Vermilion's Robert Lear has selected Heidelberg University to continue his education, play football and wrestle.

Lear is a three-year letter winner in football and four-year letter winner in wrestling.   

As a senior in 2011-12, Lear won the football team's Sportsmanship, Captain and Craig Reed awards and garnered the Sportsmanship Award in wrestling as a freshman in 2008-09.     

This past season, he was the West Shore Conference's heavyweight champion, qualified for the district championships and earned the Steve Mustard Award.   

As a junior in 2010-11, Lear was a second-team All-WSC performer and district alternate while earning the Captain and Baguba awards.

swalker@MorningJournal.com

Monroeville’s Logan Stieber, a red-shirted freshman, won the 133-pound NCAA Wrestling National championship Saturday night at the Scottrade Center in St. Louis Mo.

The second-seeded Stieber defeated No.1 seed and defending national champion Jordan Oliver, of Oklahoma State, 4-3.

The match began with Oliver gaining a quick takedown 17 seconds into the match. However, Stieber escaped 10 seconds later to make the score 2-1. With 30 seconds left in the first period, it appeared Stieber was going to earn his first takedown of the match as he was able to hoist Oliver into a one-legged position, but Oliver battled out and the score remained 2-1.

In the second period, Stieber chose bottom and was able to escape eight seconds later, deadlocking the score at 2-2. After more than a minute of wrestling, Stieber was again able to force Oliver into a one-legged position, but this time he scored the takedown and sent the Ohio State crowd into a frenzy. Stieber earned the takedown with 20 seconds left in the second period, making the score 4-2.

Oliver started the third period on bottom and was able to escape in 20 seconds, making the national championship a one point affair. Stieber fought off numerous blows from Oliver during the next minute and a half, refusing to give up a point. With 10 seconds remaining, Oliver shot at Stieber and was able to get him around the waist. Stieber stood strong and completed the upset.

Overall, Ohio State boasted four All-Americans, tied for the second most in school history. The All-Americans for the Buckeyes were Logan Stieber, first place at 133 pounds, Cam Tessari, also a Monroeville graduate, fourth place at 149 pounds, Nick Heflin, fifth at 174 pounds and Logan’s brother Hunter Stieber, sixth at 141 pounds. Ohio State also set a team record for freshmen All-Americans with three (L. Stieber, H. Stieber and Cam Tessari) Monroeville graduates.

swalker@MorningJournal.com

Monroeville’s Hunter Stieber, a freshman wrestler at Ohio State, was named Big Ten’s Wrestler of the Week.

Stieber defeated Iowa’s Montell Marion, 4-2 and helped the Buckeyes to upset over No. 2 Iowa, 21-9 last Friday.

Stieber limited Marion, a two-time senior All-American, to just two escapes in the match.

With the win, Stieber improved to 18-3 overall and 4-1 in the Big Ten.

swalker@MorningJournal.com

Monroeville’s Logan Stieber, a redshirt freshman on Ohio State’s wrestling team, was named Big Ten Co-Wrestler of the Week.

This is Stieber’s third-career weekly honor. Stieber shares the award with Penn State’s Ed Ruth.

Stieber pinned Purdue’s Cashé Quiroga in 1:12 to record his team-leading 10th pin of the season en route to the Buckeyes’ 27-10 win in St. John Arena Jan. 12.

With an 18-1 overall record, including a 3-1 conference ledger, Stieber has scored bonus points in 15 of his matches. Stieber, ranked fourth in the country at 133 pounds, also boasts a 9-1 dual record.

swalker@MorningJournal.com

Monroeville’s Logan Stieber was named Big Ten Co-Wrestler of the Week, sharing the honor with Iowa’s Tony Ramos.

This past weekend at the 30th Annual Cliff Keen Las Vegas Collegiate Wrestling Invitational, Stieber recorded a 5-0 record en route to winning the 133-pound title. Stieber played a vital role in helping the Buckeyes win the team championship.

Stieber was one of seven freshmen to headline the Buckeyes’ successful weekend. On the first day of the tournament, Stieber posted three consecutive pins. Of those, Stieber pinned Harvard’s Steven Keith, while in the semifinals on day two, he recorded a major decision vs. Michigan’s Zach Stevens before winning the title on a 10-5 decision vs. Edinboro’s Aaron Schopp. Stieber remains undefeated on the season with a 13-0 overall record and 4-0 dual mark.

swalker@MorningJournal.com

AVON — Zane Zeman and Joel Yeagley aren’t the most vocal kids you’ll know, but they sure know how to get the job done on the field and on the mat.

