2008 Woodie Awards
Coach ready for second season
By Lucas Rawding
Issue date: 12/2/05 Section: Sports Extra
In his second year as Slippery Rock University's wrestling coach, Derek DelPorto is hoping his team can take a major stride against a formidable schedule.
DelPorto, a Slippery Rock University graduate, wrestled at SRU from 1995-99. DelPorto earned All-American honors in '99 and was a three-time NCAA qualifier. The one major setback he faced was in '98 when he suffered a broken wrist in the NCAA championships.
Besides being an accomplished athlete, DelPorto was also a leader off the mat. He was the president of the Student Athlete Mentor group, better known as S.A.M. He was a member of the English Honorary Fraternity (Sigma Tau Delta), as well as a member and founding father of Pi Kappa Alpha.
DelPorto was a graduate assistant at the Rock in 2000 before moving on to stints as an assistant coach at the University of Oklahoma and Cornell University before returning to the Rock last year.
DelPorto was optimistic about his goals for the team this season.
"Simple, place in the top four in the Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference (PSAC)," DelPorto said. "Win the East Region, send seven guys to the NCAA championships and win 50 percent of our dual meets.
These goals are somewhat lofty, but reasonable at the same time. SRU finished seventh in the PSAC last year.
"I'm always optimistic for every season," DelPorto said. "We have a young team that is trying to learn the system of wrestling I bring to the table. It isn't the easiest system, but we're trying to adjust. We have a very tough schedule."
The Rock began the season with the Slippery Rock Open on Nov. 5 before heading to Edinboro University for the Avalon Duals on Nov. 12. While there, SRU fell Edinboro, Maryland and Old Dominion to begin the year 0-3 before beating Binghamton on Nov. 17 to improve its dual-meet record to 1-3.
"A lot of people don't realize that we are a Division I sport that competes against the best in the country," DelPorto said. "When we wrestle Edinboro or Pitt, it is comparable to our football team playing Auburn or Michigan, or our basketball team playing Gonzaga or Wake Forest. The level of competition is unreal. I will stay optimistic and I hope the students and fans realize that we are battling these kinds of teams. We need the students to get behind us and help us find confidence."
DelPorto made it a point to talk about his leaders and mentioned four in particular. Those DelPorto spoke highly of were senior Jason Cardillo, sophomores Cory Mancuso and Charlie Pienaar and red-shirt freshman Garry Price.
"They not only lead on the mats, but they need to be leaders in the classroom as well, and they are," DelPorto said. "They were Academic All-Americans and set a very high example for the rest of the team."
DelPorto, a Slippery Rock University graduate, wrestled at SRU from 1995-99. DelPorto earned All-American honors in '99 and was a three-time NCAA qualifier. The one major setback he faced was in '98 when he suffered a broken wrist in the NCAA championships.
Besides being an accomplished athlete, DelPorto was also a leader off the mat. He was the president of the Student Athlete Mentor group, better known as S.A.M. He was a member of the English Honorary Fraternity (Sigma Tau Delta), as well as a member and founding father of Pi Kappa Alpha.
DelPorto was a graduate assistant at the Rock in 2000 before moving on to stints as an assistant coach at the University of Oklahoma and Cornell University before returning to the Rock last year.
DelPorto was optimistic about his goals for the team this season.
"Simple, place in the top four in the Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference (PSAC)," DelPorto said. "Win the East Region, send seven guys to the NCAA championships and win 50 percent of our dual meets.
These goals are somewhat lofty, but reasonable at the same time. SRU finished seventh in the PSAC last year.
"I'm always optimistic for every season," DelPorto said. "We have a young team that is trying to learn the system of wrestling I bring to the table. It isn't the easiest system, but we're trying to adjust. We have a very tough schedule."
The Rock began the season with the Slippery Rock Open on Nov. 5 before heading to Edinboro University for the Avalon Duals on Nov. 12. While there, SRU fell Edinboro, Maryland and Old Dominion to begin the year 0-3 before beating Binghamton on Nov. 17 to improve its dual-meet record to 1-3.
"A lot of people don't realize that we are a Division I sport that competes against the best in the country," DelPorto said. "When we wrestle Edinboro or Pitt, it is comparable to our football team playing Auburn or Michigan, or our basketball team playing Gonzaga or Wake Forest. The level of competition is unreal. I will stay optimistic and I hope the students and fans realize that we are battling these kinds of teams. We need the students to get behind us and help us find confidence."
DelPorto made it a point to talk about his leaders and mentioned four in particular. Those DelPorto spoke highly of were senior Jason Cardillo, sophomores Cory Mancuso and Charlie Pienaar and red-shirt freshman Garry Price.
"They not only lead on the mats, but they need to be leaders in the classroom as well, and they are," DelPorto said. "They were Academic All-Americans and set a very high example for the rest of the team."
