Jan 21, 2016 4 min read

High expectations create awareness and, in some cases, pressure.

The Belle Vernon High School wrestling team understands. The Leopards, after blazing new trails last season, are the favorites to win the WPIAL Class AAA Team Tournament championship and to be serious contenders for a PIAA AAA title.

Belle Vernon started as the No. 1 ranked team in the WPIAL and has done nothing but solidify that standing.

The talented roster has been up to the difficult challenges the schedule, competition and added pressure presented.

“We still have a couple things to work on, to make better,” said junior Jarod Verkleeren. “I think we can win a WPIAL title. I think we can go and place in the top three at states and even win a state title. As a team, we still need to work harder to make all that happen.

“We have the talent. Yes, the expectation and the goals we set adds pressure. But with that comes a responsibility for us to do as much as we can to achieve our goals. We cannot forget how we have gotten to this point. It’s hard work. We worked hard last year and we are working hard now. To win, you have to outwork people. We’ve been wrestling since we were little boys, little kids. There were always expectations. The pressure doesn’t affect our wrestling. It just makes us more responsible.”

Last season, Belle Vernon advanced to the WPIAL finals for the first time where it lost to Franklin Regional. The Leopards advanced to the PIAA semifinals before losing to Cumberland Valley. They then lost in the consolation semifinals to North Allegheny.

Belle Vernon (4-0, 9-1) wrapped of its regular season Section 2A schedule Wednesday with a 55-6 victory at Laurel Highlands. The only dual-meet loss came against powerful St. Edwards (Cleveland).

The Leopards took a huge step toward readying themselves for the postseason last weekend by winning the prestigious Escape the Rock Wrestling Tournament at Council Rock South High School. They totaled 221.5 points, outdistancing second-place Boyertown’s 156.5 points.

Two Belle Vernon wrestlers, Verkleeren (145 pounds) and Austin Bell (170), captured individual titles.

“Winning Escape the Rock is a big confidence booster for our team,” said coach Michael Doppelheuer. “It was only the second time all year that we were able to wrestle all of our starters. We were always missing a piece with injuries and weight issues early in the year. We were down a point to Boyertown heading in to the second day of the tournament. Our guys came out and showed what they are capable of with a dominating performance Sunday.

“Heading forward, we need to continue to build on our success and work that much harder in the practice room to achieve our season goals of a WPIAL championship and a state championship.”

Doppelheuer challenged his team with a most difficult schedule. Belle Vernon also participated in the Walsh Jesuit Ironman Tournament, considered the top tournament in the country, in Cuyahoga Falls, Ohio, in mid-December. It followed that with the Powerade Tournament, the second-toughest tournament in the nation, at Canon-McMillan and the Westmoreland County Tournament earlier this month.

The Leopards placed sixth at the Ironman and were the highest-placing public school. At Powerade, Belle Vernon finished second out of 48 schools, only 4.5 points behind highly regarded Wyoming Seminary Prep School. They followed that with a second-place finish at the Westmoreland County meet. Bell, a Pitt recruit, did not participate in that tournament.

“We have faced a crazy amount of competition,” Bell said. “We are wrestling much better. We have more experience. We wouldn’t have been ready for this last year. We are enjoying this. We need to keep our heads together.

“We’ve been together a long time. There are expectations and pressure. But it would mean so much to win WPIAL and state championships as a team.”

Belle Vernon’s lineup includes six sets of brothers and a host of standout wrestlers. Other starters are junior Jake Dunlop (106), freshman Logan Seliga (112), freshman Jake Fine (120), junior Tyler Seliga (126), sophomore Zachary Hartman (132), sophomore Brock Godzin (138), senior Derek Verkleeren (152), senior Mitchell Hartman (160), senior Milton Kobaly (182), senior Hunter Ferrera (195), junior Michael Fine (220), and junior heavyweight Billy Korber.

“We’ve faced some of the best competition in the country,” Jarod Verkleeren said. “It’s built confidence. It’s always more fun winning as a team. My goal is to win an individual and team state championship. It would be awesome. But we haven’t won it, yet. Until then, we have to keep working.”