Jan 10, 2018 4 min read

Josh Sneeringer can be the poster star for persistence and dedication.

The junior from Waynesburg University has toiled in the wrestling room all season, working hard at each practice and preparing himself the best he could as Ken Burrs’ backup at 197 pounds.

All Sneeringer wanted was a chance.

And it came Wednesday night in the Henry Memorial Center.

With Burrs on the sideline, the victim of a nasty case of the flu, Waynesburg head coach Ron Headlee turned to Sneeringer and asked for his best.

And that’s what Sneeringer gave him.

Sneeringer locked up a cradle on Washington & Jefferson’s Dalton Wildman and pinned him in 51 seconds. Jake Evans followed with a pin of his own at heavyweight to cap a furious rally that produced a 24-22 victory for the Yellow Jackets over the rival Presidents in a PAC dual meet opener for both teams.

Waynesburg is 7-3 while W&J fell to 4-5.

“Coach asked me and I said I could go without a doubt,” said Sneeringer, who is now 11-7. “I knew I needed a pin. Without a pin, it was going to be very hard to win. We have to push our starters (in practice). We’re just as hungry as they are. If Burrs isn’t healthy, I have to be ready to go.”

Sneeringer said he wasn’t told he would be in the starting lineup until Tuesday evening.

“That was one of the greatest victories I’ve had when we’ve had five or six guys,” said Headlee. “Guys kept coming in believing they could win. That’s why you tell guys you want them to come out and be in the room for depth. Those guys all battled and I’m really proud of them.”

Both teams were wracked by injury and sickness, which left weight classes opened and chances for others to step up.

W&J was so damaged that the Presidents were forced to forfeit to Tristan Buxton at 125 and Josh Kuslock at 133. Just like that, W&J trailed 12-0 before the first whistle sounded.

“We have quite a few guys out,” said W&J head coach Tommy Prairie. “We just didn’t have anyone to put in there. It hurts giving up two pins at the beginning. We had a chance but . . .”

W&J started the long climb back at 141 pounds, where Mike Heinl took a 9-2 decision from Waynesburg’s Tony Mastrangelo.

Sam Florentino got three more points back at 149, when he gutted out a 3-2 decision over R.J. Hall

When Josh Armstrong pinned Sean McGing in 1:07 at 157 pounds, the match was tied 12-12 at the midway point.

The match seemed to be going W&J’s way after Hunter Neely decisioned Dillon Charlton, 9-3, at 165 pounds, Jared Walker stopped Derek Hull, 5-0, at 174 and William Oberschelp won a 13-1 major decision over Adam Rigney.

Suddenly, the Presidents were holding onto a 22-12 lead and just needed to stay off their backs.

“I was 100 percent certain I could get that pin,” said Evans. “I was just trying to stay calm. A win like this definitely makes the coach happy.”

Evans is coming off a 49-5 season and seventh-place finish in the NCAA Division III Championships.

The 6-4 junior is a pinning machine with 55 career pins. He ranked second in Division III with 30 pins last season.

“Jake’s been on a roll,” said Headlee. “He beat the No. 6 guy in the county at our tournament last week. We were confident he could get that pin.”