By Betsy Veysman

Josh Liebman couldn’t contain his excitement as he watched MSG Varsity’s programming on Monday night.

“When was the last time there was a preview show on TV about wrestling, let alone high school wrestling?” he asked.  “It’s unprecedented. It shows the excitement about the event.”

The event is the Second Annual NY/NJ Charity Challenge, which will take place this Sunday, March 25 at Clarkstown South High School in West Nyack, New York to benefit Pinning Down Autism and the Adam Frey Foundation.

For those who love high level wrestling, some of the top grapplers in the Empire and Garden States will square off in a dual meet beginning at 1 p.m (doors at 11:30 a.m. for raffles and more).  In fact, state champions will be everywhere, with five from New York and nine from New Jersey taking part.  (There are also four runner ups from New York and five from New Jersey).

“It wasn’t difficult at all to get a top wrestler in every weight class,” said Jason Bross, New York event organizer. “It was actually harder to have to turn away some very deserving wrestlers.  There is so much pride in putting your state logo on your singlet and representing your state. Wrestlers took that to heart and were proud to be on the team.”

“We were blessed,” added Liebman, discussing the recruitment of the New Jersey squad.  “We were lucky to get Gary Mezzacapo, who is Jersey through and through, to help.  By the end of state tournament weekend, he pretty much had the team in place.  It was a mixture of his diligence and the kids knowing that it would be a quality event they would want to be a part of.  The best kids want to be in the spotlight.”

The spotlight will be shining, especially in a clash between the neighboring states.

“It doesn’t matter if it’s baseball, basketball, football, wrestling or something else,” Liebman, New Jersey event organizer, said. “Any time you have competition between New York and New Jersey, there will be a rivalry there.”

“Wrestling fans have been talking about New York-New Jersey matchups on paper for years,” Bross added. “We wanted to bring those matches where they belong – on the mat.”

Last spring, those fans got their wish in the event’s debut.  New York came out on top, a fact that has not been forgotten by either team.

“I saw last year how bitter the New Jersey people were and how excited the New York guys were afterwards,” Liebman said. “People started chirping on forums. New Jersey feels like it’s a better wrestling state and that it’s harder to be a state champ here.  We respect New York, but we want to win.”

While coming out on top is an important motivator, far more important is the impact the day will have on the two charities.

Bross is the founder of Pinning Down Autism.  The organization holds wrestling events across the nation with the goals of raising awareness, supporting the advancement of public resources and raising funds to improve the lives of families affected by autism within the communities holding the events.

“I’m most excited about how many people are in support of what these great charities are trying to accomplish,” Bross said. “I’m excited to give the wrestlers an opportunity to showcase themselves on a big stage and give back to better their communities.”

This year, Pinning Down Autism is donating the funds to Autism Radio, which according to Bross, offers a weekly show on which experts provide advice to families impacted by autism on topics ranging from nutrition to improved communication to the impacts of art and music on autistic children. Bross said the radio show has over six million listeners.

The other beneficiary on Sunday will be the Adam Frey Foundation, which was founded by the late Blair Academy and Cornell University wrestler.

While fighting cancer, Frey saw families of other patients suffering with their day-to-day lives and expenses.  Frey was deeply impacted when he saw things like a family cutting a single hamburger into four pieces for dinner, and he knew he wanted to get involved.

“The Adam Frey Foundation is a non-research related charity for cancer,” Liebman said. “Adam wanted to do things to make the daily lives easier for families dealing with cancer, whether it be helping with groceries, bills or travel expenses.  If you want the best treatment for cancer, a family often has to travel.  The foundation helps ease the burdens related to that.”

In addition to preparing for the event, Liebman spent time with the New Jersey squad during their first meeting discussing the foundation and its namesake.

“The first practice we had, we circled everyone up and told them a little bit about Adam and the charity,” he said. “Surprisingly, a lot of them knew about it already.   The kids really understand the kind of person they are representing and take pride in that.”

In addition to helping deserving organizations, Liebman sees the event as a chance to bring the wrestling community together.

“As much of a competition as this is, I also want it to have the atmosphere of a family reunion,” he said. “Wrestling is such a close knit community.  I want it to be a celebration of the sport and the relationships in wrestling as well as a celebration of the charities.”

Bross and Liebman were both thrilled with the support provided by Cablevision and MSG Varsity, which will be broadcasting live.

“MSG Varsity is putting all their energy behind it,” Bross said. “The community is behind it in force.  We feel like something really special is going on.  Josh [Liebman], [Adam’s mother] Cindy Frey, [Clarkstown South’s coach] John Laurenzi and Gary Mezzacapo and I realized we could get together and really do this right.”

