Jason Groller ’04
Career Record: 123-52, D11 Champ, 2x NE Regional Champ
Tournament Champs: Reno Champ
College; Shippensburg (Division II All American)
2004 – 275 lbs.: District Champ, Regional Champ (39-6)
2003 – 275 lbs.: District Third, Regional Champ (35-13)
2002 – 275 lbs.: District Third, Regional Fourth (36-11)
2001 – 275 lbs.: (11-18)
Jason Groller was a four-year starter at heavyweight who blossomed into one of the premier upper weights in Pennsylvania and helped anchor Easton’s four consecutive state titles. He is the only Easton heavyweight to win multiple Northeast Regional titles and was a Division II All American at Shippensburg.
As a freshman, the undersized Groller made the lineup winning his first varsity bout at 215 (which was not a Pennsylvania weight class) in his opening match at Reno. He went 2-2 in Nevada, then medaled at Manheim back up at heavyweight, taking sixth. He battled through the regular season, and capped Easton’s state championship with a first period pin to end the state final against State College. He went 1-2 at the D11 tournament to end his freshman season.
As a sophomore, Groller was big enough to contend at heavyweight. He opened the season with a win over D11 medalist Rocky Shoenberger (Nazareth) and clearly looked like a contender. His pin clinched their dual win over 2A state champions Wilson and he wen into Reno undefeated. In Nevada, he posted four falls to boost Easton’s team score before losing in the Round of 12. He took third at Manheim after a run to semifinals and a win over state medalist Geoff Donahue (Neshaminy). Groller pinned his way through the Easton Invitational. He dropped a 10-9 match against D11 champ Josh Kelly (Freedom) and took his lumps at the NHSCA Final Four. He punctuated Easton’s win over Northampton with a third period tech of Jesse Probus. He finished the regular season with tight wins over Devin Derrico (Liberty) and Ian Roncoroni (Phillipsburg). At state duals, he went major-fall-fall as Easton cruised to their second straight state championship. Groller opened the D11 tournament with a pin, then got upset in quarters by Andrew Freas (Emmaus), giving up a five point move in the second period. He wrestled back for third including an 11-3 thrashing of Freas for the bronze medal. At Northeast Regionals, Groller opened with a tight win over Mike Wilson (Stroudsburg), but was pinned by Drew Feldman (Wyoming Valley West) in quarters, He rebounded with a pair of pins to make it to the consolation final, but could not get his offense going in a 5-3 loss to Joey Attieh (Whitehall) to end his season as a fourth place regional finisher.
As a junior, Groller opened the season with seven straight pins, getting him through the first two rounds at Reno before losing to two-time California state champ Arturo Basulto (Arroyo). He rebounded by beating Alaska state champ Dan Dalle-Molle (Kotzebue) and California medalist Jason Montgomery (Freedom) before losing in the medal round. Groller’s hot streak continued during the dual season, when he pinned D11 champ Josh Kelly (Freedom) to announce himself as the region’s top contender. He ran his pin total to 12 when he threw future Virginia state champ Trey Rodgers (Great Bridge) to his back and stuck him at the NHSCA Final Four. He beat National Prep medalist John Kane (Blair Academy) later that day to go 3-0 in the event. In the first dual against Northampton, the Konkrete Kids bumped up 215 pound state champ Jon Oplinger, who iced the match with a 10-3 win over Groller in the final bout of the night. In the rematch, Oplinger and Groller opened things, with Oplinger sneaking by with a 3-2 win. Between District and State Duals, Easton wrestled New Jersey powerhouse Absegami in the undercard to the NWCA All Star Classic in Delaware. The Rovers were clinging to a 28-26 lead going into heavyweight. Groller was leading Robert Leeds 8-6 with just seconds left in the match when Leeds picked up a snatch single and tripped Groller to the mat to tie the score. With fifteen seconds left in overtime, Leeds converted a second takedown for a 10-8 win and an Absegami victory over the Red Rovers. Groller went 2-1 at State Duals as Eastonw on their third straight state title. In the postseason, Groller pinned his way into the semifinals, where a rematch with Josh Kelly (Freedom) loomed. Kelly was able to stay away from Groller’s upper body attacks, and they went 1-1 into OTRO. Kelly won the disc filp in the second, and was able to choose bottom and quickly get away from Groller. Groller wrestled back for third, including a bronze medal win over 2002 D11 champ Josh Evans (Pottsville). At Northeast Regionals, Groller opened with a 6-1 win over Andrew Thompson (Bangor) then surprised many with a dominant 6-2 win over D2 champ Ryan Kittrick (Coughlin). He beat D4 champ Jay O’Hora (Selinsgrove) in semis to set up a rematch with Kelly. This time, Groller got to his offense, beating Kelly 4-3 for his first Regional title. Groller joined Larry Callair (1961), Dan Kasperkoski (1979), and Joey Jones (1994) as the only Easton heavyweights to win Regionals. At the state tournament, Groller opened by pinning Dave Payne (Keystone Oaks) to set up a rematch with Zack Schaeffer (Cumberland Valley), who had defeated Groller at the last two Manheims and in State Duals. The future Pitt NCAA Qualifier beat Groller for a fourth time, by 5-2 score, knocking him into the consolation bracket. In the medal round, Kittrick got a rematch with Groller and scored the bout’s only takedown in a 3-2 match to end Groller’s season one match short of a medal. Groller finished the season with 18 falls in his 35 wins.
