WORCESTER >> Roman Moser never had a choice.
As the son of former Methacton High district champ Eric Moser, and as a member of the Moser family, considered the first family of Warriors wrestling, Roman was in a singlet by age four and soon knew the insides of more gymnasiums than he could count.
He was going to be a wrestler.
The good thing is, Roman fell in love with the sport.
And now, he and fellow freshman Kibwe McNair are part of a youth movement that just may see the Warriors mentioned in the same breath as Pioneer Athletic Conference heavyweights Boyertown, Owen J. Roberts and Spring-Ford before too long.
Moser (138 pounds) and McNair (120) have been ranked by some publications as among the top scholastic freshman wrestlers in the state, no faint praise for one of the best scholastic wrestling areas in the country.
And the pair are aware of their newfound stature.
“Everybody realizes I’m ‘pretty good,’” Moser said. “But I’m just going to wrestle my style and try and get the job done.
“My dad kind of put me into the sport, so you could say I was pushed into it. But I’ve come to love it.”
McNair’s path was different, although his dad, too, played a role in his entry into wrestling.
“It just started with my dad asking me if I’d like to try wrestling,” McNair said. “I was eight years old, and thought I’d try it.”
The early days were not fun.
“I used to go to tournaments and just get beaten up,” McNair recalled. “I was getting my butt whipped every weekend.”
But McNair soon crossed paths with Lewis Baker, one-time Germantown Academy and Upper Merion standout, who offered his services as coach.
Improvement came rapidly, and soon it was McNair doing the butt-whipping.
“I remember I had a couple of real good matches with (Souderton freshman state qualifier) Tyler Williams,” McNair said. “That gave me confidence.”
As to how the duo will fit into the Warriors lineup, head coach AJ Maida said they’ll be there when the season begins.
“They’re kids who will make an instant impact on our lineup,” Maida said. “They were experienced kids by the time they reached the high school level.”
How they’ll fit into that lineup, however, remains a question only time will solve.
For the moment, however, neither is lacking confidence.
When asked their goals for their first varsity season, both freshmen felt Hershey would be a good place to end their initial years.
“I think making it to regionals and winning 20 matches would be a good first year,” Moser said. “But I feel I can reach states.”
“I don’t think of myself as the best yet, because I haven’t even started my first varsity season,” McNair said. “But if I keep up my training regimen and keep up my grades, I feel I can achieve a lot my freshman year.”
As for the Warriors, Maida said his team will be good, but in the PAC, that term is relative.
“This is my ninth year here,” Maida said, “and we’ve never beaten Boyertown and we’ve never beaten Spring-Ford and we’ve only beaten Owen J. once
“So there’s still a lot we have to shoot for.”
With his two prized freshmen, perhaps the gap closed a little bit further.
As for the rest of the area:
SUBURBAN ONE NATIONAL
ABINGTON
Last Year’s Record: 8-10, 3-4.
Coach: David Osei.
Key Losses: Keshon Guiellmo (25-8); Austin Hain (25-10).
Key Returnees: Dan Brett (13-17); Shane Rose (20-7); Marcellus Martin (6-8); Elijah Heilman (7-11).
Outlook: The Ghosts will miss graduates Austin Hain and Keshon Guiellmo, and the returnees are long on enthusiasm but short on quality wins – not necessarily a good combination.
Predicted finish: Abington, short on quality depth, may take a step backwards this season, although if the youngsters can survive the inevitable pounding with an eye toward working for long-term improvement, the foreseeable future could be bright.
WILLIAM TENNENT
Last Year’s Record: 4-16, 2-5.
Coach: Anthony Tamburrino.
Key Losses: Chris Maldonado (16-10); Antonio Fiocca (8-14); Kristian Courtney (transfer to Faith Christian Academy).
Key Returnees: Randy Knapp (20-7; David McCoy (21-8); Sean Harold (23-7) .
Key Newcomers: AJ Tamburrino.
Outlook: The Panthers are up and coming with a future star in Tamburrino and a number of talented returnees. The conference is stacked, but the future is promising.
Predicted finish: The Panthers will struggle with depth and because they’re in a beehive of a conference, but look for improvement up and down the lineup and perhaps an upset or two. According to some statewide pundits, Tamburrino is ranked among the top freshmen wrestlers in the district.