Liebman agreed.

“The growth opportunities are enormous for the charities, the sport of wrestling and the event itself,” Liebman said. “It’s like a perfect storm. I got butterflies when we were talking with some of the sponsors, realizing how much good can come out of this.”

Doors open at 11:30 a.m. and admission is a $20 donation for adults and $5 for students.  Bross strongly believes that those in attendance will get far more than their money’s worth.

“There are so many factors that will elevate the energy in the room,” Bross said.  “The rivalries, the great wrestlers, the charities.  The environment will be taken to the next level. We think people in the room will feel like they’re at the Super Bowl or the seventh game of World Series.  That’s the kind of energy we think the event will generate.”

For information, visit:

http://www.pinningdownautism.com

http://www.adamfreywrestling.com

NY/NJ Charity Challenge on Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/events/280426122016952/

Dual Meet Lineup

99- Jose Rodriguez (Freshman, Wantagh, NY–2012 NYS DI Runner-up) vs. Kyle Bierdumpfel (Mahwah, NJ—4x NJ State Youth Champion)

106- Nick Piccininni (Freshman, Ward Melville, NY— 2012 NYS DI Champion) vs. Carl Buttitta (Sophomore; Iselin Kennedy; NJ— 2012 State Runner-up)

113- Patrick Skinner (Senior; Kellenberg Memorial, NY—2012 NYS DI 3rd) vs. Brenden Calas (Junior; Seton Hall Prep, NJ—2011 and 2012 NJ State Champion)

120- Sean McCabe (Senior; Connetquot, NY—2012 NYS DI Champion) vs. Mike Magaldo (Sophomore; Watchung Hills, NJ—2012 NJ State Champion)

126- Maverick Passaro (Senior; Eastport-South Manor, NY—2012 NYS DI Champion) vs. Gary Dinmore (Sophomore; Hunterdon Central, NJ—2012 NJ State runner-up)

132- Nick Kelley (Junior; Shenendehowa, NY—2012 NYS DI 3rd) vs. Scott Delvecchio (Junior; South Plainfield, NJ—2012 NJ State Champion)

138- Anthony Finocchiaro (Senior; Canastota, NY—2012 NYS DII runner-up) vs. BJ Clagon (Junior; Toms River South, NJ—2012 NJ State Champion)

145- Mike Caputo (Senior; North Rockland, NY—2012 NYS DI 4th) vs. Alex Richardson (Senior; St. Peters Prep, NJ—2012 NJ State Champion)

152- Dylan Palacio (Senior; Long Beach, NY—2012 NYS DI Champion) vs. Raamiah Bethea (Senior; Trenton Central, NJ—2012 NJ State Champion)

160- Rrok Ndokaj (Senior; Monsignor Farrell, NY—2012 NYS DI 4th) vs. Johnny Sebastian (Sophomore; Bergen Catholic, NJ—2012 NJ State Champion)

170- Zach Zupan (Junior; Canastota, NY—2012 NYS DII Champion) vs. Ryan Harrington (Senior; Mendham, NJ—2011 and 2012 NJ State Champion)

182- Jacob Berkowitz (Senior; Scarsdale, NY—2012 NYS DI runner-up) vs. Dallas Winston (Senior; Jackson Memorial, NJ—2012 NJ State Champion)

195- Reggie Williams (Sophomore; Johnson City, NY—2012 NYS DI runner-up) vs. Eric McMullen (Senior; North Bergen, NJ—2012 NJ State runner-up)

220- Patryk Kopczynski (Senior; Brooklyn Technical, NY—2012 NYS DI 4th) vs. Lex Knapp (Senior; Lacey, NJ—2012 NJ State runner-up)

285- Cole Lampman (Senior; Shenendehowa, NY—2012 NYS DI 3rd) vs. Jermaine Eluemunor (Senior; Morris Knolls, NJ—2012 NJ State runner-up)

By Betsy Veysman

Where should Cam Simaz go in the lineup?

That was a question the Cornell coaches were considering prior to the team’s opening dual meet in November of 2008 against Penn State.

According to assistant coach Damion Hahn, the Big Red wanted to fill the 184 and 197 slots with Justin Kerber and then-freshman Simaz, who both weighed about 185 pounds at the time.  But they weren’t sure who should go where.

“Penn State’s 184 [Phil Bomberger] was ranked and he had a great double.  He was built like a brick house, just as strong as can be,” Hahn said. “We came to the conclusion that Kerber could stop the double better.  We knew Kerber could handle 197 because he’d done it the year before, but we were hoping if we put Cam there he could get his opponent so tired that he wouldn’t be able to stand up at the end.”

