NEPA, Wilkes show off wrestling credentials with Team USA event
WILKES-BARRE — Northeast Pennsylvania has hosted some big wrestling events in the past. For instance, in three of the last six years Wyoming Seminary has hosted Blair Academy in meetings of top-ranked high school teams in the country. Each time that dual was held in Kingston, the gym was at capacity. In two of the last three years, the Pennsylvania Junior Wrestling State Tournament was held at the Mohegan Sun Arena with wrestlers from all over the state journeying to Luzerne County. If that wasn’t enough to prove that NEPA is indeed a wrestling area, what was held on Monday put the region over the top.
More than 2,000 fans packed Wilkes University’s Marts Center for the Team USA 65kg Final X Series Wrestle-off between Zain Retherford and Yianni Diakomihalis. Yes, there were plenty of friends and family from Diakomihalis’ Cornell University and Retherford’s Penn State side. But there were much more local fans as plenty of past and present high school, collegiate and junior high coaches were on hand to see the historic event. “The passion and love for this sport in our area is immeasurable,” Wyoming Valley West coach Ryan Vassello said. “They couldn’t have picked a better place for this match having it in our backyard.” Vassello was instrumental in making the entire day an event for wrestlers in the area. Prior to the match at Wilkes, Olympian Ken Chertow made a stop by Wyoming Valley West’s Middle School in Kingston to hold a clinic where dozens of wrestlers got instruction from the former Penn State and Ohio State coach before going to watch the match. Rest of the story at
https://www.timesleader.com/sports/754570/nepa-wilkes-show-off-wrestling-credentials-with-team-usa-event?mc_cid=1788af9e74&mc_eid=2ef7cbca4b
Trung Duong named wrestling assistant coach
GREENWOOD – Lander head wrestling coach RC LaHaye announced the addition of Trung Duong as a full-time assistant to the wrestling staff on Tuesday. Duong, a 2017 graduate of Newberry College, was a two-time All-American for the Wolves during LaHaye’s tenure there, finishing in the top-eight of the national tournament in 2016 and 2017. Duong then served as a graduate assistant coach for Ohio Valley during the 2017-18 season.
“In my 12 years as a college coach, I’ve never coached a harder-working student-athlete than Trung,” said LaHaye. “That relentless work ethic, along with countless other qualities, will carry over into the coaching field and he will be a huge asset for our wresting program and for Lander University.” Rest of the story at https://landerbearcats.com/sports/wrest/2019-20/releases/20190902t6q1px?mc_cid=1788af9e74&mc_eid=2ef7cbca4b
In front of enthusiastic crowd, Zain Retherford earns trip to worlds
WILKES-BARRE – It will go down as one of the longest wrestling matches ever, one of the best atmospheres at a Luzerne County sporting event and one of the fastest events you’ll ever see. It took 85 days for the 65k Final X series between Zain Retherford and Yianni Diakomihalis to conclude its wrestle-off. But on Sunday, inside a rocking, jam-packed Marts Center in a match that lasted only about 10 minutes, Retherford secured his berth in the World Championships with a 2-1 victory.
“I’m feeling great. That was a lot of fun,” said Retherford, a three-time national champion from Penn State. In the continuation of a match originally held on June 8, all the points were scored in the first period. Diakomihalis took a 1-0 lead on a failed challenge by Retherford’s corner when he shot a low-double and Diakomilas tried to expose him with a chest wrap. Retherford’s corner thought that he either had a takedown or exposed Diakomihalis.
Retherford took a 2-1 lead shortly after when Diakomihalis took a shot, but Retherford countered and got two points for the takedown. “He’s the funkiest wrestler I ever wrestled, and there’s no way to prepare for that other than just control your ties, get to your attacks and that’s kinda what I focused on,” Retherford said. “That’s what I can control.” In the second period, the two scrambled for most of the time. Rest of the story at
https://www.timesleader.com/sports/754460/wrestling-in-front-of-enthusiastic-crowd-zain-retherford-earns-trip-to-worlds?mc_cid=a67bf910f7&mc_eid=2ef7cbca4b
Listen: Cara Romeike’s story, Utah’s first all-girls high school wrestling team
Tell the World!
Cara Romeike is starting Utah’s first all-girls high school wrestling team.
She’s also teaching physics. So, if you’re into science, she might have some things to share with you.
