Pat Pecora started his wrestling career at Serra Catholic High School in McKeesport, PA. As a senior he placed third in the Pennsylvania State Catholic Interscholastic Athletic Association Tournament. In the fall of 1971 he enrolled at West Liberty State College and was a member of their wrestling team where he became a four-year starter and a three-time All-Conference selection. Pat wrestled his final two seasons at WLSC for Hall of Fame Coach Vince Monseau. He won the West Virginia Intercollegiate Athletic Conference as a senior and twice participated in the NAIA National Wrestling Tournament.
After spending one year as the head wrestling coach at East Allegheny H.S. in Pennsylvania, Pat accepted the head wrestling coach position at the University of Pittsburgh at Johnstown in the fall of 1976. He is currently serving in his twenty seventh year at the school. His Mountain Cats squads have finished in the top twenty in the nation a total of nineteen times. They have posted a dual meet record of 346-99-3. Pat has tutored 90 Wrestling All-Americans and 51 Academic All-Americans. Seven of his wrestlers have won a total of thirteen National Championships between them, including heavyweight Carleton Haselrig who won three NCAA II and three NCAA I National Championships. In 1996 and 1999, Pecora's teams won the NCAA II National Championship. They have captured fifteen NCAA East Regional Championships.
Pat has served the NCAA II and the sport of wrestling in many leadership capacities. He has served two terms as the NCAA II Wrestling Coaches Association president and he spent ten years as the representative of the NCAA II to the National Wrestling Coaches Association. He was a featured clinician at the YES Clinic for the 2002 NCAA II National Wrestling Tournament. In 1995 and 1999, Pecora was named the NCAA II National Wrestling "Coach of the Year." In 1999, he was awarded the National Wrestling Coaches Association Coaching Excellence Award given to the best coach in all divisions. Ten times he has been selected as the NCAA East Regional "Coach of the Year." Pat has previously been inducted in four other Hall of Fames including the Pennsylvania Sports Hall of Fame East Boro Chapter in 1999, the Cambria County Hall of Fame in 1998, the West Liberty State College Athletic Hall of Fame in 1998, and the Pennsylvania Wrestling Coaches Association Hall of Fame in 2001.
Pat and his wife Tracy live in Johnstown, PA. They have four children Cristina, Marco, Marina and Nico.
Ken Hackman started his wrestling career at Derry Area High School in Derry, Pennsylvania. His overall record at Derry was 95-23. As a Senior he placed third in the 1984 Pennsylvania AAA State Meet at 185 pounds. That summer he won the Pennsylvania Freestyle Championship at 191.5 pounds and placed sixth in the Junior National Freestyle Tournament.
That fall Ken enrolled at the University of Pittsburgh. He made their starting lineup as a freshman and put together a 15-13 record and placed fourth in the competitive Eastern Wrestling League. Amatuer Wrestling News selected him number four on their All Freshman Team. After his successful first year at Pittsburgh, Ken decided to transfer to California University of Pennsylvania in California, Pennsylvania. Eligibility rules required Ken to sit out his first season at California, but over the next three years he won 101 matches while losing only ten. As a sophomore, Ken went 21-6, placed second in the NCAA II Nationals and then placed eighth in the NCAA I Nationals. During Ken's junior and senior seasons he had identical 40-2 records and won the 190 pound NCAA II National Championship both years. He also won the Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference Championship each year. In the three years that Ken wrestled at California he never lost a dual match. He was selected as the Vulcans Most Valuable Wrestler and Team Captain each year. Under Ken's leadership California had it's three highest ever national team placing of eleventh, thirteenth and seventh.
Following his graduation from California University
of Pennsylvania in 1989 with a BS Degree in Technology Education,
Ken accepted a teaching and coaching position in his hometown
at Derry Area High School. He currently teaches the Technology
courses at Derry Area H.S. and for seven years he was the head
wrestling coach. During the 1998-99 season Derry produced their
first ever Pennsylvania AAA State Champion in the schools history.
In 1999-2000 Ken was selected as the Pennsylvania Section I Coach
of the Year as his team had a 15-0 regular season dual record.
