HIGHLIGHTS OF JOHN CARROLL'S RECORD-BREAKING 2007-2008 SEASON:
* Rose from the MIAA's B Conference, where they were twice dual meet and tournament champs, to the A Conference.
* Finished fourth behind traditional A Conference powers McDonogh, Mount St. Joseph and Archbishop Curley in the league dual meet standings.
* All but one John Carroll starter had a winning record as the Patriots entered the MIAA Tournament, and that lone wrestler's mark was even at 16-16.
* Patriots placed fifth in the Maryland Independent Schools or private schools state tournamaent behind McDonogh, Mount St. Joseph, Curley and DeMatha of Hyattsville.
* Patriots' 35-5 dual meet record included a win over then-defending Class 2A-1A state dual meet and tournament champion Rising Sun of Cecil County.
* Won the Howard Iron Horse Duals, a victory that included a win over Baltimore County Tournament champion Milford Mill.
* Patriots qualifed a school-record wrestlers for last year's National Preps -- twice as many as the previous season.
* Finished at No. 14 in the DigitalSports-Maryland State Wrestling Association Top 20.
John Carroll coach Keith Watson doesn't mince words when he talks about the success of last year's Patriots' wrestling team.
"There's pressure, but mostly from within because we know what this group is capable of. The expectation is that we at least maintain a level of success to which we have grown accustom -- regardless of the strength of the schedule -- and that's a factor that many don't consider," said Watson, whose Patriots' beefed-up itenerary includes entering this year's prestigious Mount Mat Madness Invitational at Catonsville Community College on Jan. 16-17.
"I believe that the entry into MMM was only a matter of time. As [event organizer] Neil [Adelberg] has said, that acceptance into the event was not as much strength of team as it is marquee individuals," Watson said. "Our schedule is as tough as anyone's except maybe McDonogh. But this year's squad is more accomplished and has worked harder to become 'wrestlers' than any squad that I've ever had. Last year's team was solid, but not as solid as this year's team."
The Patriots are led by returnees Ryan Owens (135-140), Eric Hart (152), Nick Almony (160) and Ethan Reese (171) -- four seniors who won 30 or more bouts last season.
In addition to what amounts, comparitively, to a star-studded cast of wrestlers, the Patriots have an equally star-spangled brand of decorated and accomplished assistant coaches led by collegiate All-American Tom Reese and Matt Slutzky -- the latter of whom was Maryland's first, four-time state champion while competing at Aberdeen in the early 1990s.
"Having nine coaches -- five of whom were Division I athletes -- is
huge, going forward," Watson said. "We've been successful at 138-33 in
dual meets over the past five years. That says a lot about our coaching staff -- which has to be as good as any in Maryland."
One of the challenges and major litmus tests for the Patriots will be
cracking the top eschelon of the Maryland Interscholastic Athletic
Association's A Conference, which would mean a victory over the
traditional league powers -- the McDonogh Eagles, Mount St. Joseph
Gaels or Archbishop Curley Friars.
The Eagles, Gaels and Friars finished, 1-2-3, in the conference last season, and Watson knows that there still are some doubters out there who do still see the Patriots as also-rans.
"Being a small school -- we only have 350 boys) -- that doesn't cut us a break," Watson said. "It is, I believe a big deal to be talked about with those three. Being able to beat one of them is a tall order, but would put us on the map."
JOHN CARROLL'S ACCOMPLISHED ASSISTANT COACHES:
Tom Reese - State champ for North Carroll; All-American at the University of Maryland, placing fifth in NCAA Tournament.
Matt Slutzky -- Became Maryland's first four-time state champion as an Aberdeen of Harford County wrestler, earned high school All-American honors.
Pat Ortman --
State runner-up for Arundel High in Anne Arundel County, former University of Maryland Wrestler.
Dean Roberts -- Graduated as winningest wrestler in John Carroll history with 138 carrer victories; Placed fifth at National Preps for high school All-American honors.
Jake Hollin -- Former Maryland Scholastic Association runner-up at John Carroll.
Keith Runk -- Former Silver medalist in the International Police Olympics in freestyle in Sydney, Australia.
Chuck Hart -- Former Gold medalist in the International Police Olympics in Calgary, Canada.
Nathan Bachman -- Former two-time Class 4A-3A state champ who placed third at states once at Fallston; Earned Division III Regional title at Rochester Institute of Technology.
Matt Kahl -- Former two-time state runner-up at Harford Tech.
Matt Bodt -- Placed third at private schools states as a John Carroll senior last year.
Pat Conlon -- Finished third at Class 4A-3A states, second at Class 4A-3A East Regionals at Aberdeen High.
JOHN CARROLL'S RETURNING SENIOR WRESTLERS:
Ryan Owens (135/140):
30-16 last season, 76-43 career. Owens finished thirdd at last year's state
tournament, and competed for the Maryland team at the Brute Scholastic Duals.
David Hyman (140/145):
12-4 on varsity last season. Hyman filled in as needed last season on varsity.
David Hatem (140/145):
12-2 on varsity last season, 57-32 career. Hatem spent last season in a reserve
role, after being a starter his freshman and sophomre years.
DJ Petty (145/152): 13-13 on
varsity last season. Petty is a very strong wrestler who will allow the
Patriots to juggle their lineup to achieve the match-ups needed to win dual
meets.