28 minutes of gold: In this episode Cara talks about how she got into wrestling, her development through college, what it’s like trying to find a job as a high school girls wrestling coach & some thoughts on sanctioning girls wrestling. Hear the rest of the story at
https://www.transitionwrestling.com/listen-cara-romeike/?mc_cid=a67bf910f7&mc_eid=2ef7cbca4b
‘First To Fight’ With All-Marine Head Coach Jason Loukides
We now stand less than a week away from when the 2019 US World Team departs for Kazakhstan, and All-Marine head coach Jason Loukides is understandably excited. Not only are Marine athletes Ray Bunker (72 kg) and John Stefanowicz (82 kg) preparing for their first-ever appearances at the Senior World Championships, but a substantial allotment of their teammates are coming along for the ride. That’s because — and has been the case the past two years — members of the Marine squad will be on-hand to assist the World Teamers leading up to the main event. Naturally, Loukides speaks to the training phase Bunker and Stefanowicz have endured thus far, as well as the former’s bronze-winning performance earlier this month in Poland. There are other competitive points of interest to catch up on, as well. Just like the aforementioned duo in Poland got some matches in, so too did several other Marines at the Tbilisi Grand Prix. Rest of the story at http://www.fivepointmove.com/all-marine-wrestling/head-coach-jason-loukides-august-19/?mc_cid=84921238b4&mc_eid=2ef7cbca4b
10 reasons to vote like crazy for John Smith for U.S. Olympic and Paralympic Hall of Fame this weekend
BY GARY ABBOTT, USA WRESTLING | AUG. 31, 2019
Here you have it. Two-time Olympic champion and four-time World champion John Smith is a finalist for the U.S. Olympic and Paralympic Hall of Fame. There is a fan voting element to this which ends on September 3. We still have more than three days to stuff the ballot box with John Smith votes. Fans can vote as many times as they want. (I just voted twice within 30 seconds).
Click here to vote for John Smith for the U.S. Olympic Hall of Fame
Here are 10 good reasons why you should find time while sitting on the beach, or at the lake, or in the woods, or in the city (or wherever you are spending Labor Day), take out your computer or your cell phone and vote for John Smith again and again.
1. John Smith is the U.S. freestyle GOAT – You know what a GOAT is, right? Greatest of All Time. No American freestyle wrestler, man or woman, can match John Smith’s amazing run of six straight World or Olympic gold medals. Starting with the 1987 World title and running through the 1992 Olympic Games, Smith won them all. He was six-for-six in World or Olympic gold-medal bouts. Although it is possible that somebody, someday could match his six World and Olympic titles, nobody has come close to stringing them all in a row. (Jordan Burroughs has a shot at six total golds this year, BTW). Smith is the consensus freestyle GOAT, and many would call him the GOAT when adding in high school and college, too. USA Wrestling’s GOAT should be in the Olympic Hall of Fame. Period.
2. There are only two wrestlers in the U.S. Olympic Hall of Fame – Really? Only two? Wrestling is the No. 4 producer of medals for the United States in the modern Olympics. We trail only track and field, swimming and sailing in total medals since 1896. Wrestling has won 135 Olympic wrestling medals, including 54 gold medals. The only two wrestlers in the Hall of Fame are Dan Gable and Bruce Baumgartner. That’s it? Come on. There are 109 Olympians and Paralympians in the Hall of Fame, but only two wrestlers. That is not fair. That needs to change. Let’s change it by getting John Smith in this year. Right now.
3. Wrestlers can only win one gold medal at each Olympics – Sure, if somebody could wrestle both freestyle and Greco-Roman at the Olympics the same year, it is possible to get two. Pretty much nobody wrestles both styles in modern times. So, wrestlers get only one shot at an Olympic gold medal at each Olympic Games. John Smith competed in two Olympic Games. John Smith won two Olympic gold medals. Case Closed. Only three American wrestlers have two Olympic gold medals: Smith, Baumgartner and George Mehnert. (Mehnert who won in 1904 and 1908 also belongs in the Hall, but that is a battle for another day). There are many sports where athletes can get multiple medals (think of swimming, track, gymnastics, sailing, etc.). Wrestlers don’t get in because of the number of medals they win. They get in when they win gold and do it again. That’s John Smith.
Rest of the reasons and story at
https://www.teamusa.org/USA-Wrestling/Features/2019/August/31/10-reasons-to-vote-often-for-John-Smith-for-USOP-Hall-of-Fame?mc_cid=84921238b4&mc_eid=2ef7cbca4b
WolfpackMentality Pop-Ins Podcast: Ep. 53 – Transfer Jacob Ferreira & World Medalist Trent Hidlay
RALEIGH, N.C. – The month of August closes down as the school year kicks off with a power-packed new episode of the #PackMentality Pop-Ins Podcast, hosted by 2018-19 NWMA Division I SID of the Year Brian Reinhardt. Episode #52 features the head coach of the Wolfpack, Pat Popolizio, and two featured interviews. The first interview introduces Wolfpack Nation to the newest member of the program, Bucknell transfer Jacob Ferreira. The second interview is a return appearance by R-Fr. Trent Hidlay, who is coming off his bronze medal finish … Rest of the story and connection at https://gopack.com/news/2019/8/29/wrestling-packmentality-pop-ins-podcast-ep-53-transfer-jacob-ferreira-world-medalist-trent-hidlay.aspx?mc_cid=480a8b90b3&mc_eid=2ef7cbca4b
App State Wrestling Welcomes 12 Freshmen for 2019-20 Season
BOONE, N.C. — With this week’s start of the fall semester, Appalachian State wrestling coach JohnMark Bentley officially announced the Class of 2019 recruits who are joining the Mountaineers for the 2019-20 season.
