Curtis Nelson earns third straight district title amid strong Ridley showing

HATBORO — Ridley High junior Curtis Nelson had a tough time deciding which meant more … his third straight District 1 Class 3A wrestling championship, the Green Raiders’ team championship or his 100th career victory.

All of it occurred in one fell swoop when Nelson, the reigning Daily Times wrestler of the year, pinned Micah Lozano of Haverford in 3:35 at 114 pounds to spark the Green Raiders to a team title in the District 1 Class 3A South Region at Hatboro-Horsham High School. Five Ridley wrestlers are going to the regions next weekend, as are 19 others from Delco schools.

Nelson found it slightly cosmic that his first varsity victory also was against Lozano, a friend as well as a foe. Lozano also earned a spot in regions. Nelson pinned Lanier Gloster of Academy Park and Mustafa Khan of Upper Darby to stand atop the podium.

“I was pretty nervous coming into the tournament,” said Nelson, who had some cramps leading up to districts. “I wanted to get that No. 1 seed at regionals, so I had to win it here. My first match, I took it pretty fast, and I got my body right to go into the semifinals. That was a tough match, but I managed to get the guy from Upper Darby on his back. And then my coach told me we needed a pin for the team. So, I turned (the intensity) up some more.”

At 118 pounds, Cole McFarland of Haverford earned his second straight district championship. He won by fall in his first match and hung on for a 5-3 win over Ryan Allgeier of Hatboro-Horsham to reach the semis. McFarland defeated Tatum Dailey of Lower Merion, 2-1, in the championship round.

“That’s not how I usually look, I’ll say that,” McFarland said of a match that was at a standstill until he burst to his feet and took down his opponent. “I didn’t want to force anything or get into any bad positions. I kind of had to start something there and I came out on top.”

At 139 pounds, Chris Nesbitt of Ridley won his first district championship as he pinned Nathan O’Donnell of Upper Darby in 1:01. O’Donnell also is headed to regions. Nesbitt won two matches by fall to reach the final, pinning Caymin Grier of Springfield in his first match.

“I’m not normally one to celebrate but that was like the best feeling in the world,” Nesbitt said. “I mean, he beat me before, he’s a good wrestler and I just went out and got it.”

At 189 pounds, Michael Spielman of Strath Haven won two matches by fall to reach the final against Franco Latorre of Interboro. A freshman, Latorre pinned Luke Palladino of Ridley in 2:28 and Qadir Hayward of Cheltenham in 3:11 to meet Spielman in the final. Spielman prevailed, 6-2. He and Palladino are headed to regions in Oxford.

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Ridley’s Curtis Nelson, seen last year scoring a reversal against Wilson West Lawn’s McKaden Speece in a first-round win at 107 pounds at the PIAA Class 3A wrestling championships. Nelson is on his way again this year after a standout performance at districts Saturday. (Nate Heckenberger/For MediaNews Group)