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Alton twins’ careers enter legendary lore
By Guy Cipriano
Centre Daily Times
HERSHEY — The first practice of Andrew and Dylan Alton’s varsity careers started with a hilly four-mile run through land behind Central Mountain High School.
The twins don’t ease into athletic tasks, so Andrew and Dylan took off with teammate Corey Poff, a member of the school’s cross country team.
A designed jog turned into a grueling test of endurance. Neither Alton wanted to lose.
Not to a trained runner. Not to a teammate.
Poff returned to the high school first. Sprints in the wrestling room ensued.
A mentality was established. The run marked the beginning of a four-year sprint, one that culminated Saturday night with the Altons leading Central Mountain to its first PIAA Class AAA team title.
The sweat dropped in Clinton County pushed the Wildcats to the top of Pennsylvania’s wrestling mountain.
Every team loss during this weekend’s tournament stung. But so did losses in the practice room. The Altons almost always sparked the fierce intra-squad competitions.
The twins and their teammates competed everywhere. On the way to tournaments, they played games in the van. In the hotel at tournaments, they played cards. Allowing points in their own practice room caused outrage.
“We don’t like to get taken down, even in practice,” Andrew said. “Winning in the practice room makes us better because we are competitive. We just want to beat up on each other.”
The Altons beat many others up in high school. Andrew won 145-pound title by dumping West Allegheny’s 23-8 to complete a 45-0 senior season. Dylan won the 152-pound title by defeating LaSalle College’s Shawn Springer 11-4 to also finish 45-0. They combined for 354 high school victories and five state titles.
But the hardware they sought the most this weekend entered their possession late Saturday night: the PIAA championship trophy. The Wildcats are the first team in any sport from Clinton County to capture a PIAA title.
Andrew pinned three opponents and added a technical fall on his way to the title. Dylan opened the tournament with a pin and major decision. Every bonus point was needed because the Wildcats lost two wrestlers, including three-time PIAA placewinner Jordan Rich, to injuries.
The team title drove the Altons all weekend. The Wildcats were close to winning one last month, losing to Central Dauphin 35-34 during the semifinals of the PIAA duals.
“We have all been together for the last four years,” Dylan said after Rich went down with an ankle injury Friday. “Winning that team title would make it all worthwhile. Getting that team title is what we are working for.”
The presence of two chiseled and highly-competitive middleweights made other Wildcats tougher. Central Mountain qualified every wrestler from 135 to 171 for this year‘s state tournament. That’s no accident.
“That’s what gets a team to its full potential, making everybody better around you,” Andrew said. “We have tried to get this team to its full potential.”
Potential isn’t a new term when it comes to the Altons. They had many in wrestling-crazy Clinton County buzzing before their first varsity workouts. The euphoria increased as the Altons and three other freshmen— Rich, Dylan Caprio and Cody Dolan — played major parts in a 19-2 season.
Central Mountain coach Doug Buckwalter, a former Lock Haven assistant coach who returned to the high school level in 2004, led his talented class with an open mind. But on Friday, Buckwalter, who received Class AAA Coach of the Year honors before the finals, slapped a label on the Altons.
“At the high school level they are the best that I have ever coached,” he said. “They are two of the best the state have ever produced. Expectations? I don’t know what my expectations were coming in. But what they do in the practice room and how hard they work is everything you can ever, ever expect.”
The Altons resemble the wrestlers they idolized. Their father, Neil, introduced them to Cary Kolat, John Hughes, Russ Hughes and Sanshiro Abe. The twins were ring bearers in Kolat’s wedding.
The Altons join the Hughes’ as the most accomplished twins in Pennsylvania high school wrestling history. John and Russ, who both wrestled at Penn State, combined to win seven Class AA individual titles. The duo helped Benton win team titles in 1988 and ‘91.
The Hughes brothers are also known for their intense ways and making others around them better. Russ coached his alma mater to the Class AA team title this weekend while John is an assistant at Lehigh.
“They are hard to compare with,” Dylan said.
And so are the Altons. Every major program recruited the duo, but Penn State’s decision to hire Cael Sanderson sealed their futures last April. They are the first two recruits of the Sanderson era, a duo that could elevate Penn State to the level of Midwest powers Iowa and Oklahoma State.
The Altons will likely begin their careers as 141-and 149-pounders. Their pedigrees suggest one could fill a projected hole at 141 next season, although Sanderson prefers redshirting freshmen. Andrew said decisions regarding next season are Sander-son’s.
“It’s not really my choice,” he said. “Whatever Cael wants, I’m fine with.”
Buckwalter said Penn State is getting two gems.
“I guess the big thing about them is that everybody has good guys that come through but they don’t do everything right or they don’t work or they are trouble in school,” he said. “That’s not the case. These guys are the total package. That’s what makes them such great recruits at the next level.
“They are going to do everything they need to be successful at that level and that’s key because what they are trying to build at Penn State. They want that kind of athlete. I think they are going to be a perfect example.”
Tags: Cael Sanderson, Dylan Alton
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