Matt Valenti (born April 12, 1984) is a two-time NCAA Division I national champion
wrestler from the
University of Pennsylvania. He won the 133 pound weight class at the
NCAA tournament in both 2006 and 2007 and finished in 5th place in 2004 at 125 pounds. He is currently the Associate Athletic Director for Student Development at the University of Pennsylvania.
Wrestling career
Valenti currently holds Penn's career win record with 137 collegiate victories. He was a three-time
EIWA champion, a four-time NCAA qualifier, and three-time first team All-Ivy selection. He was celebrated twice as EIWA Wrestler of the Year and was the
Ivy League Wrestler of the Year in 2007. He was an Olympic hopeful, qualifying for the 2012 USA Olympic trials, losing in the semifinals to Olympic bronze medalist Coleman Scott. Valenti has also been inducted into the Kittatinny Regional High School, Sussex County Sports, NJSIAA Region I, EIWA and Penn Athletics Hall of Fame.
Valenti was recruited and brought to Penn by current head coach
Roger Reina
Roger Reina is the current University of Pennsylvania wrestling coach (1986–2005). He left coaching in 2005 after 19 seasons on the mat where he had a career record of 205-106-6, making him the most successful coach in the 101-year history of th ...
, but was coached to both national titles by former coach,
Zeke Jones
Larry Lee "Zeke" Jones (born December 2, 1966) is an American wrestler who won a silver medal at the 1992 Summer Olympics in Barcelona, a world championship in Varna, Bulgaria, in 1991, and was the former freestyle head coach at USA Wrestling. He ...
. He wrestled at Penn with his younger brother Andy, while
the youngest sibling Derek was an All-American for the University of Virginia.
Valenti, a
Stillwater Township, New Jersey native, attended
Kittatinny Regional High School where he was a two-time
New Jersey state champion. He also earned a Junior National title in freestyle his senior year. He is married to Kimberly Parsons Valenti who is the head gymnastics coach at Ursinus College.
References
{{DEFAULTSORT:Valenti, Matt
Living people
American wrestlers
People from Newton, New Jersey
Sportspeople from Sussex County, New Jersey
People from Stillwater Township, New Jersey
University of Pennsylvania alumni
1984 births