Claysburg tournament seeking team(s)

Just got this email from Claysburg-Kimmel coach Dave Marko, who can be reached at dmarko@cksd.k12.pa.us.

Coaches,

The 5th Annual 2013 Claysburg Pizza Wrestling Tournament is seeking 1-3 teams to complete it's field for the December 7, 2013 Tournament. This will be an individual pool tournament format. Each wrestler will get a minumum of 4 matches and in almost all cases 5 matches.

Committed teams include:

Claysburg-Kimmel

Central
Tyrone

Tussey Mountain

Batavia, NY

Portage

United

We need at least 1 more team. If you are interested, please contact me ASAP so that we can get contracts out to your A.D.'s. Thanks and have a great summer!

Richland duals changing to individual tournament

The Richland Coaches Duals are no more.
The event, which was the biggest in Pennsylvania just a few years ago, is the victim of the rules change that targeted dual-meet tournaments.
Instead, Richland will switch to an individual, bracket-style tournament next season. Rams coach Mike Naglic sent out info to coaches tonight on the event, which will be held Jan. 17-18, 2014, at Richland High School. He is hoping to attract 32 teams for the tournament, which will be wrestled on five mats.
Naglic sent the info to dozens of coaches and media types in order to get the word out about the change. He said to feel free to share the info with any other coaches who might be interested. Those looking to get more details on the event can email him at nag33172@yahoo.com.
What kind of field the new-look tournament can attract in its first season?
The facilities at Richland are fantastic and the duals have always been well-run, but the move from a dual-meet event to an individual tournament is about a lot more than just a format change.
At least in our area, the two tend to attract different types of teams. Weaker teams or those with some holes in their lineup have tended to favor the dual-meet events. There are some exceptions -- Chestnut Ridge has been a regular in dual-meet tournaments -- but that has always been the knock on the Richland Duals and similar events.
There's a reason for this, of course. The dual-meet format is great for a school with a number of inexperienced or less-skilled wrestlers. They're guaranteed to wrestle five matches (assuming they don't get forfeits), no matter how they do. The same isn't true for an individual tournament. That same wrestler may very well go two-and-out in a bracket-style event.
Meanwhile, teams with some top individuals like to see how they stack up against others as opposed to dual meets, where they're more likely to get a forfeit or a backup than see another stud.
Last year's field - Blairsville, Cambria Heights, Central Cambria, Greater Johnstown, Kittanning, Moshannon Valley, Somerset, Tyrone, United and Richland - would be a decent starting point for the individual tournament. Who wouldn't want to see Jason Nolf and Drew Doak in action? But there would also need to be some better top-to-bottom teams in the event to make it noteworthy.
You'd certainly expect to add some of those when bringing in 22 more teams.
The bigger issue might be geographical. Getting local teams to commit could be difficult, given the number of times area wrestlers already face off. Also, the Thomas Tournament will likely be two weeks later, so teams that are in it won't want to see a similar field in Richland.
When I spoke with Naglic earlier this year, he told me his dream was to turn it into a one of the top tournaments in the state. To do that, it likely will need to attract teams from the WPIAL and possibly invite a number of AAA squads.
Richland has plenty of things going for it to lure teams from farther away. Whether or not it's enough to draw schools from long distances in an era where shrinking budgets limit overnight trips remains to be seen.
It will be interesting to see what happens over the next year.

Pitt's Rande Stottlemyer retires, assistant takes over

Pitt announced Monday that longtime coach Rande Stottlemyer. The news stunned me, but maybe it shouldn't have. In hindsight, his daughter told my wife at nationals that she "really hoped I got a chance to sit down and talk with" my former coach in Iowa. I'm thinking that's why she said that.

At any rate, Stottlemyer has done plenty of good for the university and will be missed. The school seems to have made a good choice in promoting assistant Jason Peters to head coach. (I also didn't know that he was the coach-in-waiting).

Not much time to write about it now, but here is the press release from the university:

University of Pittsburgh head wrestling coach Rande Stottlemyer, one of the most accomplished and longest tenured coaches in the history of intercollegiate athletics at Pitt, has announced his retirement.

   Stottlemyer’s name is synonymous with Pitt wrestling as his involvement with the program spans nearly four decades. He was a three-time All-American for the Panthers from 1974-78. Following his graduation from the University in 1978, Stottlemyer served Pitt as an assistant coach for one year before taking over as head coach in 1979. Leading the program the past 34 seasons, he compiled a 304-230-12 record and is the winningest coach in Pitt wrestling history.

