Wilkes University Colonels Wrestling
Wilkes University Colonels Wrestling
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"Victory Goes To Those Who Are Willing To Pay The Price" - John G. Reese
A Winning Tradition Spanning Over Seven Decades of Competitive Excellence
(Top) NCAA DIII Runner-Up, Anthony Dattolo of Wilkes
(Bottom) NCAA DIII All-American, Mark Hartenstine of Wilkes
NCAA DIII Champion, Matthew Grossmann of Wilkes stands atop the podium
11 National Champions. 57 All-Americans. 1974 Team NCAA DIII Champions. 55+ Scholar All-Americans
The Colonels are currently one of 11 college wrestling programs among all divisions to have at least 900 dual wins. Wilkes is one of only two Division III programs with 900 wins or more, and the only Division III program in the Mid-Atlantic to be in the prestigious category.
The Colonels are the youngest of these 11 programs as Wilkes Wrestling began its storied tradition in 1946 under Coach Cromwell Thomas, while the other ten traditions started no later than 1919.
National Hall of Fame Wrestling Coach John Reese tallied over 500 of those dual wins in his 42 years at the helm, including 20 years as a Division I program in the EIWA. Wilkes All-American, Alan Zellner succeeded Reese with over 90 dual wins in eight seasons, while Jon Laudenslager concluded his 22nd dual season at the helm by reaching his 300th dual win milestone.
The tradition continues!
From 1976-1995, Wilkes Wrestling was a Division I wrestling program in the Eastern Intercollegiate Wrestling Conference. The Colonels amassed a multitude of EIWA place winners, NCAA Division I Championship Qualifiers, and three Division I All-Americans.
The Quarter Century Team pictured above honors standout consistent contributors to the Colonels since returning to Division III in the early 2000's.
Wilkes has produced over 40 Division III NCAA Championship Qualifiers, 11 NCAA Division III All-Americans, a National Champion, a Metro Conference Team Championship, an NCAA East Region Team Championship, a sixth place finish at the NWCA National Duals, and tallied 22 winning dual seasons in the last 25 years.
Wilkes Wrestling: The House That John G. Reese Built
Wilkes Wrestling: The House That John G. Reese Built
Coach Reese served as Director of Athletics at Wilkes for 34 years (1958-1992) and as head wrestling coach for 42 years. From 1953 through 1995, John Reese guided the Colonels to 39 consecutive winning seasons. Coach Reese will be remembered as one of the winningest coaches in NCAA wrestling history with 515 wins; he was only the second wrestling coach in the NCAA to top 500 wins. Under his leadership, the wrestling program gained national attention with 40 winning seasons, 14 Middle Atlantic Conference (MAC) titles, the 1974 Division III National Championship and a nationally ranked Division I program.
During his tenure, John Reese coached 10 individual national champions, 61 MAC champions, and 46 All-Americans. In 1976, he moved Wilkes wrestling from Division III and the MAC into Division I and the Eastern Intercollegiate Wrestling Association (EIWA). Although it was the smallest Division I program in the country, under his leadership Wilkes produced 87 EIWA place-winners, including eight champions and five Division I All-Americans.
Coach Reese was also responsible for creating the Wilkes Open, often referred to as "The Rose Bowl of Wrestling" which is held annually during winter break. He has been inducted into ten sports Halls of Fame including the National Wrestling Hall of Fame.
Following his retirement, Coach Reese was a frequent visitor to campus, regularly attending wrestling matches and tournaments and watching football games from the hill at the Ralston Athletic Complex. A native of Kingston, Pennsylvania, Coach Reese and his late wife, Patsy, were parents to three children – Jeff, Megan and Lynn. Reese's devotion to Patsy is widely known and expressed at Wilkes through his family's establishment of the Patricia "Patsy" Reese Annual Nursing Scholarship in her memory.
In 2015, Coach Reese's lifelong commitment to Wilkes was celebrated when he was presented with the President's Medal, the University's most prestigious honor, by Wilkes President Patrick F. Leahy at the annual Founders Gala. His motto, "victory goes to those who are willing to pay the price," has inspired decades of Wilkes student-athletes and will, no doubt, be remembered by Colonels for years to come.
Wilkes Open
Wilkes Open
The "Rose Bowl" Of College Wrestling
(Vintage and Contemporary look at the heritage of the Wilkes Open. Top picture is the Wilkes Open in the Marts Center in 1990. Bottom picture is the Wilkes Open in the Marts Center on December 20th, 2024)
Fun fact: Wilkes Wrestler Mark Popple defeated NCAA Champion Ken Mallory in the 1982 Wilkes Open Finals
The Wilkes Open, historically known as The "Rose Bowl" of College Wrestling has a storied tradition of being one of the premier college wrestling tournaments in the nation and is a standard we continue to uphold as this year was the 91st annual event that featured a multi-divisional field with NCAA Division I wrestlers in programs within conferences like the ACC, EIWA, Ivy league, SoCon; NCAA Division II wrestlers in programs within the PSAC conference, and a wide array of NCAA Division III programs within conferences like the NESCAC, MAC, Landmark, and more.
The Individual Champions of the 24th Annual Wilkes Open in 1955.
Wilkes Wrestling ColonelCast is Live!
The ColonelCast will continue to feature guests on the podcast and share more impactful stories on Colonel Wrestling!
If you have any suggestions of guests to feature, please send an email with your recommendation to pankil.chander@wilkes.edu
With over 70 years of wrestling excellence, and over 900 dual meet wins includes countless stories and pieces of history. The ethos of Wilkes University Wrestling was coined by longtime coach and National Wrestling Hall of Famer, John G. Reese - Victory Goes To Those Who Are Willing To Pay The Price.
In an effort to share the impactful experiences and stories of program alumni, wrestlers, coaches, support staff, and faculty, I welcome guests of the past and present that have paid the price and left a lasting legacy on the Colonels storied wrestling program and the Wilkes University Community alike.
The first two episodes were released in January 2025. The first episode kicked off with Coach Laudenslager '99 and Coach Zellner '72 - Two of only six head coaches in the history of the program!
The second episode featured two-time NCAA Division III All-American, and NCAA Runner-Up, Anthony Dattolo '12.
Third episode with Rick Mahonski '77 was released in February 2025.
Listen in now to these incredibly accomplished Colonels and their journey to greatness and insights acquired along the way!
The start of 2025 has been great to the Colonels Wrestling program and we look forward to putting in the effort to earn more highlight moments as we approach the home stretch of the season! It’s a great time to be a Colonel!
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