The plan worked as the Big Red won the bouts at both weights on the way to a 24-10 dual victory.  Kerber defended well and scored a takedown of his own and Simaz had his Nittany Lion foe, Clay Steadman, gassed before picking up the second fall of his career.  (He finished his career with 47 pins).

“It was a little lucky, but it turned out like we predicted it would. We looked like geniuses,” Hahn said. “We figured it worked and we stuck with it.”

Although underweight his entire rookie season, Simaz rode his athleticism and conditioning all the way to an All-American performance as an unseeded wrestler in St. Louis.

“During his freshman year, he finally hit 197 pounds during the NCAA tournament,” Hahn said.  “It took him all year to get there.  It’s never been about weight with him.  He makes up for weight with his ability to wrestle hard the entire match.”

That constant movement and activity played a crucial role in his 100 career bonus point victories, a Cornell record.  In his final three seasons with the Big Red, Simaz went 109-9 and just about always owned the third period.

On Saturday night at the Scottrade Center, Simaz fell behind Edinboro’s Chris Honeycutt in the championship bout 4-2, but came back to tie things up after two periods.  Once again, the last two minutes were his.

“We knew the match would be won in the third and we felt very confident that Cam would be the one in control then,” Hahn said. “Honeycutt tried to muscle him early, but we thought all along that if Cam stuck to his plan and continued to keep the pace high and wear on him, the wheels would fall off the bus eventually.  And they did.”

But it was much more than relentless pressure that helped the four-time All-American go from eighth as a freshman to champion as a senior.

“Cam has improved in every aspect of his wrestling,” Hahn said. “When he was a freshman, his defense was, for lack of a better word, horrendous.  But he spent so much time working on baseline defense, defending leg attacks.  No question it has paid off.  He’s also come a long way on top.  Over the years, his top wrestling became a strength.  Those things have been huge difference makers for him.”

He’s been a huge difference maker for the Big Red and will continue next season as he will stay in Ithaca as part of the staff at the Finger Lakes Wrestling Club.

“If I ever get to coach another kid like Cam, I will be lucky,” Hahn said. “When you tell Cam what to do, he goes out and does it.  How many people can you count on like that?  If you tell him to run through a brick wall, he’ll do it.  Never a question, never a doubt. We’re lucky that we’re keeping him around here so he can train and help out.”

One of the primary beneficiaries of having Simaz in town next year is his roommate, training partner and fellow national champion Steve Bosak.

According to Hahn, the now two-time 184 pound All-American had the ability to stand on top of the NCAA podium in the past, but was missing one key ingredient.

“The biggest thing with Bosak is belief,” Hahn said. “As a freshman, he just didn’t believe until after his first trip to the national tournament.  He got some pins, scored some bonus for us and made the Round of 12 that year.  That sparked something and made him believe for the first time that he was good enough.  We already knew he was extremely good.”

He made a leap his sophomore year with a 34-5 mark and his confidence from his fourth place finish in 2011 carried over into this season.

“Coming into this year, Steve began to understand that he is already winning any match he starts 2-0,” Hahn said. “He will get out on bottom and can ride anyone.  He started to realize that he needed to avoid putting himself in bad positions and stay patient for the right opportunities on his feet.  He’s so difficult to score on now.  I’m telling you, I have a lot of trouble taking him down. He’s so good all around and he proved it this weekend.”

He also proved that he can battle through nagging injuries, as most wrestlers do.  Most fans around the country were aware of the hamstring injury that sidelined Simaz for the month of December.   But far fewer were aware of the shoulder trouble that Bosak endured for the second part of the campaign.

“The shoulder popped and was bothering him,” Hahn said. “He wore a shoulder brace for the whole second semester in the room and did a lot of rehab until the end of the season.  We were able to keep it under wraps because he didn’t have to wear the brace when he competed.  There were certain positions he couldn’t get into, but he dealt with it.  I doubt too many people who saw the NCAA tournament could tell.”

Most people who saw the NCAA tournament were aware that Kyle Dake is the only wrestler in history to capture national titles at three different weights.  The junior completed an undefeated season with five convincing victories in St. Louis.

“Kyle’s obviously a special one,” Hahn said. “When he wrestles, I don’t have a worry in the world.  He’s not going to stop wrestling.  To take him down you have to go hell and back.  I never doubt him or consider that he’ll do anything but win.”

What can the Ithaca, NY native do next year for an encore?

