What do you consider the most heart-breaking loss of your coaching career?Luckily there have been many great wins as opposed to losses
but the one I think hurt the most was in 1992 against Meadville. We were undefeated and
finished as State runnerups that year. There was a very questionable call against Mark
Russell for what was called a forcefull fall back. Neither wrestler was in control in a
neutral position. Mark was caught in a flurry to obtain a takedown when the Meadville
wrestler spun behind him and basically pulled Mark down on top of him as Mark was trying
to avoid being taken down. The referee called it a forcefull fallback after approximately
30 seconds had gone by and some prodding by their coach. I have no doubt Mark would have
won and they were awarded 6 points. Basically this was a 9 point swing and we lost the
match by 2 points. I think. A great team missed an undefeated season that year by 1 loss.
How many Section championships did assistant
Coach Rick Stoyer win?
Rick was my assistant coach for several years
in the early 90's but was a 1979 grad of RHS with a career record of 20-10-1 while
wrestling alot of matches at Hwt only weighing in at the minimum for Hwt. Thanks for the
question Don but Rick never was able to win that coveted Section championship.
Coach Hills, I wanted to know what was the best part for you last week. Winning the 500,
having all the coaches there or breaking the record? Thank you and Good Luck on the rest
of the season.
I think having all the coaches from the past
years was the best, although I wish we could've had Doug Groover there also. I am probably
at fault for not letting him know of the schedule change earlier and apologize. There are
so many things to take care of when you want to make everything special. The breaking of
the school record for most points is solely the responsibility of our team members. They
started what we like to call a feeding frenzy and made it happen. As far as reaching the
500 win total it was nice to get it over and move forward concentrating on bigger things
in front of us
.Are you in favor of adding a
weightclass between 189 and 275, and why or why not?
Being a AA school I am not in favor of adding
the 215 lb weight class. Thirteen weight classes are very hard to fill for some schools.
If you look around our local area as well as across the state teams are forced to forfeit
weight classes or drop their programs. I feel the AAA schools are probably in favor of the
additional weight class. When we were at Manheim we talked with some people from Easton
who said they graduate 600-700 kids per year. RHS graduates approximately 130.
Have you ever been invited to, or thought about going to the Reno Tour. or the Best of the
East tour.?
We have been invited to both tournaments. The
cost factor weighs heavily in going to Reno and after talking to several teams that go I'm
not satisfied that the money necessary to go would be in the best interest. I'm sure the
wrestling would be great to wrestle so many different teams from various states. If we
were not invited to the Manheim tournament we would probably like to go to the Beast of
the East. We have met some really great people at the tradition rich Manheim Tournament
and there is absolutely no expense to the school. They really take care of the teams they
invite. The Tool City tournament is still considered one of the top in season tournaments
in the state and we have some really good relationships that have been developed at
Lewistown. The Philipsburg tournament is great way to open our season against statewide
competition. I've learned over the years that relationships you have developed is great
for your team over the course of years not just on a year to year basis.
Coach Hills, If you couldn't coach wrestling, what sport
woiuld you coach and why?
Believe it or not football was my favorite
sport and I still enjoy it to this day. I suppose that would be the sport I would choose
to spend my time at although 1 sport is enough. I'm very fortunate to have had the
opportunity to coach wrestling at RHS and am very proud of ALL the kids that have come
through our program. When I'm done coaching at RHS I'm sure I'll be done in all sports.
Locally it seems as thou wrestling is a dying sport. Many teams can't field an entire
lineup, even the numbers at Reynolds are down. What is your take on this? Do you see the
sport losing interest?
The numbers at RHS are actually up this year
and we have many more new student athletes that are joining the team. We have 27 team
members that only include 3 9th graders we kept up with the varsity squad. Our Jr High
team fields approximately 20-25 members. I feel that the sport of wrestling is facing a
two-fold problem. The first is a way to put a spark into the way matches are held.
Something different that will bring young fans in to watch. We have a tremendous following
of the traditional fans from the past that are a backbone of the team but we must strive
to make it interesting for young fans as well. We have tried music, spotlight, a more
active announcer and the Reynolds Wrestling Cheerleaders to put more pizzazz into a night
at the match. Secondly, and I'm not sure how to correct this is that wrestling is a truly
vigorous sport. Our athletes are trained extensively and I'm not sure how many "few
good men" are out there. We have a great group that are proud to work hard for their
accomplishments.