SUBURBAN ONE CONTINENTAL
SOUDERTON
Last Year’s Record: 7-9, 4-3.
Coach: Tristan Boyd.
Key Losses: Thomas Michaels (31-7); Philip Stolfi (2-0).
Key Returnees: Tyler Williams 29-5, sectional and district champ, state qualifier); Harrison Andrade (31-13, regional qualifier); Brandon Bach (34-7, sectional champ); Bruno Stolfi (10-20).
Outlook: After four straight dreadful years, the Indians bounced back with a solid season a year ago. The key now is to take another step forward, not the easiest assignment with the likes of Pennridge and North Penn in the conference.
Predicted Finish: The aforementioned upcoming duels with the likes of North Penn and Pennridge may not bode well for any league title hopes, but the Indians have to continue to work with the future in mind. A good season, and perhaps another state berth for Williams, could propel Souderton toward a positive season.
PENNRIDGE
Last Year’s Record: 12-3, 6-1.
Coach: RP Norley.
Key Losses: Kyle Gentile (44-4, sectional, district regional champ, PIAA third place); Kordell Rush (sectional, district champ, regional 3rd, PIAA eighth); Andrew Reinhold (28-12).
Key Returnees: Matt Parker (45-4, section, district regional champ, PIAA second place); Josh Stillings (44-9, section,district,regional champ, PIAA fourth place); Evan Widing (28-14); David Nahas (22-12); David Blanchard (12-14); Steve Dadio (9-16).
Outlook: The Rams put themselves in the state consciousness after last year’s monster season, although Pennridge has actually been on the Commonwealth’s radar for probably the last half-decade.
Led by returning state medalists Parker and Stillings, the Rams should once again be a feared opponent.
But with standouts Kordell Rush, Kyle Gentile and Stephen Blanchard needing to be replaced in the lineup, can the Rams duplicate last year’s strong finish?
Predicted Finish: The Rams are much too deep not to challenge for the SOL Continental crown, and they’ll again be a Top Five team in the region.
HATBORO-HORSHAM
Last Year’s Record: 8-8, 2-5.
Coach: Glenn Kaiser.
Key Losses: Matt Chapman (30-6 regional qualifier); Nick Giuliani (20-14); Joseph Hwang (19-15); Nick Schuck (22-12).
Key Returnees: Nick Chapman (26-10); Jalen Edwards (11-11); Brad Mallon Davis Wheeler (15-14); Brendan Wawrzyniak (14-16).
Outlook: The Hatters had a very un-Hatters like season a year ago, with just one wrestler (heavyweight Matt Chapman) reaching the regional tournament.
Can they bounce back?
They’ll need big years from Nick Chapman, Wheeler, Wawrzyniak and Edwards – and some good fortune.
Predicted Finish: Once again, the Hatters are the little fish in the big pond, and will need some surprises to contend in the tough SOL Continental.
NORTH PENN
Last Year’s Record: 17-4, 7-0.
Coach: Robert Shettsline.
Key Losses: Mikey O’Brien (36-7, sectional champ); Sofiane Bensmail (25-12, PIAA qualifier); Ryan Vulakh (transfer to Pope John Paul II).
Key Returnees: Colin Shannon (36-8, first sectional, second district, third regionals, PIAA qualifier); Will Laughlin (16-6); Owen Verespy (24-15); Devon Weiss (8-14); Ryan Cody (7-8).
Outlook: The Knights are still reeling from the defection of sophomore sensation Ryan Vulakh to Pope John Paul II, but have a returning state qualifier in Shannon and a strong freshman class. Repeating as conference champs would be a stretch, but finishing second or third would not.
Predicted Finish: The Knights will be in the mix until the end of the season, although an early-season dual with Pennridge will likely determine the conference title.
SUBURBAN ONE AMERICAN
PLYMOUTH WHITEMARSH
Last Year’s Record: 11-5, 6-1 SOL American.
Coach: Justin Giovinco.
Key Losses: Ben Billings (24-6, ); Quincy Williams (27-7, sectional champ).