On Wednesday, Zeman signed his National Letter of Intent to wrestle at the University of Minnesota, while Yeagley signed with Mercyhurst College.

Zeman, who has a career record of 119-16, said he didn’t think this day would come.

“When I was little my major dream was to become a four-time state champion in high school,” Zeman said. “It didn’t happen, but I’m determine to win this year. I never really thought about college, I just thought about high school.

“I love wrestling and I could never see myself doing anything else.”

Zeman said a big influence early on was his father, Kent, who also wrestled at Avon and went on to wrestle at Kent State.

“I remember going to Elyria High School during practices for little kids and that’s kind of where I started learning from him,” Zeman said.

Zeman said he went through a lot to get to where he is, but he’s know he’s a better athlete because of it.

“Freshman year was hell for me because I had to cut 20 pounds,” Zeman said. “The next year was better, because I made it to state, but I didn’t place but it motivated me last year when I finished second at state. I’ve improved every year, so I feel I will do better this year.”

Zeman said his decision came down to Minnesota and The University of Tennessee at Chattanooga, but he couldn’t pass up wrestling in a major conference.

“I really wanted to go to both, but in the end it was going to the Big Ten that really pulled me in,” Zeman said. “The Big Ten Network is something I thought about and I felt they will get the most out of me at Minnesota.”

Avon wrestling coach Mark Porter said everyone at Avon High School should be proud of Zeman.

“I’m extremely proud because this is the first time we had someone sign with a Division I program, and for it to be Minnesota, a Big Ten perennial power, is a huge honor for Zane and our wrestling program,” Porter said.

Porter said he felt Zeman would go on to bigger things.

“We knew he was special, but this is a verification of that,” Porter said. “He was rock solid in pressure situations as a freshman. He wrestled some really big matches and he was calmest person on the mat.”

Yeagley said he didn’t make a decision for awhile before Mercyhurst came into the picture.

“Mercyhurst came up later in the recruiting process, and once I went there I really liked and decided to go there,” Yeagley said. “It’s a really nice campus and I felt comfortable there. They have a really good baseball program and I liked the coach (Joe Spano) the first time I met him.”

Yeagley added that he’s ready to go out and help the Eagles improve from last season.

“I really looking forward to this season, because we won our first conference title last year,” Yeagley said. “To sign now I can go out and play more relaxed and have fun.”

Yeagley said his parents and his coach were big influences, and helped him throughout the recruiting process.

“I’ve always had a close relationship with Coach (Frank) DeSmit,” Yeagley said. “I can go to him to talk about anything. All the players have been really close and it’s just a good atmosphere.”

DeSmit said Yeagley is the total package when it comes to being a great baseball player.

“As a coach you see a lot guys who are good kids and behave well, but it’s rare when that kid is the best player on the team,” DeSmit said. “It takes a special type of athlete to stay humble and stay focus and not get wrapped up about what people tell you.”

DeSmit said he feels that Yeagley made the right choice.

“Joel and his family were realistic throughout the recruiting process of what they wanted,” DeSmit said. “The good thing is Joel found a school he was comfortable with and wants to go to and that’s the best thing.”

courtesy of Anthony Rios

Monroeville’s Logan Stieber was named Big Ten Wrestler of the Week for the first time in his career. A redshirt-freshman, Stieber went 4-0 at the Eastern Michigan Open en route to the 133-pound title.

Stieber, the fourth-ranked wrestler in the nation, scored bonus points in each of his matches, including a pair of pins in a total time of 2:43. Additionally, he posted a 15-2 major decision against Purdue’s Cashe Quiroga in the final. The Eastern Michigan Open served as Stieber’s first collegiate match since injuring his hand a season ago.

This past summer, Stieber was the runner-up (60kg, 132 pounds) at the 2011 FILA Junior World Championships in Bucharest, Romania.

swalker@MorningJournal.com

Monroeville graduate Logan Stieber had his wrestling season cut short after eight matches during his freshman season at Ohio State.

Stieber broke his hand and had to sit out the rest of the season, after going 5-3.

He won his first five matches, defeating Nebraska’s Shawn Nagel, Pittsburgh’s Anthony Zanetta, Cal State Bakersfield’s Tyler Iwamura, Illinois’ Logan Arlis and Hofstra’s Steve Bonanno. He lost three straight matches, all by decision, to Oklahoma’s Jarrod Patterson (2-1), Oregon State’s Jason Lara (5-0) and Cornell’s Frank Perrelli (9-8).