“I would bet the farm on Kyle winning another national title,” Hahn said.  “But I think he can do it in a way that’s even more dominant.  He can separate himself more.  He can open up more and throw everything at the guys he wrestles.  I’ve wrestled with him and he does things that make you say ‘wow, how did he do that?’  Let’s face it, what he’s done so far is monumental.”

Hahn talked about one more accomplishment that he called “monumental” – having three champions from Cornell in the same season.

What do those three victors have in common, other than the top spot on the podium?

“They are all goofballs,” Hahn said, laughing. “They like to goof around and make fun of each other.  Steve is always talking and he’s really funny.  With Cam, you just don’t know what he’ll say, he’s full of surprises.”

“They’re also all great people,” Hahn continued. “They’re a pleasure to work with and be around.  I’m glad we have all three of them still in Ithaca next year.”

With Dake and Bosak back to defend their titles and many other talented returners, next year promises to be special.  But for now, the three champions are enjoying what they and the team accomplished on Saturday in St. Louis, a time head coach Rob Koll calls “the greatest night in Cornell wrestling history.”

By Betsy Veysman

The sense of déjà vu was unmistakable.  Hofstra’s Justin Accordino spent months and months rebounding from an ACL surgery to get back on the mats.  But just 15 bouts into the 2010-2011 season, he sustained yet another severe knee injury.

For some, the grueling challenge of rehabilitation for a second time in two years would have been too much.  But there was no hesitation from the Pennsylvania native.  Knowing the challenge he would have to face again, he went through his second procedure and worked as hard as he could to return to Pride lineup.

“Not coming back was never going through my mind,” Accordino said.  “This is something I love to do.  The coaches asked me if I wanted to keep wrestling and it was always yes, yes. I really worked through my rehab as hard as I could.”

Prior to his injuries, Accordino made an immediate impact in his first season of college wrestling, with a 25-13 record and a 2-2 mark at the NCAA tournament.  He registered several quality victories, including a major decision over this year’s NCAA champion, Frank Molinaro.

Two injury-interrupted campaigns later, he came into this year at 149 pounds with hopes of returning to his earlier form.  Initially, things didn’t go as smoothly as he hoped, as he had a 10-8 record after the Southern Scuffle in early January.

“He had two years off the mat and with that, he had some rust,” said Hofstra head coach Rob Anspach.  “At times he was wrestling really well, but then even in the same day, he was inconsistent.  I think over time he felt more comfortable that nothing was going to happen to his knee and he just kept improving.”

Accordino appeared to hit his stride late in the season, winning 13 of his final 16 bouts and taking second at the CAA Championships behind Binghamton’s Donnie Vinson.

“From late January on, he really started looking good,” Anspach said. “He grinded out a win over [Cornell’s Chris] Villalonga and then wrestled [Pittsburgh’s Tyler] Nauman really tough.  He shots were more crisp and he was attacking more.  He was looking like the guy we recruited again.”

While he didn’t receive a seed for the NCAAs, he felt comfortable with his placement in the bracket where his first opponent would be Purdue’s Ivan Lopouchanski, the 12^th seed.

“We thought Justin matched up well with Lopouchanski,” Anspach said. “And then his next opponent would be the fifth seed [Kent State’s Ian] Miller, who was a true freshman.  You never know how freshmen will react at this tournament.  So I liked the spot we were in.”

Accordino began with an 8-4 decision over the Boilermaker and followed that up with a second period fall against Miller.  He continued his roll with an 11-3 triumph over Oklahoma’s Nick Lester in which he built up a sizable lead early with a five-point move.

“He’s always a guy who went after big moves,” Anspach said.  “He’s dangerous because he can do it all.  He can hit leg attacks, he can throw, he can hit cement mixers.  He’s never really out of a match.  He’s went out and wrestled wide open and it got him to the semifinals.”

Getting to the semis assured Accordino of All-American status.  For someone who didn’t know if he would be able to wrestle again at a high level, it was a significant accomplishment.

“It’s awesome,” Accordino said after beating Lester. “I’ve been working for this accomplishment since my freshman year.  It’s great to hear [All-American] after fighting through injuries and working so hard.”

“It’s unbelievable,” added Anspach.  “Every year you come out to NCAAs and see guys get hot at the right time. He didn’t have an easy road.  I’m really happy he’s an All-American.”

Accordino wasn’t the only Pride wrestler to overcome an injury-shortened season to achieve an NCAA triumph.  125-pounder Steve Bonanno wrestled just one match in 2009 before an elbow problem sidelined him for the remainder of the campaign.   The Wantagh native returned to the lineup last year, taking second at the CAAs and winning a match at NCAAs.

