Three-time All-American and 2017 NCAA Champion Darian Cruz ‘18 has joined the Mountain Hawks’ coaching staff for the remainder of the 2021 season. Cruz will serve as a volunteer assistant coach while continuing to train with the Lehigh Valley Wrestling Club.

In his time wrestling for the Mountain Hawks, Cruz amassed a 120-20 career record with 61 bonus point victories. His 120 career wins are tied for second in school history. In 2014, Cruz became the first Lehigh true freshman in 34 years to earn All-America honors, doing so with a seventh place finish in Oklahoma City.

Cruz deferred his eligibility in 2014-15 and came back the following season to win the first of three straight EIWA titles at 125, while reaching the All-America round of 12 at the NCAA Championships.

The 2016-17 season was memorable for Cruz, who went 31-2, won his second straight EIWA title and then became Lehigh’s 28th individual national champion with his triumph in St. Louis. Cruz scored an overtime upset over top seed Thomas Gilman of Iowa in the semifinals before avenging an early season loss to Minnesota’s Ethan Lizak with a 6-3 decision in the NCAA finals. Cruz went on to be named EIWA Wrestler of the Year.

In his final season at Lehigh, Cruz went 30-2, won his third straight EIWA title and earned his third All-America medal with a fifth place finish.

Cruz has continued competing with the LVWC since wrapping up his Lehigh career in 2018. He made the U.S. National Team in freestyle following a runner-up finish at 57 kg at the 2019 World Team Trials Challenge Tournament. Cruz was third on the USA ladder at 57 kg and traveled to the 2019 World Championships in Nur-Sultan, Kazakhstan as a training partner.

Last March, shortly after serving as a corner coach for the Mountain Hawks at the EIWA Championships at Stabler Arena, Cruz earned a bronze medal at the Pan-American Championships in Ottawa, Canada.
Cruz’s other senior freestyle accomplishments include a fifth place finish at the 2019 U.S. Open, a third place finish at the 2019 Dave Schultz Memorial International and a win at the 2018 Canada Cup.

An Allentown native, Cruz was a two-time Pennsylvania AA state champion for Bethlehem Catholic High School. He graduated from Lehigh with a degree in English.

Name	Title	Email Address	Phone
Pat Santoro	Lawrence E. White '64 Head Wrestling Coach	pjs3@lehigh.edu	610-758-4302
Brad Dillon	Associate Head Coach	bjd8@lehigh.edu	610-758-4299
Zach Rey	Assistant Coach	zwr211@lehigh.edu
Darian Cruz	Volunteer Assistant Coach

Completed Event: Men's Wrestling at NCAA Championships on March 21, 2026 , , 16th, 26.5 pts.

Completed Event: Men's Wrestling at NCAA Championships on March 21, 2026 , , 16th, 26.5 ptts.

Completed Event: Men's Wrestling at NCAA Championships on March 20, 2026 , , 16th, 22 pts.

Completed Event: Men's Wrestling at NCAA Championships on March 20, 2026 , , 12th, 22 pts.

Completed Event: Men's Wrestling at NCAA Championships on March 19, 2026 , , 12th, 13 pts.

Completed Event: Men's Wrestling at NCAA Championships on March 19, 2026 , , 11th, 8.5 pts.

Completed Event: Men's Wrestling at EIWA Championships on March 7, 2026 , , 1st, 163.5 pts.

Lehigh University Athletics

2021-2022 Men's Wrestling Coaching Staff

Coaching Staff