Kennard-Dale senior Chance Marsteller had just won his fourth PIAA Class 3A wrestling title and completed his high school career with a 166-0 record when a member of the media asked for his thoughts on Franklin Regional freshman Spencer Lee.
“Spencer Lee is going to be way better than I am,” said Marsteller, in 2014, after becoming the 12th wrestler in PIAA history to win four titles. “He’s one of the most explosive wrestlers I’ve ever seen. He’s an absolute animal. I love that kid, he’s awesome.”
Marsteller is one of five PIAA four-time champions who completed their career without a loss. Lee needs four more wins to join that exclusive club.
“I set that goal [of becoming an undefeated four-time champion] after I won my second state title in sixth grade,” said Lee, after claiming his fourth Class 3A WPIAL/Southwest Region title Saturday. “I’ve wrestled in nine state tournaments and only lost twice. I placed second in third and fourth grade. I haven’t lost in a state tournament since then.”
Lee entered the 2017 PIAA tournament, which began Thursday at Giant Center in Hershey, with a 141-0 record. He posted a 49-0 record as a 113-pound freshman, then had a 48-0 record as a 120-pound sophomore. Lee missed most of his junior year recovering from shoulder surgery, but returned for the postseason tournaments and finished with a 12-0 record at 120.
Lee moved up to 126 this season and was seeded No. 1 with a 32-0 record.
“I’ve always thought that you can do it if you believe,” Lee said. “Everybody should strive to have goals like that.”
Marsteller is one of only six individuals who have finished their PIAA career without a loss. Five were four-time state champions.
• George Custer, a 1940 graduate of Canonsburg High School, was the first to accomplish the feat. Custer posted a 76-0 record and was a three-time PIAA champion. The PIAA’s first tournament was in 1938, Custer’s sophomore year.
• James Conklin, a 1943 Waynesburg graduate, finished his career with a 70-0-1 record. He was the first four-time champion in PIAA history. The only blemish on his record was a tie with Canonsburg’s Ed Stanley, who he later beat in the WPIAL finals.
• Clearfield’s Jerry Maurey, a 1950 graduate, was the next undefeated four-time state champion. He posted a 67-0 record.
• Lock Haven’s Mike Johnson joined the exclusive club in 1961 when he claimed a fourth PIAA crown and finished with an 84-0 record.
• Jefferson-Morgan’s Cary Kolat became the fifth to achieve the feat in 1992. Many consider Kolat the greatest wrestler in PIAA history, as he finished with a 137-0 record.
“Winning four PIAA titles was not a goal for me until I saw [North Allegheny graduate] Ty Moore win his fourth title [in 1990],” said Kolat, who was a sophomore at the time. “Ty raised the bar for future wrestlers. That evolved into me setting a goal of being an undefeated four-time champion.”
Lee recently broke Kolat’s WPIAL record for the most consecutive wins.
“Spencer is a great wrestler who comes from a great family,” Kolat said. “Records are made to be broken. I held the record for 25 years. Spencer has raised the bar even further.”
Lee will continue his wrestling career at the University of Iowa.
Jefferson-Morgan junior Gavin Teasdale, another Iowa recruit, is hoping to join his future teammate in the undefeated four-time champions group. Teasdale is a two-time PIAA champ who entered the Class 2A tournament with a 118-0 record.
“I’ve looked up to Cary Kolat since I started wrestling,” Teasdale said. “Cary won four PIAA titles and went undefeated in his career at Jefferson-Morgan. He’s the greatest wrestler of all time in Pennsylvania. When I made it to the varsity as a freshman, I set my goal to become a four-time state champion.”
Teasdale still has another year, but has a chance to finish as a four-time undefeated champion.
“I’m not really paying attention to that,” Teasdale said. “I’m just taking it one match at a time.”
Oh, so close
Seven wrestlers finished their career with one loss. One of the seven was a four-time PIAA champ.
• North Allegheny’s Ty Moore (146-1) won three WPIAL titles and four PIAA titles. The only blemish on Moore’s career came in the 1989 WPIAL Class 3A finals, as he dropped a 4-3 decision to Connellsville’s Jeff Stepanic.
• Kittanning’s Jason Nolf (176-1) won four WPIAL titles and three PIAA titles. Nolf’s only loss came in 2012 during his sophomore year when he dropped a 6-4 decision to Camp Hill Trinity’s Ryan Diehl in the PIAA Class 2A semifinals.
• Franklin Regional’s Nico Megaludis (170-1) won four WPIAL titles and three PIAA crowns. Megaludis suffered his only loss in 2008, his freshman year, a 1-0 decision to Council Rock South’s Mark Rappo in the PIAA Class 3A semifinals.
• North Penn’s Chris Kwortnik (141-1) won three PIAA Class 3A titles. His lone defeat came in the opening round of the 1986 PIAA tournament, a 7-4 loss to Manheim Central’s Scott Henry.
• South Western’s Joey Wildasin (132-1) was a four-time PIAA Class 3A finalist and three-time champ. His only loss came in the 1987 finals, a 13-9 decision to North Penn’s Dan Finnacchio.
• Canonsburg’s Manuel Pihakis (91-1-1) was a four-time WPIAL champion and three-time PIAA champ. The only blemishes on his career record came in dual meets in 1949. He lost, 4-3, to Washington’s Dick Wilson and tied, 11-11, with Waynesburg’s Ron Kurtz.
• North Allegheny’s Mike DeAugustino (76-1) was a three-time WPIAL finalist, two-time WPIAL champ and three-time PIAA champ. His lone loss came in the 1974 WPIAL Class 3A finals, a 7-6 decision to Shaler’s Kevin Nellis.
First Published: March 10, 2017, 5:00 a.m.
