COACHING/SUPPORT STAFF

	Jeff Buxton - Head Coach Click here for an in-depth look at the man who has been at the helm for the last 20 years and who has guided the Buccaneers to as many National Prep titles and six overall high school national championships. Email: buxtoj@blair.edu
	Paul Clavel - Assistant Coach Mathematics Department Blair Class of 1988 Four year Varsity Letterman/Captain 3x National Prep place winner 2x New Jersey Prep State Champion Garden State Games Champion Wrestled three years at Old Dominion University Placed 4th at Eastern National Open Head Coach of Great Bridge Middle School in Chesapeake, Virginia (1996-2002) Assistant Coach of Great Bridge High School in Chesapeake, Virginia (1995-2003) Married to Erika; two daughters, Avery (5) Emma (6 mo.) Email: clavep@blair.edu
	Jim Frick - Assistant Coach Assistant Headmaster for Finance and Operations Wrestled four years at Lehigh University Lehigh University co-captain EIWA runner-up New Jersey State champion NCAA qualifier Email: frickj@blair.edu
	Charles Danhof - Assistant Coach English Department Email: danhoc@blair.edu Williams College team captain Coaches football
	Wayne Catan - Volunteer Assistant Coach Two-time NCAA Division I finalist for Syracuse University Three-time NCAA Division I All-American Captain at Syracuse University College World Games Runner-up Tiblisi Tournament Runner-up President of Catan Communications, PR Firm Solo PR Practitioner of the Year 2001 (PRWeek) Married to Jess; one daughter, Francesca; one son, Nico and two dogs, George and Maggie. Email: wayne@catancomm.com
	Jody Giuricich - Volunteer Assistant Coach Blair Class of 1999 Wrestled at University of Pennsylvania EIWA runner-up 1999 National Prep Champion National High School Championship finalist
	Dr. Walter Grote - Volunteer Assistant Coach 1976 Freestyle Olympic Team Alternate New Jersey state runner-up

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Team Doctors

Dr. Joseph Casella
Dr. Carl Weiss

Support Staff

Managers

Xenia Fisher ’08, Newark, NJ
Gina Giuricich ’07, Blairstown, NJ
Maggie Jones ’05, Thailand
Emily Perovich ’06, Allentown, PA
Lia Simeone ’05, New Orleans, LA
Emily Stout ’06, Hackettstown, NJ
Grace Snyder ’08, Tewksbury, NJ
Kathryn Snyder ’06, Tewksbury, NJ
Lauren Stival ’05, Blairstown, NJ

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Although his impact on Blair’s success and his place in the history of Blair’s rich 84 year-old tradition of wrestling are definitive, Buxton is better known around campus as a complete educator. A graduate of the University of Rhode Island, Buxton teaches three upper level math courses and is also an academic monitor for the postgraduate class. He has made it a hallmark of his coaching to emphasize not only excellence on the mat but in the classroom and the community as well. Currently, there are approximately 50 former Blair wrestlers who are competing in college. Even though Blair’s high school team has recently experienced several successes at the highest level, winning has never been at the center of Coach Buxton’s teaching. Instead, he does everything he can to maximize the efforts of each individual as well as the opportunities available to each of his student-athletes; winning is simply a result of those efforts.

Motivated by a true love of wrestling and kids, Buxton puts countless hours into his work outside of the “regular” wrestling season. In the spring and summer, he works several camps and clinics in New Jersey as well as around the country. Another spring-time habit of his is to take van loads of wrestlers (both from Blair and other local athletes) around the northeast to compete in freestyle and Greco-Roman tournaments. Buxton is a member of the New Jersey Wrestling Federation (the state chapter of USA Wrestling) serving on the Coaches Council and as a coach on the Cadet and Junior National teams representing New Jersey. In that capacity, he has brought the Cadet and Junior National training camps to Blair Academy’s campus for each of the last 13 years. This past summer, Coach Buxton was again named the head coach of the New Jersey National Team which went on to another successful finish at the Freestyle Junior and Cadet Nationals. Whether he is talking on the phone to parents or college coaches for hours at a time (it is widely believed that this is truly how he acquired cauliflower ear) or giving a student one-on-one instruction, Jeff Buxton does whatever he can to help the kids and the sport that he loves.

Buxton’s first head coaching job was at Chariho High School in Rhode Island where his teams compiled a 24-5 record over two years. In 1982, he came to Blair Academy as a math teacher, assistant wrestling coach to Bob Latessa and head lacrosse coach. In 1984, Buxton was named the first co-head coach in Blair wrestling’s history. He took over sole responsibility as the head coach in 1991 when Latessa moved on to become the assistant coach at Lehigh University. Since being named co-head coach 19 years ago, Buxton has led Blair to as many National Prep team championships, and coached 81 individual National Prep Champions to a total of 99 individual titles. Although he has maintained and expanded the opportunities for the college program that has long been established as a trademark of Blair wrestling, he has also broadened the scope of the high school team. The skill level of the athletes on the high school team this past year ranged from novice wrestlers to Prep National champions, and the success of the team has grown on all levels. Again, it is Buxton’s emphasis on opportunities for students within the sport that has made it possible to see to the needs of such a wide range of athletes.

Raised in Satellite Beach, Florida and later Hope, Rhode Island in a family of 6 brothers and 3 sisters, Buxton was an outstanding three-sport athlete at Providence Country Day School where he earned a total of 13 varsity letters in football, wrestling and lacrosse. In 1975, he was a National Prep Champion in wrestling and was named the Rhode Island Athlete of the Year, capping four undefeated seasons as a wrestler. Recently, Buxton was recognized for his high school athletic achievements as he was inducted into Providence Country Day School’s Athletic Hall of Fame. Following high school, he matriculated to the University of Rhode Island on a full wrestling scholarship where he was a qualifier for the NCAA tournament on a team that was regularly in the top twenty of the country (Rhode Island has since dropped wrestling). Known for an unconventional and tenacious style, Buxton continued competing after college and was the Outstanding Wrestler in the 1980 Northeastern Regional Olympic Trials (he did not compete in the final trials).

Jeff Buxton has been married for 22 years to his wife Carol. They have two children – a son, Tony, who is 14 years old and a daughter, Siena, who is 11.

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