Coach Hills, I just wanted to say that I think the Coaches Corner column you do every week
is great. I enjoy reading what you think about the upcoming week. Keep up the good work.
Thanks, I think it's a great way to get all
the coaches opinions and views.
What do you consider to be the most exciting win of your coaching career?
I have been privileged to be a part of
many great wins during my tenure. The win over Brookville several years ago would rank
high when Dan Svirbly pinned their Hwt. to secure the win. There have been several against
Greenville that come to mind as well as defeating Jamestown at Thiel College when they had
a great team. We were minus Kevin Drew due to a broken leg and still managed to win. I'm
probably missing some that I if I thought even harder there are others.
Is your son, Michael, truly a heavyweight?
and What do you think of his performance so far..A little Surprised maybe or where you
expected him to be..etc..??
a fan of HIS and the rest of the team!
Michael is doing an outstanding job for our
team. He is not a heavyweight but is currently the biggest kid we have on our squad. He
should probably be at 189 lbs. but we feel he is wrestling well where he is. I think
Michael can be as good as he wants to be and hopefully will strive to do better. He is
doing way better at this point and I am very proud of him!
How well do you think we match up with our great rival Greenville?
We are not taking anything for granted and
must prepare for Greenville to be very competitive. Greenville has improved since the
beginning of the year and this is our biggest rival.
Glad to hear you mention the excellent Reynolds Wrestling Cheerleaders. Their routine is
top-notch! They really set the tone for the evening, along with the atmosphere. You know
you are in for some good, entertaining, COMPETITIVE WRESTLING.
We're proud of our cheerleaders and their
advisor does a great job of preparing them for each match.
Good luck to Reynolds Wrestling. We beat Reynolds once in my four years of high school
(1972). There is a large duels meet here (Virginia duels) this week. There will be 44 high
school teams (3 divisions) and 24 college teams. It is quite and event with 8 mats going
at all times. I would like to see you guys make it down here sometime.
GHS class of 74
Thanks, I have heard of the Virginia Duals
and it sounds like great competion. We presently attend the Ultimate Duals at Brookville
High School which is the maximum our schedule allows. We are scheduled to wrestle Wilson
which is currently ranked #1 in the state AA. I have some great memories of the Greenville
matches during those days and it is nice to hear from you.
You have to be closing in on win number 200. Can you reach it
this season? Thanks for the great year of wrestling and keep it up. Good luck in the
remainder of the year.
To be honest I don't dwell on the thought of
200 wins. I've been told it could happen if we win every match we have left including all
the state duals.
How much longer to you see yourself as head coach of the raiders, and I know you have
coached many great teams but in your opinion what team had the most memorable season?
I have always said that as long as the kids
progress way beyond what they may think their own capabilities are I will continue to
coach. I want them to go beyond their norm and be winners in all aspects of life. We have
a great staff and I'm now comfortable that the program will be in good hands if and when I
decide to step down. The most memorable season of which there are many would have to be
1993 when we won the team state championship with 3 state champion, Jon Hazi, Casey
Taylor, and Mark Bodo. Our combined record at the state championships that season was a
remarkable 18-3. Mark Russell finished 3rd and Kevin Drew was injured and could not
participate due to a broken leg.
Hey Coach...Congrats from an old Raider wrestler who had the distinct pleasure of
wrestling for Neal Lineman. Glad to see your keeping the winning tradition alive. As I
myself am coaching at a high school in Arizona, let me know if any of your wrestlers want
to transfer to a warmer climate. Please say hello to all your family and all the Raider
wrestling fans. Bob Loveless
Thanks for checking in Bob. I just saw Coach
Lineman at our 500th win of which you were a big part of. I'll never forget being one of
the young Raiders listening to the radio as you would pin your Greenville opponent to win
the BIG Dual. In those days it was impossible to get a ticket. Wish your team well and I
love the weather out your way. We get to Las Vegas frequently. |