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ATH11_338_PecoraP_TMountain Cat Wrestling Adds 16 Recruits For 2012-13 Season
     07/25/12...Head Coach Pat Pecora (37th season) and the Pitt-Johnstown wrestling program have added 16 new wrestlers for the 2012-13 season, including eight former Pennsylvania State Place-winners.  Highlighting the class are PIAA State Runner-up and three-time place-winner Josh Duplin (HWT.) (Johnstown, Pa./Westmont Hilltop H.S.), and two-time State place-winners Ty Dively (138 lbs.) (Sproul, Pa./Claysburg-Kimmel H.S.), Dario Dobbin (Canonsburg, Pa./Canon-McMillan H.S.), and Jordan Kitta (195 lbs.) (Hunker, Pa./Southmoreland H.S.).  (Full PDF Press Release)
     Of the 16 incoming wrestlers, eight were former Pennsylvania State-Place-winners, while three others qualified for the PA State Tournament.
     “Once again, I feel we have a great recruiting class filled with state place-winners and qualifiers and two quality transfer student-athletes,” Coach Pecora said.
     Heading this year’s recruiting class are Duplin and the three two-time PIAA State place-winners.
     Duplin, who was 37-2 in 2011-12, was a two-time fifth-place PIAA AAA State place winner at Heavyweight, before placing second as a senior.  Duplin wrapped-up his stellar career at Westmont Hilltop with a 141-29 overall record with 80 falls.
     Dively posted a 40-2 record at 138 lbs. in 2011-12 on his way to placing fifth at the PIAA AA State Tournament in 2012.  Dively also finished fourth in the state as a junior in 2011.  Kitta placed eighth in 2011, before going 34-4 and placing sixth in 2012, and Dobbin placed seventh in both 2011 and 2012.
     Three other PIAA State place-winners will also be coming to Pitt-Johnstown, including fifth-place finisher Ben Rager (126 lbs.) (Ebensburg. Pa.) and sixth-place finishers Cory Berchick (152 lbs.) (Hollsopple, Pa.) and John Blankenship (170 lbs.) (New Florence, Pa.).
     Rager, who placed fifth at the state tournament in 2011, was a 2012 state qualifier.  Rager was 35-4 at Central Cambria High School in 2011-12.  Berchick, a Conemaugh Township Area High School graduate, was 44-3 as a senior, while Blankenship went 35-2, won a District 6 Championship at United High School, and advanced to the PIAA AA State Semifinals, before placing sixth after suffering an injury.
     Phillip Steinberg (Colver, Pa./Central Cambria High School), the 2010 PIAA AA State Runner-up at (135 lbs.) will join the Mountain Cats after spending two years at West Point.
     2012 Pennsylvania State Qualifiers Jacob Krupa (220 lbs.) (Bedford, Pa./Bedford Area H.S.), Sam Molina (145 lbs.) (Pittsburgh, Pa./Fox Chapel H.S.), and Cody Penzera (126 lbs.) (Greensburg, Pa./Hempfield Area H.S.),will also continue their wrestling career at Pitt-Johnstown.  Krupa is the brother of current Mountain Cat heavyweight Josh Krupa.
     In addition, several others will join the team in 2012-13, including 2011 Southwest Regional Runner-up Cody Mutkus (140 lbs.) (Hopewell, Pa./Hopewell H.S.), who will transfer from Community College of Beaver County, and sectional place-winners William Leeth (Johnstown, Pa./Greater Johnstown H.S.), Lucas Palamides (McCurry, Pa./Peters Township H.S.), Jeremy Rivera (Elizabethtown, Pa./Elizabethtown Area H.S.), and Cody Weinell (New Derry, Pa./Derry Area H.S.).

NAME                    HOMETOWN/HIGH SCHOOL              H.S.WT.     SENIOR RECORD.              H.S. HONORS
Cory Berchick        Hollsopple, Pa. / Conemaugh Township           152 lbs.            44-3             2012 PA AA State Place 6th
John Blankenship                      New Florence, Pa. / United            170 lbs.           35-2                      PA AA State Place 6th
Ty Dively                           Sproul, Pa. / Claysburg-Kimmel            138 lbs.           40-2     2-time PA AA State Place (4th, 5th)Dario Dobbin               Canonsburg, Pa. / Canon-McMillan            145 lbs.           39-11       2-time PA AAA State Place (7th) Josh Duplin                    Johnstown, Pa. / Westmont Hilltop             HWT.        37-2       3-time PA AAA State Place (2nd, 5th, 5th)
Jordan Kitta                           Hunker, Pa. / Southmoreland            195 lbs.           34-4     2-time PA AA State Place (6th, 8th)Jacob Krupa                           Bedford, Pa. / Bedford Area            220 lbs.           35-12              2012 PA AA State Qualifier
William Leeth               Johnstown, Pa. / Greater Johnstown            145 lbs.                                           Sectional Place-winner
Sam Molina                             Pittsburgh, Pa. / Fox Chapel            145 lbs.            29-8             2012 PA AAA State Qualifier
Cody Mutkus                              Hopewell, Pa. / Hopewell            140 lbs.           30-8 2011 AAA Southwest Reg. Runner-up
Lucas Palamides                McCurry, Pa. / Peters Township            125 lbs.                                           Sectional Place-winner
Cody Penzera                  Greensburg, Pa. / Hempfield Area            126 lbs.          30-16            2012 PA AAA State Qualifier
Ben Rager                        Ebensburg, Pa. / Central Cambria            126 lbs.           35-4      2011 PA AA 5th, 2012 State Qualifier
Jeremy Rivera         Elizabethtown, Pa. / Elizabethtown Area            138 lbs.                      4-time Sectional Place-winner
Phillip Steinberg                      Colver, Pa. / Central Cambria            135 lbs.                        2010 PA AA State Runner-up
Cody Weinell                          New Derry, Pa. / Derry Area            165 lbs.                       WPIAL Section Champion 
                                                                           


     The Mountain Cats are coming off of a 12-3 dual meet season, a second-place finish at the NCAA Division II Super Region I Tournament and a 12th-place finish at the National Tournament.  Seven wrestlers advanced to the 2011 Division II National Tournament.  Four became All-Americans, including Dave Fogle (125 lbs.) (Summerhill, Pa.), Nathan Link (149 lbs.) (Cresson, Pa.), Zach Lundgren (157 lbs.) (DuBois, Pa.), and Travis McKillop (174 lbs.) (Lower Burrell, Pa.).  In the classroom, Lundgren earned First-Team NWCA All-Academic Team honors for the second consecutive year, while Justin Harold (165 lbs.) (Leechburg, Pa.), Josh Krupa (HWT.) (Bedford, Pa.), Myers Miller (165 lbs.) (Bolivar, Pa.), and Keith Ryan (157 lbs.) (Shirleysburg, Pa.) were honorable mention choices.

     Pitt-Johnstown will kick-off the 2012-13 season at the Washington & Jefferson Collegiate Open on November 10, before opening the dual meet season at West Liberty (WV) University on November 16.  Pitt-Johnstown will host its first home match on December 5 when East Stroudsburg University visits the Sports Center.l                                                      



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