App State bolsters the roster as it moves forward from winning a fourth straight Southern Conference regular season championship in 2018-19. The Mountaineers’ 25-2 conference record in the last four seasons ranks fifth nationally.
The 12 wrestlers in the 2019 recruiting class combined for 12 individual state championships in their prep careers and arrive from six different states. “Our incoming class has a lot of talent and promise as we try to continue the winning tradition for our program,” said Bentley, who is 97-66-1 in 10 seasons as App State’s head coach. “I’m excited to see these guys compete and battle for a spot to represent the Black and Gold.”
Class of 2019 recruits
Blake Baker (141 pounds, Hickory, N.C./St. Stephens)
Isaac Byers (149 pounds, Mooresville, N.C./Mooresville)
Rest of the list and story at
https://appstatesports.com/news/2019/8/18/app-state-wrestling-welcomes-11-freshmen-for-2019-20-season.aspx?path=wrestling
How Luke Fickell stayed true to himself and nailed his second act: ‘He’s one of the best I’ve been around’
Pete ThamelYahoo SportsAugust 28, 2019
CINCINNATI – After the final home game of Luke Fickell’s crash-course interim season at Ohio State in 2011, a Buckeye manager pulled Fickell’s black Chevy Suburban a few yards from the training room at Ohio Stadium. As the SUV idled in the stadium tunnel as night fell in Columbus, Fickell stared out at home field one final time as Ohio State’s interim coach. Uncertainty filled the chilly air. The 20-14 home loss to Penn State left the Buckeyes 6-5, as Ohio State struggled in the wake of Jim Tressel’s dismissal. The season fizzled amid suspension and controversy, and Fickell, then 38, found himself pondering coaching at Ohio Stadium for the final time.
“I just kind of took a little time to [reflect],” Fickell said recently in his office at the University of Cincinnati. “Not knowing if you’ll ever have the opportunity to be back.” Less than a decade later, Luke Fickell is preparing for a high-visibility stretch that will crescendo with a return trip to Ohio Stadium as the visiting head coach. He’s the third-year head coach at Cincinnati, which he led to an 11-2 record last year, and he has emerged as one of the profession’s most promising young coaches. Cincinnati hosts UCLA on Thursday night in a marquee game for the program. And in his homecoming at No. 5 Ohio State in Week 2, Fickell has a chance to show precisely how far he and the Bearcats have come, in part because of lessons learned from that interim season. The ties to Ohio State run deeper than Fickell playing five years at the school and spending 16 seasons on staff. He also grew up in Columbus and his wife, Amy, actually lived in the stadium while a student there. (The honors dorm was located there her freshman year.) Rest of the story at
https://www.yahoo.com/entertainment/luke-fickells-second-act-hes-one-of-the-best-ive-been-around-211113520.html?mc_cid=f321e34b6e&mc_eid=2ef7cbca4b
CAROLINA WRESTLING ANNOUNCES 2019-20 MAT SIDE SEATING
Posted On: August 26, 2019CHAPEL HILL — For the second year in a row, Carolina Wrestling is pleased to announce the opportunity to purchase mat side seating for the 2019-20 season in Carmichael Arena. This all-access seating in the Blue Zone is available for $100 for a season pass, which includes all seven home duals. Fans who purchase a mat side seating pass will also receive a guest pass for each dual for another seat in the Blue Zone. The 2019-20 schedule will be released at a later date.
“We feel this is a great way to continue to get fans closer to the action at Carmichael,” head coach Coleman Scott said. “We’re shaping up to have a very exciting home schedule this year … Rest of the story at https://goheels.com/news/2019/8/26/carolina-wrestling-2019-20-mat-side-seating.aspx?mc_cid=eb3b72298a&mc_eid=2ef7cbca4b
TDR blog
After 20 seasons of publicizing wrestling The TakeDown Report’s (TDR) focus has changed to the collecting of college coaching records from North America since 1903. We will continue to recognize and reward successful wrestlers in eastern North Carolina (east of Raleigh & Fayetteville), assist with schools in starting or re-starting a team and this blog. Join us on our FaceBook Page – “The TakeDown Report” for photos and news. Please send results, stories, links and news to pass along. E-mail us at takedownreport@gmail.com
Martin Fleming, Editor
Takedown Report