His brother Hunter Stieber just came off his fourth-straight state championship, while wrestling at Monroeville. He’ll be joining Logan next season.

swalker@MorningJournal.com

Edison’s Tristan Stoll was chosen as the Ohio Athletic Conference Men’s Wrestler of the Week, after his undefeated week, while wrestling at Baldwin-Wallace.

Stoll earned his award for going undefeated at the Mel Berry Duals at Thiel College last weekend. He recorded three pins and his other victory came by forfeit. Stoll now has 10 pins on the season and improved his season record to 17-4 overall.

Earlier this season, he captured the individual title at 197 pounds in the season-opening Messiah Tournament with a 4-0 record and also finished second at the Rochester Institute of Technology Tournament.

swalker@MorningJournal.com

Elyria graduate Stevie Mitcheff was named the Mid-American Conference Wrestler of the Week for Kent State, after his 125-pound championship on Dec. 11 at the Cleveland State Open.

Mitcheff went 5-0 in his 25-man bracket inside Cleveland State’s Woodling Gymnasium. He recorded a 17-0 technical fall in his opening bout over Michigan State’s Chris Lyon, before pinning Cleveland State’s B.J. Miller in the second period. Mitcheff then earned a convincing 6-0 shutout over Edinboro’s Korey Mines in the quarterfinals and topped Central Michigan’s Joe Roth 6-2 in the semifinals. In his final bout of the day, Mitcheff knocked off Indiana’s Zach Zimmer 8-6.

Now 13-4 on the year, Mitcheff has placed in all three of the tournaments he has competed in this season (Hokie Open, Body Bar, CSU Open).

swalker@MorningJournal.com

Edison’s Tristan Stoll, who wrestles at 197 pounds at Baldwin Wallace, was named this week’s Ohio Athletic Conference Wrestler of the Week for the first time this season and third time of his career.

On Saturday, Stoll pinned NCAA Division II Lake Erie College’s Bobby Hager in 2:05 during the Yellow Jackets lone dual match of the week. The pin was Stoll’s third of the season and the victory improved his season record to 8-1 overall.

Earlier this season, Stoll captured the individual title at 197 pounds in the season-opening Messiah (Pa.) Tournament with a 4-0 record and also finished second at the Rochester Institute of Technology Tournament. Last year, Stoll was 20-4 overall with 13 pins and finished third at the OAC Championships at 197.

Stoll and the Yellow Jackets are back in action on December 20 when they travel to Las Vegas, Nevada to compete at the Annual Desert Duals Tournament hosted by Wartburg (Iowa) College at the Flamingo Resort & Casino.

swalker@MorningJournal.com

Avon Lake’s Kevin Brunner pinned Baldwin-Wallace’s Phillip Payne at 3:54 for his fifth pin of the season at Lake Erie College, as the Storm defeated Baldwin-Wallace, 38-12 in Berea on Saturday.

The Storm took the first six matches and seven overall in the decisive win.

Brunner, who wrestles at 133 pounds, improved his record to 5-3 in just his freshman season.

The Storm is in action next on Dec. 18-19 at the Midwest Classic in Indianapolis, Ind.

swalker@MorningJournal.com

Monroeville’s Logan Stieber made his Ohio State debut Nov. 21 at the Buckeye Duals in St. John Arena and did not disappoint. Stieber recorded a pair of technical falls over Pittsburgh’s Anthony Zanetta (18-3) and Nebraska’s Shawn Nagel (18-0).

The Buckeyes lost by one point to No. 20 Pittsburgh, 18-17. They also lost to No. 14 Nebraska, 24-11.

Ohio State is now ranked 19th nationally and will compete at the Cliff Keen Las Vegas Collegiate Wrestling Invitational Friday and Saturday at the Las Vegas Convention Center.

At Monroeville, Stieber became the 19th wrestler in OHSAA history to become a four-time state champion.

He ended his high school career with 179 consecutive wins and lost only one match his entire high school career (184-1). He also recorded 134 pins.

He is also a USA Wrestling national championships titlist in the freestyle division, along with being a Cadet and Junior Greco-Roman champion, FILA Freestyle Junior National Champion, runner-up at Junior World Team Trials, third at 2009 U.S. Open and fourth at World Team Trials.

swalker@MorningJournal.com

Edison’s Tristan Stoll was crowned a champion as Baldwin-Wallace’s wrestling team finished fourth out of nine teams at the annual Messiah College Invitational Tournament in Grantham, Pennsylvania.


The Yellow Jackets had 59 total points and were led by Stoll, who was the champion of the 197-pound weight class.