This year, however, Bonanno took another step forward, demonstrating he could compete with the best throughout the season, going 26-8 and placing at the Las Vegas Invitational and the Southern Scuffle.

“Steve just approached matches with a different kind of confidence this year,” Anspach said. “When he was a freshman, there were zero expectations on him and he competed well in the underdog role.  But after that, all of a sudden there were expectations on him and he didn’t handle it that well.  When he wrestled bigger names, he got taken down right away.  Deep down, he didn’t believe he was an All-American.  But this year, he believed in himself.  He thought he should win and wrestled that way.”

Seeded 12^th in St. Louis, Bonanno started off with a victory before dropping a close decision to Kent State’s Nic Bedelyon.  However, he responded with a pair of wins in the consolations and faced a matchup with Pittsburgh’s Anthony Zanetta to determine whether he would earn All-American status.

The two wrestlers were not strangers.  Last year at nationals in Philadelphia, Zanetta eliminated Bonanno from the competition with a 5-3 decision.  This regular season, Bonanno got some revenge, defeating Zanetta by major and by 6-1 decision.

In perhaps the most important meeting between them this year, Bonanno made it three in a row against the Panther, but it wasn’t easy.  Zanetta notched two takedowns in the first period to take a 4-1 lead.  In the second, Bonanno escaped and scored a takedown of his own to knot the score at 4.  The Pride junior then had to ride the entire third to send the bout into overtime, which he did.  After no one scored in sudden victory, Bonanno turned his opponent for nearfall points in the tiebreakers to earn a spot on the podium for the first time in his career.

“We felt confident going in but the second match against Zanetta this year was a lot closer than the first and we thought this would be even closer,” Anspach said. “Zanetta wrestled a great match.  Steve was down early but he seemed calm and just kept wrestling.  He needed to be tough and gritty and grind it out.  It was a typical Steve match – he had to work hard and he’s one of the hardest workers we have.  It’s a great feeling to have someone like him reach his goals.  I couldn’t be happier.”

Bonanno will be back for the Pride next year, and head coach Rob Anspach is hoping Accordino will join him. The team is currently in the process of applying for a sixth year for the 149 pounder and although the NCAA has strict criteria, Anspach thinks the case for Accordino is strong.

Two wrestlers that will not return next season for the Pride are 2011 All-American PJ Gillespie and Ben Clymer, a pair of seniors who competed in Hofstra singlets for the final time in St. Louis.

“PJ and Ben have done amazing things for our program,” he said. “I would have liked to see Ben finish with 100 wins and he came up a few short.  Neither of them finished the way they wanted to, but that in no way defines their careers.  They were great assets to the program and they definitely will be missed.”

Whether or not Accordino is on the mat for the 2012-13 campaign, Anspach believes the example he set, coming back from season ending injuries to make the podium, is instructive for the rest of the program.

“You never know what will happen and when your opportunities will come,” he said. “A lot of people told Justin to call it quits, enough is enough.  But he was determined to be an All-American and he went out and did it.  He believed that he should do everything he could to reach his goals and if he didn’t get there, at least he wouldn’t have any regrets.”

On Saturday night, as he stood on the podium and accepted his trophy, it didn’t look like Accordino had any regrets at all.

By Betsy Veysman

They say that good things come to those that wait, but Maciej Jochym wasn’t so sure.

As a freshman in 2008, he came tantalizingly close to an NCAA tournament appearance, losing in the fifth place match at EIWAs in overtime.  The five grapplers that placed ahead of him were rewarded with bids to nationals.

With his 21-13 record as a rookie, Jochym seemed destined to compete at college wrestling’s biggest event multiple times.

But years later, on the morning of March 3 at the 2012 EIWA championships, Jochym took the mat knowing he needed two more victories to assure himself of his first trip to NCAAs.  He took at 2-1 lead early in his first match of the day against Navy’s Daniel Miller but gave up a five-point move in the second period and dropped his consolation semifinal bout.

He rebounded to pin Penn’s Steven Graziano in the fifth place match, but with only three automatic qualifying slots at 285 pounds, Jochym knew his fate was completely out of his hands.  And it would be several days until the announcement of the wildcard selections.

“It was very difficult to wait,” Jochym said.  “I prepared for the worst.  I thought I was finished.  I really didn’t think it was possible.”

Early in the week, the Cornell coaches didn’t feel overly optimistic about Jochym’s chances, either.  However, they did note that his 16-13 record came against a challenging schedule and featured some solid victories.

