Category Archives: Features
CDT: Wade, Wright prepped for trials
Guy Cipriano – gciprian@centredaily.com
Penn State wrestlers Cameron Wade and Quentin Wright recently turned 21, making them among the youngest entries in the United States World Team Trials.
Yet neither seems intimidated by the seasoned opponents lurking this weekend in Council Bluffs, Iowa.
Wade and Wright spent the spring training with the Nittany Lion Wrestling Club’s stable of accomplished upper weights. Wade, who’s competing at 96 kilograms (211.5 pounds), and Wright, who’s competing at 84 kilograms (185), are among the wrestlers trying to earn a spot in September’s world championships in Moscow
Penn State’s 2010 NCAA finalist Dan Vallimont: Beyond the obvious
College Wrestling Examiner
Mark Palmer
In looking at a college wrestler, it’s all too easy to get wrapped up in won-loss records, pinning percentages and other by-the-numbers stuff… and overlook the other aspects that make an athlete’s story all the more compelling.
Take Dan Vallimont, for example.
College wrestling fans know Vallimont as a Penn State redshirt senior who, despite being seeded sixth in the 165-pound bracket, made it to the finals of the 2010 NCAA Division I Championships… losing to Wisconsin's top-seeded Andrew Howe, 9-3, in the title bout.
via Penn State’s 2010 NCAA finalist Dan Vallimont: Beyond the obvious.
SC.com: Being Cyler Sanderson
by Joe Bastardi
When I heard wrestler Cyler Sanderson was transferring to Penn State, I had not yet met either him or the coaches and I wondered about his journey.
Ever since I read “The Bridge at San Luis Rey” — in which five different people wound up a bridge that collapsed — I have wondered what goes through a person's head through his or her journey. Cyler likely doesn't sit up at night giving this a second thought, but I am dealing with someone who has come to the end of his college wrestling journey and became an All-American in a PSU uniform. I am probably a little bit too analytical about all of this. Forgive me.
SC.com: Dan Vallimont, Beyond the Obvious
by Joe Bastardi
I am going to talk about Dan Vallimont here and talk about Cyler Sanderson next time, as I want people to be aware of the journey these two guys took to get to where they have gotten, and I think I have another perspective on both that may not be obvious to the average fan.
I have always been as fascinated with what it takes to get someplace as much as where one winds up. And how that person reacts says something about him/her. This constant exchange between people goes on without anyone even knowing about it until one day they stop and say, heh, that person said or did that, and look what happened.
CDT: Sandersons shift to next season
Guy Cipriano
Whether he was ordering bacon and eggs or visiting his barber, the older brother of Penn State’s celebrated first-year wrestling coach couldn’t escape the chatter.
“Everywhere I would go, whether it was getting breakfast or a haircut, people were saying they can’t wait for 2010-11,” associate head coach Cody Sanderson said. “People are excited about the recruits that are going to be in our lineup. But we left it at that. We owed it to the program to keep our focus on 2009-10.”
Such was the conundrum facing the start of Cael Sanderson’s tenure.
CDT: Wright takes redshirt in stride
Guy Cipriano
Quentin Wright a forgotten man?
For Wright, who has spent his entire career in the Centre County wrestling spotlight, this past season represented a strange one.
Instead of inciting cheers, Wright watched Penn State’s first season under Cael Sanderson from the stands.
The redshirt season could have long-term rewards for the Bald Eagle Area graduate. But…
“I would be in the stands twitching when guys were trying to defend double-legs from guys that I wrestled last year,” he said. “I thought about what I could have done. There’s always that what-if. But I can’t cry like a baby. It was a year to get better
