April 26 , 2007

NDC signs four for 2007-08

SOUTH EUCLID, Ohio – The Notre Dame College Wrestling Program announced that four student-athletes have signed an official NAIA Letter of Intent to continue their wrestling career at the collegiate level beginning in the 2007-08 academic year.

Dante Rini of Masillon, OH was the first signee of the year for NDC. He has wrestled at the 103 and 119 weight classes and sports a 98-17 record heading into his senior season. He’s an accomplished wrestler at the State level, with third-place and runner-up finishes the last two years, respectively.

“We just signed a very good young man and a talented wrestler. I think this is a great indicator of things to come,” said NDC Head Coach Frank Romano.

Paul Kordich, a four year varsity wrestler for the North Royalton Bears brings a high decorated high school career to College Road. Under the direction of head coach Jerry Nadeau, Kordich earned High School All-American Honors and was a four-time All-Pioneer Conference selection. Because of his exceptional abilities, Kordich was named two-time MVP for the Bears Wrestling program. In AAU wrestling, he wrestled his way to a freestyle state championship title, as well.

“Paul is going to be another great addition to our program. Obviously, he’s got a ton of experience and a strong high school career. I expect him to be an immediate asset to the team in the upper weight classes,” said Frank Romano.

A four year varsity wrestler for the Genoa Comets under the direction of Richard Wanger, Kurt Wolff of Martin, OH is expected to bring a tremendous amount of experience to the mats. Wolff finished second in Division III at the Ohio High School State Championships in 2006 and came in an impressive seventh place in 2007.

“I expect Kurt to bring a lot to the team as soon as he steps on campus. He’s got a lot of experience with being one of the best in the state and should be a serious impact athlete within our program,” said Romano.

As a multi-sport student athlete for the Berkshire Badgers, Graham Richardson earned three letters in football, two in track and field and was a four-year mainstay in wrestling. He earned Second Team Chagrin Valley Conference in 2007 under the direction of Patrick Murphy.

“Graham should be a major impact in the middle weight competition down the road. He’s a great athlete with a lot of experience and he’ll be a great addition to the team,” Romano stated.

The Notre Dame College Wrestling team just finished its inaugural season where they posted a dual meet record of10-6 and finished 20th in the country. In Romano’s first year he boasted one NAIA All-American and sent five student-athletes to the NAIA Nation Championship Meet.

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Notre Dame College is a co-educational liberal arts institution in South Euclid, Ohio. The Notre Dame Athletics Department sponsors the Falcons' participation in 17 men's and women's sports. The College is affiliated with the National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics (NAIA) and the American Mideast Conference (AMC), which is the largest NAIA conference in the country.