Penn State Athlete of the Week: Dan Vallimont, Wrestling

Athlete: Dan Vallimont

Sport: Wrestling

Why we picked him: Vallimont led the Nittany Lions to a ninth-place finish at nationals by finishing second in the country in the 165-pound weight class.

Fresh off an incredible runner-up performance in the national championship tournament, Penn State senior wrestler Dan Vallimont took some time with StateCollege.com to reflect on the season, his career, and the future of Penn State wrestling.

StateCollege.com: Can you first talk about and reflect on the season for you as a whole? 

Dan Vallimont: I don’t know, in the beginning it was different, obviously having the new coaching staff and adjusting. It ended up being a little easier than I thought. Coming in I was a little bit nervous about it. Having one system ever since I’ve been here as a freshman and then changing it all my senior year was hard, but the coaching staff did a good job and it ended up not being too bad. Coming in right away in the end of August, when school started, we already had talked with them. I met with them a few times, so we were able to get a good start then.

My goal this year was to be a national champ and I suffered a couple of losses along the way, but I was confident the entire season. I knew I could compete with these guys. Our training was designed in a way to peak at the Big Ten tournament and at nationals, and I think that worked out pretty well. I lost in the finals, and obviously I would’ve liked to have won, but I can’t say that I didn’t have a good tournament.

StateCollege.com: Moving on to the national tournament, can you talk about the ride and the experience that you had there?

Dan Vallimont: Overall, I would say it was pretty good. Again, my goal was to be a national champion, so I came up a little bit short on that, but looking back, I can’t really be too disappointed with my performance. I thought that was the best I’d wrestled the entire year. I felt great the first two days of the tournament, and even in the finals I wanted to go out there and push the pace and try to be aggressive – which I felt like I was – I just made a couple mistakes and the other guy was able to capitalize on it.

StateCollege.com: Was there a match in the earlier rounds that you maybe questioned yourself in, that you found to be a little more difficult than some of the others?

Dan Vallimont: Actually not. It started out that my first two matches were against guys that I beat by a point during the year. I won my first match 10-3 against a guy I had beaten 4-3 during the year. Then in my second match I beat the No. 11 seed 9-0 and I only beat him 2-1 during the year. After the first day, I was feeling great, you know, after those first two rounds.

StateCollege.com: Do you think you did anything different to spark a change in the matches against those guys?

Dan Vallimont: I think a lot of it is just the difference from the beginning of the season to the end. I think I’ve always done a pretty good job of peaking at the right time, and our training was set up to make that happen. Even at the Big Ten tournament I was wrestling really well, too. So it just carried over to the national tournament.

Once you get out there in the postseason, a lot of it is about your attitude, too, and who wants it more. I’ve had my goals set and I’ve been working for them, and you go out there and you battle for seven minutes. A lot of times it’s just the guy who wants it more.

StateCollege.com: In the final, you were going up against the No. 1 seed and you got behind a bit early, what do you think went wrong for you?

Dan Vallimont: I wrestled him at Big Tens in the semifinals, and I lost a 3-1 match. I felt like I could’ve gone out there and wrestled a defensive match and maybe lost by a point or two and kept it close, but I don’t think I would’ve given myself a chance to win then. My whole idea going out there was I was going to go out there and take a lot of shots. I was feeling confident in my shots throughout the week – I was able to take everybody down up until then – and I just felt like if I kept shooting I would be able to get some takedowns. I got in on a couple shots and didn’t finish quick and he was able to capitalize and score on them.

StateCollege.com: With this being the first year for Coach Sanderson and his staff, is there an outgoing sense of pride that you’ve been able to be a part of a successful transition here?

Dan Vallimont: Yeah, I guess you could say that. There are great things to come, that’s for sure. It’s a good coaching staff. He set the bar high for the team and expects to be national champions next year. I mean, in a meeting today, just a couple days after the season, he’s already talking about next year. It’s really cool because in a couple years I’ll be able to look back and say I was a part of the first year and many good years to come.

StateCollege.com: For whoever takes your spot in your weight class, you’ve set the bar pretty high as a national runner-up. What would you say to that guy who’s stepping in at your weight class and has to fill in your shoes?

Dan Vallimont: I’m not sure who it’s going to be yet at 165. I’m not sure if David Taylor or Jake Kemerer will be the 165-pounder next year. I’m sure one will be 157 and one 165, but they’re both great wrestlers. They’re in there fighting hard every day. They got their experience this year as redshirts, so I think either one of them will be more than ready to step in and pick up where I left off.

StateCollege.com: Where would you say this year ranks in terms of your memories as a member of the Penn State wrestling team?

Dan Vallimont: It’s right up there with my sophomore year when I became an All-American the first time. Specifically winning in the semifinals was something I will never forget. It was one of the greatest feelings ever and I know I’ll never forget that. But becoming an All-American for the first time back in my sophomore year was pretty close with that two. Those are probably two of my greatest memories and probably getting my 100^th win this year, too. It was a memorable year. I would’ve liked to have had a few more home matches my final year and getting a national title would’ve been pretty good too.

StateCollege.com: Is there anything besides the national championship accomplishment-wise that you wish you had achieved during this year or your entire career?

Dan Vallimont: I don’t have any regrets, but I feel that I could’ve been a four-time All-American. I was two wins away from doing that in my freshman year. I was in the round of 12 and again last year I was in the round of 12. I think those are two matches that I could’ve won and been able to say I was a four-time All-American, but things happen and it just wasn’t meant to be that way. So I don’t have any regrets and I think it was a great career.