   The past four seasons were among the Panthers’ most impressive under Stottlemyer’s watch. Since 2010, Pitt has won three Eastern Wrestling League (EWL) regular-season championships and three EWL Tournament titles. Pitt finished 15^th nationally in 2012 and 2013. 

   For his career, Stottlemyer produced 56 EWL individual champions, 33 All-Americans and three national champions. He also was selected the EWL Coach of the Year five times.

   “I would like to thank the University of Pittsburgh for the great opportunity they gave me as a young man, fresh out of college,” Stottlemyer said. “I have been blessed to have lived my passion for thirty-five years. I hope in that time I have been able to make a positive impact on a lot of young men’s lives. It has been an honor to be their coach and to promote the great sport of wrestling.

   “I am deeply indebted to Chancellor Mark Nordenberg, Athletic Director Steve Pederson and Executive Associate Athletic Director Donna Sanft for their leadership and support. Thank you to all my co-workers, assistant coaches and wrestlers who over the years have given so much of themselves to make our success possible. Finally, I would like to thank my wife, daughters, family, and friends for always being there for me.”

   Although he is retiring from coaching, Stottlemyer will remain with the Pitt Athletic Department, serving in the position of Senior Advisor for Olympic Sports. In this capacity he will provide consultation and advice for each of the Panthers’ 16 Olympic sports programs as they transition to competition in the Atlantic Coast Conference in 2013.

   “Very few coaches retire at the top of their game and yet Rande Stottlemyer is doing just that,” Pitt athletic director Steve Pederson said. “Not only has Rande led our wrestling program to the top of the Eastern Wrestling League but he is also held in the highest regard by everyone in our athletic department. It would be hard to sufficiently put into words what Rande has meant to Pitt and to each of us individually. I am pleased that he has agreed to assist me in our transition to the ACC as his experience and guidance will be invaluable. Rande also built a coaching staff that is ready to take this program into a new conference and continue its legacy of success.”

   Succeeding Stottlemyer as head coach will be Jason Peters, an assistant at Pitt the past 10 seasons who was designated the program’s head coach-in-waiting last fall. Peters played a vital role in the Panthers’ impressive run of success as a lead recruiter and trainer. A 1998 graduate of East Stroudsburg University, Peters will become the 10^th head coach in Pitt wrestling history. Matt Kocher, a former Pitt All-America wrestler who has served as an assistant coach the past four seasons, will also continue on the staff. 

   “Our program will continue to move forward under the guidance of Jason Peters and Matt Kocher,” Stottlemyer said. “They have both been exemplary in their work ethic and commitment during their time at Pitt.”

   “Rande and I had many conversations over the past few years about the future of this program,” Pederson said. “In Rande’s opinion, as well as mine, we could not make a better choice than to elevate Jason Peters to the role of head wrestling coach at Pitt. The added bonus of Matt Kocher staying as the top assistant makes this a special time. We are all committed to helping Jason succeed and we are excited to watch his tenure as the leader of this program. As always, our staff will rally behind Jason, Matt and our student-athletes to make this a great transition.”

Nation's best wrestlers coming to area this weekend

In case you haven't heard, the Flonationals high school tournament will be held in Indiana, Pa., today and tomorrow. This is one of the nation's top tournaments and would be great for hard-core fans.
Here's my story about it in The Tribune-Democrat.
I'm not sure if I'm going to be able to make it this weekend or not, but it looks like it should be a lot of fun. Even if you can't make it, Flowrestling has streaming video of all 12 mats.

Westmont's Shovestull to wrestle for Navy

Westmont's Don Shovestull announced Thursday that he will be headed to Navy (after a year at prep school) and plans to wrestle there. Here is my story for The Tribune-Democrat.
One interesting thing that I learned on Friday: The "v" in Shovestull is silent, so it's pronounced Show-stall.

Knop's Knotes wins second place in statewide contest

OK, so the results of the Pennsylvania Associated Press Managing Editors annual contest came out today and this blog won second place in the blogging category for newspapers with a circulation of 30,001-75,000. (The contest is for all newspaper blogs, not just sports ones).
Sadly, I was beaten out by Joan Concilio's Only in York County blog.
So, my question to  you, wrestling fans is, should I Matt McDonough the award?

But, seriously, I'm proud of the award. I put a lot of effort into the blog. I'd like to do a lot more with it, but there are only 24 hours in a day and I have a lot of other obligations. The feedback I get from my readers is really what drives me to keep it updated as much as I can. So thanks guys (and gals). If it wasn't for your dedication and encouragement, I probably wouldn't still be doing it and wouldn't have won the award.