast and never looked back in Wednesday night’s 45-22 victory over Northampton in a battle of unbeaten East Penn Conference foes at Pete Schneider Gymnasium.

The Hawks (6-0) won seven straight bouts after Northampton (8-1) started the match with a 10-1 major decision by Cade Moisey over Ryan Zeiner at 170.

Becahi led 20-4 heading into 106, where the bout became unofficially over after Dillon Murphy pinned Joey Tiwold in 3:29 to push Becahi’s lead to 26-4 and sink any momentum the Kids looked to pick up heading into the strength of their lineup.

Bethlehem Catholic will have its eyes set on reaching the finals of FloWrestling’s Who’s #1 Duals for the second-straight year when the event comes to Easton Area Middle School on Sunday, Jan. 22.

The Hawks took part in the inaugural all-day event last year at Penn’s fabled Palestra, but with the move to Easton, it should spark greater interest and attendance.

The eight-team tournament will feature two pools of four teams, where each team will wrestle another in their respective pool before taking on the same placing team in the afternoon placing rounds.

The Yasso-Rothrock Christmas City Classic basketball tournament will take place this Saturday at Freedom with a slate of matchups featuring each of Bethlehem’s boys’ programs.

The varsity action tips off at 4 p.m. when Bethlehem Catholic takes on Lincoln Leadership Academy, followed by a 6 p.m. slate between Liberty and Blue Mountain. The nightcap will feature Freedom taking on Bangor at 8 p.m.

There’s potential and then there’s results and Bethlehem Catholic has reached the mark on both of those halfway through the basketball season. The Golden Hawks enter the second half of the year with a 7-3 record heading into Tuesday’s EPC contest with Stroudsburg.

But besides starting the year off on the right foot, the Hawks are also proving to head coach Ray Barbosa that they can compete with anyone, highlighted by last week’s 53-52 loss to Allen.

It was another Tony Iasiello Christmas City Wrestling Tournament, but it was the same result last week as the host Golden Hawks crowned five champions at their event, posting 279 team points en route to rolling to the team title.

While the Hawks got expected titles from Mikey Labriola (182), Jody Crouse (195) and Niko Camacho (HWT), two of their freshmen showed that no matter who graduates any given year, the Hawks always come back with a loaded stable of talent.

Starting fast and executing late have been two areas of play that Liberty’s basketball team has struggled with this season, but the Hurricanes hit on both those areas during the opener of the Parkland Holiday Scholastic Play-by-Play classic last Tuesday.

Liberty jumped out to a 22-8 first quarter lead on the hosts and held on for a 72-64 victory last Tuesday night. The Hurricanes couldn’t sustain that momentum the following night against a talented Harrisburg squad, falling 86-51.