He and his wife Melissa live in Derry, PA and they are the parents
of two daughters Grace and Maya. Ken was inducted into the California
University Athletic Hall of Fame in 1996.
Jeff Esmont started his wrestling career in the seventh grade in Canton, Ohio. It wasn't until his sophomore year at North Canton High School that he won his first match wrestling JV at 167 pounds. His persistence paid off as he entered the District tournament his senior year in high school with an undefeated record and a number five state ranking. A loss in the second round prevented him from reaching the State Tournament, but it taught him the value of establishing goals for wrestling and life.
In the fall of 1978, Jeff enrolled at Ashland
College (now University) to pursue a degree in elementary education
and the desire to compete in football and wrestling. And compete
he did, in four years of wrestling he compiled a 116-15 record,
earned All-American honors three times and won the 1982 NCAA II
National Championship at 190 pounds. As a freshman Jeff compiled
a 21-6 record and narrowly missed earning
NCAA III All-American honors. In his sophomore season he went
29-4, placed fifth in the NCAA II Nationals at 190 pounds, and
along with teammate Reggie Johnson became Ashland's first ever
NCAA II Wrestling All-Americans. As a junior Jeff went 33-3 and
finished second in the NCAA II Nationals. An injury in his semi-finals
victory prevented him from competing in the championship match.
As a senior Jeff capped a 33-2 season by winning the 1982 NCAA
II National Championships at 190 pounds. The combined scores of
his four tournament victories was 68-15. During Jeff's final three
seasons of competition he lead his team in pins each year and
was selected as the Most Valuable Wrestler.
Jeff also competed well in football. He was a starter as a guard on the offensive line and earned All-Conference status in leading his team to a Heartland Conference Championship in 1980. Following graduation Jeff had NFL football tryouts with the Dallas Cowboys and the New England Patriots, and several USFL teams as a punter. He was also nominated by his school for the Heartland Conference Scholar/Athlete Award.
Following a short career as a 6th grade teacher,
Jeff has spent the last 18 years as a District Sales Manager for
Milwaukee Electric Tool. He and his wife Beth live in Frederick,
Maryland. They are the parents of three children, Joe, 18 a sophomore
at Towson University; Mark, 17 a junior at Thomas Johnson High
School; and Emilie an 8th grader at Thomas Johnson Middle School.
Jeff was inducted into the Ashland University Athletic Hall of
Fame in 1992 and the Stark's County (Ohio) Wrestling Hall of Fame
in 1995.
Stan Dziedzic enrolled at Slippery Rock University in the fall of 1968. His accomplishments at SRU and in the international style of freestyle wrestling after graduation make him possibly the greatest wrestler to ever participate in the NCAA College Division which eventually evolved into the NCAA Division II. Stan wrestled three seasons at Slippery Rock University and had a career record of 118-2. His coach was Fred Powell a former NCAA National Champion from Lock Haven State College.
In his first year of collegiate wrestling Stan wrestled at the 150 pound weight class and took an undefeated record into the 1970 NCAA College Division Tournament. He won his first national championship in that meet and qualified to wrestle in the NCAA University Division Tournament a week later. In that meet he advanced to the semi finals, before losing 9-5 to the eventual champion Mike Grant of the University of Oklahoma. He wrestled back to place third. Stan's second year of collegiate wrestling was even more successful as he went through the 1970-71 season undefeated and won championships in both the NCAA College Division and the NCAA University Division tournaments wrestling at 150 pounds. He was selected as the meets Outstanding Wrestler at the College Division Championship. For Stan's senior season, 1971-72, he moved up to the 158 pound weight class. He again had an undefeated season going into the NCAA College Division meet which he won for his fourth National Championship. He carried the number one seed into the NCAA University Division Tournament before losing in the championship match to Carl Adams of Iowa State 7-4. Stan's performances helped his Slippery Rock University team place second in the NCAA College Division Nationals his junior year and fourth as a senior.
