Tyrone senior Kyle Scott walked into the Giant Center with a spotless 43–0 record and the weight of his own high expectations on his shoulders.
Match after match all winter, he had turned tough brackets into highlight reels, capturing both a District 6 and Southwest Regional title while tying, and then breaking, A.J. Schopp’s Tyrone career wins record along the way.
By the time he stepped onto the floor in Hershey, Scott wasn’t just another qualifier; he was one of the best wrestlers in Pennsylvania, and everyone in the building knew it.
“Honestly, I felt calm,” Scott said. “I knew I’d put in the work, and I just wanted to wrestle the way I have all year: hard, smart, and for the people back home watching.”
Which is exactly what he did throughout the tournament.
In his first bout, Scott attacked North Star’s Kasey Yoder early and never let off the gas, turning the match into a clinic in pressure and pace. Takedown after takedown piled up until the referee finally waved it off with a first‑period technical fall, 19–4.
Scott jogged off the mat with the same expression that defined his senior year. No celebration, just a quick handshake with Head Coach Quentin Wright.
Facing Fort LeBoeuf’s Aiden Struchen, the pattern didn’t change. Another barrage of offense by Scott ended in the second period with a 17–2 technical fall, sending a clear message to the rest of the bracket: the undefeated kid from Tyrone was here to chase a state title, not just a medal.
If the early rounds showcased Scott’s dominance, the semifinal showed his toughness.
Squaring off with Northwestern Lehigh’s Luke Fugazzotto, a three‑time state placewinner and George Mason commit, Scott knew he was in for a grind.
The match opened cautiously, with both wrestlers feeling each other out, trading ties and hand fights, searching for an opening.
But as it wore on, Scott’s conditioning and composure began to tip the balance.
A key takedown and strong mat returns turned the tide, and Scott locked down a 7–2 decision to punch his ticket to the first state final of his career.
“That semifinal was the moment,” Scott said. “You’ve got a three‑time placewinner across from you, a Division I kid, and I just wrestled my match. That’s what I try to do, stay myself when it’s hardest.”
For a few minutes afterward, amid high‑fives and hugs with his coaches, teammates, and family, Scott allowed himself to feel what he’d been chasing since he first stepped on a mat as a kid: he was just one match away from becoming a PIAA champion.
Waiting for him in the championship bout was Faith Christian’s Adam Waters, already a three‑time state champion and ranked among the top wrestlers in the country.
Waters, an Ohio State commit, was chasing history, a fourth straight state title, something only 14 other wrestlers in Pennsylvania state history had ever done.
A year earlier, in the 2025 state semifinals, Waters had dominated Scott in a 21–5 technical fall.
This time, it was clear from the opening whistle that the rematch would be a completely different story.
The first period was a high‑level chess match. Waters nearly scored on an early attack, but Scott somehow scrambled through, elevating and rolling to keep the match scoreless as the Tyrone crowd roared.
“I don’t even know what I was trying to do there,” Scott said with a laugh. “It was a little bit of desperation, but I’m used to those scramble positions. I wasn’t going to give him anything easy.”
After a scoreless opening frame, Waters escaped quickly in the second to grab a 1–0 lead, but Scott’s defense held firm.
Twice, Waters got in deep, and twice Scott found a way to survive, using angles and hips to keep the match within a single point.
Scott chose bottom in the third and escaped within 20 seconds, tying the bout at 1–1 and sending a jolt through the arena. For the first time all weekend, it felt like the seemingly untouchable Waters might actually be in a real dogfight.
“There was no doubt in my mind I could win that match,” Scott said. “Every single person who has wrestled Waters the past few years has gone in thinking they were going to lose. I refused to think that way.”
With 1:10 left in the third period, Waters finally broke through, finishing a single‑leg takedown after a long, balanced fight on one leg and turning a 1–1 tie into a 4–1 lead.
Scott tried to kick out and roll, but Waters’ grip on the ankle was too tight. The Ohio State recruit rode him out the rest of the match, securing his fourth straight state title, and leaving Scott as the silver medalist.
“Kyle is definitely not happy with losing,” Wright said. “But we have to put this in perspective. He just went six minutes with, in my opinion, the number one kid in the country pound‑for‑pound, and it was a one‑takedown match. He didn’t lose to ‘just another guy.’ He pushed a legend.”
One more stat underlined how far Scott had come: Waters’ 4–1 victory over Scott was the closest of any of his four state finals wins, closer than his pins in his first two title matches and his 11–1 major decision last year.
