Wrestling schedules have been starting to trickle out and it just so happens that Clarion is one of the first. The Golden Eagles have a very full schedule this season with 17 duals, the Clarion Open and the Southern Scuffle.
Last season was Clarion’s best in quite a while. Clarion went 11-6 in duals and placed 3rd out of 13 teams in the MAC behind just Lock Haven and Central Michigan. The dual record was their best since 2000-2001. Three Clarion wrestlers qualified for the NCAA tournament. Will Feldkamp was Clarion’s first All-American since 2013. Both Feldkamp and Seth Koleno won MAC titles. That’s the good news. The bad news is that both Feldkamp and Koleno are gone. Clarion did get several interesting transfers for this season but it will be difficult to match last season’s results.
Here’s a look at Clarion’s starting lineup for 23/24:
125 – Joseph Fischer (JR – South Park, PA)
Bonus 14.29%, RPI .548
Fischer went 11-10 last season as a true sophomore and didn’t qualify for the NCAAs tourney. He didn’t have any wins over NCAA qualifiers last season but he’s kept it close with several very good wrestlers. I think he has the potential to make it to the NCAA tournament.
133 – Mason Prinkley (Jr – Connellsville, PA)
Bonus 9.52%, RPI .462
Or Tye Varndell (Sr – Cambridge Springs, PA)
Prinkley was the 133 starter for Clarion last season as a true sophomore going 7-14. Varndell is a transfer from Edinboro and was their starter at 133 in 19/20 and 20/21 and has not yet qualified for the NCAA tournament. Varndell didn’t wrestle last season. (I don’t know why, someone who follows Edinboro or Clarion wrestling can fill in the gaps on his history.)
141 – Ryan Sullivan (Jr – Shaler, PA)
Sullivan is a transfer from West Virginia and before that, sPitt. He received an at-large spot at the NCAA tournament for 133 in 2021, going 1-2. He had some very solid wins that season but hasn’t wrestled since then. Again, this is another opportunity for someone to fill in the gaps…
Last season, Seth Koleno (Bald Eagle, PA) won the MAC championship at 141 and went 1-2 at the NCAA tournament from the 30 seed.
149 – Kyle Shickel (Jr – Lemont, IL)
Bonus 17.86%, RPI .544
Shickel went 14-14 as the starter last season and did not qualify for NCAAs. However, he did have a couple of wins against national qualifiers so he definitely has the potential to make it this season. This will be his 4th year as a starter for Clarion. He was at 141 in 20/21 and ended up at 157 in 21/22.
157 – Alejandro Herrera-Rondon (So – Seneca Valley, PA)
Alejandro recently transferred to Clarion from Oklahoma. He went 14-5 last season wrestling mostly in opens. Needless to say, he’s a pretty high profile transfer for Clarion. Last season, outgoing senior Trevor Elfvin (Father Judge, PA) was the starter, going 8-19.
This is an interesting quote from Alejandro in a Cranberry Eagle article: He decided to transfer closer to home after the Oklahoma coach resigned under pressure. “I think he was pushing us too hard,” Herrera-Rondon said. “We were all a bunch of studs in that room and we were beating each other up. That hurt us in the long run because guys were qualifying for postseason, then weren’t physically able to do much.”
165 – Cameron Pine (Sr – Washington, WV)
Bonus 45.45%, RPI .553
Pine had a pretty good season going 24-9 but placed 7th at the MAC championships and didn’t qualify for the NCAA tournament. He had one win against a NCAA qualifier (Cole Moody – Wyo). Pine was the starter for Campbell as a true freshman at 165 in 18/19.
174 – John Worthing (Jr – Tioga, NY)
Bonus 43.75%, RPI .590
The lone returning NCAA qualifier for Clarion, Worthing went 21-11 last season and placed 2nd at the MAC championship. He was the 33 seed at the NCAA tournament which, unfortunately for him, meant facing CStar in the first round. To his credit, he did win the pigtail to earn the right to get mauled by CStar and also won a match in the consis against 16 seed Sam Wolf (AF).
184 – Patrick Cutchember (Fr – Quaker Valley, PA)
Patrick went 6-3 in opens last season as a redshirt freshman. He has some big shoes to fill taking over for Will Feldkamp (Dexter, MI) who placed 7th at last season’s tournament from the 14 seed. After a second round fall to Aaron Brooks, Feldkamp worked his way through the consis, beating the 13, 9 and 11 seeds.
197 – Brett Wittmann (Jr – Kimberly, WI) or
Connor Jacobs (Fr – Armstrong, PA)
Wittmann went 6-10 in opens last season. Jacobs is an incoming freshman who finished 7th in PIAA in 2022.
Last season, outgoing 6th year senior Tyler Bagoly (Exeter Twp, PA) went 22-10 and didn’t qualify for the NCAA tournament. Bagoly has an interesting looking wrestling career being Clarion’s 184 starter in 2018/19 followed by three years at heavyweight and then finishing at 197.
Heavy – Austin Chapman (Jr – Riverside, WV)
Bonus 4.17%, RPI .483
or
John Meyers (Greensburg-Salem, PA)
Chapman went 9-15 last season and didn’t qualify for the NCAA tournament. Meyers is another transfer to Clarion from DII Seton Hill. He went 17-3 with the Griffins (yes, I had to look that up) and 1-2 in the DII championships.
