EAHS wrestling preview

Head Coach: Mike Sernoffsky, 25th season.

2006-2007 Record: 13-3 overall, 6-1 Section Two. Section Two champions.

Key Returners: Calvin Anderton, sophomore, 112 pounds; Oliver Thayer, senior, 135; Blake Rosenberger, senior, 145; Robby Townsley, senior, 140; Zac Distasio, senior, 152; Adam Zellman, junior, 160; Travis Leber, senior, 171; Justin Lewis, sophomore, 130; Jared Danneker, sophomore, 130; Shane Rosenberry, junior, 189; Sean McMullen, senior, 215; Alex Kirchner, junior, 285; Nico Givens, junior, 140.
E-town returns a ton of talent from last year’s section-champion squad. Up and down their lineup, the Bears are filled with experienced wrestlers capable of winning a lot of matches.
They will be led by the big three of Rosenberger, Rosenberry and McMullen. Rosenberry and McMullen were district medalists and state qualifiers a year ago and all three have an excellent shot of getting to the Giant Center for the state tournament this year. Rosenberry and McMullen will mainly wrestle at 189 and 215, but can also go at 171 and 189, respectively. Both are very strong, quick and technically sound and will win plenty of matches this season.
Rosenberger seems primed for a big season as well, and will be a force all season long, including leagues and sectionals and, barring an injury, will likely be a district and state qualifier.
The rest of E-town’s returners are more than capable of making a lot of noise in the season-ending tournaments, as the Bears return five wrestlers with 25 or more wins from last year. You’d be hard pressed to find a weakness in any of the weights that E-town has returning wrestlers at.

Key Newcomers: Matt Hoover, freshman, 103; Antonio Rodriguez, freshman, 119; Kyle Morrow, sophomore, 125; Zach Cramer, sophomore, 125; Zach Myers, sophomore, 152; Sean Heming, sophomore, 285; Hayden Gerhart, senior, 152; David Kennedy, sophomore, 160.
For the first time in several years, the Bears will be able to trot out a full lineup, with Hoover and Rodriguez filling the 103 and 119 weight classes.
The depth at the other weights will help the Bears get better in matches because they will have more competition on the practice mats, something that is very important in wrestling.
All of these newcomers will have the luxury of learning the ropes from the deep class of returning wrestlers, which will help keep E-town strong for the next couple of years.

Key Losses: Cole Hilsher, Joey Ahern, Chris Marsh, Alex Herr.
Hilsher and Ahern were both captains last year and brought a lot of senior leadership (not to mention talent) to E-town’s roster and will be missed.
Marsh gave the Bears a solid heavyweight, which will be taken over now by Kirchner. Herr was also a solid wrestler and always gave supreme effort when he was on the mat.

What they do well: Know how to win, wrestle with heart.
Go watch an E-town wrestling match. What you’ll see is every wrestler, from 103 pounds through heavyweight, wrestle hard each and every match and never quit. Several times last year, E-town wrestlers fell behind in the first and second periods of matches, only to come back strong in the third period and pull out wins. In section matches, and tournaments especially, the wrestlers who don’t give up are often the ones getting their hand raised at the end.
The Bears are also familiar with winning. You won’t find anyone wearing an E-town singlet being easily intimidated by an opponent, which is a testament to their previous success and also to the Bears’ coaching staff. E-town has plenty of wrestlers capable of qualifying for districts, and they know what they have to do to get there. E-town also has a lot of members of the football team on its roster. Sernoffsky said he hopes those players can continue the winning tradition they started in the fall.
“The kids are on a high from successful fall sports seasons and we plan to build on that,” he said.

What they need to work on: Not being complacent.
The Bears have a very good team this year, and they know it. There’s a fine line between confidence and arrogance and E-town has to be careful to stay on the side of confidence. Just because they are supposed to win a lot of matches doesn’t mean it will come easy.
E-town has to continue working hard, hitting the weight room and practicing hard each and every day. Sernoffsky said his wrestlers have good heads on their shoulders and doesn’t see complacency as being as issue.
“We must guard against an attitude that we don’t have to work hard because we are supposed to be good,” he said. “I don’t believe the coaching staff will allow that, as the kids can see from the intensity of practice so far.”

How they fared so far this season: 1-0.
E-town dismantled Hershey in its season-opening match on Saturday, Dec. 1, picking up the program’s 400th win in the process. It was an important win for the Bears, as they got the season started the way they wanted to in front of dozens of former EAHS wrestlers.

Outlook:
All signs point to a huge season for the Bears this year, if they can avoid key injuries. E-town has a lot of wrestlers on its roster, but there are still some weight classes that lack a lot of depth.
But it’s hard for E-town’s fans not to be excited about the upcoming season. Their success will hinge on how well the returning wrestlers can harness last season’s success and build on it. In nearly every match, the Bears can rely on getting points from Rosenberry, McMullen and Rosenberger and look for wrestlers like Anderton, Thayer, Townsley, Distasio, Zellman, Leber, Danneker and Kirchner to step up rack up a lot of wins, leading to another double-digit win total for the team.
The Bears lost just one match in section play last year, to Manheim Central. The Barons will be tough again this year (the 215 matchup of McMullen and Jordan Enck will be a highlight there), so E-town will not waltz to a repeat of the section crown.
E-town will have a strong season this year, and should be able to at least match last year’s 13 wins. The Bears could also send between four and five wrestlers to districts, with Rosenberger, Rosenberry and McMullen having the best shot to make the state tournament.
“We have a good blend of seniors and underclassmen with quite a bit of experience,” Sernoffsky said. “We hope to continue with the success of the football and soccer teams and win another section title this year.”

*I'll be at Daubert Gym tonight for the big Donegal-E-town match. More on this tomorrow.