Key Returnees: Marco DiBattista (27-3, sectional champ); Michael Clarkson; Zach Fisher (18-13, sectional champ); Zach Wakefield (17-13); Tommy DiSisto (26-9, sectional champ); Nick Sudell (22-11).
Outlook: With Norristown gone and the Colonials returning the bulk of last year’s team, they should be the early favorite to wear the SOL American crown, although postseason success beyond DiBattista could be a stretch.
Predicted Finish: Will battle Quakertown for first in the re-tooled SOL American, although Upper Moreland and Wissahickon should also be considered for the top three.
UPPER MORELAND
Last Year’s Record: 8-13, 5-2.
Coach: Stefan Muller.
Key Losses: Matt Amy (28-5, sectional champ); Patrick Walker (32-6, sectional champ, district champ, PIAA qualifier).
Key Returnees: Jason Amy (30-8, sectional champ); Amanda Walker (22-10); Keegan Hannigan (10-12); Austin Zubyk (13-17); Hunter Williams (10-16).
Outlook: The Bears are a team with a decided lack of depth behind state-contender Amy, although the likes of Zubyk, Hannigan and Williams did show some growth a year ago. They’ll miss the likes of Patrick Walker and Matt Amy, but they could contend in the SOL American, although where they fit in the title chase is still a puzzle.
Predicted Finish: Look for the Bears to nose their way into third place in the final standings.
UPPER DUBLIN
Last Year’s Record: 11-7, 4-3 SOL American.
Coach: Dave Jones.
Key Losses: Colin Devlin, 31-3, sectional champ); Talib Davis (24-8); Henry Winebrake (18-3),
Key Returnees: Mason Novak (26-11, sectional champ); Luiz Lozada (13-13) ; Alex Bonczkiewicz (14-4); John Palmer (8-8); Brian Concannon (3-12); Jeff Hirsch (3-14).
Outlook: After a quick start a season ago, the Cardinals faded in the SOL American, and will likely face a similar challenge this season. The team has a future star in Novak, but not much proven depth behind him. If some of the younger Cardinals can mature quickly, they could make an impact on the conference, but for now, the ifs are still ifs.
Predicted Finish: Novak is a potential state qualifier after a promising freshman season, but the lineup needs a jolt from as yet unproven teammates if the Cardinals are to make any noise. A fourth-place finish is not out of the question.
WISSAHICKON
Last Year’s Record: 10-19, 3-4 SOL American.
Coach: Anthony Stagliano.
Key Losses: Baba Ige (8-18); Jack Jones (15-16)
Key Returnees: Nick Senderling (29-5); Brian Fennell (25-9); Charlie Brammer (23-11); Nick Prieston 13-12); Benjamin Maltin (8-7).
Outlook: The Trojans return a good deal of experience, while not losing much from last season’s senior class. That’s normally a good combination, but the team needs to upgrade its schedule if it wants to take the big steps necessary to become a quality program.
Predicted Finish: The Trojans seem to have the necessary pieces to make a run at the league title, but do they have the depth to go toe-to-toe with Plymouth Whitemarsh?
CHELTENHAM
Last Year’s Record: 3-20, 1-6.
Coach: Adam Yaller
Key Losses: Akeem Browne (18-12); Anthony Shockey (13-11); Stephen McNeal-Paige (13-17).
Key Returnees: August Gershwin (28-6); Ageru Sykes (12-10); Shamar Browne (9-15); Michael Levine (5-15).
Outlook: The Panthers are looking for some depth behind Gershwin, and Sykes showed he can be relied upon to deliver some quality victories. Will it be enough to keep the Panthers from wallowing in the second division of the SOL American? Probably not, but at least the team has some coals in the fire for the future.
Predicted Finish: We’ll say fifth, but with an asterisk.
SPRINGFIELD
Last Year’s Record: 3-16, 0-7.
Coach: Corey McCaslin.
Key Losses: Myles Barnes (19-17); Ryan Krugman (9-21).
Key Returnees: James Guckin (24-17, sectional champ, regional qualifier); Kevin Case (12-25); Eddie Goldsmith (10-12) .
Outlook: The Spartans continue to come up with big numbers in participants and low numbers in results, but also suffer from the small-fish-in-a-big-pond syndrome. They should show some improvement this year, but will need a lot to go their way to climb out of the bottom two in the conference
Predicted Finish: The Spartans will challenge for fifth or sixth, although it might take another season to escape the SOL American basement.
