- July 30th, 2006, 11:16 pm
#22698
Former Indiana wrestler moves on college careerhttp://www.pittsburghlive.com/x/blairsv ... 63699.html
By Dan Scifo
Friday, July 28, 2006
INDIANA--Former Indiana Area standout wrestler Corey Vasbinder has unfinished business to take care of.
Vasbinder was defeated in the semifinal round and took fifth place in consecutive years at the WPIAL Champion-ship/PIAA Southwest Regional tournament.
The back-to-back fifth-place finishes were two positions away from qualifying for the PIAA Class AAA State Wrestling Championships in Hershey.
Now, Vasbinder will attempt to avenge his past mat defeats this fall, as a walk-on in the newly reinstated Division I wrestling program at Liberty University in Lynchburg, Va.
"There's definitely a bitter taste still left in my mouth," Vasbinder said. "I want to redeem myself in college. I don't want my career to end like this."
Vasbinder will receive his opportunity alongside a class that is ranked 23rd in the nation, according to InterMat's Division I recruiting class rankings.
The Indiana native maintains a fighting chance to make the young squad, which features 25 freshmen and two sophomores.
"Liberty is really growing right now, and the wrestling program is obviously a big attraction if 27 solid wrestlers want to come to the school the first year they offer the program," Vasbinder said.
Liberty was Vasbinder's initial choice for school although Ursinus, which is located close to Philadelphia, and Duquesne were also top candidates.
Ursinus even offered Vasbinder an academic scholarship, but he decided to stick with Liberty.
"I visited Liberty in the spring and it just seemed like the right fit," Vasbinder said. "I contacted the coaches and sent them a DVD of my matches and they sounded interested and told me to visit. That was big for me because they took me in and made me feel at home."
Vasbinder will take his 3.82 grade point average into Liberty with an undecided major.
But he may pursue a business management major with a minor in sports management.
The former Indiana star believes he will be fighting for a position at the 184-pound weight class and expects to cope with the early growing pains of adjusting to the collegiate wrestling level.
"I'm not expecting to win a national championship or to go undefeated in my first season," Vasbinder said. "I'll probably have to just take my licks and not get down on myself."
Vasbinder finished his senior season at Indiana with an impressive 25-5 record in the 189-pound weight class. But Hempfield senior Justin Schiavone had Vasbinder's number, defeating the Indiana grappler three times during the season and also ending his high school career.
The two titans initially clashed when Vasbinder was undefeated and again after he had picked up two losses. Schiavone narrowly escaped both contests, winning by one point.
Vasbinder met his nemesis for a third time at the PIAA Southwest Regional, but he was unable to earn the duke in a 5-1 loss.
"When he beat me the first time, I thought it was something to learn from and that I would eventually see him later," Vasbinder said. "After I worked hard to prepare for him in the second match and he beat me again, it was pretty hard."
Despite failing to qualify for the state championships, Vasbinder enjoyed a stellar career that featured numerous tournament victories--including his first tournament win at Indiana as a freshman, and also the Blairsville and Indiana tournaments his senior year.
Vasbinder still attended the PIAA Class AAA State Wrestling Championships at the Giant Center in Hershey this past spring to take in the atmosphere, even though he wasn't going to be competing on the mat.
"I watched some of the kids that I wrestled and I was thinking that I knew I could beat some of those kids," Vasbinder said. "It was difficult to watch, but it's definitely going to serve as motivation for me."
Vasbinder will use that motivation as he works to develop his skills under the tutelage of first-year coach and former Liberty wrestling standout Jesse Castro.
Castro served as the head wrestling coach for Kingsway Regional High School in New Jersey, where he guided the team to a 124-29 record, five conference and South Jersey sectional championships, four district titles, and a 1998 state championship.
"I talked with (Castro) on the phone and in person, and normally wrestling coaches are really intense, but he had a gentle demeanor," Vasbinder said.
Castro's teams were ranked in the top 20 of New Jersey six out of the last eight years, and he was named district coach of the year three times.
"You can tell (Castro) is a hard worker because he always calls me and checks in on me to see how I'm doing," Vasbinder said. "I'm sure that takes a lot of time to do that with every wrestler on the team. He seems like a great coach and working underneath him should be great."
- By olldflame