Coach laments direction in which wrestling program is going
By: Ken Weingartner
According to song composer George Gershwin, in summertime the living is easy.
Gershwin never wrestled.
No time can be more vital in the development of a wrestler than the summertime. The rise and fall of the South Brunswick High mat program underscores that idea.
Over the past two seasons, the Vikings have gone 10-32 in dual meets. In the prior two years, they were 34-6, and from 1997-2001 they won five straight Greater Middlesex Conference division titles. The difference, coach Joe Dougherty said, has been the work or lack thereof by SB wrestlers in the summer.
"It’s the kids’ commitment to the sport," Dougherty said. "Over the last couple years we haven’t had as many kids wrestle over the summer. You can only do so much in three months during the season. That was our formula for success in the past, as it is with many of the better teams in the state.
"We will get back to that level, but I can’t do it myself. The sport has to be important to them. We need a significant number of kids that want to succeed in this sport. You can be an average athlete in wrestling, but if you put in the time and are just an average athlete, you’re going to be good. Does it guarantee success? No. But we don’t have the kind of athletes who can get by without extra time."
Dougherty said wrestlers could pick up 50 to 100 matches over the summer. Winning and losing isn’t important, simply seeing new competition and different techniques and moves can pay big dividends during the scholastic season.
"Wrestling is so situational it’s unbelievable," Dougherty said. "It’s all based on experience. The more you see, the better you become and the less those moves are successful against you. We don’t have enough experience. Our kids get better over the course of the year, but they can wrestle 100 matches over the summer if they wrestle every weekend. It’s unbelievable what that does."
South Brunswick had a strong core group of wrestlers this season. Senior Brady Shelcusky, a two-time District 20 champion, was a state qualifier at 171 pounds and finished the year 29-6.
Freshman Dan White (103) was a district champ and ended 21-12 while sophomore Derek Shelcusky (189) also claimed a district crown and finished 19-13. Junior Kelley Lyon (112, 11-12) and sophomores Kyle Wadiak (130, 13-18) and Justin DelPiano (145, 21-10) were regional qualifiers.
Matt Clancy, who finished the season 17-11, was the Greater Middlesex Conference champ at 215. Junior Vinnie Biondo (119, 12-14) was the only other Viking to win more than seven matches.
"Justin DelPiano went from three wins to 21, and that’s just from getting matches during the season," Dougherty said. "How much farther could he go if he got 30 to 40 matches over the summer? He has unlimited potential. Kyle Wadiak had two wins last year. How much better can he become? It’s the same thing with Kelley and Derek and Matt. It’s not hard to figure out if you look at it.
"You can go from a regional qualifier to making states and making some noise there. If they’re not willing to do that, we’ll just maintain our mediocre status. I can lead the horses to the water, but I can’t make them drink it."
Dougherty said returning the program to its former level of success would require a commitment from coaches, wrestlers and parents.
"Obviously, the kids can’t just say I’m going to go wrestle this weekend," he said. "It comes with a lot of parental support, too. That’s what my parents did with me and my brother. We wrestled every single weekend. You look at someone like Dan White; is he going to be our next great wrestler? He’s going to be really, really good. He’s got the potential. He’s got the support of his family and the desire."
The Vikings’ improvement over the course of the season manifested itself in a sixth-place finish in the GMCT and third place in the District 20 Tournament. Dougherty called both results "major accomplishments."
"But we didn’t have enough depth," he added. "That’s what makes our sport hard; you need to be deep. We had our good wrestlers, but six good kids isn’t enough in duals when you have 14 weight classes. I think our middle school coaches did an outstanding job this year and our rec coaches keep plugging along, too. We have a good group of freshmen coming in next season. Last year, we had two freshmen with wrestling experience from the middle school. That’s not going to cut it.
"We had about 10 freshmen come in this year, but only two wrestled. I don’t know why that is; they’re kids, who knows why? We had seven kids walking the halls who would have started for us. I really think the kids are wrestlers who are coming into school next year. They’re eager to come in and wrestle. That’s the reason you have rec and middle school wrestling. If I do my job, in a year or two or three we’ll be back to where I think we’re supposed to be."
Getting the program back on its feet is a priority for Dougherty.
"I’m a little depressed, actually, at the direction the program has gone in the last two years," he said. "You work so hard to build something up, and then it kind of comes crashing down. I’ve questioned myself, of course, wondering what I’m doing differently to cause this demise. I’ve looked in my heart, and can’t see what I’m doing different. If we had a different schedule, things would be different, but that’s not a direction I want to go.
"My heart is still there. When you’re successful, everything is kind of status quo; I might have had to make five to seven motivational speeches when things were not up to my liking. It’s been hard coming up with 15 of those speeches now instead of five. The theme repeats itself, and it comes back to the kids being inexperienced. We had a lot of talent, but not experience, and went into matches with a negative mindset. Wrestling is 80 percent mental and 20 percent physical. But the next match would be the same thing. That’s something that can’t be cured by me.
"I don’t doubt my skills and abilities. I’ve developed many good wrestlers in my day. Nothing is going to stop me from doing it again. I’m passionate about it; it’s important to me. I’m there trying to make a difference in kids’ lives. That’s why I’m doing it. I was as intense this year as last year as the 10 years before that.
"I’m not content with where the program is at now. I can’t leave it like this, not that it was ever a thought in my mind anyway. I’ve never given up at anything in my life. I’m not going to back out now."