Following his graduation in 1972, Dziedzic spent six years as an assistant coach at Michigan State University, where he continued to train and compete. His weight class was 163 pounds which was generally considered the toughest in the country and the world. During that time he won four national freestyle titles, two gold medals in the World Cup, and he reached the apex when he won a bronze medal in the 1976 Olympics in Montreal, and then won the World Championships in 1977.
In 1978 Stan turned to coaching and was named the national freestyle coach for the Amatuer Athletic Union. He held that position for six years and made significant contributions to American wrestling. He helped develop the Olympic 200 project which made it easier for wrestlers to stay in the sport and train for international competitions. He also pioneered the idea of longer training camps for USA international teams. In 1980 he was selected as Wrestlings Man of the Year. In 1984 he was an assistant coach and the manager for the Olympic Freestyle team that competed in Los Angeles and won seven gold medals. In 1996 he received wrestlings highest honor when he was inducted into National Wrestling Hall of Fame, in Stillwater Oklahoma. Stan is currently serving a two year term as the President of USA Wrestling.
Stan and his wife Arlene live in Roswell, Georgia and he is the Managing Director of Lehman Brothers Investment Firm in Atlanta. They are the parents of four children Jodi, Katie, Tom and Emily.
Dr. Vince Monseau began his association with West Liberty State College in 1958 when he enrolled as an undergraduate student. While a student at WLSC, Vince was very active in Hilltopper sports and earned letters in wrestling, football, and track. He earned his Bachelors Degree in 1962 and furthered his education by earning Masters and Doctorate Degrees from West Virginia University in 1964 and 1977 respectively.
Monseau began his coaching career at Germantown High School in Ohio before returning to his native state of West Virginia, where he coached at Oak Glen, Charleston and Weir High School. His Oak Glen High School team captured the West Virginia State Championship title in 1967.
In 1972, Vince accepted the head wrestling coaching position at Peru State College where he coached for one season prior to returning to his alma mater West Liberty State College in 1973. He has served as the head wrestling coach there for the past thirty years. His teams have compiled a 266-166-7 dual meet record. Ten of his teams have placed in the top twenty at the NAIA National Championships, including a fourth place showing in 1986 and a second place finish in 1995. Since entering the NCAA II three of his teams have finished in the top ten at the NCAA II National Tournament. His 1996 team placed sixth and two other teams placed eighth. In his tenure as head coach, Monseau has coached 71 All-Americans, six National Champions (three NCAA II and three NAIA) and 22 Academic All-Americans. In 2001-02 his team compiled a 3.281 GPA to earn runnerup honors in the Division II All-Academic Wrestling Team competition.
Vince has served the NCAA II and the sport of wrestling in many leadership capacities. In 2000, he was appointed to the NCAA II Wrestling Championship Committee and is presently serving as Chairman. In March 2001, he became President of the NCAA II Wrestling Coaches Association and is still serving in that capacity. He also served in that position twice with the NAIA National Wrestling Coaches Association. He spent thirteen years as a member of the National Wrestling Coaches Association Board of Directors. In 1979 and 1987 Monseau served as the tournament director when West Liberty State College hosted the NAIA National Championships. In 2003 he will serve as the host coach as West Liberty State College will host the NCAA II National Wrestling Championships. In 1987, Monseau was honored by being inducted in the NAIA Wrestling Hall of Fame as a coach, and in 1996 he was inducted into the West Liberty State College Athletic Hall of Fame for the success he has achieved while coaching at his alma mater.
Monseau and his wife, Kay, reside in West Liberty.
They have three children: Dr. Vinnie Monseau ( a former three-time
NAIA All-American for West Liberty State) and his wife, Dr. Ronna
Monseau both Emergency Physicians in Morgantown, WV; Dr. Anissa
Monseau Anderson (a former Captain of the West Liberty State College
Volleyball Team) an Orthodontist and her husband Danny Anderson
a math teacher and coach in New Martinsville, WV; and Aaron, presently
a senior member and Tri-Captain of the Wrestling Team at West
Liberty and maintaining a 4.0 majoring in Biology and Chemistry.
They currently have two grandchildren: Alavia Anderson, 2 _ years
old and Kayna Anderson, 6 months old, of New Martinsville, WV.