Hi. I was checking the Penn State Century Wrestling book and stumbled upon the memories of PSU wrestling. I was one of the team managers from 1983-1987. I have so many stories to tell about how being involved with some of the best guys in the world affected my life! The boys were like brothers to me: Flynny [Tim Flynn], Greg [Elinsky], Brugs [Eric Brugel], [Glenn] Koser, Keith Maurer, Birch Hall, Carl [DeStefanis], Scott Lynch, Kenny [Chertow]. If I wasn’t with the team, I was babysitting Jessica and Amy Fritz! Coach Lorenzo was one of the strongest men next to my Dad that I have ever known! Coach taught me so much about myself—lessons about life that when you are in your late teens and early 20’s you think about but move on.
My friendships with the guys who wrestled were some of the best, funniest and toughest times of my life. They prepared me for life outside PSU. I worked in the coaches’ offices with Elaine Malin, drove or rode shot-gun with Sam Lestz in the big Ford vans (did you ever ride with Sam?), made Penn State wrestling license plates with Ben Niebel in the Penn State foundry, made countless arrangements for parents’ tickets, served tons of pizza to them at Brothers Pizza, arranged training tables at Zeno’s, The Corner Room, and Mr. [Bill] Tucker’s place. Lived in a house owned by Ira Lubert, got mono along with half the team, organized the stadium clean-up (which also meant making the whopper run to Burger King for lunch). I attended 6 a.m. practices and was made to toss Bill the dummy by Hachiro, who also tossed me a few times. I was a big girl, but ya know, I’d do it all again!
Oh, and of course, I could not forget planning the annual banquet above the Corner Room with Larry Reilly. I am always so proud to read about how well the boys, now men, are all doing. There are many of us girls who are displayed in the team photos of Rec Hall who were also lucky enough to be associated with the best years (in my opinion) of PSU wrestling! I saw the good, the bad, and the ugly, and I agree with Flynny. Coach hated to lose to the Iowa’s and Oklahoma’s—that’s why I rode with Sammy! I’m looking forward to ordering the book. I keep telling our four-year-old son that one day he’s going to be like Steve Sefter—play linebacker during the Fall and then head right to wrestle-offs in November! I’m not putting too much pressure on him, am I? Thanks for the memories!
