Southmoreland grad Jake Beistel juggles school, fatherhood, helping new Saint Vincent wrestling program

Among the Saint Vincent wrestlers, Jake Beistel is the team dad.

Literally and figuratively.

Two years ago, the Southmoreland grad became a father and now spends much of his down time between classes and wrestling trying to keep up with a toddler.

But his responsibilities as a role model and disciplinarian extend to his teammates. Beistel is 25 years old and started college in 2016, when most of his Saint Vincent teammates were entering junior high. So it’s only natural for the group to look to Beistel for guidance.

Bearcats coach Dom Nania, who coached Beistel with the Seton Hill wrestling team, knew that would be the case.

“I strategically didn’t make him a captain this year because the guys are going to flock to him as a leader anyway,” Nania, a Hempfield grad, said. “They look to him for advice as an older guy, and he’s that voice in the locker room that I need. … I’m so thankful for him and what he’s doing for our program.”

Beistel came to be with the Bearcats almost by chance. The Unity Township campus is the final stop in a college odyssey seven years in the making, one that has included ups and downs, stops and starts.

It began in 2016 as a freshman with the St. Francis (Pa.) football team, where he saw regular duty with the Red Flash as a defensive lineman. But by the end of his sophomore season in 2017, Beistel decided to step away. Concussions had begun to take their toll.

“I was never really one to run to the trainer, so there was probably some things that I should have said to people that I didn’t say,” he said. “It kind of got worse to the point where it was kind of affecting me off the field, so it wasn’t good.”

After giving up football, Beistel transferred to Seton Hill and joined the wrestling team. He competed with the Griffins for two years — one year with Nania on staff — then found out he was to become a father.

With a new priority in his life, Beistel got a job and was away from collegiate athletics for two years. But it was through his job that he got reconnected with Nania.

Beistel said his job required him to be out and about a lot, and on one occasion, he saw Nania. He didn’t approach him at that time, but, the next day, he saw Nania again.

Perhaps that was a sign. Knowing Nania was the new wrestling coach at Saint Vincent and feeling the itch to compete again, Beistel reached out to Nania.

“I texted him and asked him if the team needed a heavyweight,” Beistel said. “He was like, ‘Are you serious?’ And I said, ‘Of course.’ ”

Nania and Beistel checked with the NCAA to be sure he still had a year of eligibility remaining. Once that hurdle was cleared, Beistel enrolled in a couple of classes at Saint Vincent last spring, just to get the feel for being a college student again. Before that, he had never even seen the campus.

He became a full-time student this year and even played football for the Bearcats. But his return to football was limited to two games before a shoulder injury stopped him.

“I came back to wrestle, so I didn’t want to jeopardize that,” Beistel said. “But my time on the football team was cool, too.”

Now he is fully focused on the wrestling team, having one final hurrah for himself while serving as a mentor for the fledgling program. Of the 21 athletes on the wrestling roster, 15 are freshmen.

Beistel has shown he still can compete, going 5-1 through the 2023 portion of Saint Vincent’s schedule. But his contribution to the Bearcats likely will be in the form of intangibles.

It’s a role Beistel has embraced. And it is one that suits him. Not only is he a father/father figure, he is studying to be a teacher.

“That’s something that me and Dom talked about when I was deciding on if I was going to come back,” he said. “I like to think that I’m setting a good example for them, especially in the (wrestling) room and how we act whether we win or lose and how we act at tournaments.

“I’m an open book with them. They know they can talk to me about whatever they need.”

Beistel admitted he wasn’t sure what he was getting himself into by joining a team full of freshmen and others who might be new to college wrestling. He knew there was plenty of talent, with the bulk of the athletes coming from the wrestling-rich WPIAL, but he wondered if these youngsters would have the attitude and work ethic to match.

Having been an athlete at a Division I program, Beistel understood the dedication it takes to be successful. The early returns have convinced him he made the right decision to join the Bearcats.

“Just a bunch of tough kids who really work hard,” he said. “I’ve been really impressed. Dom’s a great coach, and he puts us through tough workouts. Those guys come every day trying to get better.

“I’ll be honest: I was a little worried at first … but I think we really lucked out with everybody we got.”

Beistel counts himself lucky, too. He is lucky he gets to finish out his time as a college athlete on his terms, lucky Nania is accommodating when something arises with his 2-year-old, lucky to join a group of dedicated athletes.

Perhaps his college athletic career could have gone differently, but Beistel said he has no regrets.

“I feel good,” he said. “I missed it for sure. It’s something I thought a lot about when I wasn’t doing it. It’s just been a great opportunity, and I think everything happens for a reason.

“Everybody has been super great. I feel very lucky. Very fortunate.”