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Cael Crebs has always had his sights set on the United States Naval Academy. It's where he wanted to attend college and it's where he wanted to wrestle.
He was beginning to think it wasn't going to happen as he finished up his junior season at Montoursville last March and hadn't heard from then Midshipmen coach Joel Sharratt. So Crebs began to look elsewhere for a potential college landing.
Then everything changed. Navy fired Sharratt in March last year despite qualifying five wrestlers to the NCAA tournament. They then hired former Lock Haven two-time national champion Cary Kolat to lead the program.
Navy was able to lure Kolat away from his job as coach at Campbell University where he had brought some national recognition to the otherwise unheralded program. When Kolat reached out to Crebs about potentially coming to Annapolis, Crebs jumped at the chance.
He committed to wrestle for Kolat and the Midshipmen in July.
"With Kolat coming in, that program's only going up," Crebs said after winning his second consecutive regional title last weekend. "They're 18th in the country right now, they just took second at EIWAs. They're really looking good and I'm happy where they are."
Kolat has been busy on the recruiting trail since he took the job at Navy. He's been especially busy in Pennsylvania where he needs no introduction. As one of only 13 four-time PIAA champions in the commonwealth's history who has long been considered potentially the greatest high school wrestler ever, his name has carried weight through coaching stops at Lehigh, West Virginia and North Carolina, among others, before landing his first head coaching job at Campbell.
Crebs is one of four Pennsylvania natives in Kolat's recruiting class. He joins Cumberland Valley state fourth-place finisher Jacob Lucas, Sun Valley state third-place finisher Ryan Catka, and Penns Valley third-place finisher Malachi Duvall as part of a currently 10-member class which has garnered national attention.
Crebs enters today's PIAA Class AA East Super Regional as the top seed at 189 pounds. He's coming off a third-place finish at last year's state tournament with his only loss coming to eventual state champion Tyler Stoltzfus of St. Joseph's Academy, the top-ranked 170-pounder in the country last year. Crebs' 131 career wins are the eighth-most in Montoursville history, five behind teammate Dylan Bennett for seventh place.
"This is what I've wanted to do," Crebs said. "There's no hesitation. I like the challenge. I like the wrestling a lot."
Crebs has talked to two former Montoursville students who are enrolled at the Naval Academy about what life is like on campus. He's talked to current members of the Midshipmen's wrestling team about what to expect from the program.
Because of the COVID-19 pandemic, he's unable to visit the school to get a taste of what the life is like. Crebs will report this summer to the Naval Academy Preparatory School (NAPS) in Newport, Rhode Island, sometime in July. He'll spend his first year there, basically as a redshirt, to better transition to the demanding life which can come with competing in a Division I sport along with the demanding academic schedule the Academy requires.
I think I'm ready for the challenge," Crebs said. "NAPS isn't quite as strict. It's a jump step before you go to the academy to help get adjusted."
Crebs has been one of area's top wrestlers all season. He's gone wire-to-wire thus far as the top-ranked Class AA 189-pounder by PA Power Wrestling. Over the last five or six weeks he's separated himself from the rest of the field.
It started with a third-place finish at the prestigious Powerade Tournament in late January. The third-place finish wasn't something he was particularly happy with, but he made the most of it. After falling to Malvern Prep's Caden Rogers in the Round of 16, Crebs ran a gauntlet through the consolation bracket.
He beat third-ranked Patrick Cutchember of Quaker Valley, 8-3. He beat Kiski's Brayden Roscosky, ranked 10th in AAA, 9-1. He then beat fourth-ranked Trent Schultheis of Freedom, a former state runner-up, 8-0. And in the last two weeks, he's twice beaten fifth-ranked Wes Barnes of Southern Columbia to win district and regional championships.
While he still has unfinished business to take care of for Montoursville, he's looking forward to wrestling for someone like Kolat.
"He's pretty much the greatest high school wrestler of all time," Crebs said. "He was unbelievable in college and on the world level. He's a guy I want to learn from. He's improved the program in one year and snapped the (four-year) losing streak to Army. The recruiting class he brought in is phenomenal. I'm pretty happy. This is absolutely the best place to help me grow as a wrestler and a person."
WRESTLERS OF THE WEEK
Braden Bower, Williamsport (132) and Scott Johnson, Muncy (126)
Nobody in the area made the statement Bower did last weekend without winning a regional championship. The junior was an underdog in the Northwest Regional tournament. In a field with four state-ranked wrestlers where only two advanced to super regionals, Bower was on the outside looking in on paper. But he wrestled not only like he belonged, but like he was a favorite. He overcame a quarterfinal loss to nationally-ranked Jude Swisher of Bellefonte by beating 10th-ranked Kaemen Smith of Cathedral Prep in the third-place match. Then, after Swisher beat third-ranked Pierson Manville of State College in the finals, Bower wrestled Manville for true second place. Manville won their previous matchup earlier this year, 7-3, but Bower scored a decisive takedown on the edge of the circle late in the third period and hung on for a 3-2 win and a spot in this week's super regional. After missing last season following shoulder surgery, Bower is 20-3 this year and ranked fifth in the state.
Johnson's win in the 126-pound field was the most impressive result to come out of the Class AA Northeast Regional and, frankly, it wasn't even close. The Muncy sophomore defeated former state runner-up Kole Biscoe of Southern Columbia in the semifinals, 5-1, thanks to a four-point move late in the match. He followed it up with another four-point move in the final against then second-ranked Gable Strickland of Benton, and won 9-6. Johnson spoke the last couple weeks about how he felt he was right there in a field which featured four of the top six 126-pounders in the state in AA, but proving it on the mat was a step he admitted he needed to take. He carries a 23-4 record into today's East Super Regional where he is the No. 2 seed in a bracket that is by no means any easier than the one he's faced the last two weeks. But he's carrying a ton of confidence with him to Martz Hall in Pottsville.
