Blaven
12-11-2009, 11:53 PM
Indians have talent in place
By CHUCK SOUDERS (Sports Writer chuck_s@newsitem.com)
Published: December 11, 2009
Shamokin Area is blessed with an abundance of returning talent, but that doesn't mean the Indians are the only area wrestling team that will likely make some noise this season. Mount Carmel, Line Mountain and Southern Columbia all have their share of returning veterans and all should be competitive teams in their respective leagues and divisions.
Shamokin, coming off a 12-3 dual meet season, has three returning state qualifiers (two graduated), another who just missed a trip to the state meet, and two other wrestlers who went deep into the postseason before being eliminated, as well as a number of other veterans.
The Indians will be led by their tough middleweight trio of juniors Josh Lahr and Brandon Pesarchick, and senior Derek Shingara. All three qualified for the state tournament, with Lahr finishing sixth at 125 pounds and Pesarchick sixth at 130. Shingara, a two-time qualifier like Pesarchick, won a bout at the state meet but suffered a torn meniscus in his elimination bout.
Those three wrestlers have a combined career record of 243-55. Shingara (96-34) is four wins away from the 100-mark, Pesarchick (81-15) will likely make it as a junior, and Lahr (66-16) should also have a shot at reaching it as a junior.
Lahr is coming off a 34-4 season in which he swept sectional, district and regional titles before heading to the state meet. Pesarchick was 38-7 after setting a school record for wins in a season as a freshman, and Shingara (33-9) won sectional and regional titles after an up-and-down regular season.
Also returning is 171-pounder Kegan Polastre, who just missed a trip to Hershey with a fourth-place finish at regionals, dropping a 2-0 decision in the consolation final. He posted a 26-18 record.
Junior Wes Tillett was district runner-up but had a disappointing regional tournament. Still, he is coming off a 31-6 sophomore season at 285 and will likely be pumped for a trip to the state meet, along with Lee Supsic, who was 28-14 as a sophomore and is 54-32 for his career.
"We are looking forward to competing this year in the Heartland Conference," says Shamokin coach Todd Hockenbroch. " The competition is great and will help us prepare for the postseason. I am excited to see what our kids are capable of doing this year."
The Indians will get to show off their talents on a national level. They'll start the season at an invitational meet in Reno, Nev.
"We applied to go to the Beast of the East (in Delaware), and the coach from Easton saw our application and forwarded it the tournament in Reno, where they've been to," said Hockenbroch. "We decided we'd go out there, because how many chances are we going to get?"
Erdman back for Eagles
Line Mountain probably doesn't have the number of eye-opening returnees that the Indians have, but the Eagles do have a returning state placewinner in Travis Erdman, seventh at 135, several other solid returnees, and a possible ace up their sleeve. The Eagles, 18-5 last season, have a couple of highly touted freshmen expected to crack the lineup immediately.
Erdman was 41-5 and was a district champion and regional runner-up, and boasts a 71-17 career record. Other key people back for the Eagles are Tim Botkin (23-11), Carlos Zrake (18-13) and Bryce Martz (20-9).
"We have an extremely young team with a good deal of talent," says head coach Mike Martz. "More than likely over half of our starters will be freshmen and sophomores. Although this year will be a learning curve for many of our wrestlers, we are excited about the season. Many of these guys put in a great offseason and we believe we have the potential to compete with anyone in the district by the end of the season if the guys continue to work hard and we stay healthy."
Tornadoes have balance
Mount Carmel is coming off a 14-7 dual meet season which was followed by a slightly disappointing postseason in which the Red Tornadoes failed to advance a wrestler to the regional tournament.
That was last year, and this should be a hungry team which has its share of talented wrestlers. Senior Shane Wondoloski (119-125) posted a 33-8 record last season and is 87-31 for his career. Junior Nick Dusendschine (125-130) was 30-8 and is 59-25 for his career, and fellow junior Dylan Hornberger (135-140) was 28-12 and is 69-26 for his career.
Sophomores Brett Przekop and Mick Saukaitis each had more than 20 wins as freshmen, and the Tornadoes have a solid mix of veterans throughout the lineup. The biggest question mark is likely the shoulder of senior Sean McCollum, who was 12-3 last season when he was able to wrestle. He was 25-9 as a freshman, but could not wrestle at all his sophomore season because of injury. He switched from football to soccer this past fall to lessen the strain on his shoulder. If the Tornadoes can get a full season out of him, they should be a very tough opponent for anyone.
Marks takes over at Southern
Jerry Marks, Southern Columbia's only multiple state champion, takes over at Southern after many
years as an assistant coach at Berwick. He inherits a team which improved from three wins in 2007-08 to 18 wins last season, and has a good group of veterans returning.
The problem will be a lack of depth, with only 17 wrestlers on the roster.
The Tigers will be led by junior Brian Watkins (130-135), who was a regional qualifier with a 29-6 record last season and is 56-14 for his career. Senior Nick Diak (215) was 22-7 and junior Brett Duell (125) 21-8, and Logan Mensinger also pushed the 20-win mark.
"Those four guys give us a good nucleus," says Marks. "We probably won't be able to fill a weight class in most meets, which will hurt. Ian Van Wieren will wrestle at 285, coming out from football, so we'll have a legitimate heavyweight if we can get him some skills. I think we'll be able to pull an upset here and there during the season if we stay healthy."
Spartans add depth
Junior Garrett VanDemark, coming off a 29-8 season at 171, is the leading returner at North Schuylkill, which also has some solid veterans in Kevin Piaskowski (112-119), Scott Houser (140-145) and Scott Yagielniskie (189-215).
"Our numbers are up and we look to fill every weight class," says head coach Dave Brown. "We hope to be more competitive, with more experience in the lineup. Time will tell."
