This week’s year-end notebook features CR South senior Billy Rappo and recaps the SOL’s top performances at states.
By Alex Frazier
Meet…Billy Rappo
The Carrs, the Kwortniks, the Cuvos, the DeAugustinos and more recently the Peppelmans are all well respected names in Pennsylvania wrestling history.
But there’s never been a family like the Rappos.
Billy Rappo’s second state championship Saturday at the Giant Center in Hershey marked the end of an unprecedented era in the history of Pennsylvania wrestling.
The Rappos are the only family to produce four state champions. The five brothers accumulated 12 state medals in eight years. Rick, the oldest, won it in 2004 and placed second in 2005. Mike was a two-time champ winning back-to-back titles in ‘05 and ‘06. Mark was sixth in ‘06, second in ’07 and champion in ’08. Matt was seventh in 2010 and fourth in ’11. Billy placed eighth in ’10 and won it all in ’11 and ’12.
“The style they wrestle is a treat for me as a coach. They wrestle hard, they go after it, they’re exciting,” said CR South coach Brad Silimperi, who has coached all five. “It’s been an incredible run.”
The Rappos have accomplished something that will probably never be duplicated.
“It’s definitely a special thing,” said Billy Rappo. “After a while kids choose different sports or one’s not as good as the others, but we all did a good job. We all worked hard and we were dedicated to the sport. It all turned out well for us.”
Being the youngest, Billy has had a tough path to follow.
“There’s pressure,” he said. “Every single one of us was a very good wrestler. Just growing up watching them wrestle, I wanted to be just like them and win a state title for myself. Just being around them you learn new moves. It was great when I followed in their footsteps last year, and I could end our little legacy we had on a good note too.”
Although their father Rick wrestled in high school, it was really their uncle who introduced the brothers to wrestling with the Council Rock Wrestling Association.
“It all started from there,” said Billy.
At one point all five wrestled on the same team.
“We all won the Bux-Mont the same year (2001), we all went undefeated,” said Billy. “We were one of the only families to ever do that.”
Billy also played football from third grade until eighth grade, when it became apparent that he was too small to make it.
“I focused on wrestling because it was my main sport,” he said.
Easily Rappo’s toughest match in this year’s state tournament occurred in the semifinals. He faced Dalton Macri of Canon MacMillan, a sophomore with a record of 39-3. Macri had beaten Rappo 1-0 in the Super 32 Tournament two years ago.
“I knew it was going to be one of the harder matches,” he said.
After a scoreless first period, Macri reversed with 37 seconds left in the second. But Rappo cut the lead to one with an escape. He also escaped in the third period to tie the bout at two and send it into overtime.
After another scoreless neutral period, Macri chose down and reversed Rappo once again with two seconds left.
In the third period, Macri may have made a serious blunder when he cut Rappo.
“I was definitely very surprised,” said Rappo. “I was nervous about going down because he rode me out for a pretty long time in the third. Right when he cut me, it was the only time I had to get the win.”
With just a second remaining, Rappo took him down on the edge of the mat to win 5-4.
“You have to feel confident going into these situations,” he said. “All year we go through practice putting ourselves in these situations. You just have to battle. I basically took a desperate shot, got in deep and recovered and took him down in the end.”
The gutsy effort at the end was the mark of a true champion.
“It was definitely better to get revenge on him,” said Rappo.
Ironically, Rappo thought Hempfield’s Sam Krivus would be his hardest match, but Krivus, who had beaten Macri twice this year, lost his first-round match and ended up finishing third. Rappo had beaten him in the pre-season 1-0.
“Luckily he got upset,” said Rappo.
In the finals, Rappo cruised to his second title with a 12-0 win over Manheim Township’s Matt Grossman.
“I felt confident going into the match,” said Rappo. “He had a couple losses during the year to kids I beat, but you can never take a kid too lightly.”
Rappo finished his high school career with a 137-37 career mark.
He will complete his senior season on March 25 in the Fitzgerald Field House at the University of Pittsburgh representing Pennsylvania in the Dapper Dan Classic, a most prestigious tournament sometimes referred to as the “Rose Bowl” of wrestling, that pits the best senior in Pa. against the rest of the US.
It’s something almost as important to him as winning a state title.
“It’s the Who’s Who of Wrestling,” said Silimperi.
Rappo’s opponent will be Jarred Brooks from Warsaw, Indiana. He lost to Brooks, who enters the tournament 98-6 (not including his senior year), 2-0 and 1-0 in freestyle competition last summer.
“Winning the state title in one of the best wrestling states is an honor, a great accomplishment to have,” he said. “The Dapper Dan is just as impressive to have on your wrestling resume. The whole experience will be great.”
Rick, Mike and Mark also wrestled in the Dapper Dan.
Rappo has yet to make a college decision.
“I was waiting for states to get done and take a week or two weeks off and get back on track with the colleges,” he said.
As Silimperi is quick to say, the Rappos have been very special to Council Rock South.
