Wrestling: Livingston rocks cradle, Upper Darby stays alive

UPPER DUBLIN >> Upper Darby moved one step closer to the PIAA AAA State Wrestling Tournament Friday night. The Royals, seeded fourth in District One Duals, went 1-1 at Upper Dublin High School, defeating No. 12 West Chester Rustin 35-30 before falling to No. 1 Boyertown 68-9. As anticlimactic as the match-up with the Bears proved to be, the battle against the Knights produced theater of the highest drama. Like last week against West Chester East, the Royals started slowly. Rustin won four of the first five matches to take a 18-6 lead. The lone early contribution for Upper Darby came from a reliable source. Brian Kennerly, at 195 pounds, got the Royals on the board with a pin of Nick Harris in 37 seconds.

“When things start breaking down, guys start disbelieving. You just have to stay in the match,” said Kennerly, who pushed his season record to 28-3 by later beating Boyertown’s Brody O’Connell, 9-5. “You can’t just tell everyone to go out there and score points. You have to lead out there and show that you’ll score points so they can follow you.”

His method worked. By the time the match reached the 138-pound weight class, Upper Darby had narrowed the gap to 30-21. At that point, with three bouts to go, Royals head coach Bob Martin needed to make a decision. He knew he had stalwarts Colin Cronin, who typically wrestles at 138, and Max Livingston, a 152-pounder, in tow. What he didn’t know was how Simranjeet Singh would handle Daniel Labus at 145. A loss of any kind would have sent the Royals to the consolation bracket. So Martin gambled. Singh and Cronin switched weight classes.

“That was real tough for (Singh). He knew he had to go out there and win,” Livingston said. “Sim really showed himself tonight.”

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Upper Darby’s Max Livingston celebrates after his pin of Collin Hurley at 152 pounds to seal a 35-30 win over Rustin in District One Duals Friday. (Digital First Media/Nate Heckenberger)