One of the best Division III programs and it makes a case as one of the best programs in the state of New York, we actually lost St. Lawrence wrestling twice. It began in the 1928-1929 season and lasted through the 1950-1951 season. It was then dropped and strictly a club program until being reinstated in the 1966-1967 season. It would then be dropped again after the 1995-1996 season.
The Saints won multiple Empire 8 conference championships and finished in the top ten at the NCAA Division III championships on ten occasions, winning the 1988 team title. They were so good, producing so many great wrestlers that narrowing it down was rather difficult. As many names as I included, a lot more could be listed.
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118 lbs
Joe Conty |
Conty placed second at the 1988 NCAA Division III championships
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118 lbs
Bob Zoeke |
Another great lightweight for the Saints was Bob Zoeke who wrestled for McQuaid High School finishing in second place. He would also take second place honors at the 1990 NCAA Division III championships.
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134 lbs
Barry Barone |
The late Barry Barone who we lost in 2004, was a state champion for West Hill before coming to St. Lawrence. He was a three time All American finishing fifth, fifth, sixth at the 1978, 1979 and 1980 NCAA Division III championships. He later became the head coach of the United States Marine Corps.
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134 lbs
Mark Shortsleeve |
Mark Shortsleeve actually spent most of his career at the University of Nebraska. Matter of fact, he only spent one season at St. Lawrence. Nevertheless he made the most of it, winning the NCAA Division III title in 1986.
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142 lbs
Brian Reed |
A two time Division III All American, Reed placed sixth in 1988 and fourth in 1989 for the Saints.
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158 lbs
Mitch Brown |
In the sport of football, "too small" is a word that is often used. It's a sport that requires a certain amount of size to excel at. I guess St. Lawrence All American Mitch Brown must have not received the memo. 158 lbs'er on the wrestling team, Brown played as a Defensive Back and was the kicker on the Saints football team. He kicked 111 extra points during his football career.
In wrestling he was every bit as good earning three third place finishes at the 1975, 1976 and 1978 NCAA Division III championships, winning a national title in 1977 as a junior.
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167 lbs
Tod Northrup |
Hard telling how good Tod Northrup would have been had it not been for a career ending knee injury. He finished in sixth place as a freshman in 1982 before winning a NCAA DIII title in 1983 as a sophomore. Unfortunately the injury would keep him from finishing out his junior and senior campaigns. Nevertheless in two years of wrestling he had already racked up a 78-12 career.
Post college it was only natural that Northrup became an Orthopedic surgeon. He worked as a team physician for both the Houston Rockets and the Houston Oilers. He headed one of only two robotic knee replacement facilities in in the world.
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177 and 190 lbs
Lelan Rogers |
Another athlete who was a stand out on both the football field and wrestling mat, Lelan Rogers real love when it came to athletics was lacrosse. In football he scored 14 touchdowns and 84 points for the Saints his sophomore season in 1985. That year as a redshirt sophomore he won the NCAA Division III championship. He finished as the runner-up as a true freshman in 1983. Wanting to try his hand at Division I, Rogers would then transfer to Syracuse where he made the EIWA finals in 1986 & 1987.
Seeing that his true passion was lacrosse, Rogers went on to coach men's teams at Ohio Wesleyan, SUNY-Cortland & Syracuse. He was part of the coaching staff that lead the Orangemen to NCAA titles in 2008 & 2009.
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177 lbs & 190 lbs
Phil Lanzatella |
Yet another Saint wrestler who was also a standout on the football team, Phil Lanzatella was a four time All American in wrestling finishing in third place as a freshman and sophomore, winning a Division III title as a junior and finishing as the runner up as a senior. His NCAA DIII title earned him a qualification to the NCAA Division I tournament in 1982 but he was also selected as a wildcard entrant after his runner up finish in 1983. He finished his career at 136-7 for the Saints before going on to have success in Greco-Roman.
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HWT
Mike Conners |
When it comes to the best HWTs in St. Lawrence history the last name is Conners. Older brother Mike was a three time All American placing sixth as a sophomore in 1982 & third as a junior in 1983 before winning the NCAA DIII title in 1984 as a senior. He was voted the most valuable wrestler of the 1984 tournament and for his showing earned a spot in the NCAA Division I tournament. He was also a member of the football team,which won a conference championship.
After college Conners went on to coach football and wrestling at Fullton City for twenty-five seasons. He then coached at SUNY-Albany (another program we've lost) and SUNY-Oswego.
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HWT
Pat Conners |
Like older brother Mike, Pat Conners was a standout HWT wrestler and football player for the Saints. He took third at the 1987 championships and won a DIII title in 1988. Like Mike, he too participated in the NCAA DI championships. The head coach of South Jackson Central High School, he accumulated 400 dual meet victories against just 81 losses.
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| Kirk Douglas |
Saving the best for last, one of the most famous Hollywood actors of his time, Kirk Douglas wrestled for the Saints.
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