JOHNSTOWN, Pa. (PTTP) – This past Saturday the wrestling team at the University of Pittsburgh – Johnstown (UPJ) traveled to East Stroudsburg and took home their second consecutive NCAA Division II Regional Crown. Overall, this is the team’s 25th Regional Crown, and comes after an undefeated, 15-0, season.
During this tournament UPJ sent eight of their ten starting wrestlers on to the national tournament that will take place in Cedar Rapids, Iowa on March 10 and 11.This win comes during Head Coach Pat Pecora’s 47th year coaching at UPJ. He is currently voted the NCAA Regional Coach of the Year, his 21st time winning the award. Pecora is also the All-Time Winningest Coach in all of college wrestling (at all divisions in the NCAA, as well as NAIA and Junior College). Coach Pecora spoke with us along with one of his current star wrestlers, the All-American Brock Biddle, and reflected on both the most recent match and his career.
Pecora said there’s always two goals going into a regional tournament: to send as many wrestlers on to nationals as possible, and to win the regional title for the team. They did both. Brock Biddle (wrestling at 184 pounds), while simultaneously earing the championship title in his weight class, earned his 100th career win. This was in a late-match pin against an opponent whom Biddle has lost to earlier this season. Three of Brock’s other teammates, Trevon Gray (wrestling at 125 pounds), Jacob Ealy (149), and Nate Smith (157) earned titles in their respective weight classes as well.
Picture Curtesy of Pitt-Johnstown, Dave Janosz