PCL Wrestling Preview

by Greg Ferrell

Posted on November 20, 2008

On 12/11/06, during a press conference held in Philadelphia by the Archdiocese, the Philadelphia Catholic League (known by the acronym PCL) announced their intention to join the PIAA and become members of District 12.

And so, after a period of one year as a member on "paper", the 11 PCL schools who have wrestling teams will be eligible for the 2008-09 PIAA District 12 team championships as well as the individual PIAA District 12 tournament for advancement into the SE region, competing against District 1 public school wrestlers for the right to compete in Hershey.

Since that fateful announcement, the fans of District 1 have asked questions such as "What teams will compete", and, "Who are their
wrestlers". With that in mind, the following "capsule" preview of their 2008-09 league season will hopefully answer these questions and more for all interested parties. Individual records were based on information gathered from National Prep, PA State Prep, and PCL tournament records.

Sincere thanks go out to Northeast Catholic head coach Jim Savage and assistant Ted Murphy, Conwell-Egan coach Grant Passman, Roman Catholic coach Waverly Lane, John Westby of Cardinal O'Hara, and finally to the Mooney family of LaSalle, for helping to make this preview possible.


1. LaSalle Explorers
HEAD COACH- Vic Stanley
COLORS- Blue and Gold
KEY RETURNEES- Joe Mazzi (Soph, 45-8), Ryan Ginsburg (Jr, 36-9)
KEY NEWCOMERS- Casey Kent, Matt Cimato, Shane Springer
OVERVIEW- With minimal losses to graduation, the addition of three very promising freshmen expected to make an impact, and a Hall Of Fame coach in Vic Stanley, the Explorers look to be the team to beat in both the PCL and District 12...sophomore Mazzi is the lone PCL wrestler to medal at last years National Prep tournament...the decision of senior Eric Reale not to wrestle this year will sting a bit...6 of the 12 returnees qualified for the National Prep tournament.

2. Northeast Catholic Falcons
HEAD COACH- Jim Savage
COLORS- Red and White
KEY RETURNEES- Matt Dugan (Sr, 30-4), Kevin Mallon (Sr, 28-8), Mike McCall (Jr, 32-15)
KEY NEWCOMER- A.J Vizcarando
OVERVIEW- The defending PCL champions lost most of their upperweights to graduation, but are still formidable with 7 of their starters returning. A lot of their team success this year and chances to defend their championship could depend on how Vizcarando and the other replacements can develop...5 of the 7 returnees were National Prep qualifiers.

3. Monsignor Bonner Friars
HEAD COACH- Phil Carbonetta
COLORS- Green and White
KEY RETURNEES- Nick Bongard (Jr, 28-8), Terrell Nixon (Sr, 27-11), Rob Borman (Sr, 18-8)
KEY NEWCOMER- Joe Spaeder
OVERVIEW- The Friars return all but 2 postseason participants and 8 of these are underclassmen. With the majority of the returnees also sporting .500 or better records, reaching the District 12 finals is a good possibility...the return of National Prep qualifier Matt Moriarty to his home public school district of Haverford was a key loss for the team...newcomer Spaeder finished 3rd for Drexel Hill MS in last year's D1 middle school tourney.

4. Conwell-Egan Eagles
HEAD COACH- Grant Passman
COLORS- Royal Blue and White
KEY RETURNEES- Eric Smith (Sr, 26-10), Pat Henry (Sr, 23-7), Pat Hecker (Jr, 24-12)
OVERVIEW- The Eagles return 9 starters, 6 of whom had winning records...Smith is the lone returning National Prep qualifier...Coach Passman is the uncle of D1 state wrestling qualifier and star football player Devon Passman of Central Bucks East.

5. Cardinal O'Hara Lions
HEAD COACH- Chris Whalen
COLORS- Red, Blue, and White
KEY RETURNEES- Chris Alexander (Sr, 39-7), Luke Westby (Sr, 33-10), Jim Jones (Jr, 31-9), Joe Jones (Soph, 34-12)
OVERVIEW- The returnees are among the best at their weights in the PCL, but there are many holes in the lineup due to graduation. How the Lions will do as a team this year will depend on how they fill these holes...Coach Whalen is a first-year head coach.

6. Roman Catholic Cahillites
HEAD COACH- Waverly Lane
COLORS- Purple and Gold
KEY RETURNEES- Alexander Sabia (Sr, 24-11), David Herbert (Sr, 15-12), Devon Cobb (Sr, 13-6)
OVERVIEW- The Cahillites return 7 PCL entrants, 6 of whom are seniors, so the experience to improve on last year's record will be there. Avoiding forfeits will also be a key issue...Coach Lane is one of the more underrated coaches in the Southeast region, and has started a feeder program to augment his future ranks.

7. Archbishop Wood Vikings
HEAD COACH- Kurt Paroly
COLORS- Black, Gold, and Green
KEY RETURNEES- Matt O'Connell (Sr, 19-13), Scott Schneider (Sr, 17-16), Kevin Maxwell (Soph, 16-15)
OVERVIEW- The Vikings are in rebuilding mode after graduating half of their starters including the team captain. A lot of their success this year will depend on their underclassmen and the leadership of their few seniors...Coach Paroly is a active and valued contributor to the SE region at large most of the year, coaching the MAWA and local SEPA club teams.

8. Father Judge Crusaders
HEAD COACH- Eric Murray
COLORS- Columbia Blue, Red, and White
KEY RETURNEES- Tim Walker (Sr, 31-11), Nick Antosh (Jr, 17-9), Brian Cohen (Sr, 14-15)
OVERVIEW- Not much information regarding the other returnees was available, but the Crusaders should also be on the young
side...Walker is a returning National Prep qualifier...first year coach Murray replaces original coach Mike Braciszewski.

9. St. Joseph's Prep Hawks
HEAD COACH- Kevin Martin
COLORS- Red, Black, and White
KEY RETURNEES- Rich Jordan (Sr, 26-13), Mike DelSignore (Soph, 19-17)
OVERVIEW- Another team largely gutted by the graduation of half of their starters, the Hawks will rely on Jordan and their young
lightweights to fly them to success...Coach Martin is currently the longest tenured coach in the PCL.

10. Cardinal Dougherty Cardinals
HEAD COACH- Tom Cerone
COLORS- Garnet and Gold
KEY RETURNEES- Pete Corbett (Sr, 13-11), Steve Lugas (Sr, 10-9)
OVERVIEW- With their 2 best wrestlers lost to graduation, and low numbers that caused lots of forfeits, the Cardinals will need bodies and good performances from their returning seniors to improve upon last year's record...Dougherty is one of two PCL wrestling schools with an AA classification.

11. Kennedy-Kenrick Wolverines
HEAD COACH- Thaddeus "Ted" Kavanaugh
COLORS- Navy Blue and Gold
KEY RETURNEES- Lou Zbyszinski (Sr, 19-5), Ed Skilton (Sr, 11-7)
OVERVIEW- The Wolverines finished winless in the PCL cellar last year due to low numbers that caused numerous forfeits, and will need more bodies to avoid a repeat this year...the school is the other AA classified program...after the 2009-10 season, this school will
merge with District 1's St. Pius X to form Pope John Paul II and become a member of the PAC-10 league.

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