by Lem Satterfield
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As alert and aware as he is on the wrestling mat these days, the University of Maryland's Jon Kohler was caught off guard if only for an instant, by an astonished, if not, disbelieving visitor to the Terps' wrestling practice room at the Comcast Center on Thursday afternoon.
For even as the sophomore 141-pounder from Annapolis had just completed a remarkable run for an Atlantic Coast Conference title before a home crowd at the Comcast Center this past Saturday, the Mount St. Joseph of Baltimore graduate's problem wasn't convincing the questioner that he
was good enough to win an ACC crown.
The problem was convincing him that, as a junior leaguer, "I just
wasn't very good."
"Anne Arundel County champion was the best that I did," said Kohler, who won crowns in the Maryland Interscholastic Athletic Association and private schools state tournaments at St. Joe's.
"I didn't even ever place at junior league states," said Kohler, whose Terps won the overall ACC Tournament crown. "I just wasn't that good in junior leagues. I just wasn't very good."
Try telling that to Kohler's ACC rivals, two of whom finished behind Kohler after having beaten him earlier in the year. According the Terps' website, Kohler, the fifth seed, beat a higher-seeded wrestler in every match en route to earning the crown.
Kohler blanked Virginia Tech's third-seeded Chris Diaz, 6-0, in the first round, followed by North Carolina's No. 2 seeded Nick Stabile, 5-2, in the semifinals. For his crown, Kohler blanked Virginia's Nick Nelson, 3-0.
Diaz had beaten Kohler, 7-4, earlier this year. Joe Carmonica of North Carolina State, who entered as the event's No. 1 seed, also had beaten Kohler earlier in the season. "Jon had won eight of his last 10 matches coming into the tournament. In both matches against Carmonica and Diaz, he got behind, 7-1, in the first period and he came back on them, even though he lost," said Terps' coach Pat Santoro. "After that, I knew he was ready. If he doesn't give up a 7-1 lead on you, then he's going to beat you, and that's what he's done."
"Every week he gets better and better. He's really a lot of fun to work with," said Santoro of Kohler, who qualified for next week's NCAA Tournament, which begins on Thursday. "It was very rewarding. I think I was happier than he was. For him, it was an expectation."
Kohler will be joined at next weekend's NCAA tournament by former Mount St. Joseph teammate Mack Lewnes
(165), a former four-time MIAA and private schools titlist and National
Preps champion.
A freshman at Cornell University, Lewnes scored an overtime takedown to
win, 6-4, over the University of Pennsylvania's Zack Shanaman for the
title in his weight class of the EIWA's.
Lewnes has a record of 32-3 with 11 pins, five major decisions and one victory by technical fall.
"I'm a sophomore. I knew I
could do real well in college, but that it would take a lot of work.
But I didn't expect it to happen this early, honestly," Kohler said.
"
I definitely like to set my goals as high as possible. National champ
-- there's no reason why I can't do it," Kohler said. "But I still have three years to do
it. I'd like to at least get All-American this year."
Santoro is one who believes Kohler is capable.
"Age is just a number at this point," Santoro said. "The guys up on the [championship] podium are all ages. I'm hoping to get him up on that podium."
Kohler's sophomore year with the Terps is not unlike his 10th-grade season at Mount St. Joseph.
"My sophomore year [at Mount St. Joseph] was probably my best year ever as far as getting better," Kohler said. "I hadn't even placed at junior league states, and then, I went on to win states that year."
St. Mary's coach Wayne Hicks coached Kohler in the Navy Juniors recreation leagues in Annapolis, said "didn't do much."
"Actually, he was doing very well in eighth grade and then, just had a bad junior league tournament," Hicks said. "But he's come a long way from junior leagues to Mount St. Joseph, and we're really proud of him."
Kohler's effort took place on the same weekend during which the Class 4A-3A and Class 2A-1A state tournaments were being held at the University of Maryland's Cole Field House.
Many of that event's participants came over to watch Kohler, who hopes to influence state recruits to follow him to the University of Maryland.
" I just hope that good Maryland kids come here and realize that they
can do great things. Like, I know that we already have [Josh] Asper,
more kids like that."