Wilkes Men’s Wrestling 2026-27 Season Preview

10/30/2026 2:00:00 PM

Wilkes Men's Wrestling 2026-27 Season Preview

WILKES-BARRE – The Wilkes University men's wrestling team is set to debut its 2026-27 campaign on Sunday, Nov. 1, and the Colonels hold their first dual match against the Rochester Institute of Technology at the Marts Center on Nov. 6 at 7 p.m.

Head coach Jon Laudenslager '99 enters his 24th season in Wilkes-Barre, with 311 dual wins across his tenure. The Colonels finished 7–9 in dual matches in 2025-26, with six of their losses coming against top-25 teams. The 2025-26 postseason saw Wilkes place 9th out of 20 teams at the NCAA Division III Region II Qualifier, and Jaryn Hartranft (Catasauqua, PA/Catasauqua) made his second NCAA Championship appearance. The Colonels will graduate a class of five seniors, including Hartranft.

Despite the loss of Hartranft, the Colonels still bring back plenty of talented wrestlers who Laudenslager is high on. "We got guys who have regional experience, Gus Smith (Royersford, PA/Springford), Connor Kerwin (Totowa, NJ/Passaic Valley), Ryan Santiago (Bethlehem, PA/Liberty), Ashton Romberger (Chambersburg, PA/Chambersburg), Buck Miller (...) those are the guys that need to level up a bit to compete and be the next guy going to nationals."

Along with 12 seniors, Wilkes welcomes 12 first-years along with a new assistant coach Ryan Peters. "It's exciting, you know, to see what they bring to the table (...) and they're going to challenge some of our older guys."

Weight-by-Weight Preview

125 – The Colonels return a trio of wrestlers in juniors Thomas Longo (Montville, NJ/Montville) (17-25) and Marco Meneses (Piscataway, NJ/Piscataway) (1-20) and sophomore Gus Smith (Royersford, PA/Springford) (21-16), who placed sixth in Region II as a first-year. First-year Arion Blackwell (Ancramdale, NY/Taconic Hills) joins the group.

133 – Connor Kerwin (Totowa, NJ/Passaic Valley) (56-55) returns for his senior season, with his 56 career victories being the most by an active Colonel. Kerwin is joined by fellow seniors Noah Rosa (Reading, PA/Berks Catholic) (18-38) and Ethan Washburn (Ringwood, NJ/Bergen Catholic) (0-10). Junior Pravith Siriwardhana (Chester, NJ/West Morris Mendham) (4-18), sophomore Brady Bogues (8-15), and first-year Jacob Tamai (Elkridge, MD/Mount St. Joseph) round out the weight class.

141 – Sophomore Ashton Romberger (Chambersburg, PA/Chambersburg) (21-13) returns after a standout first season saw him finish fifth at NCAA regionals and ranked No. 7 for Region II at 141 pounds. Senior Constantino Kocoronis (Mount Wolf, PA/Northeastern) (2-13) brings veteran leadership to the weight class, and junior Jacob Bettencourt (Dighton, MA/Bristol Plymouth) (31-34) comes off a 17-13 record at a higher weight class a season ago. Sophomore Brody Frank (Rockaway, NJ/Morris Hills) (6-10) and first-year Pierce Lemmons (Harrisburg, PA/Central Dauphin) wrap up the group for the Colonels.

149 – Senior Ryan Santiago (Bethlehem, PA/Liberty) comes off a 23–7 campaign in 2025-26 that saw him take home the Ned McGinley Invitational, and record a pair of second place finishes at the Wilkes Invite and Blue Jay Classic. The senior also holds an impressive 54-22 record across his career. Santiago is joined by classmates Jackson Brady (Goshen, NY/Goshen Central) (29-42) and Braden Sitton (Cross Junction, VA/James Wood) (12-24) along with first-year Connor Dugan (Leighton, PA/Leighton Area).

157 – The Colonels will look to replace Hartranft at 157. Senior Colton Thorpe (Southington, CT/Southington) (52-52) finished third at the Wilkes Invite a season ago at 165 pounds, and sophomore James Sloan (Hewitt, NJ/St. Joseph's Regional) (7-7) placed third at the Will Abele Invitational. Junior Kevin Murphy (Hopewell Junction, NY/John Jay) (16-28) will also move up after wrestling at 149 pounds a season ago. Junior Jose Lagunes (Hopatcong, NJ/Hopatcong) (2-7) and first-year Daniel Washburn (Ringwood, NJ/Bergen Catholic) round out the weight class.

165 – Senior Connor Sklavounos (27-47) will make the jump after wrestling at 157 pounds the past two seasons. Sklavounos is joined by juniors Hunter Troutman (Valley View, PA/Tri-Valley) (23-33) and Sam Keppel (Cape May Court House, NJ/Middle Township) (4-24), and first-years Peter Orlando (Airmont, NY/Suffern Senior) and Rashaad Pouncy (Harrisburg, PA/Central Dauphin) round out the weight class.

174 – Junior Joshua Wilkins (Mount Laurel, NJ/Holy Cross) (21-25) is looking to build off a 2025-26 season that saw him record three top-four finishes, and he will be joined by senior Soulemayne Diarra (16-41). James Weikel (Frackville, PA/North Schuylkill) (10-19) also joins the group and junior Patrick Gordon III (South Riding, VA/Freedom) (28-31) comes off a 14-12 record and a pair of top-eight finishes a season ago. First-year Jayce Fellin (Lebanon, PA/Northern Lebanon) concludes the weight class.

184 – The Colonels bring in two wrestlers at 184 pounds. Senior Lucas Miller (Kempton, PA/Northwestern Lehigh) (44-38) finished third at the Ned McGinley Invitational and fourth at the Wilkes Open in 2025-26 in his first season at 184, and he is joined by first-year Jeremiah Segal (Milford, PA/Delaware Valley).

197 – Senior Jared Bilinski (Dolgeville, NY/Dolgeville Central) (27-45) will move up to 197 pounds after wrestling at 184 pounds a season ago. The senior is accompanied by sophomores Xaiden Schock (Hawley, PA/Wallenpaupack) (5-10) and Elliot Black (Bethlehem, PA/Freedom) (10-21), who placed fourth at the Wilkes Open in his first year.

285 – All four of Wilkes' heavyweights will be underclassmen in 2026-27. Sophomore Christopher Dellabella (Dingmans Ferry, PA/Delaware Valley) (14-14) comes off a rookie campaign that includes a fifth place finish at the Messiah Open, and classmate Andrew Perez (Wantagh, NY/Wantagh) (6-9) finished seventh at the Will Abele Invitational. The Colonels add a pair of first-years to the mix in Keven Mondestin (Salisbury, MD/Wicomico) and Zion Essington (Stroudsburg, PA/Stroudsburg).

The navy and gold open the 2026-27 season in Williamsport at the Lycoming Tournament on Sunday, Nov. 1.

"We're excited to get out there, scrap with some new people, and see where we're at in this point of the year," said Laudenslager.

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