Bees wrestlers flexing their muscles, as usual

by Sheldon Ocker

It’s old news that the Brecksville-Broadview Heights High School wrestling team is one of the top tier squads in not only Northeast Ohio, but all of Ohio.

The Bees are among the elite, along with Cincinnati LaSalle, St. Edward in Cleveland, Elyria and Wadsworth. Last year, BBHHS finished second in the state. This season, the Bees are 8-0 in dual meets and finished second in their own prestigious holiday tournament that included three nationally ranked schools: Detroit Catholic Central, Elyria and Brecksville.

According to InterMat, a clearinghouse for collegiate and high school wrestling information, BBHHS ranked 40th in the U.S. in late December. By February, the Bees had climbed to 30th.

Todd Haverdill, head coach at BBHHS, looks at this year’s roster with dispassionate eyes and an analytical approach. He lost two state champions to graduation, but one returned. So, can this team match or exceed the 2018 Bees in accomplishment?

“It’s hard to say; that team was special, the state runner-up,” he said. “This is a different type of squad. They all get along so well; they’re friends with each other. But it’s hard to say in terms of wins and losses if these guys are better.”

Six returning Bees qualified for the state tournament last year, including sophomore Victor Voinovich, who won a state title at 145 pounds as a freshman and is ranked 12th in the nation by InterMat at 152 pounds.

“Victor was the biggest freshman ever to win a Division I state title in Ohio,” Haverdill said.

Most freshmen compete in the lighter weights: 106, 113 or 120 pounds. It’s unusual for a freshman to have the strength to win at 145 pounds.

Senior Marco Regalbuto has finished third and fifth in the state tournament, and senior Jack Stanley took fourth place in the state last year. Regalbuto is ranked 17th nationally by InterMat at 138 pounds.

“Regalbuto is really having a good year, and he’s taking a big leadership role,” Haverdill said.

Junior Jimmy Carmany was fourth in last year’s state tournament and won the 126-pound title at the Brecksville Holiday Tournament.

“Sophomore Ben Vanadia qualified for the state last year at 152 pounds,” Haverdill said. “This year, he’s wrestling at 182 pounds, and I think he’s something like sixth in Ohio.”

The Bees’ roster is overflowing with 36 wrestlers, because if a student is willing to put in the work at practice, the coach won’t cut him.

“We had more first-year kids come out this year than at any time in my 18 years here,” Haverdill said. “And we’re talking about a really tough sport.

By “first-year,” Haverdill means kids who have never wrestled at any level.

“One kid, Nick Franks, came to us as a ninth grader who never wrestled in his life, and he got within an eyelash of going to the state,” the coach said. “He’s wrestling at Baldwin Wallace. Another kid, Pat Leahy, never wrestled, and he finished third in the state and wrestled at Mercyhurst College.”

 Haverdill didn’t use the word, but he believes kids who stay with the program, especially those with little talent, are high-character athletes.

“We live in a society where if kids don’t make it right way, a lot of them quit,” he said. “So I give these guys a ton of credit.”

Featured image photo caption: Shawn Earle. Photo by J. Kananian