By Richard Herman
Clarion University Sports Information
Tom Tomeo, a former NCAA Division I wrestling All-American at Clarion in 1998 and a native of Grove City, Pa., has been named Assistant Wrestling Coach at Clarion University. He replaces Jason Robison who left to become the head coach at Washington and Jefferson.
“We’re really happy to have Tom accept the position and come back to his alma mater.” said Clarion Athletic Director Dave Katis. “He knows our past and our wrestling tradition here and will be a great addition to the program.”
Tomeo wrestled at Clarion starting with the 1993-94 season and finishing with the 1997-98 campaign. In 1998 Tomeo was a co-captain, had his best season at 142-pounds posting a season record of 31-7 and earned NCAA Division I All-America honors with an 8th place finish. He also won PSAC and EWL individual titles in 1998. In 1997 Tom was 17-10 overall, qualified for the D-I Nationals at 142 with a 4th place finish at EWL’s. In 1995 at 134-pounds Tomeo was 31-8 overall, qualified for the D-I Nationals, was PSAC champion and finished second at EWL’s. As a freshman Tom was 19-9 overall, second at PSAC’s and fifth at EWL’s.
A 1998 graduate with a degree in Biology, Tomeo finished his career at Clarion with an overall record of 98-34.
“I’m really glad to be back home here at Clarion,” said Tomeo. “I had a great experience both on the mats and in the classroom here at Clarion and look forward to the opportunity to giving something back to the program. It was also important for me to be able to spend more time with my extended gamily in this area, since we are such a close knit family. I want to thank coach Nellis, Mr. Katis and the administration for this opportunity and pledge to work hard every day to try and make a difference.”
Most recently Tomeo was a Resident Coach for the USA Wrestling Women’s National Program from November 2003 through July 2005. He also assisted in coaching the U.S. Women’s Team for the 2004 Olympic Games. The overall program is hosted at the Olympic Training Center in Colorado Springs, Colorado.
Following his graduation from Clarion he was an assistant coach at Slippery Rock (1998-99), assistant coach at Cumberland College (2000), assistant coach at the University of Buffalo (2000-2002), plus his stint with USA Wrestling. In addition he has spent the last six years as a coach with Sunkist Kids Wrestling Club and is the Owner of Tomeo Technologies (2001-present), a business which helps develop and organize strategies for international marketing and business distribution.
“We’re really happy to have Tom back with the program,” said ninth year Clarion head coach Ken Nellis. “His national coaching experience brings some new and fresh ideas into our wrestling room. I think Tom is a very good communicator and has a way with teaching techniques that will be very valuable to our team. He’s an extremely hard worker and will also be an asset in recruiting. He will make an immediate impact and we’re glad to have him.”
A native of Grove City, Pa. and a 1993 graduate of Grove City High, Tomeo was a 2-time PIAA State Wrestling Champion. He won at 119-pounds as a junior at Class AA, and at 130-pounds as a senior at Class AAA. He had a high school record of 143-8 and was selected to wrestle in the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette Classic (PA vs USA)in 1993. He won the OW award in the Classic. Tom is the son of Tom and Nanci Tomeo of Grove City.
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