Nine of 11 on roster back with experience
By: Rudy Brandl
Will 11 be enough for the Manville High wrestling team?
Veteran head coach Brett Stibitz has seen the numbers in his program go up and down in the last six years and was expecting more bodies in the room this winter. While there aren’t many wrestlers on the roster, most of the Mustangs are returning with at least one year of varsity experience.
"I don’t have a lot of guys, but I have nine starters back from last year," Stibitz said. "We’re all spread out and we’ll have almost everything covered."
The Mustangs expect to begin the season with holes at 103, 145 and the 189-215 range depending on how Stibitz juggles his lineup. Nine of the 11 boys on this year’s roster wrestled for Stibitz last winter. Most of them put in some serious off-season work with new assistant coach Pat Gorbatuk, a former standout wrestler at Manville.
"I’m pretty excited to have Pat in the room," Stibitz said. "He’s been going to camps and clinics and he coached in the Skyland Conference (with Franklin). He’s been working the kids hard in the room. He’s running very intense practices."
Gorbatuk supervised the summer open mats program at the high school and most of the 11 wrestlers on the MHS roster were regulars at those workouts. Stibitz is counting on that off-season dedication and experience to pay dividends this season, Manville’s first in the rigorous Skyland Conference.
"It’s a good year to come back with my veteran guys," Stibitz said. "Most of these guys have been working year-round. They just jumped right in the first day of practice."
Manville’s two most exciting wrestlers will be the big guys, senior heavyweight Mark Manderski and junior 189-pounder Glenn Hall. Manderski made the biggest headlines on the MHS mat last winter with a winning season that included a third-place finish in Somerset County and a second-place performance in the District 18 Championships. He’s back at the same weight this winter primed for more success.
"He’s bigger, faster and stronger," Stibitz said. "He wrestled throughout the summer. It’s my job to be his 1-on-1 tutor in the room. I’m the only guy near his size."
Hall is a bit of a raw talent, but Stibitz loves watching him use his great strength. The junior, who also will see action at 215, has only been wrestling for a little over a year and still needs to learn.
"Glenn is one of the strongest kids I’ve ever coached," Stibitz said. "He might not go anywhere, but he’s going to be fun to watch. He’s in shape and he’s about twice as strong as last year."
Senior Roland Yakobchuk, the team’s most experienced wrestler, will stabilize the middle of the lineup at 152 pounds. Yakobchuk has been successful in previous seasons but has found himself in very tough weight classes. This year, he and his teammates will run into tough competition in almost every match.
"He got a lot stronger and his work ethic is better as a senior," Stibitz said. "Wrestling in the Skyland Conference is going to help him."
Other Mustangs returning from last season include 119-pound junior J.J. Artfitch, 125-pound junior Adam Wolcott, 140-pound sophomore Jason Pfoutz, 145-pound junior Chris Kocur, 160-pound senior Lukasz Bogdanowicz and 171-pound sophomore Kevin Sellar. Newcomers David Olmsted (119) and Tyler Britt (130), a pair of freshman, join the cast of returnees.
Stibitz expected more after the middle school team took off last winter, but several freshmen, including many football players, elected to spend extra time in the weight room.
"We had some good kids in the eighth grade last year, but they’re in the weight room," said Stibitz, who also lost five wrestlers to academic ineligibility.
There’s the possibility that a 12th man could join the Mustangs. Leo Rodriguez, a football and track and field standout, would give the team another athlete in the 160-171 range. Rodriguez has never competed in organized wrestling, but he’s considering giving it a shot.
Stibitz reported that the seventh and eighth-grade roster consists of 17 wrestlers this year and more than 50 boys signed up for the Recreation program. The future looks bright, but where does that leave the Mustangs this year?
"It’s going to be tough with 11 guys," Stibitz said. "We can win some matches, but we’re going to have to wrestle pretty well."
The Mustangs open the season Saturday at the Matawan Icebreaker Tournament.

