CLARION COMPETES IN 64TH PSAC WRESTLING CHAMPIONSHIPS

Eight PSAC (Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference) teams and 80 athletes will travel to Bloomsburg this weekend searching for PSAC "Gold" at the 64th Annual Wrestling Championships.

Action gets underway at 10am Saturday, January 27^th at Bloomsburg’s Nelson Field House with two rounds of championship matches and a consolation round. Round two begins at 12:30pm with semifinals, followed by two rounds of consolation bouts. The championship finals, which will include matches for third and fifth place, will begin at 6pm.

All Session passes for adults ($12) and students ($3), as well as individual session tickets for adults ($7) and students ($2) will be available at the door.

A championship steeped in great tradition, the 64th PSAC Championship will feature the return of 8 individual champions and four runners-up from previous PSAC Championships.

Edinboro, ranked #8 in the latest NWCA poll, is the pre-tournament favorite. The Fighting Scots have won six of the last eight PSAC team titles including 2006, 2004, 2003, 2002, 2000, 1999 and 1998. Bloomsburg won the team title in 2005 and Lock Haven won the team crown in 2001. In the 1990's Clarion, Edinboro and Lock Haven won three PSAC titles each, with Bloomsburg getting one. In the history of the PSAC’s Lock Haven leads with 19 team titles, Bloomsburg has 14 team titles, Clarion 13, Edinboro 9, East Stroudsburg and Millersville 2 each. West Chester won 3 team crowns and Slippery Rock one, but both schools no longer have wrestling.

Last year at Slippery Rock’s Morrow Field House, Edinboro took the team title with 146 points, Bloomsburg second with 113.5, Lock Haven third at 91 and Slippery Rock fourth with 87.5. East Stroudsburg finished fifth with 83.5 points, Kutztown sixth at 46, Shippensburg seventh with 41.5, Clarion eighth with 31 and Millersville ninth scoring 29.5 points.

In 2005 at East Stroudsburg’s Koehler Field House, Bloomsburg won the team title with 149.5 points, Edinboro was second with 134.5, East Stroudsburg third with 104.5, Lock Haven fourth at 87 and Clarion fifth with 73.5 points. Rounding out the nine team field were sixth place Shippensburg with 52.5 points, Millersville seventh at 41.5, Kutztown eighth with 39 and Slippery Rock ninth at 35 points.

The Fighting Scots hosted and won the 2004 title going away with 140.5 points with Lock Haven second at 118, Bloomsburg third with 91, East Stroudsburg fourth with 77.5 and Clarion and Millersville tied for fifth with 72 points.

Edinboro also won the 2003 title (hosted by Millersville) with 134.5 points, edging Lock Haven who had 127.5. Bloomsburg finished third with 98.5 points and Clarion was fourth with 97.5, while Slippery Rock finished fifth with 83.5.

The 2007 race appears to be Edinboro’s to lose. The Fighting Scots under tenth year head coach Tim Flynn enter the tournament with a 13-1 dual record, ranked #8 in the nation as a dual meet team which includes wins over Penn State (19-17), Michigan State (26-13), Lehigh 26-9, Lock Haven 45-0 and Clarion (40-6).

Bloomsburg, under second year head coach John Stutzman, has an 8-7 dual meet record. The Huskies could challenge Edinboro if the Scots slip at the tourney. Bloomsburg has notched impressive wins over West Virginia (22-15) and Arizona State (32-10), but has a 22-9 loss to Penn State.

Lock Haven is expected to also have a good tournament under fifth year coach Rocky Bonomo. The Bald Eagles are 6-3 in dual meets including a 32-18 win over Clarion and a 21-16 win over Pitt-Johnstown. LH has a 20-15 loss to Penn State and a 45-0 defeat against Edinboro.

Clarion, under first year head coach Teague Moore, leads the Eagles into the PSAC’s with a 7-7 dual meet record. The Golden Eagles feature wins over Binghamton (26-21), East Stroudsburg (26-12), Millersville (23-22) and Duquesne (21-18), with losses to Edinboro (40-6), Buffalo (23-16) and West Virginia (38-6).

Clarion’s PSAC lineup will likely be Toby Seger (Jr. 6-8; Glenshaw) at 125; Sal Lascari (So. 17-7; Gray) at 133; Greg Lewis (So. 12-7; New Providence) at 141; Hadley Harrison (Fr. 17-10; McKean) at 149; Nick Billups (So. 2-6; Princeton, Iowa) at 157; Mario Morelli (Fr. 9-6; DuBois) at 165; Dominic Ross (So. 11-6; Sharon) or Scott Joseph (Fr. 5-16; Export) at 174, Dixon Jordan (Fr. 6-13; Cheverly, Md.) at 197 and A..J. Brooks (So. 11-6; Lewes, De.) at heavyweight.

CLARION NOTES: Clarion won 3 PSAC titles in the 1990's (1991, 92 & 94), placed 2^nd three times (1990, 95, 96), finished third three times (1997, 98, 99) and fourth in 1993, 2000 and 2001... Clarion posted 31 individual champions in the 1990's, more than any other PSAC team... Of Clarion’s 13 team titles the first came in 1965 under coach Frank Lignelli, then 11 under coach Bob Bubb in 1972, 73, 74, 76, 77, 78, 81, 83, 86, 91 &92, and one under Jack Davis (1994)... Clarion heavyweight John Testa was voted the "Outstanding Wrestler" of the 2003 PSAC Championship - Testa defeated Lock Haven's Steve Itterly 8-4 in the finals to win his fourth PSAC title... He was only the 12^th wrestler in PSAC (Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference) history to win four individual titles and the first to win four titles at heavyweight... Clarion’s other 4-time PSAC Champions were Wade Schalles (1971-74), Bill Simpson (1971-74), Don Rohn (1973-76) and Jim Beichner (1983-86) ... Clarion’s 3-time PSAC champions include Chuck Coryea, Randy Miller, Ken Nellis, Mike Cole, Kurt Angle, Dan Payne, Sheldon Thomas and Mark Angle... Mark won his third in 2000 and was the PSAC’s "OW" at the 2000 tournament... Clarion wrestlers have won 106 individual PSAC crowns... The 13 wrestlers to win PSAC titles in order of their accomplishment is: LH’s Steve DeAugustino (1947-50), LH Ralph Clark (1957-60), LH Gray Simons (1959-62), LH Fred Powell (1961-64), LH Bill Blacksmith (1963-66), Clarion Wade Schalles

