CLARION — The Golden Eagles wrestling program is ready to fly — and Alejandro Herrera-Rondon plans to soar with it.

A three-time PIAA champion whose 175 career wins are a Seneca Valley record, Herrera-Rondon is bringing his mat talents to Clarion after spending two years at Oklahoma University. He was 25-7 with the Sooners and red-shirted his freshman year.

Herrera-Rondon is one of four transfers coming to Clarion this season, along with 10 freshman recruits.

“We’re very excited about the group of men we’re bringing into the program this year,” Clarion head coach Keith Ferraro said in a prepared statement. “This group is going to help us continue to elevate our program.”

Herrera-Rondon was 175-14 in high school and was considered the unanimous No. 1-ranked recruit at 152 pounds in the 2021 national recruiting class. The Zelienople resident figures to start at 157 pounds for the Golden Eagles. He has three years of eligibility remaining.

He decided to transfer closer to home after the Oklahoma coach resigned under pressure.

“I think he was pushing us too hard,” Herrera-Rondon said. “We were all a bunch of studs in that room and we were beating each other up. That hurt us in the long run because guys were qualifying for postseason, then weren’t physically able to do much.”

Ferraro has been Clarion’s head coach for 10 years. The Golden Eagles were 11-6 in dual matches last year, placed third in the Mid-American Conference, had two individual MAC champions and sent three wrestlers to the NCAA national tournament.

“I’ve known Alejandro since he was seven years old,” Clarion assistant coach and former Golden Eagle wrestler Brock Zacherl said. “He’s been with the OMP club (in Evans City) and we’ve done camps there. We’ve built a good relationship through the years.”

When the Clarion coaches saw Herrera-Rondon’s name in the transfer portal, they reached out to him right away.

“Honestly, I wasn’t sure we could get him,” Zacherl said. “He’s a big name in wrestling and I thought he might go for a big school, but the more we talked to him about our program and where it’s headed, the more interested he became.

“We’re thrilled to get him. Alejandro fits right into what we’re trying to do.”

Herrera-Rondon said there was “just a little window left” in the transfer portal once Oklahoma was changing coaches.

“We didn’t know who we were going to get,” he said of the next coach. “It was the right time to leave and I wanted to get closer to home. I liked Pitt and what they’re doing there (in wrestling), but they didn’t have any money for me.

“I know the Clarion coaches. I know 75% of the guys on the roster there because I wrestled against them growing up. The familiarity there will really help me. I’m excited about working with Brock. He’s one of the nicest guys I’ve talked to in the sport. He was an underdog as a wrestler and I always liked his style.”

Clarion is trying to keep its wrestling program moving forward. Other transfers coming in are former Seton Hill heavyweight John Meyers, former West Virginia 141-pounder Ryan Sullivan and former Edinboro 133-pounder Tye Varndell.

Meyers, a Greensburg Salem graduate, reached the Round of 12 at NCAA Division II nationals in 2023. Sullivan, a Shaler graduate, was a 2021 NCAA qualifier who defeated three other national qualifiers that year. Varndell, a Cambridge Springs graduate, has collegiate wins over NCAA qualifiers.

Herrera-Rondon was 10-2 during his redshirt year at Oklahoma, then went 15-5 through an injury-riddled sophomore season. He tore hamstrings in both legs, suffered a left knee injury and developed turf toe within the span of two months.

“I kept working with the trainers to get me out there and get me through some matches,” he recalled. “A lot of people at Oklahoma wrote me off. I think I’m going to shock some people next year. Through injuries, my own moaning and pouting ... I went through the mud last year.

“I feel like I’ve grown up and matured. As long as I’m healthy, I’m confident I can get on the mat for seven minutes and let my skills work for me.”

Herrera-Rondon listed his team goals as helping Clarion win the MAC title and assist in the Golden Eagles’ effort “to get on the Top-25 chart.”

As for himself?

“Get on the podium at nationals, possibly on the top of it,” he said. “I know how to do well on the big stage. I’ve been there. It’s important to be able to shine when it matters and that’s in me.”

Zacherl simply wants Herrera-Rondon to be happy wrestling in a Clarion singlet.

“Whether he wins a national championship or doesn’t get to nationals at all, if he’s happy competing in the sport he loves, I’ll be happy and proud of that,” Zacherl said.

Herreera-Rondon plans to major in criminology.