As a senior, Groller came off of an All State football season and a run to the PIAA Final Four that lasted into December. His first week of wrestling was a trip to the Las Vegas 100, where he pinned his way into the finals before losing a rideout match to Nevada state champ Dominic Cammarata (Silverado). At Reno, Groller pinned California medalist Lydon LIti (Foothill) in quarters, then avenged his medal round loss to Dallin Norton (Wasatch) by beating the three-time Utah state champ 11-8. In the finals, he defeated three-time Idaho state champ and Fargo All American Nick Smith (Centennial) 4-3 with a third period takedown to become the only Easton heavyweight to win a Reno title. At Manheim, Groller pinned his way into the finals, including a third period fall of state finalist Stephan Tighe (Erie Cathedral Prep) before having to medically default to his nemesis Zack Shaeffer (Cumberland Valley) after the second period of the finals. His pin of Jake Morgan (Apple Valley) put an exclamation point on Easton’s dominant win over the Minnesota powerhouse and his pin of Aaron Fannin (St. Paris Graham) clinched Easton’s win over the nation’s #3 team as part of a banner day at the NHSCA Final Four. Groller finished the day 3-0 after his second win over National Prep medalist John Kane (Blair Academy). He suffered his first non-default loss of the season when future state champ Bryan Reiss (Emmaus) nipped him 8-6 in overtime in their dual with the Green Hornets. Groller brought a home Easton crowd to their feet with an emphatic lat drop and pin of Walt Pierson (Phillipsburg) in the Red Rovers record setting 59-6 romp over the Stateliners in the 25th Street Gym. He also pinned Northampton’s Matt Snyder in their dual with the KKids, but that left Easton a point short in their regular season match up. Northampton would bump Jon Oplinger to wrestle Groller in the final bout of their D11 Dual finals, a 3-2 Oplinger win, but a Marcus Millen victory at 215 had clinched the final team score. At State Duals, Groller went 3-0 including a 10-4 win over Tighe in semifinals. At the D11 Tournament, Groller was the top seed and looked it early, pinning his way into the semifinals. He beat Devin Derrico (Liberty) 6-1, getting a five point move in teh second period and blowing open what was a OTRO match during the regular season. He got his rematch with Reiss in the finals and took the Emmaus star down twice tow in 5-3 and win Easton’s first D11 title at heavyweight since Dan Kasperkoski in 1979 and joining Kasperkoski, Larry Callair, and Jim Palmer as the only Easton heavyweights to win a D11 title. The following weekend, Groller defended his Northeast Regional title by pinning Jeremiah Gaffney (Blue Mountain), getting a medical default from Derrico, then hammering Reiss in the final, 9-4. Groller became the only Easton heavyweight with multiple regional championships, cruising into the state tournament as one of the title favorites. In his first round match, Groller took it to Andrew Joseph (Kiski Area), taking him down five times in a 12-3 major decision. He drew the Regional Champ vs. Regional Champ slot in quarterfinals, where he faced Southeast Regional champ Mike Spaid (Boyertown). Spaid was a massive heavyweight who had pinned his way through the postseason, and was picked by both the Harrisburg Patriot News and the Morning Call to make the finals. The lighter, faster Groller immediately went to work, hitting a wrap arm single for a takedown. He cut Spaid immediately and went right back on the attack, hitting the same single leg to take a 4-2 lead. He took him down one more time for good measure to extend his lead to 6-3 and looked every bit like a state champion. That is, until Spaid threw a headlock and trapped Groller on his back, ending the match at the 1:20 mark and crushing Groller’s dream of a state title. Spaid would hit the same headlock in semis and finals to win a state title, while a shell shocked Groller had to face Reiss for a fourth time just to medal, and the Green Hornet smelled blood in the water after Groller’s shocking loss and beat him 7-1 to end his Red Rover career. Groller’s 21 pins was the third 20 pin season in Easton history and his 59 career falls set an Easton record.
After Easton, Groller played football and wrestled at Shippensburg, where he was an All PSAC defensive end and earned Division II All American honors with a sixth place finish at the 2007 NCAA tournament.
History of Easton Wrestling 