Mitch Rupert covers wrestling for the Sun-Gazette. He can be reached at 570-326-1551, ext. 3129, or by email at mrupert@sungazette.com. Follow him on Twitter at @Mitch_Rupert.
MITCH RUPERT’S SUPER REGIONAL PREDICTIONS
CLASS AA EAST SUPER REGIONAL
(Top 4 advance to state tournament)
106: 1. Branden Wentzel, Montoursville; 2. Ayden Smith, Notre Dame-Green Pond; 3. Brock Weiss, Jersey Shore; 4. Chase Burke, Benton.
113: 1. Gavin Bradley, Athens; 2. Jaden Pepe, Wyoming Area; 3. Bobby Gardner, South Williamsport; 4. Dillon Reinert, Brandywine Heights.
120: 1. Brett Ungar, Notre Dame-Green Pond; 2. Mason Barvitskie, Southern Columbia; 3. Ethan Kolb, Benton; 4. Parker Davidson, Hamburg.
126: 1. Gable Strickland, Benton; 2. Scott Johnson, Muncy; 3. Gabe Gramly, Mifflinburg; 4. Christian Doi, Camp Hill.
132: 1. Brandan Chletsos, Notre Dame-Green Pond; 2. Kaiden Wagner, Lewisburg; 3. Cade Wirnsberger, Meadowbrook Christian; 4. Conner Heckman, Midd-West.
138: 1. Conner Harer, Montgomery; 2. Eric Alderfer, Faith Christian; 3. Connor Brown, Littlestown; 4. David Kreidler, Allentown Central Catholic.
145: 1. Levi Haines, Biglerville; 2. Nate Higley, Sullivan County; 3. Patrick Edmondson, Southern Columbia; 4. Noah Frack, Brandywine Heights.
152: 1. Isaac Cory, Montoursville; 2. Devon Deem, Montgomery; 3. Dalton Gimbor, Hamburg; 4. Michael Duggan, Boiling Springs.
160: 1. Avery Bassett, Midd-West; 2. Nolan Lear, Benton; 3. Holden Garcia, Notre Dame-Green Pond; 4. Eli Crum, Boiling Springs.
172: 1. Gavin Garcia, Southern Columbia; 2. Ben Haubert, Palisades; 3. Jacob Jones, Saucon Valley; 4. Ethan Gush, Muncy.
189: 1. Cael Crebs, Montoursville; 2. Wes Barnes, Southern Columbia; 3. Bryce Enders, Halifax; 4. Jacob Feese, Line Mountain.
215: 1. Dylan Bennett, Montoursville; 2. Nate Wickersham, Tamaqua; 3. Leo Muzika, Faith Christian; 4. Damon Backes, Mount Carmel.
285: 1. Emmanuel Ulrich, Mifflinburg; 2. Riley Robell, Bishop McDevitt; 3. Hogan Swenski, Bermudian Springs; 4. Caleb Burkhart, Hughesville.
CLASS AAA WEST SUPER REGIONAL
(Top 4 advance to state tournament)
106: 1. Kaedyn Williams, Manheim Township; 2. Andrew Binni, Canon-McMillan; 3. Tyler Chapell, Seneca Valley; 4. Dominic Flatt, Solanco.
113: 1. Jacob Van Dee, Cathedral Prep; 2. Vincent Kilkeary, Greater Latrobe; 3. Aiden Lewis, Cedar Cliff; 4. Nic Allison, Mifflin County.
120: 1. Dylan Coy, North Allegheny; 2. Mac Church, Waynesburg Central; 3. Karl Shindledecker, Chambersburg; 4. Lane Aikey, Bellefonte.
126: 1. Carter Dibert, Franklin Regional; 2. Ethan Berginc, Hempfield; 3. Matt Repos, Central Dauphin; 4. Luke Simcox, Central Mountain.
132: 1. Jude Swisher, Bellefonte; 2. Dylan Chappell, Seneca Valley; 3. Braden Bower, Williamsport; 4. Briar Priest, Hempfield.
138: 1. Cole Homet, Waynesburg Central; 2. Finn Solomon, Franklin Regional; 3. Josh Miller, Central Dauphin; 4. Matt Sarbo, State College.
145: 1. Wyatt Henson, Waynesburg Central; 2. John Altieri, Norwin; 3. Riley Bower, Williamsport; 4. Ty Linsenbigler, Hempfield.
152: 1. Alejandro Herrera-Rondon, Seneca Valley; 2. Rocco Welsh, Waynesburg Central; 3. Paniro Johnson, Cathedral Prep; 4. Jared Keslar, Connellsville.
160: 1. Cole Spencer, Pine-Richland; 2. Ethan Richner, Bellefonte; 3. Coy Bastian, Selinsgrove; 4. Sean Smith, Carlisle.
172: 1. Trey Kibe, Mifflin County; 2. Luca Augustine, Waynesburg Central; 3. Tate Nichter, Chambersburg; 4. Sammy Starr, Kiski Area.
189: 1. Carson Manville, State College; 2. Ethan Rossman, Bellefonte; 3. Justin Hart, Hampton; 4. Brayden Roscosky, Kiski Area.
215: 1. Jacob Lucas, Cumberland Valley; 2. Cole Weightman, Belle Vernon; 3. Josh Harkless, Wilson; 4. Logan Harmon, Armstrong.
285: 1. Nate Schon, Selinsgrove; 2. Isaiah Vance, Hempfield; 3. William McChesney, Greensburg Salem; 4. Oliver Billotte, Clearfield.