Tide wrestlers dominate at Upper Dauphin

The December part of the Columbia wrestling team's schedule has been anything but an early Christmas present.
There was a season-opening match with Hanover traditionally one of the top programs in York County and three league matches with some of the top teams in Section 3 of the L-L League and a trip to the northern parts of Dauphin County for a day of dual meets.
The Tide enters the week before Christmas with two more league matches with Annville-Cleona and Elco. Last week, the Tide opened Section 3 play with a heart breaking loss to Donegal, but bounced back in a big way Saturday to win the Upper Dauphin Duals.
Saturday in Elizabethville, the Tide went 4-0, beating the home team,  Upper Dauphin, 44-36 in the last match of the game.
That one pitted brother against brother as the Tide's Scott Rupp beat his older brother Todd, the UDA  coach.
In that one, the Tide got five pins from Todd Lingafelt, Jotrdan Halter, Byran Flory, Marcus Fischer and John Markley to score the win. Derek Zercher also won his match by a tech fall and Nate Warner was a winner by forfeit. Josh Elliot was a winner by decision.
The other three matches for the Tide were relatively easy one. Columbia beat Trinity, 66-11; Twin Valley, 60-14 and Camp Hill, 69-6.
Against Trinity, the Tide won eight bouts by forfeit and got pins from Ezar Bush and Byron Germer. Johnny Vazquez won his match by decision.
In the Twin Valley match, Columbia picked up six wins by forfeit and got pins from Markley and Fischer.
In the Camp Hill match, the Tide got eight wins by forfeit.
In the league opener, Donegal topped the Tide, 42-35.
Columbia led the match 23-12 after getting Zercher and Elliot, a tech fall from Warner and decisions fro Halter and Lingafelt before Donegal won five of the next six bouts to take command of the match. The lone win during that tie was a pin by Fischer. Columbia also won the final bout of the night when Rachael Knighton won by forfeit.