Eric Hart (152):
33-10 last year, 103-40 career. A four-year starter, Hart as an MIAA tournament runner-up. Hart won the Eastern
Nationals this past spring and should be a contender for a private schools state title this
season.
Nick Almony (160):
32-12 last year, 80-42 career. Almony has been a four-year starter and will
continue to be an anchor in the Patriot lineup.
Ethan Reese (171):
46-7 last season. Reese has a 119-25 career record, is closing in on the school's career victories record of 138 held by Dean Roberts, and also, the Harford County all-time mark of 146 by Harford Tech's Mike Long. Reese is coming down from 189, where he was an MIAA runner-up and placed third at the private schools state tournament. Reese was one victory shy earning All American status at National Preps.
Sammy Von Paris (215/285):
16-1 on varsity last season. Von Paris split time at 189 and 215 a yearago. "He'll definitely be a force within the MIAA this season," said coach Keith Watson.
Returning Varsity Veterans:
Soph, Dan Froehlich (119):
23-16 last year. Froehlich "came out of the very successful, Fallston Jr League
program, and immediately impacted the Patriot line up," said coach Keith Watson.
Jr, Sammy Chell (130):
23-18 last year. Chell finished fourth at the MIAA tournament last year and
is expected to be a contender for a league title.
Soph, Kyle Miele (145/152): Miele filled in on varsity
last season and will continue to help bolster the Patriot lineup.
Jr, Stephen St Clair (171/189):
39-1 last year, mostly wrestling on JV. St Clair becomes a full time varsity
starter this year. St. Clair is expected to be an immediate contributor.
Newcomers:
Soph, Joe Vitucci (125):
A second year wrestler, Vitucci has shown natural ability and fantastic mat awareness.
He was 19-2 on JV last season.
Fr, Liam Gaeng (103):
Gaeng has natural ability and is picking up the game quickly.
Fr, Tyler Krueger (103):
Like Gaeng, Krueger has natural ability and a great work ethic.
Fr, Matt Yim (112):
Yim is another good athlete who has taken to the sport quickly.
Fr, August Pons (112):
August is a good athlete and should impact the program
Soph, Rob Clingerman (215/285):
Clingerman has shown an affinity for the sport, and will get varsity experience
this year.
Jr, Andrew Palmer (285):
Palmer has years of Jui-Jitsu and Ground Fighting experience, and should be an
important addition to the varsity lineup.
John Carroll's Schedule at-a-glance:
War on the Shore (Dec 5/6)
The Mule Classic in Solanco, PA (Dec 12/13)
The Beast of the East (Dec 20/21)
The Battle of Bel Air (Dec 23)
McDonogh Holiday Duals (Dec 27)
The Iron Horse Duals (Jan 9/10)
Mount Mat Madness (Jan 16/17)
Octorarro Tournament in Oxford, PA (Jan 24)
MIAA's; Maryland
Independ States; National Preps
ANOTHER LOOK BACK AT JOHN CARROLL'S 2007-2008 SEASON:
JOHN CARROLL RIDES 'RECORD-BREAKING SEASON' INTO NATIONAL PREPS
When coach Keith Watson's John Carroll Patriots rose from the Maryland Interscholastic Athletic Association's B Conference, where they were league champions last year, into the A Conference this season, there were some who felt they would take their lumps.
But the Patriots thrived not only by finishing in a respectable fourth place in the league dual meet and tournament standings, but they also successfully navigated a difficult non-conference schedule that included matches against powerful public school teams.
The Patriots' 35-5 dual meet record included a win over then-defending Class 2A-1A state dual meet and tournament champion Rising Sun of Cecil County.
The Patriots were consistently behind traditional league powers such as three-time champion McDonogh, Mount St. Joseph and Archbishop Curley -- ranked Nos. 1, 2 and 10, respectively, in the DigitalSports-Maryland State Wrestling Association Top 20.
The Patriots, ranked 14th in the DigitalSports-MSWA Top 20, also placed fifth in the Maryland Independent Schools or private schools state tournamaent behind McDonogh, Mount St. Joseph, Curley and DeMatha of Hyattsville, ranked eighth in the DigitalSports-MSWA.
"At the end of last season, our biggest concerns for this year's move up to the A Conference were filling the lightest and heaviest weight classes," Watson said. "Otherwise, we felt confident that our work in the offseason and depth of lineup would serve us well. We felt that as long as we stayed healthy, we would at least be competitive."
At MIAAs, the Patriots had runner-up efforts from Eric Hart (140) and Ethan Reese (189), a third-place finish from Ray Grewe (215), and fourth-place finishes from Matt Bodt (112), Sammy Chell (125) and Ryan Owens (130).
At the private schools state tournament, Reese, Bodt and Owens were third, Grewe and Mathew Miller (145) were fifth, and Hart and Nick Almony (160), fifth.
"Last year was a record-breaking season for us, so yeah, of course this one is too," said Watson, whose Patriots are sending eight grapplers to the National Preps -- "twice as many wrestlers to National Preps this weekend as we did last year."
Grewe shared upperweight responsibilities with the Volker twins, Ben and Chris, with all three of them weighing "about 205 pounds," Watson said of wrestlers whose combined records totaled 65-33.
At 103 pounds, freshman Mike Webb emerged for the Patriots, amassing a 17-10 record despite having limited experience.
The Patriots "expect further improvement teamwise," next year, said Watson, who graduates only four starters.
"We intend to upgrade our schedule by including higher level traditional and dual meet tournaments," Watson said.
