The ninth annual Allegheny County Wrestling Championships are underway at Fox Chapel Area High School, with 40 local teams competing in the two-day tournament. The county’s best wrestler is conspicuously absent, however.

West Mifflin’s Sam Sherlock, ranked No. 3 nationally at 130 lbs. by Intermat, tore his left ACL at the prestigious Beast of the East tournament on December 20. Surgery was performed this week by Dr. James Bradley. Fortunately for Sherlock — who finishes his high school career with 114 wins — the future remains bright. Prior to the start of this season, he committed to wrestle collegiately for Penn State.

Two of Sherlock’s 2010 classmates, twins Andrew and Dylan Alton of Central Mountain, PA, are ranked No. 1 nationally at 145 and 152 lbs., respectively. The trio headlines first-year Penn State coach Cael Sanderson’s second dynamite recruiting class. Sanderson defected from his alma mater, Iowa State, in April.

Sanderson brought 2009’s No. 1 overall recruit, David Taylor, along for the ride, and snatched Hempfield’s Jake Kemerer, No. 7 overall, away from a commitment to Oklahoma. Taylor and Kemerer joined Ed Ruth in Penn State’s star-studded 2009 class. Ruth, ranked No. 5 overall, had been hooked previously by former Nittany Lion head coach Troy Sunderland.

Shortly after signing on with the Nittany Lions, Sanderson (right, in blue), said Pennsylvania has the best high school wrestling in the country. That’s high praise coming from a giant in the sport. Sanderson won four NCAA titles as a Cyclone, never losing a scholastic match, and won a gold medal at the 2004 Olympics in Athens. He earned his own Wheaties box.

While Sherlock won’t have a chance to defend his county or state titles, he will be able to wrestle under a living legend for a program that soon should regain its status among the nation’s elite; Penn State’s potential 2010 lineup looks like an all-star team. And, in Sherlock’s stead, another future Nit, Shady Side Academy’s Frankie Martellotti, will have an opportunity to take home the Allegheny County title at 130 lbs. Martellotti, a top prospect himself, decided to walk on to Penn State next year. He entered the county tournament seeded first in his weight class.