Lehigh University Athletics
Lehigh welcomes eight in 2018 wrestling recruiting class
7/18/2018 11:51:00 AM | Men's Wrestling
BETHLEHEM, Pa. – The Lehigh wrestling program has announced the addition of eight student-athletes that will join the program in the fall. The 2018 EIWA Champions, led by head coach Pat Santoro have brought in a class that includes seven incoming freshmen and one graduate transfer. The class includes wrestlers who have combined to win nine state championships and make 14 state finals appearances at the high school level. Members of this class cover virtually every weight class from 125 through 197. The class includes five Pennsylvania natives, two wrestlers from New Jersey and one from West Virginia.
This recruiting class earned a top 25 national ranking from InterMat in the spring.
"We're excited about this group that we're bringing in," said Santoro, the 2018 EIWA and NWCA National Coach of the Year. Some of these guys could have an impact very early in their careers. This class reminds me of last year's incoming class in terms of guys who are sneaky good and maybe a bit under-the radar, but also includes a few guys who could to contribute at a high level early on."
A familiar name within the Lehigh program in recent years, Jaret Lane is a two-time Pennsylvania state champion and four-time place winner from Southern Columbia High School. The younger brother of Lehigh junior Kent Lane, Jaret amassed a 182-9 career record with 120 career falls and is District 4's all-time wins leader. Lane finished fifth in the state as a freshman and second as a sophomore before claiming back-to-back state titles in the last two seasons. He led the state in falls in each of the final two seasons and won the 2017 Schalles Award as the state's top pinner.
Lane is ranked in the top 15 at 120 pounds by both FloWrestling and InterMat and projects anywhere from 125 to 141 for the Mountain Hawks. He was selected to compete for team Pennsylvania in the prestigious Pittsburgh Wrestling Classic and won by fall over three-time Iowa state champion Kyle Biscoglia. Lane is also a three-time Escape the Rock finalist and two-time FloNationals finalist and is a six-time Fargo All-American in freestyle and Greco-Roman.
Josh Humphreys is a four-time state champion from Parkersburg South High School in West Virginia. Humphreys is the 51st ranked senior and is ranked 10th at his weight class by InterMat, while FloWrestling also has him in the top 15 at his weight class. He compiled a 168-7 record with 125 falls in his high school career. Humphreys is also a two-time Powerade Tournament champion, who projects at 149/157 for Lehigh.
The first of two New Jersey products in the incoming class is lightweight Mitchell Polito from East Brunswick High School. Polito comes in ranked ninth at 120 by InterMat and 18th at the weight class by FloWrestling. A four-time district champion and three-time regional champion, Polito is a three-time state qualifier, with a third place and a second place finish to his credit.
The addition of Brian Meyer gives Lehigh two Phillipsburg, N.J. natives in the program along with sophomore Brandon Paetzell. Phillipsburg's career wins leader with a 131-35 career mark, Meyer was a four-time district champion and three-time regional champion. At the state tournament, Meyer finished third at 145 in 2017 and was the state runner-up at 152 this past season. Meyer is also a 2016 Fargo Cadet Freestyle All-American and a 2016 NHSCA All-American.
Andrew Shedleski comes from Lewisburg High School in Pennsylvania. A projected 184 or 197 pounder, Shedleski is a three-time state qualifier, who earned a seventh place state finish as a senior. He owns a 141-26 career mark that includes a 38-5 record in his senior season.
Elijah Jones becomes the third wrestler from Boyertown Area High School to join Lehigh's room along with EIWA Champion heavyweight Jordan Wood and freshman JT Cooley. Jones is a two-time regional champ, who finished fifth and then fourth in the state over his final two seasons. For his career, Jones went 132-45 with 65 pins. As a senior. He had 29 falls in a 43-5 campaign.
Rounding out the incoming freshman class is AJ Burkhart, a 2015 state champion at Waverly High School in New York, who completed his high school career at Athens High School in Pennsylvania. Burkhart is a three-time state place winner, finishing first and sixth in New York and capping his career with a fifth place finish in Pennsylvania. He is also a NHSCA All-American.
Also joining the Mountain Hawks this fall will be graduate transfer Connor Schram, a 2016 All-American and Pac-12 champion, who spent the last five seasons at Stanford. Schram posted a 65-22 career record at Stanford, highlighted by a 2015-16 campaign in which he went 23-8 and earned All-America honors at 125 with an eighth place finish at the NCAA Championships. He is a three-time NCAA qualifier and a three-time member of the NWCA All-Academic team. Last year, Schram went 9-3 in the first semester for Stanford before suffering a season-ending injury in early December. Schram, who graduated with a degree in Science, Technology and Society, will be returning to his home state. He was a four-time PIAA finalist and two-time state champion for Canon-McMillan High School in Canonsburg, Pa.
"We recruited Connor out of high school so we've always liked him," Santoro said. "He'll fit in well with our team. We liked him coming out and we like him even more now. He has experience and will bring a lot of leadership to our team, which is important. He's a guy that has already gotten it done at the highest level. We talk about his leadership skills and having that experience is important to bring to our team."
Coming off its 35th EIWA team title and first in 12 years last March, Lehigh returns two All-Americans (Scott Parker and Jordan Kutler), four EIWA Champions, 10 wrestlers that have competed at the NCAA Championships. In addition, the Mountain Hawks have 10 freshmen and sophomore transfer Brandon Paetzell returning after deferring eligibility last season.
Lehigh Wrestling 2018 Recruiting Class
This recruiting class earned a top 25 national ranking from InterMat in the spring.
"We're excited about this group that we're bringing in," said Santoro, the 2018 EIWA and NWCA National Coach of the Year. Some of these guys could have an impact very early in their careers. This class reminds me of last year's incoming class in terms of guys who are sneaky good and maybe a bit under-the radar, but also includes a few guys who could to contribute at a high level early on."
