At Saturday’s Dandy Duals in Towanda, the Red Raiders ran the table against a strong, six-team array of opponents, winning all six matches by a combined score of 324-89 to claim the tournament title in dominant fashion. That included a 44-28 win over previous champion Bald Eagle Area, a 62-6 win over previous – albeit gutted – runner-up Towanda and a 35-28 win over No. 20 Honesdale to cap off the run.

“It’s a great day to be a Red Raider,” said Montgomery head coach Denny Harer when discussing the performance.

“We’re excited. We have a good mixture of senior leadership and young kids, and it’s neat to watch them all gel. Just talked to the team about how it’s been so fun, how we’re in mid-season form already. We’re wrestling really well, and we’re up a weight.”

The effort was led by two-time state champ Brandt Harer, who needed less than four minutes to rack up two pins and three tech falls – all in the first period – before finishing a stellar run with a win by forfeit. For the senior, that performance was enough to earn him the Most Outstanding wrestler award for the tournament.

CHRIS MANNING/Sun-Gazette Correspondent Montgomery's AJ Kroft wrestles Bald Eagle Area's Dawson Lomison at 145 during a dual match at Dandy Duals on Saturday, Dec. 13, 2025, at Towanda.

Apart from Harer, Manny Stoltzfus, Liam Seeley and Carden Wagner also finished undefeated, with Seeley doing so without a win by forfeit on the board and six of his wins featuring bonus points. With the match on the line against Honesdale, Montgomery’s lead at 31-28, the sophomore kept up the intensity, posting a 15-4 major decision to seal the deal.

Wagner’s first four competitive matches closed in the first period, as the senior compiled four first-period pins and 34 team points to lead all Red Raiders. Fellow senior Manny Stoltzfus saw resistance late but didn’t budge, adding two decisions to a first-period fall and tech fall. And falling just short of perfection were Trace Furman, Raiden Felix and freshman Gabe Oberheim, who dropped one match each but provided a considerable impact.

It was an all-hands-on-desk style outing where even the less proven weights prospered. When discussing standouts, Harer couldn’t narrow it down to one wrestler, as everybody played a role.

“It really was a team effort,” said Harer. “We had three kids today that were sick as a dog and they wrestled, competed and won matches.”

“We talk everyday at practice about taking ground, being relentless, being a bully, and our kids did that for the most part. We’ve still got quite a bit of work to do, but the kids are buying in. They’re doing what we say of them,” he added.

CHRIS MANNING/Sun-Gazette Correspondent Montgomery's Liam Seeley wrestles Bald Eagle Area's Liam Purcell at 127 during a dual match at Dandy Duals on Saturday, Dec. 13, 2025, at Towanda.

Apart from Montgomery, Jersey Shore also competed at the event. The team displayed strides despite losing progressing depth from last season, facing a near-identical Dandy Duals slate to the one it faced in 2024.

It cut last year’s deficit against the Eagles (54-7) by 17, logged an additional win over North Penn-Liberty – a team it lost to 45-24 in 2024 – and showed more consistency in general, particularly from 152 to 189 pounds.

“I’m pleased with the guys’ performance,” said Jersey Shore head coach Tony Owens.

“We have some little things we’ve got to work on and holes in our lineup. With the forfeits, it’s difficult to compete against teams like this. But in the head-to-head matchups, I was pleased with our guys. All in all, I think our guys wrestled as well as they could have given the circumstances.”

Fighting through an ankle injury against arguably the toughest weight class of the event (152), sophomore Louden Spotts continued to show massive improvements, holding his own against No. 4 Caden Judice, falling to the two-time state medalist by 4-1 decision. He capped his day early with a 2-2 record, but holding his own there speaks volumes.

CHRIS MANNING/Sun-Gazette Correspondent Jersey Shore's Aiden Patts wrestles Montgomery's Gage Furman at 215 during a dual match at Dandy Duals on Saturday, Dec. 13, 2025, at Towanda.

At 160, junior Tobias Morgret had an outstanding day, finishing 5-1 with five bonus-point victories and his lone loss coming against No. 21 Trace Furman (Montgomery). Senior Jonathan Dincher also finished 5-1 – his lone loss coming by 10-7 decision – with a team-high four pins.

“Those guys wrestled really well,” said Owens on the trio. “Tobias Morgret wrestled a really good tournament this weekend and obviously, Jon had four pins out of six matches, which is really good for him.”

“If we get our guys in the right weight classes, we’re going to be pretty good. We’ve got guys in positions; we’re getting more guys out for the team. It’s looking a little better for us for the future,” he added.

Following the tournament, both teams return to action on Tuesday.

And Jersey Shore (2-4) hosts Muncy (0-0) at 7 p.m.

CHRIS MANNING/Sun-Gazette Correspondent Bald Eagle Area's Tanner Guenot wrestles Montgomery's Jayden Rupert at 133 during a dual match at Dandy Duals on Saturday, Dec. 13, 2025, at Towanda.

“If we can get through the next three duals and get our two-pound weight allowance, I think we’ll be okay for the second-half of the season,” said Owens.

CHRIS MANNING/Sun-Gazette Correspondent Montgomery's Ian Marquette wrestles Bald Eagle Area's Michael Wesley at 114 during a dual match at Dandy Duals on Saturday, Dec. 13, 2025, at Towanda.

CHRIS MANNING/Sun-Gazette Correspondent Jersey Shore's Jonathan Dincher wrestles Montgomery's Josh Kwebel during a dual match at Dandy Duals on Saturday, Dec. 13, 2025, at Towanda.

CHRIS MANNING/Sun-Gazette Correspondent Montgomery's Evan Hugar wrestles Jersey Shore's Gage Watkins at 285 during a dual match at Dandy Duals on Saturday, Dec. 13, 2025, at Towanda.

CHRIS MANNING/Sun-Gazette Correspondent Montgomery's Raiden Felix wrestles Bald Eagle Area's Brody Gardner at 189 during a dual match at Dandy Duals on Saturday, Dec. 13, 2025, at Towanda.