It's The End Of An Era For Pennsbury Wrestling

Just a few weeks ago at the state tournament in Hershey, legendary Pennsbury wrestling coach Joe Kiefer coached his final match. 

"Our wrestler was a decided underdog," Kiefer said. "He (Josh DiSanto) was wrestling a returning state place winner. He got behind fairly early in the match, and then came back and was just going harder and harder. I could tell that he was giving an extra effort. He caused some mistakes because of it. When it was over and the other wrestler’s hand was raised, he had lost 8-6. I was proud of him and his effort. It was a bittersweet moment. It was kind of weird because the realization was with me that this would be the last time I’d be sitting on the edge of the mat coaching a wrestler."

After 18 years of being an assistant coach, Kiefer took over the wrestling head coaching position at Pennsbury during the 1986-1987 school year. During his illustrious career, Kiefer had 411 wins and just 115 losses. He led his squad to 10 SOL crowns. He’s coached 63 sectional champions, 26 District One winners, 17 Southeast Regional Champions and 15 state place winners. Two of his wrestlers won state titles, his son Kip Kiefer in 1992 and Chuckie Connor in 1996.

Kiefer’s three sons, Joe, Kip and Kory all wrestled for their father at Pennsbury.

"It was a good and bad thing," Kiefer said. "It was because everything we were doing was family oriented. They were playing in the same programs and the same teams I was coaching. Of course, it also brings the complaints from other people that they were being favored. We worked hard not to let that happen."

In 1977, Kiefer, along with Mike Klein and John Kopack started the Pennsbury Falcon Wrestling Club. 

"All of us that were running the high school and middle school program felt that our kids were starting off so far behind because they didn’t have any of the youth experience," Kiefer said.

Before the club, there was a recreational program, but wrestlers met just once a week -- with only six to eight meetings a year.   

As for Kiefer’s own individual accomplishments as a wrestler, he graduated and wrestled at Wilkes University. In 1966, Kiefer finished as a runner-up for the National Championship and was an All-American.

Now that he’s retired, Kiefer plans to spend more time with his family. His oldest son Joe lives in Phoenix where he's a lieutenant colonel in the Air Force reserves, military judge and attorney. Kip is in Boulder, Co. studying for his doctoral in Management. Kory is at Penn State.

Wrestling With History

So, how did Kiefer get into wrestling? 

"My dad was pushing me to get involved into the Junior High School sports program," Kiefer said. "I was a little reluctant as a young seventh grader because it was seventh, eighth and ninth grades. We moved to Bethlehem in the middle of October, and they were well into the football season already. He (Kiefer’s father) wanted to know why I didn’t go out for the team. I tried to explain it to him, but he didn’t hear it."

Kiefer went on to say.

"He asked me what was the next season. They had a basketball team, and I looked around and knew I couldn’t play basketball. I avoided getting the physical, and he said, 'Why aren’t you playing basketball?' I said, 'I missed the physical.' Then, he said, 'I’m finding out what’s next and I’m going to get the information and you’re going out for the team.' Well, next was wrestling."

For Joe Kiefer, the rest is history.