From little-known wrestler to hero
St. Peter’s Prep heavyweight Mercun has week to remember
Anthony Mercun had no idea what high school wrestling was all about when he first stepped into the St. Peter’s Prep wrestling room a little more than a year ago. He joined the team late, after the season had already begun, simply to remain in top physical condition to play football.
"We usually don’t let people come in late," said Prep Head Wrestling Coach Rick Gronda, who was an assistant coach when Mercun first arrived on the scene in December of 1999. "But (Assistant Coach Ed) Roselle said, ‘Give him a chance and see what he could do.’ I told Anthony that if he really wanted to be there, than we expected him to be there every day and he responded to that challenge.
Added Gronda, "A lot of our football players look at wrestling as a chance to stay in shape. But wrestling is a lot more than a conditioning program. At first he was a fish out of water but you could see that he had that eagerness. Plus, he’s a decent athlete with good footwork."
Mercun became dedicated to the sport, even though he had no idea what he was doing. He became the team’s second heavyweight wrestler, training with senior Brian Grzelka.
"I found out that it’s all about skill and speed," Mercun said. "It’s not all about strength. I was willing to train hard and learn, give everything that I had to learn the sport. It was a little frustrating at first, not knowing what to do."
Mercun learned a lot from working with Grzelka, who went from knowing nothing about the sport to becoming a region champion last year.
"He showed me a few moves that worked for him and he definitely taught me how to be tough," Mercun said. "I knew that once Brian left the team would need a heavyweight and that I could be the man for the job."
During the off-season, Mercun started to learn more about wrestling. He attended several camps and clinics to learn as much as possible. He went to summer workout sessions with his Prep teammates. He was all set to make his mark in his sport.
"It turned out to be one of my favorite things to do," Mercun said.
However, at the end of the football season last December, Mercun thought that he was ready to walk away from wrestling.
"It was a long football season and I didn’t feel like doing it," Mercun said. "I just wasn’t into it. But Coach Gronda pushed me into it. He told me that I should want to wrestle for the right reason, not just because I was tired and didn’t feel like it. When I thought about it more, I couldn’t find the reason not to do it."
"We had a conversation whether he wanted to continue to wrestle," Gronda said. "I told him that it was only going to help him in the long run, in terms of training, in terms of learning discipline, in terms of work ethic, not just in the sport, but in life."
Then, Gronda picked up a book of famous quotations and found one that Mercun could definitely relate to. The quotation read, "You have to push the demons out of your inner circle."
"I was just flipping through the book of quotes and came across that one," Gronda said. "The quote had nothing to do with wrestling but it definitely fit, with the wrestling circle and all. He was worried that he didn’t think he could handle the pressure, if a match came down to him at heavyweight. I told him that the only way he would know is to be in that position, to face the demons and to push them out of the circle."
Last month, Mercun faced the demons for the very first time. Facing Seton Hall Prep and needing a victory to secure one for his teammates, Mercun suffered a 5-3 setback.
"I didn’t get the job done that day," Mercun said. "I felt like I let my team down. But Coach Roselle told me that I would get a second chance some day. The pressure can kill you, waiting for an hour and a half to wrestle. You’re trying to think about what the other guy is thinking about and then, you’re the last one out there with a chance to decide the whole thing. It’s really tough."
Last week, while owning a sub-.500 career record (9-11), Mercun was faced with the demons in his inner circle and had to be the one to do the pushing. His second chance was arriving, sooner than anyone could have imagined. Little did anyone know that the demons were about to appear twice in the span of three days – with Mercun ready to rid himself of those nasty devils both times.
First, in the NJSIAA Parochial A North semifinals against Seton Hall Prep last Tuesday night, Mercun gained an 8-6 decision in overtime against Mike D’Amico, giving the Marauders a 32-31 victory and a chance to move on to the sectional finals for the second straight year.
Then, just two days later on Thursday, facing Bergen Catholic for the Parochial A North championship, it was more of the same. With his team trailing once again and his team needing his victory to win, Mercun pinned Rick Bencieventi in 3:21, giving the Marauders a 36-31 comeback win and securing the state title for the second straight year.
Mercun’s heroics have enabled him to secure The Hudson Reporter Athlete of the Week honors for the past week.
"I’m not a hero," Mercun said. "I just happen to be the last one wrestling out there. I had to do it to help my team. I’m not a great wrestler and I don’t have the best record in the world. Who would ever think that it could happen to you? And then, to have it happen twice in the same week? I think of myself as being just another heavyweight wrestler."
But now, Mercun will go down as the guy who helped bring another state sectional championship to St. Peter’s, when the school never had one before last year.
"You can’t comprehend it," Gronda said. "You would think that it’s not real. It is really amazing. You know, before each match I figured out everything on paper, how things could go and I figured that both matches were going to go down to heavyweight. I didn’t tell Anthony that. I just kind of expected that it would turn out that way.
Added Gronda, "And I have faith and confidence in him. This is what we talked about before the season and it turned out that way. It’s rewarding as a coach to see it come true."
Mercun is equally amazed by what he was able to do.
"I accomplished more than I thought I could," said Mercun, a junior. "I wanted to do this for my teammates. That was the goal all season. To win for the team. I wouldn’t call myself an underdog, but I wrestled the way I wanted to and won. And it’s a good feeling to help them win."
Especially, when you’re the one pushing out the demons from the circle – and pinning them.