July 13, 2005

By MIKE WEILAMANN
The Express-Times

Success isn't built overnight.

And University of Maryland coach Pat Santoro is well aware that manufacturing a top-notch Division I wrestling program takes time to cultivate.

But after two seasons, it appears Santoro has the Terrapins heading in that direction.

"Right now we're building," Santoro says. "We have a good recruiting class coming in and we're excited. Hopefully in a couple of years we'll be competitive."

This year's recruiting class, in conjunction with last year's, may very well help Maryland emerge as a national force in the near future.

The prized group includes a pair of Pennsylvania state champs -- in Connellsville's Steve Bell and Emmaus heavyweight Bryan Reiss. Throw in Blair Academy star and national prep champ Hudson Taylor and Pennsylvania state placewinners Alex Krom of Easton and Eric Grida of Saucon Valley, and it's easy to see why they're buzzing around College Park.

"We're excited about all of them," Santoro says. "They fill a lot of our needs. I think they're excited about coming down."

Krom, District 11's all-time wins leader, has always been on winning teams at Easton. He's looking forward to being a part of what he hopes is something special at Maryland.

"Maryland was my first choice and (Santoro) being the coach that he is, I think we're going to have a great team," says Krom, a two-time PIAA Class AAA state placewinner who finished fourth this past season at 135 pounds.

Santoro, 39, is also excited about the Red Rover, who projects to be a 141-pounder at Maryland.

"He has a lot of tools and a lot of skill," Santoro says about Krom. "He's just a great kid who works very hard. As he matures physically he's going to surprise some people. He's very underrated and has shown he can beat some of the best kids in the country (in high school)."

Krom is the second Red Rover recruited by Santoro -- joining redshirt sophomore 141-pounder Bryan Rizzo. The roster also includes three other District 11 products in Northampton's Josh Haines, Nazareth's Kevin Vinh and Whitehall's Sean Carr. Former Hunterdon Central state runner-up Marc Eberstein is a redshirt freshman at 184 pounds for the Terps.

"If you're going to recruit nationally you have to start with District 11," Santoro says. "We've gotten a lot of interest from the Lehigh Valley. It's one of the best places in the country (for wrestling)."

Santoro is well aware of the Lehigh Valley, having grown up here. The Bethlehem Catholic and Blair Academy product won two NCAA titles and was a four-time All-American at the University of Pittsburgh.

Santoro went on to enjoy a fine national career and was an alternate on the 2000 U.S. Olympic team at 69 kilograms (152 pounds). That same year, Santoro was named No. 31 on The Express-Times all-century list of the area's top 100 athletes.

Pat's father Dick and brother Rich also were outstanding wrestlers and Lehigh graduates.

Dick went 28-0-4 in dual matches during the 1957-58 season, which he capped by earning All-America status at 137 pounds. Rich won two PIAA Class AAA state titles at Bethlehem Catholic in 1978 and '79, and was a three-time NCAA All-American at 118 and 126 pounds during his career at Lehigh in the early 1980s.

Now, Pat Santoro is making his mark in the coaching ranks. He spent nine seasons as an assistant at Lehigh before taking his first head coaching job at Maryland.

His former boss at Lehigh, head coach Greg Strobel, raves about the job Santoro is doing.

"When Pat got (to Maryland) it was a little overwhelming at first," Strobel says. "He's really become a very good coach -- in all departments. He's always been a good teacher."

Santoro is so well respected among his peers that many believed Lehigh would suffer by his departure -- particularly on the recruiting trail. It's a notion he dismisses.

"They have a tremendous coaching staff," says Santoro, one of two top-flight assistants to leave Lehigh in the last three years as Kerry McCoy recently took the head job at Stanford. "They'll be in the hunt to win it all this year."

Santoro says he owes a lot to Strobel and the choice to leave Lehigh was a tough one.

"It's a great place to be and Greg has become a great friend," says Santoro, who was named the National Assistant Coach of the Year in 2003. "They have great kids in the room."

Tough as it was, Strobel offered Santoro some good advice which helped make his decision to move on.

"I told him if he wants to be an assistant coach he can stay here forever," Strobel recalls. "But if he ever wants to be a head coach you have to take these opportunities when they come along."

Maryland is certainly glad he did. The university also has stepped up to the plate by offering more scholarships.

"We're fully funded now and we're starting to attract kids," Santoro says. "We have three assistant coaches, though we're looking for an assistant since Shane Mack recently took the head coaching job at Manheim Central."

By following Lehigh's example, Santoro is building with local talent.

"The Lehigh Valley produces the best wrestlers in the nation as far as I'm concerned," Strobel says. "Pat knows that and he's certainly tapped into it. Someone came up with the stat the other day that we've had 24 All-Americans (in my 10 seasons) and all but three, or pretty close to that, are from the Lehigh Valley."

Santoro isn't overly concerned with wins and losses at this point. The Terps finished 3-13-1 this past season and went 4-9 the year before.

"We took some lumps this year, we had a lot of holes in our lineup and you're not going to win dual meets with holes," Santoro says. "We train for the ACC and NCAA tournaments."

Together with assistant coach and former Parkland and Lehigh wrestler Brad Dillon, Santoro hopes one day that his Terps will be mentioned among the nation's best, which includes Lehigh.

"Hopefully we can become a top 10 team," Santoro says.

"I could see Pat being in the top 20 real soon," Strobel says.

Only time will tell.