Mooney Nears Milesstone

by Patrick Foy

Posted on December 24, 2007

Every high school sport has its milestones.
Whether it is 1,000 rushing yards in a football season or 1,000 career points in a basketball player's career, the numbers are used as benchmarks to indicate the standouts in a game, season or career.


For wrestlers, the career benchmark is 100 wins, and La Salle's Matt Mooney is on pace to eclipse that mark later this season. The senior captain would become the ninth player in the Explorers' history to earn 100 wins. Departed graduates Ben Courtney and Kevin Klohey achieved the feat last season.
"It would mean a lot," said Mooney. "I started wrestling my freshman year. It shows how far I've come since my freshman year."
Mooney, who also pole vaults on the spring track team, started to consider wrestling when he entered high school. He was attracted to the sport because it accommodates undersized athletes; Mooney stands at 5-foot-7 and tips the scales at 120 pounds.
"I was always kind of small for football," Mooney said. "To be good in football, you kind of have to be big. [Wrestling] has weight classes, so it seemed like it would be a good fit."
It has been a perfect fit for Mooney. As he has adapted to the sport, he has gotten better every season.
"It keeps you in shape, so that's always good," he said. "There's something about being on a team. You get really connected to your teammates."
Last year, Mooney posted 33 wins in helping the Explorers to a 23-8 overall record and a win in the Philadelphia Catholic League championship over North Catholic, which had won the PCL title each of the previous three years. La Salle also finished third in the state among private schools, and 17th in the National Prep meet.
Mooney hopes to lead La Salle in its PCL title defense this season, but he'll have to do so without the help of Courtney and Klohe, as well as graduates Mike Reber, John Whitham, James Cunningham, Andrew Furlong and John O'Driscoll.
"We already had a pretty strong team last year," said Mooney. "It does hurt to lose [Courtney and Klohe] because they were basically 12 points every match."
But that isn't stopping Mooney and the rest of the Explorers from setting lofty team goals for the 2007-08 season.
"Team-wise, we want to win the Philadelphia Catholic League," said Mooney.
"There will be a lot of competition in the room as we will have at least two good kids at each weight," said La Salle coach Vic Stanley. "We will try to up our place in the Private School States and National Preps."
Mooney's love for wrestling has developed to the point that he is already thinking about continuing to participate in the sport at the collegiate level. He has looked at the wrestling programs at the University of Pennsylvania, Penn State and Washington & Lee.



"I would like to continue wrestling at some level, even if it's just club," Mooney said.
But first and foremost, Mooney is focused on his senior year at La Salle and defending the Catholic League title.
"Everyone has been working really hard," he said. "It's a lot of work but once it comes to February everything is going to be worth it."

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