Hall of Fame
Lee Schickel’s 1996 wrestling season will not be forgotten at Pitt-Johnstown. Becoming a national champion is a goal that most athletes never reach…let alone accomplishing it twice in one day. However, that is exactly what Mr. Schickel did when he captured the NCAA Division II National Championship at 126 lbs. on his way to leading Pitt-Johnstown to its first team National Championship.
Mr. Schickel, a native of Irwin, Pa., was a four-time Division II National Qualifier and a three-time All-American with first, fifth and seventh-place finishes. He won three East Regional titles and wrapped-up his Mountain Cat career with a 108-25 record and suffered just one career dual meet loss at 126 lbs.
It was on March 16, 1996 that Mr. Schickel reached the pinnacle of the wrestling world and became Pitt-Johnstown’s first individual National Champion since Carlton Haselrig in 1989. Mr. Schickel scored a 7-6 sudden death overtime decision over Adams State (CO) College’s Michael Barreras in the title bout to lead a group of eight Pitt-Johnstown All-Americans who claimed the team National Championship by five points over second-place University of Central Oklahoma in Greeley, CO.
Mr. Schickel joined Head Coach Pat Pecora’s starting line-up as a red-shirt freshman in 1992-93. He posted a 24-8 overall record and a perfect 16-0 dual meet mark on his way to placing second at the East Regional Tournament. He took home his first All-American honor with a seventh-place finish at the National Tournament.
The following season, Mr. Schickel compiled a 27-7 record and led the Mountain Cats with 10 falls. He won his first East Regional title and made his second trip to the NCAA National Tournament.
As the Mountain Cats’ co-captain in 1994-95, Mr. Schickel took the next step in his collegiate wrestling career. He won his second-straight regional title and improved on his seventh-place national finish two years earlier by finishing fifth in 1995. His 39 wins also broke Pitt-Johnstown’s single-season record at 126 lbs.
It all culminated as a senior during the magical 1995-96 season with a third regional championship, and individual title and a team NCAA Division II National Championship trophy.
Mr. Schickel, a graduate of Penn Trafford High School, currently ranks 14th on Pitt-Johnstown’s All-Time Win List with a. winning percentage of .812.
Today, Mr. Schickel, a 1998 Pennsylvania Junior Wrestling Hall of Fame inductee, is an assistant wrestling coach at Penn Trafford High School. He resides in Penn Township with his wife Bridgett and children Samantha and Nathan.
“It is an honor to be chosen as part of the Athletics Hall of Fame at the University of Pittsburgh at Johnstown,” Mr Schickel said. I am happy to be part of the Pitt-Johnstown athletics family.”