(1971-74), Clarion Bill Simpson (1971-74), Clarion Don Rohn (1973-76), Clarion Jim Beichner (1983-86), LH Mike Rogers (1994-97), ED Josh Koscheck (1999-2002), Clarion John Testa (2000-2003), LH Mike Maney (2001-2004).

Here’s a weight by weight look at the PSAC’s - (Ranked wrestlers with highest ranking according to either AWN or Intermat - records in parenthesis):

125: This weight class will come down to #7 Obenson Blanc (20-4) of Lock Haven and #12 Mike Sees (20-3) of Bloomsburg. Sees is the defending champion having defeated Edinboro’s Ricky Deubel 7-5 in overtime last year. Blanc was the 2005 champion, but finished third last year after losing to Sees 8-5 in the semi’s... Clarion’s Toby Seeger (6-8) could challenge for a high place. ESU’s Matt Swallow returns after placing fourth in 2006 and Mike Acedo-Malaney of Millersville is back after placing 6^th last year.

133: With defending champion Shawn Bunch of Edinboro gone, 133 is a wide open weight class. Edinboro’s #19 Ricky Deubel (17-9) was second at 125 last year, while Bloom’s Ricky Donald (17-6) was 3^rd last year and Clarion’s Sal Lascari (17-7) was 5^th wrestling for Slippery Rock. Kutztown’s Joe Kemmerer )19-2) has the top record, while Shipp’s Steve Fittery (19-5) and Lock Haven’s Danny Lopes (22-8) all could make a claim for the finals.

141: Defending Champion Brad Forbes (Bloom) has graduated. Millersville’s Cody Becker (10-8) was third here last year and Clarion’s Greg Lewis (12-7) was fourth. Becker decisioned Lewis 3-2 earlier htis season. ESU’s Sean Carr is 12-5 this season, Bloom’s Darren Kern is 17-10 and Edinboro’s Daryl Cocozzo (9-9) could also challenge.

149: Edinboro sophomore #5 Gregor Gillespie (24-1) is the defending champ and favorite. Bloomsburg’s Matt Moley (18-6), Kutztown’s Chris Chambers (17-6) and LH’s Steve Fittery (7-2) are expected to battle to get into the finals. Chambers was fourth here last year. ESU’s Scott Heckman could place. Clarion’s Hadley Harrison (17-10) will also look to place.

157: Lock Haven’s #9 Seth Martin (25-3) is the defending champion while Edinboro’s #10 Matt Hill (23-1), a two-time runnerup, is back to take another crack at the top. Hill defeated Martin in this year’s dual 6-1. Millersville’s Jared Hostetter (15-9) and Bloom’s Dennis Bermudez (16-11) will battle to place. Clarion will have Nick Billups (2-6) here.

165: Edinboro’s #8 Deonte Penn (23-2) is the defending champion and favorite here. Kutztown’s Kevin Kalbach (10-3), Bloom’s Rick Schmelyn (23-8), Clarion’s Mario Morelli (7-4), Lock Haven’s Donnie Ament and Millersville’s Joshua Evans (12-9) will all look to place. Penn was also second at 149 in 2004.

174: Edinboro’s #20 Phil Moricone will likely get the #1 seed with an 18-6 season record. Clarion will likely have Dominic Ross (11-6) here to challenge, while East Stroudsburg’s Shane Mallory (11-7), Lock Haven’s Michael Metzger (6-4), Shippensburg’s Rick Mascino (10-8), Millersville’s Jeremy Brook s(6-8) and Bloomsburg’s Andrew Jordan (9-12) all could place here.

184: Three-time PSAC champion #9 Alex Clemsen (24-2) of Edinboro (2003, 04, 06) looks to become the 14^th wrestler in PSAC history to win 4 PSAC titles. Shippensburg’s Mark Murphy (6-5) was fourth here last year, ESU’s Dave Sullivan was 5^th at 174 and Bloomsburg’s Nate Shirk (17-6) was fifth at 184, while Lock Haven’s Tom Kocher (13-9) and Kutztown’s Roy Gecelosky (16-5) are also hopeful of getting to the finals. Clarion will likely have Scott Joseph at 184.

197: Edinboro’s Jim Gibson (14-6) is the favorite at 197. Trying to challenge Gibson will be Lock Haven’s Jeremie Cook (11-10), Millersville’s Keith McDonald (8-9), Bloom’s P.J. DiStefano (7-17), Kutztown’s Kyle Davis (6-8) and Clarion’s Dixon Jordan (6-13).

HWT: Heavyweight could be very interesting as Bloomsburg’s defending champion #11 Mike Spaid (22-5) is expected to battle Edinboro’s #20 Joe Fendone (19-5) in the finals. Fendone was the 197-pound champion in 2006. Clarion’s A.J. Brooks (11-6) was fourth here last year. LH’s Mike Cook (8-13), Kutztown’s Rich Dalmas (8-6) and Ship’s Jason Roller (5-1) look to place high.