“It’s a family that has its priorities set, family first followed by school and then wrestling,” he said. “They do all the little things right.”
Silimperi gave the example if he gave one of them some paperwork to be completed, it was filled out and handed in the next day.
The Rappos were also totally supportive of the coaches and program. From day one they were on board.
“They were never waivered from what we as a coaching staff felt was in the best interest of the kids,” said Silimperi. “They never questioned what the coaches were doing, the policies or procedures. The Rappo family said, ‘Here are the boys; they’re yours.’
“It’s a special trait that you don’t find that often in athletics. It’s very refreshing.”
While the last of the Rappo brothers will be graduating from Council Rock South this year, that doesn’t mean it is the last association.
Mike Rappo was an assistant coach this year and plans for another season. And the grandparents, parents, uncles, cousins won’t be quick to break their association although they will be heading out to college matches to watch Mark, who has one year left at Penn, Matt at Bloomsburg and Billy wherever he decides to go.
“Nothing good lasts forever,” said Silimperi. “I’ve been honored and humbled to be part of their lives.”
The legacy they leave behind will continue to influence wrestlers in the future.
“They’re role models,” said Silimperi. “Our CWA kids, our middle school kids coming up through the rank and file will see the signs in our wrestling room every day. They see the Rappo name up there with some of the other legends and they want to try to be like them. Those kids will try to emulate them and you can’t put a price tag on that.”
State notes
•Of 112 possible state medals, District One and 12 wrestlers combined for 21. Of those 21, 14 were from the SOL. Great work! Teamwise, Norristown finished fourth and Council Rock South was seventh.
• Of 25 state SOL medalists, 10 were seniors, 10 were juniors and six were sophomores, so next year also looks like a promising one.
• Souderton’s Kolton Veit had a rough end to his season. After qualifying for states for the first time, he was unable to wrestle due to a skin infection.
• Norristown’s Shane Springer had a feeling before his semifinal bout last Saturday against Meadville’s once-beaten Zach Towers.
“It was maybe psychic ability or something, but I knew it was going to be the second period when I pinned him just because I was on the same mat as I was two years ago,” he said. “It was the same exact way, a headlock close to the edge of the mat.”
Springer had pinned any number of opponents with his patented headlock en route to the state record for falls.
He made good use of it once again in his semifinal bout.
Springer hit his headlock for five points in the first period. Towers escaped and tried to headlock, which Springer slipped for another takedown.
When Springer cut Towers in the second period, he came at Springer once again. This was a fatal decision. Springer clamped Towers, tossed him to the mat and arched back to deck Towers at the 2:56 mark, which extended his state pin record to 139. The former record was 127.
“He obviously didn’t scout me well at all,” said Springer. “I honestly feel like he was trying to see if he could be better at upper body than me. It was like out of nowhere somebody was handing you your favorite kind of cookie. You’re not expecting it, but you’ll take it.”
In the finals, Springer faced Canon McMillan’s Cody Wiercioch, who won a Class AA state title at Charleroi two years ago and was 45-0.
After getting taken down twice in the first period, Springer trailed by just 4-3 early in the second.
“It wasn’t out of reach,” he said, “but there wasn’t much I could do to get it back. It was just one of those things.
It was Springer’s second trip to the finals and his second silver medal.
“I made it to the finals,” he said. “I wouldn’t call that all right. It’s great and all, but it wasn’t what I wanted. I didn’t want to make the finals just to make the finals.”
Springer finished his high school career at 186-32.
Unable to nail down a college before wrestling started, Springer is now beginning to examine his choices. While a PIAA championship has eluded him, he’s hoping there may be an NCAA title in the future.
“I might not have gotten it done at PIAA states, but hopefully I’ll learn my lesson and get it done for NCAA Nationals maybe two, three, four years from now. Who knows? Maybe multiple titles for not getting it done in high school.”
• Norristown’s Brett Harner was hoping to make the finals in his third trip to states after placing eighth as a freshman and fourth last year as a sophomore.
To do that he would have to beat one of the returning state champions in his weight class. He got a chance in his semifinal bout against Brian Brill of Central Mountain, who entered the tournament 38-0. Last year he won the 145-pound title.
Things looked good early on as Harner went up 2-0 on a single leg takedown in the first period.
He went up 3-1 in the second after escaping, but Brill took him down to tie it up. Harner escaped with one second left to go up 4-3 into the third period.
Brill went down and Harner rode him for a while before Brill reversed and held on for a 5-4 win. He had beaten Harner 9-2 earlier in the year at the Escape the Rock Tournament.
“I just went out there and wrestled,” he said. “He gave me a pretty good beating before. I let it fly. I knew all the pressure was on him.”
Brill went on to face last year’s 152-pound champ Chance Marstellar of Kennard Dale (39-0) in the finals and was hammered 17-7. Only a sophomore, Marstellar recorded three tech falls and a major and was named the Outstanding Wrestler.
Harner, meanwhile, won his next two bouts to place third.
