Date: Fri 08-Sep-1995

Publication: Bee

Author: TOMW

Illustration: I

Quick Words:

Wrestling-History

Full Text:

Wrestling History

Wrestling began at Newtown High in the winter of 1970 when newly-hired history

teacher Bill Manfredonia came in and built what would become a dominant

program for years to come. Wrestling wasn't adopted into the Western

Connecticut Conference until 1975, but when it was, Manfredonia's Indians were

ready for it.

The team of 1971 went 3-2 over a five meet season setting the stage for an

overwhelming undefeated 13-0 year in 72. The 72 team was led by freshman Dave

Oliger and seniors Bill Ross and Tom Young.

The next season saw the Indians wrestle to a mark of 12-2 as Mike Piazza went

unbeaten (13-0) and won the school's first state wrestling title. Other stars

that season were Gary Frenette (13-1), Jack Whittle (12-1), and Oliger (12-1)

who won his first sectional championship.

In the 73-74 season, Newtown posted a 15-1 record behind the efforts of

Oliger, Piazza, Mike Forcht, Jack McLaughlin, Mike Newman, and Tom Cavanaugh.

An Era Begins

1975 saw the formation of a wrestling league in the WCC and the beginning of

an impressive run for the Newtown Indians.

The basketball program was struggling at NHS during the seventies and,

subsequently, wrestling was becoming the school's big winter sport.

That winter of 75 saw NHS capture the WCC's first wrestling crown as the team

went 11-2 and defeated Brookfield in the WCC championship match - creating the

conference's first wrestling rivalry.

NHS wrestlers Jeff Smith, Oliger, Paul Wagner, Alan Watkins, Tim Boychuck,

Pete Meier, and Dale Bryson all were named to the first All-WCC wrestling

team, and Oliger went on to a 13-1 season, a Section I Championship, and a

Class M title that saw him honored as a High School All American - an honor

that no other NHS athlete had enjoyed before or ever would after.

l  Newtown defended its WCC title in each of the two years that followed.

The 76 team was led by Steve Hodge (157 lbs), Bob Tucciarone (169), and Pete

Meier (187) as they wrestled to a team record of 11-3-1 and finished second in

Class M. At the Class M meet, Hodge and Tucciarone both captured state

championships while Meier finished Class M runner up and advanced to State

Opens where he became Newtown High's first and only State Open Champion as a

junior. Meier was a senior in 1977 and though he didn't defend his State Open

title, Meier went unbeaten at 23-0 leading the Indians to a 16-1 season and a

third-straight conference crown before finishing second at Class M and second

at State Opens, wrapping up his record at 27-2 for the year.

Newtown's most dominant team in school history crowned nine WCC champions in

13 weight classes. Those All-WCC wrestlers included Stu Bilsky, Jeff Poulin

(17-0-2), Paul Jamieson, Brian Swanhall (13-1-2), Walt Schneider (17-2), Steve

Hodge (18-2), Tucciarone (14-3), Meier, and Gary Andrews (11-5).

Schneider won the Class M state championship as well, while finishing second

at State Opens in the 126-pound class.

l  The wrestling program continued to flourish over the next few seasons, but

it was Brookfield's turn to win in the heated rivalry.

Brookfield ended Newtown's string of WCC titles at three in 1978, and went on

to win each of the next five conference crowns with Newtown finishing second.

Andrews and Swanhall each finished second in Class M's in 1978 as Newtown

wrestled to a record of 14-4 and placed third in Class M as a team.

During the 79 season, Manfredonia earned his 100th win as head coach, but

Newtown struggled through its worst season - finishing 9-5.

Freshman Pete Jamieson captured a WCC title in the 91-pound class on the way

to becoming the first of two NHS wrestlers in history who would win four

individual WCC titles.

Troy Innella and Gary Schneider also copped WCC crowns in 79.

l  Jamieson moved up to 98 pounds in 1980 and captured his second WCC title,

while wrestling to a record of 21-4 and helping Newtown to a 17-2 mark. One of

Newtown's two losses that season, however, came at the hands of Brookfield in

the WCC title match.

John Tolster (22-5), Tim Leitner (27-2-1), and Gary Schneider (26-3-1) all won

WCC crowns for NHS while Jamieson and Schneider both won Class L state titles

as the Indians placed second as a team there.

l  Schnedier, Jamieson, and Jeff Miller all won WCC titles and all placed

second at Class L's in 1981 as Newtown wrestled to a 13-5 mark and saw

Brookfield claim its fourth-straight WCC crown. Jamieson and Schneider were

both 18-0 that season in dual meets.

l  Newtown only wrestled to an 8-5-2 mark the following year as Brookfield

rolled up another title (5th straight). Jamieson copped his fourth WCC

individual crown and junior Larry Miller earned his first. In his first year

wrestling, Miller won a school-record 32 matches that season while losing only

three. In the process, Miller won the Class L title at 128 pounds and finished

second at State Opens.

l  Behind Miller in 1983, a sophomore named Kyle Turosczi, and a junior named

Bob Voland, Newtown was finally able to wrestle the WCC championship away from

Brookfield. The Indians were 13-6 that season as Miller won 37 matches, lost

only two, and won the school's first and only New England Championship

wrestling at 132 pounds. Turosczi was 26-3 during the season, was All-WCC,

Most Valuable Wrestler at the WCC Championship, and placed fifth at New

Englands. Voland, meanwhile, was 19-0 during the season, won the WCC title at

112, and placed second at both Class L's and State Opens. Rick Panetteiri

(27-4) was also All-WCC for Newtown.

l  Newtown beat Brookfield again for the WCC crown in 1984, finishing 11-5

overall behind WCC champs Turosczi, Voland, and Damien Rispoli. Brian Voland

and Rispoli won Class L state titles that winter while Bob Voland placed

second in Class L and finished his senior season with an impressive 30-1-1

record. Manfredonia resigned his coaching post at the end of 84, with five WCC

titles and a record of 166-43-3.

l  Under new skipper Paul Horton, Newtown suffered its first losing season in

1985, though Kyle Turosczi won his third WCC crown and became the only Newtown

High wrestler in history to win 100 matches when he placed fourth at State

Opens. Turosczi finished his brilliant career with a mark of 100-21, losing

eleven of those matches as a freshman.

Brian Voland and Chad Turosczi also won WCC crowns that season while Voland

copped his second state crown as well.

l  The next two seasons saw NHS crown WCC titlists in Scott Behan, Voland

again, Tommy Maurath, Beau Rennert, and Kevin Lee (Lee also won Class L state

title- the school's last ever) but didn't win another WCC team title until

1988. The 88 team was led by All-WCC wrestlers Craig McCarthy (22-3), Maurath

(26-4-1), and Ken Knapp (18-8) as they went 18-5 to defeat Brookfield for the

WCC title. It was the last title in school history.

l  The nineties saw WCC champion wrestlers in Mark Smith, Bill Gottmeier,

Steve Miller, Mike Swift (20-0), Todd Stampp, Scott Baglio, Mike McManus,

Brian Sigler, Tom D'Amico, Mike Philbrick, and Dan Monroe. The program also

saw new coaches in Gordon Bleacher, Jim Berrill, Steve Colville, and Bob

Voland in four consecutive years.