History
NCAA DII
The head coaching staff was comprised of three individuals. Among them were:
Nelson D. Neal (1978-1980)
Overall Record: 2-20
Steve Nelson (1980-1996)
Overall Record: 113-144-2
Brent Newell (1996-2001)
Overall Record: 34-45-0
It is only fitting that Longwood's all-time career leader in wins, Tim Fitzgerald '87, became the first Lancer wrestler
to qualify for the NCAA Division II National Championships. Fitzgerald, 84-38-1 in his career, advanced to the
Nationals during his sophomore season (1984) at 118 lbs. Fitzgerald finished that year with a 19-11-1 record winning
his first match at the nationals against the West champion, and since that year, Longwood has continued the tradition by
sending 14 more wrestlers to the National Championships.
Ted Proctor '92 second in career wins at Longwood, is one of two Lancers who has qualified twice for the Nationals.
Proctor, 82-35-1 in his career, first qualified at 150 lbs during his sophomore year (1989) when he finished 23-9. Proctor
returned to the Nationals at 167 lbs as a regional champion his senior year in 1992 as he compiled a 20-8 mark at 167/177 lbs.
John Stukes '89, Longwood's career leader in winning percentage (70-8-2, .857), qualified for the Nationals as a regional champion as a junior (1988) at 134 lbs as he completed a remarkable 34-5-1 campaign. Stukes' 34-5-1 mark is a season
record at Longwood.
Tim Mason '90 qualified for the Nationals as a sophomore (1989) at 167 lbs en route to a 22-10 season record. Mason
ranks ninth on the all-time win list at 54-40-1 and was also an Academic All-American.
Charlie Parker '91 qualified for the Nationals during his junior campaign as a regional champion (1990) at 177 lbs,
finishing 16-4-1.
Mark Harris '93 qualified for the Nationals as a regional champion as a sophomore (1991) at 142 lbs as he compiled
a 23-13-1 record that year. Harris only wrestled two years at Longwood (37-21-1) and was an Academic All-American.
Kevin McSherry '92 and Ryan Stefanko '96 joined Proctor at the Nationals in 1992. McSherry won the regional at
150 lbs after competing most of his senior year at 158 lbs (17-7-1). Stefanko qualified at 134 lbs in what was his
freshman season after finishing 17-12.
The most successful season for the Lancers came in 1993 when four Longwood College wrestlers qualified for the
Nationals. Three sophomores, Bryan Hartley '95, Mark Helberg '95, and Joe Silvus '95, along with freshman Stuart
Chung '96, made the trip to the National tournament. Hartley qualified at 158 lbs as he compiled a 16-14 record, winning 13
of his last 15 matches before Nationals. Helberg qualified at 177 lbs and was seeded eighth at the Nationals. Helberg was
24-11, tops on the team that year, as he wrestled 177 and 190 lbs. Silvus qualified at 142 while going 21-13 between
142/150 lbs. Chung qualified at 126 as he finished 21-14. Hartley, Helberg and Chung all won regional championships.
Chung repeated as a qualifier in his senior season (1995-96) with an 18-12 overall record.
James Mauldin '94 represented the Lancers in 1994 at the Nationals. Mauldin completed his senior campaign with a
record of 24-13 and was named Academic All-American.
In 2001, Longwood sent senior Aaron Bradley '01 and sophomore Ben Summerlin '03 to Nationals. Bradley (29-6)
placed third in the region and eighth at the Nationals to give Longwood it's first-ever All-American. Summerlin was second
in the East region with a 31-7 record and was a win shy of the seventh-place match at the Nationals.
