WAVERLY-HORSEHEADS WRESTLING CAMP BOASTS BIG NUMBERS, STAR-STUDDED CAST OF CLINICIANS (24 PHOTOS) (2023-07-28)

By TIM BIRNEY
The Sports Reports
WAVERLY — The annual Waverly-Horseheads wrestling camp finished up here Friday with more than 80 kids in attendance, and a star-studded cast of guest clinicians for the week, headlined by NCAA Division I "Coach of the Year," Mike Grey of Cornell.

"The numbers were great," said Waverly coach Devan Witman. "We had about 85 kids.

"In the space we had, we put down four mats, and it was the perfect amount of kids," he noted. "We have 50 to 55 kids on the varsity side, and 30-plus youth wrestlers. We could still roll, and not be on top of each other."

The majority of wrestlers at the camp were from Waverly and Horseheads, but others came from Tioga, Troy, Norwich, Oneonta, and Penn Yan.

Witman said having Grey so close, and willing to lend his expertise is a big benefit the camp.

"It was really special to have him here. He literarily came to Waverly, taught a session, and left to get on a plane for Poland to coach over there.

"He told me wished he could have taught for the whole day, but the kids thought it was cool that he was hopping on a plane to get to Poland to coach," laughed Witman.

"I’ve know Mike Grey for quite a while now," noted Witman. "He’s always willing, if he has the time, to come down and help us out.

"He was named the Division I Coach of the Year, so to have that level of talent here coaching at the camp is pretty special," added Witman.

Guest clinicians for the week also included Hall of Famer and former Waverly coach Charlie Hughes, Penn College wrestling coach Penkil Chander, SUNY Oneonta coach Duane Ritter, Alfred University coach Justin Signarelli, Veteran World teamer Ricky Manning, and Cornell assistant coach Donnie Vincent.

With a building project that includes the expansion of gymnasium at Waverly on the dockets for the summer of 2024, Witman has plans to expand the annual camp.

"In a couple of years, when we expand our gym, and we can put more mats down, I think we can easily really bump those numbers up.

""The goal is to continue get high-level (clinicians) in here," said Witman. "Right now, we’re bringing in two, and we’re breaking into two groups.

"Once we get room for more mats, we could bring in three (clinicians) and break into three groups..

"We had 16 or 17 girls this year. Maybe we break into three groups — varsity, girls, and youth," noted Witman. "There are several different ways we could go once we get more mat space.

"We want to continue to grow, and continue to get better," he added.

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IN PHOTO: Cornell University coach Mike Grey. … PHOTOS BY CHRIS MANNING.

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