Two-time NCAA champion joins men’s wrestling staff

Ranked No. 21 in the nation last season, Lehigh men’s wrestling is preparing for its season with the addition of new assistant coach Vincenzo Joseph.

Joseph, a 2020 Penn State graduate, was a two-time NCAA champion and four-time All-American. He finished his collegiate career with an 89-9 record and was set to be the No. 2 seed at the 2020 NCAA Championships before the COVID shutdown. 

Junior Richie Grungo said Joseph was the kind of athlete he grew up idolizing. 

“I watched him beat the best wrestlers of his time, and now I get to learn from him, which is so exciting,” Grungo said.

Joseph said as a coach his focus is on mindset as much as results. 

“The first thing on my mind wasn’t necessarily to be a national champ,” Joseph said. “I wanted to be the best version of myself, and I want these guys at Lehigh to feel the same, and the winning will come with the competitive mindset.”

Coach Pat Santoro said  Lehigh recruited Joseph out of high school, but he ultimately chose Penn State, where he made his mark. Joseph then began his coaching career at Stanford University in 2021, joining the  program during a period of uncertainty after COVID. 

That season, Stanford finished in the top 20 wrestling teams nationally, which inspired Joseph to return to competition. He placed second at the U.S. Open, a premier national championship, before a shoulder surgery ended his comeback. 

“I enjoyed that experience a lot, especially after not wrestling for a year at Stanford,” Joseph said. “I felt like it would be a disservice to myself to not pursue my own personal training.”

After the U.S. Open, Joseph shifted his focus to coaching. He worked with young athletes at the Sunkist Wrestling Club in Arizona and later became their recruiting coordinator. 

He then took on the same role at University of North Carolina before now joining Lehigh as the Mountain Hawks’ youngest assistant coach at age 29.

“We haven’t really had a younger coach since I’ve been here,” Grungo said. “I already feel pretty comfortable around him since he’s been here, and I know he can relate to our guys.”

Santoro said Joseph can be active on the mat with the wrestlers since he’s younger, along with teaching the players technical skills and tricks. 

“We’re going to give him free reign and let him find his strengths and then maximize on those throughout the season, and hopefully it rubs off on our wrestlers,” Santoro said.

Grungo said Joseph competed as a middleweight, a weight class that has challenged the team in the past. He said Joseph’s background could help turn that weakness into a strength. 

The Mountain Hawks will conclude their preseason with a Brown and White intrasquad match before opening  at the Princeton Open. Santoro said this season will feature tougher competition, including Penn State and Illinois, to prepare for the NCAA tournament.

“After the season starts, I’m just excited to get to witness and contribute to a program with such good wrestlers,” Joseph said. “I know that these guys want to do well, and I think they are all capable of that, and I barely even know them yet.”