THE PLACE TO BE
Cael Sanderson not only has the top college team in the country right now, he is one of three members of the Nittany Lion Wrestling Club who have made the U.S. World Team.
By Guy Cipriano TATE COLLEGE, Pa. - Cael Sanderson isn’t the reflective type.
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Accomplish one goal. Set a bigger one. As a competitor, the approach
landed Sanderson four NCAA titles and an Olympic gold medal. He has remained steadfast as a coach, using his ability to conquer challenges to quickly turn Penn State into a championship program. Sanderson led Penn State to NCAA
and Big Ten titles this past spring. He temporarily savored the accomplishments before concentrating on another major project: turning the Nittany Lion Wrestling Club into a freestyle power. With help from Penn State and State College’s enthusiastic wrestling communi- ties, the club is producing startling results. The NLWC will send five wrestlers to September’s FILA World Championships in Istanbul, Turkey. Sanderson (84 kg/185 lbs.), Teyon Ware (66 kg/145.5) and Jake Varner (96 kg/211.5) are representing the United States. Franklin Gomez (60 kg/132) and Jaime Espinal (84 kg) are wrestling for Puerto Rico. Sanderson doesn’t view the timing of
Penn State and the NLWC’s rises as a coincidence. “That’s something we are thrilled about,
but you can’t really predict when the results will come,” he said. “You just have to do things the right way and that’s what we focus on doing. If it happens, it hap- pens. What we do know is that the club benefits our college athletes by training with them. It has been a remarkable year to say the least.” A remarkable year to say the least. That’s as reflective as Sanderson gets.
Others involved in the NLWC, which includes 10 senior athletes living and training in State College, Pa., are more willing to revel in the club‘s accomplish- ments. In addition to owning three World Team
spots, the club finished second in the team standings at the U.S Open and
18 USA Wrestler
Jake Varner was reunited with Cael Sanderson in State College after winning his second NCAA championship for Iowa State in 2010. Larry Slater photo. At right: Sanderson is now competing for the Nittany Lion Wrestling Club after winning June’s World Team Trials in Oklahoma City. Tony Rotundo photo.
crowned four champions at University Nationals. “When I got to school here, I knew
there was an NLWC and I was asked to join it because it helps give back to Penn State,” said Aaron Anspach, a senior ath- lete involved with Penn State and the NLWC since 2002. “At that point, I didn’t know what direction the club was heading and I didn’t know the vision for the club. I had no idea that it would soon be one of the meccas for clubs across the country.” The NLWC’s roots extend to the late-
1970s, when a magazine article about Ed and Lou Banach stressed to former coach Rich Lorenzo the importance of offering freestyle and Greco-Roman opportunities. Penn State received a major boost in 1983, when Lorenzo received permission to hire freestyle and Greco-Roman guru Hachiro Oishi as an assistant.
Oishi spent 16 years at Penn State, enhancing the NLWC and guiding multi- ple Olympians, including Kerry McCoy, a member of the 2000 and 2004 Olympic freestyle teams. The NLWC’s presence and visibility increased with Sanderson’s hiring in 2009. Understanding the correlation between collegiate success and freestyle options, Sanderson moved toward implementing a senior resident athlete program. Sanderson cultivated Penn State and
State College’s vast wrestling resources - the NLWC features more than 450 mem- bers, including some prominent donors - and relied on Penn State director of oper- ations Matt Dernlan to handle many of the club’s administrative and fundraising duties.
Dernlan worked as USA Wrestling’s Manager of Development from 1998-99. Continued on page 20
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