Stoll was seeded No. 2 at 197 pounds and compiled a 4-0 mark with a pin and three decisions. He dominated Messiah’s Russell Jones in the title match by a 15-7 count.

The Yellow Jacket grapplers are back in action next today when they travel to University Circle to compete at the annual Case Western Reserve University Duals. Action begins at 10:00 a.m.

swalker@MorningJournal.com

Lake Erie College recently announced the addition of wrestling and men’s and women’s swimming and diving to the College’s stable of Division II sports.

Kevin Hoogenboom, a former assistant coach at Mercyhurst College, has been named the first head wrestling coach in school history.

"I’m really grateful to President Victor and Griz Zimmermann for this opportunity and I am truly honored to be selected as the first wrestling coach at Lake Erie College," Hoogenboom said through a press release. "Having previously been part of a new program as a student-athlete and then an emerging one as an assistant coach, I am looking forward to building a great program here.

"Kevin has considerable experience at the NCAA Division II level and has helped develop quality student-athletes, both on the mat and in the classroom," said Zimmermann. "We realize there is a real passion and desire on the part of students and parents to compete in wrestling at the collegiate level. Kevin is someone who understands those passions and desires, having not only coached but also been a college wrestler himself, and that will aid him in recruiting quality student-athletes and building a strong wrestling tradition at Lake Erie College."

Hoogenboom was part of the first wrestling recruiting class in Mercyhurst history and after his career ended in 2004, he headed to the bench as an assistant coach under Tony Cipollone. During his tenure, he coached 11 Division II All-Americans and 26 national qualifiers. The Lakers never finished worse than third in the Division II East Regional Championships during his time. As impressively, he coached 26 student-athletes who garnered all-academic team recognition.

The only area athlete on the team that includes the majority freshmen, is Avon Lake’s Kevin Brunner, who was a district qualifier last season.

courtesy of Jason Tirotta, Sports Information & Marketing Coordinator

Monroeville’s Logan Stieber was named the winner of the Dave Schultz High School Excellence National Award announced by the National Wrestling Hall of Fame and Museum. Stieber was also awarded the Junior Hodge Trophy.

The award, which is named in honor of Olympic and World Champion Dave Schultz, the High School Excellence Award is presented to the student-athlete who exhibits excellence in wrestling, scholastic achievement, character, citizenship and community service. Wrestling Insider Newsmagazine (WIN) and the Amateur Athletic Union select the recipient of The Junior Hodge Trophy, which recognizes the nation's top high school wrestler.

"Excellence has defined Logan's high school career on the mat, in the classroom and in the community," Tom Ryan, Ohio State head coach, said on Ohio State’s website. "Logan was born to be a Buckeye. He has a great family support network and truly understands the commitment needed to win NCAA titles and an Olympic gold medal. Buckeye nation will enjoy following his career."

The 2010 Ohio Wrestler of the Year, Stieber became just the 19th four-time Ohio High School Athletic Association state wrestling champion, recording a 16-0 record in those four state tournaments. Capping his career with a 179-match winning streak, the 125-pounder lost only one match (184-1) his high school career. He also recorded 134 pins in his career.

Stieber's other impressive credentials include winning three USA Wrestling national championships in the freestyle division. A Greco-Roman champion (Cadet and Junior), Stieber is a FILA Junior national champion in freestyle.

swalker@MorningJournal.com

National championship hopes came to an end for Lorain native and Elyria High graduate Danny Mitcheff on Friday night at the sold-out Qwest Center in Omaha, Nebraska, wrestling for Kent State.

Mitcheff lost in the quarterfinals to defending national champion Michigan State’s Franklin Gomez, 5-2. Scoreless after one period, Mitcheff got caught in a second-period cradle and trailed 3-0 after two periods. Gomez then escaped early in the third before Mitcheff scored the only takedown of the match.

Mitcheff went 2-0 on Thursday and advanced to the quarterfinals during day one.
Mitcheff (32-3) dominated Stanford’s Justin Paulsen, scoring a 12-1 major decision. Mitcheff jumped out to a 4-0 lead after the first period with a single leg takedown and a two-point turn on an arm bar. He added a takedown in the second and two more in third.

Despite not being able to fulfill his dreams of a national championship, Mitcheff can still make All-American status.

swalker@MorningJournal.com

Elyria’s Danny Mitcheff has put a stamp on his college wrestling career — becoming the winningest wrestler at Kent State.

Mitcheff surpassed former all-time leader Alex Camargo last weekend, and is now the Golden Flashes all-time wins leader, as he defeated Central Michigan’s Scotti Sentes in the Mid-American Conference Championships for his 127th win.