At one point in the season Harner’s post-season was in jeopardy. Just before district duals, he thought he had come down with a case of strep throat, but when he went to the doctor, he discovered he had mono. He sat out district duals and tried to regain strength and bolster his immune system.
“That week off really helped,” he said. “Each week got easier as I got used to it.”
Finally, by the end of the season, he regained his strength and conditioning.
”I’m pretty happy with it,” Harner said of his bronze medal “Obviously the goal is to improve next year and win it.”
• Council Rock South’s P.J. Steinmetz battled through a couple of injuries to finish third in his first trip to states.
In the championship semifinals, Central Catholic’s Perry Hills, who was 33-0 at the time, lifted him up and set him down hard in the second period, hyperextending Steinmetz’s arm in the process. He cried out in pain and took injury time. His coaches consulted with him, and he decided to continue the match even though he was losing 8-2 at the time.
“I was in a lot of pain, but I tried to wrestle through it,” said Steinmetz.
Hills, by the way, went on to win the 195-pound championship.
At the time it seemed a dubious decision, but it turned out to be a good one for Steinmetz. Although he hurt his shoulder and had to take injury time in the consolation quarterfinals, he bucked up and won a gutsy 4-2 decision in overtime on a scramble with three seconds left in the first overtime.
“I had already beaten him four times in close matches, so I knew I was in his head, so I didn’t want to panic,” he said.
In the match for third place, he majored Nicholas Shawley of Bellefonte, 9-0, for a second time to earn the bronze medal.
“I figured it was the last match of the season so I had to go out on a winning note, just suck it up and score as many points as I could,” said Steinmetz.
His third place was also a historic win—his 100th.
“I knew I was close,” he said. “I didn’t actually realize it until after I won. It was real special getting it in a place like the Giant Center.”
Steinmetz was upbeat about his tournament.
“I wanted to be in the finals,” he said, “but I left on a good note. I was pleased overall.”
As it turned out, Steinmetz fractured his elbow. He has to wear a sling for four to five weeks and then start rehab.
Then it’s back to some wrestling and lifting for football.
• Bensalem’s Tommy Stokes was wrestling on the big stage for his first time. He took the tough route to a medal.
Stokes lost his very first match to eventual champion Godwin Nyama of Brashear, 17-5. Dropping to the consolations, he won three straight before falling to Chase Zenemak of Nazareth in the consi quarterfinals and then to Franklin Regional’s Tyler Smith 9-0 in the match for fifth place.
• Pennridge’s Scott Parker and Norristown’s Zach Fuentes met for the third time in the post-season. Fuentes beat Parker in districts and Parker turned the tables at regionals.
The third time came in the consolation quarterfinals. Parker won the rubber match, with a takedown in overtime. That seems to be the difference between the two.
“I feel pretty confident on my feet,” said Parker, who went on to take 
fourth, while Fuentes was fifth.
That’s how close they are.
Weight Classes–Did anyone, besides me, notice how small many of the upper weights appeared in the post-season tournaments?
Teams scrambled to fill the extra upper weight mostly with kids that were too light. Many of those upper weights could have been wrestling much lower.
The 195-pound weight class was the smallest in both sections and districts.
For example, Council Rock South heavyweight Tommy Trampe tipped the scales at about 210. Teammates Tim Riley who wrestled 220 could have been at 195 and P.J. Steinmetz, who wrestled 195, could have dropped to 182.
Norristown also had to juggle guys to fill weight classes. For one, 182-pounder Tyler Letrinko was certified at 145.
“Luckily we had bodies this year but it was coincidence,” said CR South coach Brad Silimperi. “All of our big guys were undersized.
“Luckily our kids are pretty darn good up top. Giving away pounds didn’t hurt them but adding weight up top makes zero sense.”
Many coaches are hoping the National Federation comes to its senses and changes the weight classes for next year.
“Even if you have bodies to fill the weight classes it gives the statistic guys the impression there are enough kids up top but there aren’t,” said Silimperi. “They’re all light and giving up pounds.
“Hopefully with public pressure and pressure from the coaches the Federation will look at it and make some positive changes to the sport, instead of negative changes.”
SOL Post-Season Top 5
1. Norristown
2. Council Rock South
3. Pennsbury
4. Council Rock North
5. Central Bucks West
Final Post-Season Top Guns
106—Scott Parker, Pennridge
113— Billy Rappo, Council Rock South
120—Tommy Stokes, Bensalem
126—Josh DiSanto, Pennsbury
132—John Dutrow, Council Rock North
138—Mike Springer, Norristown
145—Justin Staudenmayer, Plymouth Whitemarsh
152—Seth Ehlo, Central Bucks West
160—Brett Harner, Norristown
170—Shane Springer, Norristown
182—Chris Jastrzebski, Central Bucks West
195—P.J. Steinmetz, Council Rock South
220—Matt Jorgenson, Quakertown
285—Tommy Trampe, Council Rock South
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