PIONEER ATHLETIC CONFERENCE
METHACTON
Last Year’s Record: 9-5, 5-4.
Coach: A.J Maida.
Key Losses: Sayer Campbell (15-15).
Key Returnees: Bryce Reddington (31-6, regional champion); Dylan Henry (22-6, regional qualifier); Brendan Marion (26-11, regional qualifier); Tonee Ellis (10-10); Salaam McNair (10-17).
Outlook: The Warriors have slowly crept into the Pioneer Athletic Conference conversation, and while the Boyertowns and Spring-Fords are not in jeopardy of losing league titles, the Warriors will hardly be pushovers.
Predicted Finish: The Warriors will make some noise in the newly christened Liberty Division, but may not quite be ready to challenge Boyertown, Spring-Ford or Owen J. Roberts. Fourth in the Liberty.
NORRISTOWN
Last Year’s Record: 13-8, 7-0 (SOL American champions).
Coach: Mark Harner.
Key Losses: Gabe Iacovino.
Key Returnees: Eric Fuentes (30-8, sectional champ); Rich Maggio (21-15, sectional champ); Justin Altrogge (33-5); Grant Rubin (21-13); Rick Bregenzer (17-10); Nick Semon (19-12).
Outlook: Their first season in the PAC’s Liberty Division may not end in a league championship, but the Eagles should not embarrass themselves. With four 20-plus victory wrestlers returning, Norristown should be in many of its matches. A fourth or fifth place finish is not out of the question.
Predicted Finish: The Eagles and Methacton will duke it out for the privilege of watching Boyertown, Spring-Ford and Owen J. Roberts finish just above them.
UPPER MERION
Last Year’s Record: 6-8, 2-5 (SOL American).
Coach: Marcus Johnson
Key Losses: Noah Stribny (19-7, sectional champ).
Key Returnees: Tim Cheng (23-11); Anthony Yacovetti (28-9); Zach DeSanto (18-13); Matt Koresko (14-8)
Outlook: The Vikings aren’t expecting to blow through the newly formed Frontier Division of the PAC, but they could earn a win or two. As always, depth is a major concern.
Predicted Finish: Depending on how stacked Pope John Paul II turns out to be, the Vikings could challenge for fifth.
PHILADELPHIA CATHOLIC LEAGUE
ARCHBISHOP WOOD
Last Year’s Record: 10-7, 3-0) PCL Blue and PCL champion.
Coach: Chris Meister.
Key Losses: Matt Murray (19-13).
Key Returnees: Alex Shaffer (35-11, sectional and district champion); Stephen Veneziale (26-17, district champion); Austin Gillick (27-11, sectional and district champion); Harry Green (30-12, sectional and district champion); Max Shaffer (33-14, regional qualifier); Brett Yoos (25-16, regional qualifier); Connor Bishop (24-17, regional qualifier).
Outlook: The Vikings blew up a year ago, winning the PCL blue and sending eight wrestlers to regionals. With all of those wrestlers returning, the Vikings should definitely be favored to repeat their mammoth season.
Predicted Finish: First in the PCL Blue and PCL.
LA SALLE
Last Year’s Record: 11-9, 3-1, PCL Red.
Coach: Frank Cimato.
Key Losses: Anthony Piscopo (34-4, sectional and district champ, third regionals, third PIAA).
Key Returnees: Garrett Zobel (34-9, sectional and district champ, third regionals, fifth PIAA); Vincenzo Pelusi (30-7, sectional and district champ, regional runner-up, PIAA qualifier); Luke Ratchford (36-9, district champ, PIAA qualifier); Matt Needleman (23-16); Michael McLaren (24-7); Pat Deacon (20-18); Matt Pires (16-9).
Outlook: With three state championship qualifiers (and one state medalist) returning, the Explorers seem poised to make some noise again in the PCL.
Predicted Finish: Should challenge Judge for the top spot in the PCL Red.
INTER-ACADEMIC LEAGUE
GERMANTOWN ACADEMY
Last Year’s Record: 5-16.
Coach: Solomon Fleckman.
Key Losses: Kwasi Ampomah; Brian Jamison.
