Pitt-Johnstown women's wrestling building 'family' atmosphere
· Yahoo Sports
Shane Valko has done everything that he can to build the Pitt-Johnstown women’s wrestling program on the same principles that his mentor, the late Pat Pecora, did to mold the Mountain Cats men’s program into an NCAA Division II powerhouse.
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Hard-nosed, physical style: Check.
Run-back-to-the-center-of-the-mat mindset: Definitely.
Superior conditioning to wear out opponents: Always.
The only thing Valko hasn’t been able to get the women in the second-year program to buy into? Pecora’s motto of “brothers for life,” which has been carried on by men’s coach Tyler Reinhart since Pecora’s death two years ago.
“They hate the phrase ‘sisters for life,’ so they say family for life,” Valko said Wednesday as the Mountain Cats prepared for their first dual of the season, which will begin at 5 p.m. Friday at the Sports Center against East Stroudsburg as the opener to a doubleheader that features the men’s squad taking on West Liberty at 7. “The men and the women are best friends. They look out for each other. The interaction with me, Tyler and (Pitt-Johnstown assistant) Jake (Ealey) – we all coach everything together. They treat Tyler the same way they treat me, with respect. It’s such a tight-knit group.
“I know Coach Pecora is smiling down right now. This is everything that he was dreaming of. This is everything he was hoping for after he was gone.”
Valko’s squad went 2-2 in dual meets during the inaugural season despite only having eight wrestlers on the roster. That total has more than doubled to 18 this season.
The program’s first All-American, Makayla Paclib, returns to lead this year’s squad. After placing eighth at 131 pounds in 2026, Paclib is dropping to 124.
“She really bought in this season,” Valko said. “I think she bought in last year, but she started eating right and putting time in the room. She had a hard time making 131 last year. Now, she’s shredded and down to 124.”
Paclib is ranked eighth nationally at 124, but Valko doesn’t expect her to stay in that spot for long.
“Once she starts wrestling competition, she’s going to be top three in the country, without a doubt,” he said.
Paclib went 5-0 with four technical falls and a pin at the season-opening Mount Olive Trojan Open. Pitt-Johnstown’s Stacallen Mahoe (110 pounds) and Emma Hoppe (145) also captured titles at the tournament.
Hoppe pinned her way to the final before beating teammate Ava Golding 6-0 for the title. That means Hoppe will hold down the 145-pound spot in the Pitt-Johnstown lineup while Golding will bump up to 160.
A freshman, Mahoe comes to Pitt-Johnstown after winning a state title in Hawaii.
“She was top 15 in the country,” Valko said. “She’s a mini-Makayla. She’s in your face, pushing the pace. She tech-falled and pinned everybody in the tournament.”
One other change from Pecora’s program is geographical. While the late coach found most of his wrestlers within a short drive of the Richland Township campus, Valko has spread his circle much wider.
Mahoe is one of three Hawaiians on the team – Paclib and 117-pounder Chaela Gantala are the others – and Reise Roach is a Texas native who transferred from Frostburg State University. Rome Alvarez, who is moving up to 131 pounds after winning a Puerto Rico Under-23 title in the offseason, is from Florida.
Valko did find some recruits much closer to home, though, as Greater Johnstown graduate Sayona Harris-Haye will start at 138 pounds, 131-pounder Janayah Nobles is from Connnellsville, 207-pounder Zoey Murphy comes from Southmoreland and 103-pounder Kristen Walzer hails from Pittsburgh.
They’ve all come together for similar goals at Pitt-Johnstown.
“They go to dinner together every night,” Valko said. “They go to church together. They study together. They’re creating the family atmosphere that Coach Pecora taught to me.”