“I didn’t think it was a good bet,” said head coach Rob Koll. “His win-loss record wasn’t that great but I did know his RPI was pretty high and that could help him.  I just wasn’t sure who else was out there.  Had [Navy’s] Miller been an automatic qualifier, I would have felt good about it since they split this year, but I was preparing for bad news.”

At 5:30 p.m. on Wednesday, the complete heavyweight field for St. Louis was published and for Jochym, the news was good.

“I think what made the difference was that I had three quality wins over guys going to the tournament,” he said. “When I found out, I was ecstatic to finally get the chance to go to nationals.”

The path he took to get his NCAA opportunity was not a typical one.

Jochym’s first season at Cornell was successful, with victories over Cameron Wade and Ryan Flores.  But it wasn’t a completely smooth ride.

“At times, Maciej absolutely would not listen to what we said,” Koll said. “If I told him to shoot a single leg, he hit a headlock.  When you’re a small heavyweight, you have to be careful not to get stuck underneath much bigger guys.  But Maciej wanted to go, go, go and attack all the time, regardless of the opponent.  Not shooting a lot wasn’t in his nature.  He was impatient and it cost him at least a couple of matches.”

“I was young and maybe a little naïve,” Jochym said. “I was a little too aggressive in my style.  I know the coaches felt I needed to wrestle smarter and take more calculated risks.  But I came from 215 [pounds] in high school and it was a difficult switch to the heavyweight style.”

The following year, Jochym went 4-2 at the Binghamton Open but then withdrew from Cornell for personal reasons.  When he returned to Ithaca as a sophomore, Jochym decided that wrestling was not going to be a part of his life.

“It came to a point where I felt the need to work to be able to better support myself,” he said. “I had to prioritize, and I felt I needed the extra money, so I focused on school and working.”

But early in the second semester, he started to miss the sport and felt that he had made strides financially.  He asked to be accepted back onto the squad and rejoined the Big Red for the 2010-11 campaign.

“I realized I really wanted to return,” he said.  “I realized how much wrestling meant to me.  There were a lot of aspects that I missed – the team, the camaraderie.  There also was something to be said about going out and working on my goals.  I also knew the team was in the hunt for the national title and I wanted to help however I could.”

Returning All-American Cam Simaz was the starter at 197, and the 285 position was open for competition. However, Jochym chose the lighter class.

“Maciej decided to go to 197 even though he knew he was guaranteeing himself second string,” Koll said. “He wanted to be lean and didn’t like the pushing and shoving that goes on at heavyweight. He wanted to mix it up.”

“I didn’t like the heavyweight style of wrestling,” Jochym agreed. “I thought it was boring; a game of who could be the biggest.  I felt that at around 220 pounds, it didn’t suit my style very well.  I saw an opportunity to help the team by backing up Cam [Simaz].”

When Simaz was injured during the Southern Scuffle, having the Herricks High School standout in the wings paid dividends during the Big Red’s run to the National Duals title.

“I was at home with my family and I thought I would have a few weeks off,” he said. “I saw Cam was hurt while watching the finals of the Southern Scuffle.  I got the call from [Koll] soon afterwards.  I wasn’t prepared weight wise and I didn’t realize how tough the cut would be.  I also wasn’t mentally prepared right away for something like National Duals. But I was happy in the end that I was able to help the team win.”

While Jochym went 1-3 at the competition, he saved key team points.  In a close dual with Missouri, he held heavily favored Brett Haynes to a 4-2 decision.  In the finals against Virginia Tech, Jochym finished strong, defeating Chris Penny.

“I am of course thankful for what Maciej did at National Duals,” Koll said.  “He played an important role for us.”

He wanted to play an important role in his senior campaign as well.  For Jochym, that meant a move back to 285.

“The decision was made early in the preseason,” he said.  “I was doing well with the other heavyweights in practice.  I was winning the live wrestling and I thought I would give it a try again.”

“I think Maciej realized you always look better with your hand raised,” Koll added.  “He knew that was going to happen a lot more at heavyweight.”

There was an adjustment period as he got accustomed to wrestling at the highest weight class again.  But he showed steady improvement throughout the campaign.

“Who knows where Maciej would be today if he had stayed the course from his freshman year, or if he had wrestled at heavyweight last year?” Koll asked. “It took him most of this season to effectively wrestle the heavyweight style.  It’s basically a different sport.  He has clearly gotten better and better as the year progressed.  Now, we’re really excited to see what he can do this week.”