Last season was Clarion’s best in quite a while. Clarion went 11-6 in duals and placed 3rd out of 13 teams in the MAC behind just Lock Haven and Central Michigan. The dual record was their best since 2000-2001. Three Clarion wrestlers qualified for the NCAA tournament. Will Feldkamp was Clarion’s first All-American since 2013. Both Feldkamp and Seth Koleno won MAC titles. That’s the good news. The bad news is that both Feldkamp and Koleno are gone. Clarion did get several interesting transfers for this season but it will be difficult to match last season’s results.
Here’s a look at Clarion’s starting lineup for 23/24:
125 – Joseph Fischer (JR – South Park, PA)
Bonus 14.29%, RPI .548
Fischer went 11-10 last season as a true sophomore and didn’t qualify for the NCAAs tourney. He didn’t have any wins over NCAA qualifiers last season but he’s kept it close with several very good wrestlers. I think he has the potential to make it to the NCAA tournament.
133 – Mason Prinkley (Jr – Connellsville, PA)
Bonus 9.52%, RPI .462
Or Tye Varndell (Sr – Cambridge Springs, PA)
Prinkley was the 133 starter for Clarion last season as a true sophomore going 7-14. Varndell is a transfer from Edinboro and was their starter at 133 in 19/20 and 20/21 and has not yet qualified for the NCAA tournament. Varndell didn’t wrestle last season. (I don’t know why, someone who follows Edinboro or Clarion wrestling can fill in the gaps on his history.)
141 – Ryan Sullivan (Jr – Shaler, PA)
Sullivan is a transfer from West Virginia and before that, sPitt. He received an at-large spot at the NCAA tournament for 133 in 2021, going 1-2. He had some very solid wins that season but hasn’t wrestled since then. Again, this is another opportunity for someone to fill in the gaps…
Last season, Seth Koleno (Bald Eagle, PA) won the MAC championship at 141 and went 1-2 at the NCAA tournament from the 30 seed.
149 – Kyle Shickel (Jr – Lemont, IL)
Bonus 17.86%, RPI .544
Shickel went 14-14 as the starter last season and did not qualify for NCAAs. However, he did have a couple of wins against national qualifiers so he definitely has the potential to make it this season. This will be his 4th year as a starter for Clarion. He was at 141 in 20/21 and ended up at 157 in 21/22.
157 – Alejandro Herrera-Rondon (So – Seneca Valley, PA)
Alejandro recently transferred to Clarion from Oklahoma. He went 14-5 last season wrestling mostly in opens. Needless to say, he’s a pretty high profile transfer for Clarion. Last season, outgoing senior Trevor Elfvin (Father Judge, PA) was the starter, going 8-19.
This is an interesting quote from Alejandro in a Cranberry Eagle article: He decided to transfer closer to home after the Oklahoma coach resigned under pressure. “I think he was pushing us too hard,” Herrera-Rondon said. “We were all a bunch of studs in that room and we were beating each other up. That hurt us in the long run because guys were qualifying for postseason, then weren’t physically able to do much.”
165 – Cameron Pine (Sr – Washington, WV)
Bonus 45.45%, RPI .553
Pine had a pretty good season going 24-9 but placed 7th at the MAC championships and didn’t qualify for the NCAA tournament. He had one win against a NCAA qualifier (Cole Moody – Wyo). Pine was the starter for Campbell as a true freshman at 165 in 18/19.
174 – John Worthing (Jr – Tioga, NY)
Bonus 43.75%, RPI .590
The lone returning NCAA qualifier for Clarion, Worthing went 21-11 last season and placed 2nd at the MAC championship. He was the 33 seed at the NCAA tournament which, unfortunately for him, meant facing CStar in the first round. To his credit, he did win the pigtail to earn the right to get mauled by CStar and also won a match in the consis against 16 seed Sam Wolf (AF).
184 – Patrick Cutchember (Fr – Quaker Valley, PA)
Patrick went 6-3 in opens last season as a redshirt freshman. He has some big shoes to fill taking over for Will Feldkamp (Dexter, MI) who placed 7th at last season’s tournament from the 14 seed. After a second round fall to Aaron Brooks, Feldkamp worked his way through the consis, beating the 13, 9 and 11 seeds.
197 – Brett Wittmann (Jr – Kimberly, WI) or
Connor Jacobs (Fr – Armstrong, PA)
Wittmann went 6-10 in opens last season. Jacobs is an incoming freshman who finished 7th in PIAA in 2022.
Last season, outgoing 6th year senior Tyler Bagoly (Exeter Twp, PA) went 22-10 and didn’t qualify for the NCAA tournament. Bagoly has an interesting looking wrestling career being Clarion’s 184 starter in 2018/19 followed by three years at heavyweight and then finishing at 197.
Heavy – Austin Chapman (Jr – Riverside, WV)
Bonus 4.17%, RPI .483
or
John Meyers (Greensburg-Salem, PA)
Chapman went 9-15 last season and didn’t qualify for the NCAA tournament. Meyers is another transfer to Clarion from DII Seton Hill. He went 17-3 with the Griffins (yes, I had to look that up) and 1-2 in the DII championships.
