Evanoff

WAYNESBURG— With plans to help turn around the Waynesburg College wrestling program, Butler graduates Alex Evanoff and Jon Sanko opted to join the Yellowjackets.

They didn't have to wait long to see that improvement.

First-year coach Ron Headlee inherited a program that had won one dual match in two seasons.

"There were only seven wrestlers on the team when we got here,"Headlee said of himself and assistant coach John Yates, a Seneca Valley graduate.

Now there are 24 wrestlers on the roster, including 18 freshmen, and Waynesburg is 10-4 overall, 7-0 against Division IIIopponents and ranked 28th in the nation by the National Wrestling Coaches Association.

"We wanted to find a way to win a match this year,"Headlee said. "Then we began the year 3-0, our guys got comfortable with each other and away we went."

Evanoff became the second Butler High wrestler to reach 100 career wins last year, his 39-3 record as a senior giving him 101 career triumphs.

He began this season at 157 pounds before taking over the starting spot at 165. Evanoff is 7-3 at 165 pounds and won the Presidents' Athletic Conference championship last weekend.

"Alex had a hand injury that cost him some time early in the year,"Headlee said. "He missed three weeks.

"Our 165-pounder was struggling, so when Alex came up, we decided to bump him up a weight class and give him a shot."

Evanoff won the starting 165-pound spot in a wrestleoff.

"I'm wrestling guys about 15 pounds stronger than me, but it hasn't been as tough as I thought it would be,"Evanoff said. "I haven't had to watch my weight at all, which has been nice."

The sudden success of Waynesburg's wrestling program has caused Evanoff to up his goals a bit."Some of the kids on this team have a chance to be among the best in the nation this year," he said. "I'm confident, but I'm realistic, too."I want to win the PACTournament and I'd like to be a national champion someday. But that's down the road."Headlee said he's hopeful of getting three wrestlers to the national meet this year.Sanko won 60 matches in his high school career at Butler and is a backup at 157 pounds right now. He is 7-7 overall this season:4-4 at 149 pounds, 2-3 at 157 and 1-0 at 165.Jesse Byerly, Waynesburg's freshman 149-pounder, took a 14-3 record into the PACTournament before getting injured."He was a Double-A state champion at Keystone Oaks and working out with him in the room has been a definite plus,"Sanko said. "I've learned a lot."I still want to crack the lineup here and I'd love to become a PACchampion. My goals are more team-oriented. This program is going to take off."Evanoff and Sanko have been wrestling together since elementary school."Jon was a big help to me, especially during our first couple of weeks here,"Evanoff said. "It was a plus having someone I know come here with me."They might see another familiar face next year. Headlee is recruiting Butler senior 215-pounder Marino Quercio."Butler wrestlers are hard-working guys and that's what builds programs," Sanko said.

Sanko