"This lets me know that all the hard work that I put into the sport has paid off," said Mitcheff, who is currently 30-3. "I’ve been wrestling since I was 5 years old. I’m proud of myself and I’m glad I was able to break the record. It’s cool. As a freshman, it never crossed my mind. It was never a goal of mine, it just came along the way."

Mitcheff will now get his fourth shot at a national championship when he wrestles in the Division I tournament at Omaha’s Qwest Center March 16-18. The national tournament will be his fourth-straight appearance, and he has a goal of being an All-American, which is finishing in the Top 8 in the nation — something he has yet to accomplish.

"When I made it my freshman year, I went 2-2 and that gave me a lot of encouragement going into my next year." Mitcheff said. "My next year, I obviously wanted to do better each time. I didn’t get to All-American status my sophomore or junior year, but I just kept working hard. Now that it’s my senior year, I got the sixth seed and it’s definitely helped just to have been there three previous years. I don’t think I’ll be as nervous as I was in the past. I’m real excited and ready to get it on."

Mitcheff, who was also named Kent State Athlete of the Week for his performance, scored an impressive win over Sentes, avenging an earlier-season defeat. After falling to Sentes three weeks prior, Mitcheff scored single and double leg takedowns to give Mitcheff a 4-1 lead after the first period. Mitcheff began the second period with a quick escape of Sentes and countered with a takedown, giving him a 7-1 lead en route to a 8-2 win.

"I went out there knowing he’d be a tough opponent, the record wasn’t on my mind," Mitcheff said. "I was focused on winning and wrestling hard. I just wanted to work on things that me and my coaches have been working on."

The MAC Championship was his second-straight 133-pound title. He was also named the tournament’s Most Valuable Wrestler for the second-straight season.

As a junior, Mitcheff finished 2-2 at the NCAA Championships, one win away from All-American status. He finished the season with a 23-8 record, including finishing second at the Oklahoma Gold and at the Body Bar before a fourth-place finish at the Southern Scuffle.

His sophomore season, he was given an at-large bid to the NCAA Championships for the second straight year and finished with a 30-9 record.

As a red-shirt freshman, he qualified for the NCAA Tournament at 133 where he went 2-2. He posted a record of 22-15, including 3-1 at the MAC Tournament to earn a second place finish and a wild card to the NCAA Tournament.

He was red-shirted his true freshman season and wrestled unattached, posting a 18-8 record.

At Elyria High School, he won a state title his senior year and was a three-time state qualifier wrestling under legendary coach Erik Burnett. He had a career record of 123-13, including a 38-1 mark as a senior.

"I’m proud of my career," Mitcheff said. "I didn’t accomplish everything, but I know I still have a chance this year to do some damage at the tournament. My goal was always to be a national champion and that’s what I’m working for. We’ll see how it turns out at the tournament."

Mitcheff will graduate in the spring with a degree in Human Movement Studies. He then plans to go to graduate school to get his masters degree in physical education. He also would love to coach wrestling someday, either at the high school or college level.

"I want to thank God first of all, my family for getting me through everything, and every coach that I’ve had — they’ve all played an important role."

swalker@MorningJournal.com

Edison's Tristan Stoll continues to impress in his junior year wrestling at Baldwin-Wallace.

Stoll went 3-0 at the John Summa Memorial Tournament last week and became a Yellow Jackets' individual champion at 197 pounds.

On the season, Stoll is 16-3 overall (3-1 in the Ohio Athletic Conference).

swalker@MorningJournal.com

Top pictures is this season against Michigan;

bottom picture is from last season's NCAA tournament

(courtesty of Kent State's website)

Elyria’s Danny Mitcheff suffered his first two losses of his senior season, snapping a 17-match win streak at the Southern Shuffle on Dec. 30 and then losing in a 5-3 upset to Drexel’s Steve Mytych on Friday.

His loss to snap his 17-match win streak was to Minnesota’s Jayson Ness, in a 7-3 decision, giving him second place for Kent State, who finished in seventh among 31 teams at the Southern Scuffle.

This past weekend, Kent State (10-1) overcame an 18-4 deficit against Virginia Tech to cap off a perfect 3-0 day at the Virginia Duals Saturday in the Hampton Coliseum, defeating Ohio, 33-9, followed by a 27-9 bashing of Michigan and a 25-18 comeback victory over Virginia Tech.

Danny’s record is 21-2 on the season as he looks to return to the NCAA Championships.

Stay tuned for a College Insider on Danny's road back to the NCAA Championship.

swalker@MorningJournal.com