“If I didn’t come home with a gold medal, I wanted to come home with a silver medal and a fight,” Scott said. “I felt like I did that. No one has competed with him like that all year.”
The loss in the final was Scott’s first and only defeat of the season, leaving him with a 46–1 record and a silver medal in a bracket many considered the toughest in the state.
Along the way, he added to a 163–27 career mark that now stands as both Tyrone Area High School’s and Blair County’s all‑time wins record, breaking the previous standard set by former Golden Eagle great A.J. Schopp.
He also leaves Tyrone as a three‑time state medalist: eighth as a sophomore, fourth as a junior, and now second as a senior, along with his first District 6 and Southwest Regional crowns.
Scott later revealed he had been wrestling through a torn rotator cuff since September, relying on treatment and a cortisone shot in December just to stay on the mat. Still, he insisted he’d be “back to practicing on Monday.”
“It’s super enjoyable and makes me really, really happy,” he said. “I’ll keep doing this as long as I can until I have to get this shoulder fixed. That’s going to be a depressing day, but wrestling is what I love.”
Now, his next step is already set: Scott will continue his career at the University of Pittsburgh, where he’ll face the same kind of high‑level technique he saw from Waters in the final.
“Those guys are all that top‑of‑the‑line level. I just have to keep adapting my style. Saturday didn’t end how I dreamed, but it showed me I belong with the best,” Scott said of his future opponents in college, echoing what he said about Waters.
Before leaving Hershey, Scott made sure to talk less about himself and more about the people around him.
“I want to thank my parents and family, my biggest fans, and the Tyrone community,” he said. “This whole run showed me how a community can come together with support and encouragement. Tyrone really has my back, and that means more than any medal.”
VanAllman Builds for the Future
While Scott’s high school chapter is closing, sophomore Mason VanAllman’s story at states is just a beginning.
VanAllman punched his ticket to Hershey with a seventh‑place finish at the Southwest Regional Tournament, ending his year with a 35–14 record and an impressive 33 bonus‑point victories.
At Hershey, he ran into the kind of competition that can turn a young wrestler into a future contender.
In the preliminary round at 160 pounds, VanAllman faced Northwestern Lehigh’s Nolan Koehler, another sophomore, and fell by technical fall, 18–0, in the second period.
Dropped into the consolation bracket, he met Bentworth senior and four‑time state qualifier Owen Ivcic, the same opponent he had seen at regionals.
Once again, experience won the day, with VanAllman losing by a 16–0 technical fall in the third period, ending his tournament at 0–2.
On paper, the two tech falls might tell one story. To VanAllman, it told another.
“It was definitely more fun to be on the floor wrestling in front of everybody than just watching from the stands,” VanAllman said. “It’s so cool to know you’re actually out there at the state tournament. That’s a dream most young wrestlers have.”
Wright sees Hershey as a starting point, not a setback.
“I’m extremely proud of how Mason’s season progressed,” Wright said. “He showed so much maturity as a wrestler throughout the year and finished in the top 20 in the state at his weight. I know he’s going to build on this.”
VanAllman showed flashes of what he can become all season, physical on top, dangerous in scrambles, and willing to attack for big points instead of hanging on for decisions.
Wrestling on the Giant Center floor as a sophomore, surrounded by TV cameras, college coaches, and some of the best crowds in prep sports, gave him a taste of the level he wants to reach.
“Walking out there, you realize how big the stage is,” VanAllman said. “Yeah, the results weren’t what I wanted, but now I know what it feels like. I’ll remember that every day in the cage for the next two years.”
With two seasons still ahead of him, VanAllman is expected to be a leader for Tyrone in 2026–27, both in the practice room and on the scoreboard. His trip to states may not have ended with a medal, but it gave him perspective and proof that he belongs.
Putting the Season in Perspective
As the mats were rolled up and the lights dimmed at the Giant Center in Hershey, the weekend ended without a state champion, but not without a statement.
Scott walked out with a silver medal, a 46–1 season, and a legacy that includes school and county records, three state medals, and a future academic and wrestling career at the University of Pittsburgh.
VanAllman capped an outstanding 35–14 sophomore season, a top‑20 state finish, and a clear picture of what it takes to climb the podium.
For Tyrone, this trip to Hershey was more than just the end of a season. It was a bridge from a senior who turned himself into one of the best wrestlers in the state, to a sophomore just starting to understand how high he can climb.
“Kyle has been the spark to get things moving in the right direction,” Wright said. “He’s a leader who inspired others in the wrestling room, and a lot of people are going to remember his work ethic for a long time. Mason is the next wave. He’s going to take what he learned here and carry it forward.”