Jochym’s first opponent in St. Louis will be a familiar one — sort of.  He has never faced Nebraska’s Tucker Lane, but he works out with his younger brother, teammate Stryker Lane, frequently.

“Stryker says he beats up on Tucker every time he goes home,” Koll said with a laugh. “So either Maciej will beat him by the transitive property or Stryker is a liar.  We’ll find out in a few days.”

On a more serious note, Koll stated that it is a match he and the Big Red coaching staff feel Jochym is capable of winning.

“Tucker Lane is a very good heavyweight, but he isn’t a huge heavyweight,” he said. “There are no easy draws at this level but at 285, one mistake either way determines the match since there aren’t a lot of points scored.  Maciej can do it.  I feel funny about it because I know Tucker and his family.  If Maciej were wrestling any of the other 31 guys in the weight class, I’d be cheering for Tucker.  But in this case, the Lane family will have to forgive me for cheering against him.”

Koll believes that Jochym is worth cheering for, regardless of the number of points he scores this weekend.

“Maciej has really grown up,” Koll said. “He was typical of a lot of freshmen who think they know everything.  But he has made an incredible transformation.  Everyone loves him.  He went through ups and downs and came out on top.  I can’t say enough about him.  You wouldn’t believe how hard he works. He wasn’t only rewarded with a trip to St. Louis but also with the respect and friendship of his teammates.  He has turned into one of my favorites.”

Jochym’s journey as a grappler will come to an end this weekend, where he’s always wanted to be – the NCAA tournament.

“I came close to nationals as a freshman,” he said.  “To get this NCAA berth means so much to me.  It means I have a chance to help the team by scratching and clawing for any points I can get. It’s also a second chance to achieve my goal of being an All-American.”

For Maciej Jochym, the wait has been worth it.

By Betsy Veysman

During his internships with the campus and state police, future law enforcement agent Justin Lister has learned quite a bit about protecting and serving the public.

For the next week, however, he is far more interested in putting people in danger.

“To me, Justin Lister is one of the most dangerous wrestlers in the country because he can pin you from any position,” Binghamton head coach Pat Popolizio said. “You make a mistake with him and he will capitalize.”

“It’s the name of the game in this sport,” Lister, who has 38 career pins, added. “I have a great time thinking of ways to put people on their backs and once they’re there, I keep them there.  I think I have a natural killer instinct.  Once I smell blood, I get after it.”

Fittingly, it was a pair of falls at the 2010 NCAA tournament that helped introduce wrestling fans around the country to Lister.

He entered nationals with a solid 28-8 record and a CAA title, but was unseeded and a relative unknown.  His first round opponent, Oklahoma State’s Neil Erisman, had beaten Lister in their only two meetings.

The Rodman, NY native came out determined to get revenge and he did, earning a 3-0 decision.  In his second match, he avenged another earlier setback against Thomas Scotton of North Carolina.

“I couldn’t accept losing to the same guys again,” he said. “I controlled those matches from the beginning and won handily.”

That set up a quarterfinal meeting with the number three seed, Jesse Dong of Virginia Tech.

“Going into the match, I thought to myself that Jesse Dong and I were the two youngest people in the weight class,” Lister said.  “There was no way he did more work than me and I didn’t care where he was ranked.  I felt like I deserved it every bit as much as he did.”

With that attitude, Lister made quick work of the Hokie, getting the fall in just over a minute.

“That win was a great relief,” he said. “Going into college, my main goal was to be an All-American.  That sealed the deal.  I was ecstatic.  But then, I came back to wrestle the semis and got my doors blown in by [Cal Poly’s] Chase Pami.”

After the semifinal loss by major decision to Pami, Lister felt once again that he had something to prove when he faced Penn State’s Cyler Sanderson.

“I wanted to show that it wasn’t a fluke.  I wanted to show that I deserved to be an All-American,” he said.  “There was no one better to prove that against than the brother of a legend.  I tore him up, slapped the cradle on him and pinned him.  That was the most memorable match for me because I felt like I did it with authority.  I truly believed that I belonged.”

After a loss in his final match of the tournament, Lister took fourth place, an outcome that shocked many around the country.  But Popolizio wasn’t one of them.

“Justin caught a lot of people off guard,” the coach said. “I knew he had it in him.  He had the ability and the work ethic, but it takes a special person to make a run at NCAAs.  He’s a gamer who rose to the occasion.”

After his postseason run, Lister came into the 2010-11 season near the top of the rankings at 157 pounds.  But some changes were on the way.

“Justin struggled a little bit mentally and physically early on,” he said.  “Going to 165 pounds recharged his battery.”