Summerlin went on to transfer to Old Dominion University to finish his last two years of eligibility and continue
with his successful career: http://odusports.cstv.com/sports/m-wrestl/mtt/summerlin_ben00.html
Past articles and news written on the Longwood College wrestling team:
media.www.therotundaonline.com/media/storage/paper1354/news/2008/09/10/Sports/Club-Wrestling.Team.Working.Hard.To.Prepare.For.Upcoming.Season-3423004.shtml?refsource=collegeheadlines
http://www.mattalkonline.us/dutylongwood.html
http://www.ncaa.org/wps/ncaa?ContentID=8057
https://webpoint.themat.com/section.php?section_id=3&page=showarticle&ArticleID=145
http://www.longwood.edu/longwood/Fall99/atheltics4.html
POST- NCAA DII:
NCWA
2000-2001:
The former Director of Athletics, Don Lemish, announces the final season of the Division 2 program that has been in
existence since 1978. The following article serves as the best reference for an in-depth outlook. Courtesy of Jason Bryant,
now the former Director of Media Relations for the National Wrestling Coaches Association and former lead
writer/webmaster for InterMat. http://www.mattalkonline.us/longwood.html
2001-2002:
Wrestlers attempt to maintain team with club status.
Team fell through and did not last longer than one season.
2005-2006:
Glen Warrington, Shawn Nelson, and Keith Huskey take the incentive to re-establish the program as a club. Nelson and
Huskey get the club team's constitution approved after 2 revisions. They held interest meetings and open mats throughout
the course of the year, but the organization nearly fell through due to lack of interest and the school not opening the
wrestling room for the athletes.
2006-2007:
Glen Warrington takes position of president and registers the Lancers with the NCWA (National Collegiate Wrestling
Association). He schedules first competitive season primarily with the help of a new youthful group that mainly consisted
of underclassmen. Shelton Daniels serves as head coach and Pat Farrell serves as assistant coach to guide the Lancers
during their first competitive season. They had a very light load during the course of the year to test the waters and
ensure a smooth transition for the following season.
2007-2008:
Glen Warrington passes the torch of team president to Alex Vergara. Shawn Nelson takes position as co-head and
Treasurer of the organization. Andy Rivas takes charge of public relations and assists with spreading the news of
Longwood's wrestling rebirth. Collectively, the team put forth their best effort to gain recognition throughout the NCWA
and the state of Virginia. Longwood finished 5th overall at the 29th Annual Builder Invitational which was hosted by
the Apprentice School. The two medalists at the event were Shawn Nelson (2nd place/ 141 lbs) and Alex Vergara
(3rd place/ 133 lbs). During their debut at the Mid-Atlantic Conferences, they finished 4th overall out of 13 teams.
Lancers qualify 5 for NCWA nationals at the Mid-Atlantic Conference on March 1, 2008. Among the third place finishers
were Alex Vergara (133 lbs), Shawn Nelson (141 lbs), Brian Rich (149 lbs), and Dom Gary (165 lbs). Alec
Modine (285 lbs) finished a team high 2nd place at conferences. With the success of the season, the Lancers look
forward to what the future will hold.
2008-2009:
The Lancers had a fairly successful season with the help of several newcomers. The administration of the organization was
comprised of four individuals. They were all critical components in running the team. Among them were:
Alex Vergara (President); Dom Gary (Vice President); Andy Rivas (Public Relations); Scid Morris (Treasurer).
They finished with an overall dual record of 2-3 while 2 of those losses were by a margin of 6 points or less. They traveled
to the Builder Invitational tournament hosted by the Newport News Apprentice School and returned with 1 medalist in
Alex Vergara (3rd Place/ 133 lbs). They traveled to the Mid-Atlantic Conference tournament on February 28, 2009.
After working through a tough field of 19 teams, they returned with 3 NCWA National Qualifiers. Among the qualifiers were
Alex Vergara (5th/ 133 lbs), Shaun Spath (5th/ 141 lbs) and Brian Rich (3rd/ 149 lbs). This marks Vergara's and Rich's
second year in a row of qualifying for the National tournament. The team has much to look forward to next season as the
amount of recruit applicants continues to grow and the resources made available by the university leads to a high
anticipation for success.
|
