Father Judge's McCall eyes state tournament

As loud as you may knock, there is no guarantee that a locked door will open.

The door to the PIAA wrestling tournament is as formidable as any in high school athletics, and it's got a big old lock. Even the most disciplined competitors have been stopped short in their pursuit of the coveted achievement.

After being denied three times, Father Judge's Tim McCall has one last chance to find the key.

"Losing hurts a lot for me," said McCall, a senior. "The hardest part is right after . . . because you think, 'I've worked so hard and I didn't really get what I wanted out of it,' but then in the coming weeks and coming months you just kind of get back into training and focusing and trying to prepare yourself for next year."

This time, there is no next year.

For three years, McCall has placed in the top three at sectionals, placed in the top two at districts, and then failed to place in the top four at the Northeast Regional. Only the top four at regionals advance to states.

The 106-pound senior has won 122 career matches and boasts a 4.0 GPA. He is 24-7 this season under sixth-year coach Jim Savage, who coached McCall's brother, Mike, at North Catholic from 2006 until the school closed in 2010.

Savage sees many similarities between Tim McCall, 18, and Mike McCall, 23, who made it to states as a senior after failing to do so in two previous seasons.

"I think they're very similar," Savage said. "They're very goal-oriented and they really, really put the effort into whatever they do, such as academics, athletics, and things like that to make sure they don't have any setbacks.

"And if they do have a setback, it's not because of lack of being prepared or lack of effort."

Tim McCall has been following in Mike McCall's footsteps for as long as he can remember. His interest in wrestling wasn't a direct result of his brother's affinity for the sport, but he said it certainly helped.

When Mike McCall was in high school, Tim McCall, a third grader at the time, became acquainted with Savage as a member of North Catholic's youth wrestling team.

Having coached both of them extensively, Savage said he sees the same competitive, disciplined attitude in Tim McCall that he first realized in Mike McCall at North Catholic.

"I don't like try to copy everything he does, but he did really well in school and he did really well in wrestling, so I always see him as a good role model because he always works hard and he always tries to do what's right and helps other people," Tim McCall said. "He has a big impact on me and I want to try to do the right thing also."

After braving the path three times only to be denied, Tim McCall knows how difficult it will be to reach states this year, despite his success in District 12.

Whether he finally unlocks the door or not, he'll know he left it all on the mat.

"I'm going to give it all I have, 100 percent," Tim McCall said. "But even if it doesn't happen, I'll know that I worked really hard and I don't know how much more I could have done."