“It wasn’t easy making 157 so when my coach told me I could eat more, I was happy to make the change,” Lister added. “I wrestled halfway decent throughout the year.”

He did better than “halfway decent” in the second part of the season, when he seemed to find his rhythm at his new weight.  He registered quality victories over wrestlers such as Iowa State’s Andrew Sorenson and despite entering the CAA tournament as the fourth seed, captured his second consecutive conference title, including a triumph over future All-American PJ Gillespie of Hofstra.

It appeared he was ready for another magical postseason.  Again unseeded, Lister began with a 2-1 win over Appalachian State’s Kyle Blevins in round one.  But he then ran into Nebraska’s Jordan Burroughs.  The future World Champion had his way with Lister early and, to add injury to insult, Lister severely hurt his ankle and had to default.

“I was just outmanned by Burroughs,” he said. “He grabbed me and threw me wherever he wanted.”  During the match, Lister suffered what was later diagnosed as a high ankle sprain with a crack above the joint.

He said walking was a challenge, but he was determined to compete in his consolation match anyway.  Iowa’s Aaron Janssen eliminated Lister from nationals by technical fall.

“Taking an injury default would have been the easy way out,” he said. “There were lots of eyes on me, people expecting me to do great things.  I gave it my all.  I think I gained respect from my coach and my teammates. I proved my mental toughness to myself even though it didn’t go the way I wanted.”

It took several months for Lister to recover.  He said he finally was back to about 90% by mid-summer.  As soon as he was ready, he got back to working in the room with some of the partners who have contributed to his success, Donnie Vinson (the fourth seed at 149 pounds) and former NCAA qualifier Matt Kaylor.

“The three of us get after it so hard, we wind up hurting each other,” he said.  “We have to work earlier in the week so we’re ok by the time the competition comes.   Let’s just say, it gets pretty heated quickly.”

Lister, Kaylor and the coaches determined that the team was best served with Lister back at 157 and Kaylor at 165 for the 2011-12 campaign.

“157 is where Justin has his best shot at a national title,” Popolizio said. “His style of wrestling fits best with guys that are a little smaller, where he can use his height for leverage.”

The senior captain compiled a 26-5 record during the season while working through some injuries.  After a tight win over returning All-American Walter Peppelman of Harvard at the Binghamton Open in November, Lister sustained his first loss against Cornell’s Kyle Dake, 6-2.  He then went on a winning streak before dropping 3 of 4 in late January/early February.   Afterwards, he recovered to win the remainder of his matches, including his third CAA crown.

“I think he’s had a very successful season,” Popolizio said.  “He’s had a few letdowns and a couple of losses that could have gone his way.  Actually, every match he’s lost except one, he was leading into the third and had a mental lapse and was taken down at the end to lose. Sometimes the best way to learn is to be defeated and readjust.  The good thing is, he understands the mistakes he made and those losses motivated him.”

Another big motivator for Lister is contributing to the rise of the Bearcat program.  When he arrived on campus, things were very different than they are today.

“There wasn’t much respect for wrestlers when I first got here,” he said. “Now, the professors work with us and our schedule.  Now, we go into a local Subway or Walmart, and people know us.  Binghamton is becoming a wrestling community. It’s only been a few years and so much has changed.  We used to have 20 or 30 people at duals and now we get around 1000.”

The crowd was that large when a pair of top notch teams, Oklahoma and Cornell, came to town for dual meets in January.  Both meets came down to the wire, and although the Bearcats came out on the short end, they demonstrated that they have entered the upper echelon of college wrestling.  Binghamton sported an impressive 15-4 dual record overall.

“It is such a joy to see our season come together the way it did,” Lister said.  “We proved our worth as a Division I program.  I feel more pride about being the captain of this team for the past three years than about my individual success.”

According to Popolizio, Lister has been an integral part of Binghamton’s emergence.

“Justin has elevated this program with his attitude, work ethic and confidence,” Popolizio said. “He didn’t have guys before him to show the way.  We’re not the same program without him, no question about it. Others can follow his footsteps.”

This week, he will try to follow the footsteps he made back in Omaha in the 2010 NCAAs.

“Hopefully, there will be another Cinderella story this year,” he said.  “I definitely want to pin some more people.  I’m not looking past anyone, but I would really like a rematch with Kyle Dake.  I’d like to take his #1 seed and run it to the finals.  I’ve been dreaming of running out for the finals in the green corner for months now.  I want it for myself, everyone in the program, the community and my family.  There would be nothing sweeter than ending on such a high note.”