By WIN Staff

CEDAR FALLS, Iowa — Frank Romano, the head coach at Notre Dame College, has been coaching for over 40 years; so few things should surprise him.

            That was the case until Jan. 10, when his Falcon team from South Euclid, Ohio, — and in just its third season as an NAIA program — won the NWCA/Cliff Keen National Duals with a dominating performance against three teams in the UNI-Dome.

            “I just can’t believe it,” said Romano after his Falcon team defeated Missouri Valley, 26-7, marking three straight duals that no opponent won more than two individual match-ups over the two-day period.

            Romano fought back tears as he thought back to the short-time growth of his program.

            “We started with nothing, we didn’t have a room and a coaching staff,” he said. “I’ve got great assistants and we’ve got great cooperation from our athletic director, Sue Hlavacek. She did a great job and really supported us. Everybody at Notre Dame College has been wonderful.”

            The Falcons, who were 14-2 in matches against ranked wrestlers, outscored its three foes 97-15. After earning a first-round bye — when Missouri Baptist was unable to make the trip to Cedar Falls because of inclement winter weather — the Falcons also defeated Oklahoma City, 42-0, and McKendree, 29-8, before beating MVC.

            “The kids fought real hard, and really wanted it,” Romano said. “We really dominated and I feel real good about it. This is the school’s first national championship, and we’ve been in existence for 40 months.”

            Not to be confused with the other Notre Dame of South Bend, Ind., this small school, which was established in 1922 and sits outside Cleveland, Ohio, did not admit men until 2001. NDC now features 21 men’s and women’s programs, including the wrestling team that began competition in 2006-07 after hiring Romano, the former Ohio State wrestler and Kent State coach (1996-2003) who also coached at prominent northeast Ohio high schools like as Aurora, Maple Heights and St. Edward (Lakewood).                         “I’ve got great assistants (Anthony Ralph and Ed Govang),” Romano declared. “They’re great recruiters. They scour the state and the Midwest.”

            And that talent took Notre Dame College to the top in just its third year. After competing but not placing in its first National Duals in 2008, the Falcons finished sixth last year in Cedar Falls. That was followed by a fifth-place finish last year.                         “We’re overwhelmed,” Romano said. “There’s no really way to describe it until it finally sets in. To be at the pinnacle of any division is the ultimate.”

            Notre Dame features a 2009 national champion in 141-pound Adam Koballa, a native of Twinsburg, Ohio, who transferred to NDC three years ago from Old Dominion.

            “Being the only senior on the team, there were some things I wanted to accomplish in my career,” said Koballa, a two-time Ohio state champ.

            “In the room, we’re always going at it. We have so many good Division I kids that came in. We know what it’s about. We’re still treating it like it’s Division I or Division II, but bringing it to this level. Obviously it’s showing only losing four matches.”

            Half of the 14 wrestlers on the roster have found a home at Notre Dame after starting at Division I programs.

            If there was a swing match in Notre Dame’s win over Missouri Valley, it came at 174 pounds where unranked freshman John Bittenger scored a 13-7 upset win over No. 3 Preston McKinney.

            “After he took me down, it was my turn to get a takedown. We got into a few scrambles and I ended up on top and won,” said the Eastern Michigan transfer.            “We just have to keep working hard in the room, we don’t have any friends in there.”

            Notre Dame is working towards Division II status in wrestling for the 2012-2013 season. An excited Hlavacek said she had confidence in Romano and his staff.                         “They’ve done such a good job in the recruiting process. I knew he was going to do well this year based on the type of kids they’re bringing in.”

            Missouri Valley coach Mike Machholz said he was disappointed in the effort of a few of his guys in the finals, but over all was pleased with the progress his team is making. Seeded No. 7, they advanced with wins over Campbellsville (36-9), Dickinson State (34-3) and Great Falls (24-13). MVC did feature the Outstanding Wrestling for the NAIA tournament in 157-pound senior Joe Cornejo, who pinned three foes before blanking NDC’s Tom Staughn, 8-0.

            “Our team is just getting to the point where we’re starting to become a family,” said Cornejo, who also earned OW honors in 2009 when his team defeated Notre Dame for fifth place. “We’re all accelerating at the same pace. We need to work a little harder in the room, and do a little extra after practice each day and not have coach have to tell us what to do.”