Key Returnees: Dan Smith; Brandon Seidman; Jimmy Dolan; Patrick Salmon; Ben Sawyer.
Outlook: After a dreadful season a year ago, the Patriots plucked Solomon Fleckman, the lead assistant at Blair Academy, to be their new head coach. Fleckman inherits a team that is low on esteem, but high on promise, and many of the GA youngsters could develop a bit quicker than expected.
Predicted finish: No one is going to challenge Malvern Prep, but the Patriots seem to be taking the attitude that building a team is preferable to hand selecting one. Third in the Inter-Ac behind Malvern and Haverford.
BICENTENNIAL ATHLETIC LEAGUE
LOWER MORELAND
Last Year’s Record: 4-8, 2-3.
Coach: Dan Park.
Key Losses: Arthur Aloian (20-3, district champion); Joao Marini (12-12, district champion).
Key Returnees: Brett Sudell (12-12); Joe Chalhoub (12-9); Stefan Pylayev (18-5, district champion).
Outlook: After five straight seasons as the D-1 team champ the Lions relinquished that title to New Hope-Solebury last year. So they look to rebound, although they did get district crowns from Aloian, Marini and Pylayev en route to the District One team title.
Aloian and Marini are gone, but Pylayev returns, as the Lions look to make some noise again in the Bicentennal League.
Predicted Finish: The Lions came up short, finishing fourth to league champ New Hope-Solebury last year, ending a run of five straight BAL crowns. They’ll need a major boost from Pylayev and his mates if they’re to return to the glory days.
PHIL-MONT CHRISTIAN
Last Year’s Record: 2-16, 0-6.
Coach: Matt Kephart.
Key Losses: None.
Key Returnees: Josh Bone (17-13, regional qualifier); Aaron Krpata (5-1); Ryan Markowitz (4-14); Andrew Chez (4-16); Ryan Orr (2-19).
Outlook: The Falcons look to improve after a disastrous season a year ago. Bone is a good place to start, with Krpata showing some flashes in limited varsity time.
Predicted Finish: The Falcons won’t do too much flying, A lack of depth means a lot of forfeits and continuing declining fortunes.
FAITH CHRISTIAN ACADEMY
Last year’s record: 0-0.
Coach: Matt Clymer.
Key Losses: None.
Key Returnees: Logan Moore (district champ); Kristian Courtney (transfer from William Tennent); Damon Waltenbaugh (freshman); Max Schultz (freshman).
Outlook: The Lions have a full wrestling team for the first time in their history, with Northwestern Lehigh state champ Clymer in charge and brother (and former state champ) Scott as his assistant. District champ Moore and Tennent transfer Courtney should be the team leaders, as a young squad gets used to the regimen and demands of an everyday program.
Predicted Finish: Let’s not get ahead of ourselves. While Clymer’s expectations are high, the team may have to take some lumps before it establishes itself.
FRIENDS SCHOOL LEAGUE
ACADEMY OF THE NEW CHURCH
Last year’s record: 22-4, 7-0.
Coach: Eyvind Boyesen.
Key Losses: Graham Johnson (30-9); Zach Brock (30-12); Jamie Earle (26-9); Bryson McCurdy (25-7); Kyle Cole (22-10).
Key Returnees: Gareth Allen (34-8, National Prep qualifier); Brayden Boyesen (27-11, National Prep qualifier).
Outlook: The Lions bulldozed their way to the Friends School League championship a season ago, and seem to have enough back to make another run possible. Allen and Boyesen head up the returnees, along with Jim Wang and Michael Antonyuk.
Predicted Finish: The Lions will roar again, and finish first in the FSL.
ABINGTON FRIENDS
Last Year’s Record: 8-7, 3-4.
Coach: Terry McGovern.
Key Losses: Emrakh Karimov; Chandarith Chhay; Michael Sadowski.
Key Returnees: Donovan Watford; Griffen Lloyd; Tommy Yick.
Outlook: The Kangaroos look to bounce into FSL contention this season after a middle-of-the-pack finish a year ago. Watford, Lloyd and Yick head up a strong returning group.
Predicted Finish: The Kangaroos leap up a few rungs on the FSL ladder, but no title yet.
