Germantown Academy Director of Athletics Tim Ginter has announced the hiring of John Staudenmayer as the new head coach of the GA Varsity Wrestling team. In his role, Staudenmayer will also provide general oversight to the entire 6th-12th grades vertically aligned wrestling program. He will also serve as the Assistant to the Athletic Director.

“With the hiring of Coach Staudenmayer, we believe we have found the right person to help re-establish GA as a destination for those who want to become quality wrestlers,” said Ginter. “Throughout the interview process, John impressed us with his passion for the sport, and his vision for GA wrestling. We believe this enthusiasm for coaching will be exciting, bring stability, and will inspire our student-athletes. We can’t wait for him to get started and prepare our students for the upcoming season and beyond.”  

“I am honored and excited to be the next head wrestling coach at Germantown Academy,” said Staudenmayer. “There is a great wrestling tradition here and I cannot wait to be a part of it. I grew up through the wrestling club here as a kid, so to come back and take over the program is really special to me.”

Staudenmayer, a Plymouth Meeting native, has been coaching since 2010. He most recently coached Saint Marks High School (Wilmington, DE) and the Tyrant Wrestling Club, where he created a winning culture and engaging environment. He also spent two years serving as a volunteer assistant coach at Plymouth Whitemarsh High School and nearly two years coaching at the University of North Carolina, where he trained with athletes while also a member of the Olympic Development Program. Staudenmayer also served as a mentor with the Carolina Leadership Academy.

On the mat, Staudenmayer went 168-12 at Plymouth-Whitemarsh High School. He was perfect his senior year at 43-0 and won the PIAA title and the Beast of the East competition. Stadenmayer was named ASICS High School All American Honorable Mention and selected to the Dapper Dan All-Star Team. As a junior, he placed third in the state in his weight class.

Overall, Staudenmayer finished his high school career as a two-time section, district, and regional champion. He helped lead PW to the Disney Duals Championship along with the Junior Olympics Championship. Staudenmayer, a member of the Honor Roll, also played lacrosse and football.

Staudenmayer went to University of North Carolina where he earned a Bachelor of Arts in Communications with Concentration in Speech and Hearing Sciences. On the mat, he was a four-time NCAA Tournament qualifier and two-time Atlantic Coast Conference (AAC) finalist. He was named a FILA University National All-American in 2013. 

The Patriots had a shortened 2020-2021 season, but still found plenty of success with Christian Colman '21 finishing third at the National Prep Open and Harrison Levans '21 placing fourth overall. In the last few years, quite a few Patriots have gone on to wrestle on the collegiate level, including: Colman (Duke University), Levans (West Virginia University), Chris Kim '20 (University of Michigan), Wyatt Hare '20 (University of Chicago), Jibrael Moore '20 (Muhlenberg College), Deon Savage '20 (Muhlenberg College), Mark Fasciocco '19 (Washington & Lee University), and Brandon Seidman '18 (Bucknell University).

The Patriots will look to build in 2022 with their four returning lettermen.