Ruling: L-L transfer out this season
By JOE PETRUCCI
“The majority opinion … was wrestling was the motivation for the transfer at the time of the transfer.”
Wally Blucas PIAA president and District 10 chairman
MECHANICSBURG “The Pennsylvania Interscholastic Athletic Association Board of Appeal on Wednesday ruled Scott Davis ineligible to wrestle at Lake-Lehman this season.
The board voted 5-1 after a two-hour and 15-minute hearing at PIAA headquarters. Davis, a junior three-sport standout who transferred from Clarion-Limestone in District 9 to Lake-Lehman on Dec. 9, won’t be able to wrestle until next season, but can participate in other PIAA sports for the Black Knights.
Davis excelled in football and baseball at Clarion-Limestone. On the wrestling mat he placed eighth in the state meet in Class 2A at 135 pounds last year wrestling for rival Clarion via a co-op agreement.
“We’re certainly happy about that because we did face the risk of being ineligible for all three (sports),” said Wilkes-Barre attorney Jonathan S. Comitz, who represented the Davis family and spoke on its behalf.
But Comitz and the Davis family were surprised by the Board of Appeal’s reversal of the District 2 Athletic Committee’s 5-3 vote on Jan. 5 to approve Davis’ eligibility.
“We just don’t know why they came to the determination they did,” Comitz said.
At issue was whether Davis transferred to Lake-Lehman with athletic intent, in whole or in part, which is a violation of Article 6, Section 7 of the PIAA by-laws. The PIAA is the state’s governing body for high school athletics.
“There were a lot of credible things there, but the timing (of the transfer) was a concern,” said PIAA President and District 10 Chairman Wally Blucas, who presided over the hearing and cast the lone dissenting vote.
“The majority opinion … was wrestling was the motivation for the transfer at the time of the transfer. There were concerns of timeliness of the transfer and concern with academics.”
Davis transferred to Lake-Lehman almost a month into the season.
The first official practice date was Nov. 14 and the Black Knights had wrestled two scrimmages and a WVC match against Pittston Area on Dec. 7.
Comitz said he expects to receive the findings of fact from the hearing by the end of the week and will decide soon after whether to appeal the decision to Commonwealth Court or pursue injunctive relief in Luzerne County Court.
“We’ll take a hard look at it,” Comitz said.
According to Wednesday’s ruling, Davis can practice with the Lake-Lehman wrestling team but cannot compete in matches or tournaments until Dec. 9 of this year.
Davis wrestled one bout for Lake-Lehman, on Dec. 16, 2005, at the Times Leader Invitational, but the board ruled Davis was eligible at that time and voted 6-0 to let the bout stand. Lake-Lehman could have faced punishment for using an ineligible wrestler.
The Board of Appeal consisted of: Blucas of Erie County, PIAA treasurer and District 11 Chairman John P. Wabby of Schuylkill County, District 6 Chairman Raymond J. Wotkowski of Blair County, District 7 Chairman Timothy M. O’Malley of Butler County, PIAA Association of School Administrators representative Dr. Donald J. Tylinski of Allegheny County and District 3 Athletic Committee member Cathy S. Wreski.
The Board of Appeal deliberated for nearly 45 minutes before reconvening to vote.
District 2 Chairman Frank Majikes and District 9 Chairman James Manners were present but did not participate in deliberations or voting.
The same six officials from both Clarion-area schools with which Davis was affiliated that attended last week’s D2 hearing were at Wednesday’s appeal, which Clarion-Limestone principal Michael Drzewiecki called for Monday.
They were: Drzewiecki, Clarion-Limestone Athletic Director Rick Beggs, Clarion-Limestone football coach Todd Smith, District 9 Wrestling Committee chairman Randy Cathcart, Clarion Athletic director Keith Murtha and Clarion wrestling coach Lee Weber.
On Dec. 21, Drzewiecki did not sign off on the principal-to-principal waiver when he returned it to Lake-Lehman. Instead, he checked the box that indicates he believes Davis’ transfer was for athletic intent, in whole or in part.
Like last week’s District 2 hearing, the six men declined comment Wednesday and left immediately after the hearing before the board’s decision was made.
“They didn’t bring up anything new,” said Comitz of the Clarion-area contingent.
Davis was flanked by parents Jack and Jackie, brother Rocky, former Clarion wrestling teammate Manny Carpin, family friend Liz Sichler, Lake-Lehman Principal Tracey Wagner, Lake-Lehman Athletic Director Greg Myers and Lake-Lehman wrestling coach Phil Lipski.
Wagner requested the hearing be closed to any outsiders and a reporter’s request to keep the meeting open was denied.
Jack and Jackie Davis are Lake-Lehman graduates and have many relatives in the Back Mountain area. Jack Davis has owned a home in Harveys Lake for nearly 10 years and the family has spent every summer and most holidays there.
Scott Davis accumulated a 54-14 record in two seasons wrestling for rival Clarion via a co-op agreement.
Davis also excelled in football and baseball at Clarion-Limestone.
A quarterback during football season, Davis was second in District 9 in passing this past fall, completing 127-of-197 passes for 1,566 yards, 12 touchdowns and six interceptions.
He also rushed for 728 yards and 10 touchdowns on 178 carries in helping Clarion-Limestone to a 9-2 record.
Last spring, he was one of the top baseball players in District 9 as a middle infielder/pitcher at Clarion-Limestone and is considered a good bet for an NCAA Division I scholarship. He batted .426 with 37 runs and 13 RBI as a leadoff hitter and pitched 41 innings, striking out 51 with a 1.71 ERA.
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