A familiar name within the Lehigh program in recent years, Jaret Lane is a two-time Pennsylvania state champion and four-time place winner from Southern Columbia High School. The younger brother of Lehigh junior Kent Lane, Jaret amassed a 182-9 career record with 120 career falls and is District 4's all-time wins leader. Lane finished fifth in the state as a freshman and second as a sophomore before claiming back-to-back state titles in the last two seasons. He led the state in falls in each of the final two seasons and won the 2017 Schalles Award as the state's top pinner.
Lane is ranked in the top 15 at 120 pounds by both FloWrestling and InterMat and projects anywhere from 125 to 141 for the Mountain Hawks. He was selected to compete for team Pennsylvania in the prestigious Pittsburgh Wrestling Classic and won by fall over three-time Iowa state champion Kyle Biscoglia. Lane is also a three-time Escape the Rock finalist and two-time FloNationals finalist and is a six-time Fargo All-American in freestyle and Greco-Roman.
Josh Humphreys is a four-time state champion from Parkersburg South High School in West Virginia. Humphreys is the 51st ranked senior and is ranked 10th at his weight class by InterMat, while FloWrestling also has him in the top 15 at his weight class. He compiled a 168-7 record with 125 falls in his high school career. Humphreys is also a two-time Powerade Tournament champion, who projects at 149/157 for Lehigh.
The first of two New Jersey products in the incoming class is lightweight Mitchell Polito from East Brunswick High School. Polito comes in ranked ninth at 120 by InterMat and 18th at the weight class by FloWrestling. A four-time district champion and three-time regional champion, Polito is a three-time state qualifier, with a third place and a second place finish to his credit.
The addition of Brian Meyer gives Lehigh two Phillipsburg, N.J. natives in the program along with sophomore Brandon Paetzell. Phillipsburg's career wins leader with a 131-35 career mark, Meyer was a four-time district champion and three-time regional champion. At the state tournament, Meyer finished third at 145 in 2017 and was the state runner-up at 152 this past season. Meyer is also a 2016 Fargo Cadet Freestyle All-American and a 2016 NHSCA All-American.
Andrew Shedleski comes from Lewisburg High School in Pennsylvania. A projected 184 or 197 pounder, Shedleski is a three-time state qualifier, who earned a seventh place state finish as a senior. He owns a 141-26 career mark that includes a 38-5 record in his senior season.
Elijah Jones becomes the third wrestler from Boyertown Area High School to join Lehigh's room along with EIWA Champion heavyweight Jordan Wood and freshman JT Cooley. Jones is a two-time regional champ, who finished fifth and then fourth in the state over his final two seasons. For his career, Jones went 132-45 with 65 pins. As a senior. He had 29 falls in a 43-5 campaign.
Rounding out the incoming freshman class is AJ Burkhart, a 2015 state champion at Waverly High School in New York, who completed his high school career at Athens High School in Pennsylvania. Burkhart is a three-time state place winner, finishing first and sixth in New York and capping his career with a fifth place finish in Pennsylvania. He is also a NHSCA All-American.
Also joining the Mountain Hawks this fall will be graduate transfer Connor Schram, a 2016 All-American and Pac-12 champion, who spent the last five seasons at Stanford. Schram posted a 65-22 career record at Stanford, highlighted by a 2015-16 campaign in which he went 23-8 and earned All-America honors at 125 with an eighth place finish at the NCAA Championships. He is a three-time NCAA qualifier and a three-time member of the NWCA All-Academic team. Last year, Schram went 9-3 in the first semester for Stanford before suffering a season-ending injury in early December. Schram, who graduated with a degree in Science, Technology and Society, will be returning to his home state. He was a four-time PIAA finalist and two-time state champion for Canon-McMillan High School in Canonsburg, Pa.
"We recruited Connor out of high school so we've always liked him," Santoro said. "He'll fit in well with our team. We liked him coming out and we like him even more now. He has experience and will bring a lot of leadership to our team, which is important. He's a guy that has already gotten it done at the highest level. We talk about his leadership skills and having that experience is important to bring to our team."
Coming off its 35th EIWA team title and first in 12 years last March, Lehigh returns two All-Americans (Scott Parker and Jordan Kutler), four EIWA Champions, 10 wrestlers that have competed at the NCAA Championships. In addition, the Mountain Hawks have 10 freshmen and sophomore transfer Brandon Paetzell returning after deferring eligibility last season.
Lehigh Wrestling 2018 Recruiting Class
| Name | Proj. Wt. | Hometown/High School |
| AJ Burkhart | 133/141 | Athens, Pa./Athens |
| Josh Humphreys | 149/157 | St. Albans, W. Va./Parkersburg South |
| Elijah Jones | 197 | Perkiomenville, Pa./Boyertown |
| Jaret Lane | 125/133/141 | Catawissa, Pa./Southern Columbia |
| Brian Meyer | 157/165 | Phillipsburg, N.J./Phillipsburg |
| Mitchell Polito | 125/133 | East Brunswick, N.J./East Brunswick |
| Connor Schram | 125/133 | Canonsburg, Pa./Canon-McMillan (Stanford) |
| Andrew Shedleski | 184/197 | Selinsgrove, Pa./Lewisburg |
Players Mentioned
157
/ Men's Wrestling
157
/ Men's Wrestling
184/197
/ Men's Wrestling
174
/ Men's Wrestling
125
/ Men's Wrestling
149/157
/ Men's Wrestling
157/165
/ Men's Wrestling
125/133
/ Men's Wrestling
133
/ Men's Wrestling
133
/ Men's Wrestling
125/133
/ Men's Wrestling
184/197
/ Men's Wrestling
285
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