For the last several years, Keith Maute has been trying to build up the East Aurora wrestling program to be like Iroquois. Last year EA even scored a landmark win over the Chiefs.
Now Maute has scored a reversal of sorts, taking over the Iroquois program that has long been one of Western New York's most successful.
"I like the challenge -- it certainly is a challenge to walk in the shoes of coach [Fred] Marcheson because he had a ton of success there," said Maute. "I would love to get the program back up to where he had it."
Last year's 34-31 win by East Aurora over Iroquois was believed to be EA's first-ever over its neighbor. Landmark achievements like that were commonplace at EA under Maute. The former Lancaster wrestler and assistant coach took a program that went 0-12 in 2002- 03 and two years later recorded a program-best mark of 12-3.
However, his last two seasons at EA were spent as a assistant after he was removed as head coach in 2007, a move that sparked protests from parents at East Aurora school board meetings, which never publicly discussed his removal.
Maute said he had stayed at EA despite friction with the administration to keep working with wrestlers he had helped train through the program.
"It was hard to leave the kids at East Aurora," Maute said, who helped coach Matt Peters to the state title at 119 and Kevin Kot to a fourth-place finish at Gucci Replica Handbags 125 last year. "Last year I stayed . . . this year I could have stayed, but I saw a pattern -- I would stay for these kids, and then these kids.
"This [Iroquois job] opened Replica Audemars Piguet Watches up and I looked at it as now or never."
Maute takes over a Chiefs program built by coaches like founder Norm Foster and school Wall of Fame member Marcheson, who had two tours with the Chiefs in which he won more than 175 matches over 16 seasons.
Among the top contributors in this year's lineup are sophomore Jim Kloc, who placed fifth in the state at 140 last year; senior Joe Kalinka, who is the returning Section VI champion at 130, and sophomore Nick Roberts, who placed third in the section at 112. Senior Raleigh Defields (160) is 17-2 this season, junior Rodney Offhaus (189) is 16-3 and junior Brad Bowen (285) is 15-2 at 285 lbs.
Maute has spoken of building up the program's depth, but the future looks good with sophomores Brandon Vernon (215), Tim King (171) and Dylan Fitch (140) and freshmen Jack Geary (96), Lewis Kester (171), Zach Reeves (119) and J.T. Taylor (130).
Maute took over for Paul DiGiacomo, who last year replaced six- year coach Matt Mariacher, who assumed the program when Marcheson stepped down. At Lancaster a similar change has former Redskin wrestler Ron Lorenz taking over for David Young, who replaced legendary coach Dennis Beck last season.
Other coaching changes in Western New York include: Brian Schaal at West Seneca East, Bob Vogt at Akron, Nathan Sutch at Barker, Sam Grey at Cattaraugus-Little Valley, Mike Sebaaly at Frewsburg, Terry Norris at Maple Grove and Ron Tatar at Gow.
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WNY pins major recruits
Defending 215-pound Division II state champion Kyle Colling of Pioneer has signed with Oklahoma.
Colling, also the 2009 Junior National Champion and a top-ranked wrester in the country, chose the Sooners -- which boast the third- winni
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