By CHUCK SOUDERS (Sports Writer chuck_s@newsitem.com)
Published: December 11, 2009
Shamokin Area is blessed with an abundance of returning talent, but that doesn't mean the Indians are the only area wrestling team that will likely make some noise this season. Mount Carmel, Line Mountain and Southern Columbia all have their share of returning veterans and all should be competitive teams in their respective leagues and divisions.
Shamokin, coming off a 12-3 dual meet season, has three returning state qualifiers (two graduated), another who just missed a trip to the state meet, and two other wrestlers who went deep into the postseason before being eliminated, as well as a number of other veterans.
The Indians will be led by their tough middleweight trio of juniors Josh Lahr and Brandon Pesarchick, and senior Derek Shingara. All three qualified for the state tournament, with Lahr finishing sixth at 125 pounds and Pesarchick sixth at 130. Shingara, a two-time qualifier like Pesarchick, won a bout at the state meet but suffered a torn meniscus in his elimination bout.
Those three wrestlers have a combined career record of 243-55. Shingara (96-34) is four wins away from the 100-mark, Pesarchick (81-15) will likely make it as a junior, and Lahr (66-16) should also have a shot at reaching it as a junior.
Lahr is coming off a 34-4 season in which he swept sectional, district and regional titles before heading to the state meet. Pesarchick was 38-7 after setting a school record for wins in a season as a freshman, and Shingara (33-9) won sectional and regional titles after an up-and-down regular season.
Also returning is 171-pounder Kegan Polastre, who just missed a trip to Hershey with a fourth-place finish at regionals, dropping a 2-0 decision in the consolation final. He posted a 26-18 record.
Junior Wes Tillett was district runner-up but had a disappointing regional tournament. Still, he is coming off a 31-6 sophomore season at 285 and will likely be pumped for a trip to the state meet, along with Lee Supsic, who was 28-14 as a sophomore and is 54-32 for his career.
"We are looking forward to competing this year in the Heartland Conference," says Shamokin coach Todd Hockenbroch. " The competition is great and will help us prepare for the postseason. I am excited to see what our kids are capable of doing this year."
The Indians will get to show off their talents on a national level. They'll start the season at an invitational meet in Reno, Nev.
"We applied to go to the Beast of the East (in Delaware), and the coach from Easton saw our application and forwarded it the tournament in Reno, where they've been to," said Hockenbroch. "We decided we'd go out there, because how many chances are we going to get?"
Erdman back for Eagles
Line Mountain probably doesn't have the number of eye-opening returnees that the Indians have, but the Eagles do have a returning state placewinner in Travis Erdman, seventh at 135, several other solid returnees, and a possible ace up their sleeve. The Eagles, 18-5 last season, have a couple of highly touted freshmen expected to crack the lineup immediately.
Erdman was 41-5 and was a district champion and regional runner-up, and boasts a 71-17 career record. Other key people back for the Eagles are Tim Botkin (23-11), Carlos Zrake (18-13) and Bryce Martz (20-9).
"We have an extremely young team with a good deal of talent," says head coach Mike Martz. "More than likely over half of our starters will be freshmen and sophomores. Although this year will be a learning curve for many of our wrestlers, we are excited about the season. Many of these guys put in a great offseason and we believe we have the potential to compete with anyone in the district by the end of the season if the guys continue to work hard and we stay healthy."
Tornadoes have balance
Mount Carmel is coming off a 14-7 dual meet season which was followed by a slightly disappointing postseason in which the Red Tornadoes failed to advance a wrestler to the regional tournament.
That was last year, and this should be a hungry team which has its share of talented wrestlers. Senior Shane Wondoloski (119-125) posted a 33-8 record last season and is 87-31 for his career. Junior Nick Dusendschine (125-130) was 30-8 and is 59-25 for his career, and fellow junior Dylan Hornberger (135-140) was 28-12 and is 69-26 for his career.
Sophomores Brett Przekop and Mick Saukaitis each had more than 20 wins as freshmen, and the Tornadoes have a solid mix of veterans throughout the lineup. The biggest question mark is likely the shoulder of senior Sean McCollum, who was 12-3 last season when he was able to wrestle. He was 25-9 as a freshman, but could not wrestle at all his sophomore season because of injury. He switched from football to soccer this past fall to lessen the strain on his shoulder. If the Tornadoes can get a full season out of him, they should be a very tough opponent for anyone.
Marks takes over at Southern
Jerry Marks, Southern Columbia's only multiple state champion, takes over at Southern after many
years as an assistant coach at Berwick. He inherits a team which improved from three wins in 2007-08 to 18 wins last season, and has a good group of veterans returning.
The problem will be a lack of depth, with only 17 wrestlers on the roster.
The Tigers will be led by junior Brian Watkins (130-135), who was a regional qualifier with a 29-6 record last season and is 56-14 for his career. Senior Nick Diak (215) was 22-7 and junior Brett Duell (125) 21-8, and Logan Mensinger also pushed the 20-win mark.
"Those four guys give us a good nucleus," says Marks. "We probably won't be able to fill a weight class in most meets, which will hurt. Ian Van Wieren will wrestle at 285, coming out from football, so we'll have a legitimate heavyweight if we can get him some skills. I think we'll be able to pull an upset here and there during the season if we stay healthy."
Spartans add depth
Junior Garrett VanDemark, coming off a 29-8 season at 171, is the leading returner at North Schuylkill, which also has some solid veterans in Kevin Piaskowski (112-119), Scott Houser (140-145) and Scott Yagielniskie (189-215).
"Our numbers are up and we look to fill every weight class," says head coach Dave Brown. "We hope to be more competitive, with more experience in the lineup. Time will tell."