STANFORD, Calif. - Stanford head wrestling coach Jason Borrelli is pleased to announce Alex Tirapelle as the new assistant wrestling coach.
Tirapelle joins the Cardinal after spending two seasons as an assistant at UC Davis. Prior to working with the Aggies, he spent seven years at the University of Illinois as a student-athlete, graduate student and member of the academic advising staff.
Tirapelle twice earned All-America status, captured two Big Ten titles and was named Big Ten Wrestler of the Year in 2004. As a freshman in 2003, he finished as the national runner-up and earned Illinois Freshman Male Athlete of the Year honors in the process. Tirapelle finished his career as the all-time wins leader with 128, while ranking second with an .877 winning percentage.
"I am very excited to welcome Alex to our coaching staff and to the Stanford wrestling family," said Borrelli. "There was a very large interest in the position, but it was very clear that Alex was the perfect fit for us. Growing up in a wrestling family, Alex brings a lifetime of wrestling experience and knowledge to our program, and will be a huge asset from a technical standpoint as well."
Along with his impressive athletic career, Tirapelle racked up several academic honors. He was a Big Ten All-Academic honoree all four years, plus a first-team All-Academic selection by the National Wrestling Coaches Association (NWCA) and first-team ESPN The Magazine/CoSIDA Academic All-American. In addition, Tirapelle earned an NCAA Postgraduate Scholarship Award.
Tirapelle devoted one year as a graduate assistant and another as an academic counselor in academic services at Illinois. In his last two seasons in Champaign, he worked on his master's degree in sport management while serving as academic advisor for the Fighting Illini softball and wrestling teams. Tirapelle also kept his hand in the coaching arena, working as a summer-camp counselor and instructor for the wrestling team.
Tirapelle was also a standout at Clovis High School in Clovis, Calif., where he won three state titles and a national title. He hails from a wrestling family: his father Stephen was a Division II All-American and head coach at Clovis HS, his older brother Adam won the 2001 NCAA title at 149 pounds, and his younger brother Troy was a national qualifier and Big Ten runner-up in 2006.
"Additionally, his connections within the state of California are invaluable as we work to build the best wrestling program in the nation with California high school wrestlers," said Borrelli.
No comments:
Post a Comment