John Stephenson

Four Ohio Valley residents will be enshrined into the National Wrestling Hall of Fame — one into the Ohio Chapter and three into the West Virginia Chapter.

On Sunday, John Stephenson, affectionately known as “The Father of Cadiz Wrestling,” will be honored during “Hall of Fame Day” ceremonies inside the Villa Milano Banquet and Conference Center in Columbus. The social begins at 2 p.m., with dinner at 3. He will receive the “Lifetime Service to Wrestling” award which is presented to individuals for their years of dedication to the sport as a coach, official or contributor.

STEPHENSON finished his elongated 35-year coaching career at Cadiz and Harrison Central high schools with a 142-18-2 coaching record. The cardinals won a dozen OVAC Dual Meet titles, 12 OVAC tournament Class AA championships — including the 1981 overall crown — eight Ohio Class 3A sectional titles, seven district titles and several top 10 finishes in the OVAC and Ohio State tournaments. In addition, Stephenson coached 78 state tournament qualifiers, 29 state placers and a pair of state champions.

The highlight of his coaching career came in 1987 when Cadiz won the Division III state title and he was named Division III Coach of the Year.

After retiring from coaching to pursue administrative positions in the Harrison Hills School District, Stephenson returned as the mat boss for the Huskies from 2000-03.

On Dec. 5, 2008, Harrison Central named its multi-purpose building the “John W. Stephenson Center.”

Stephenson graduated from Waynesburg, Pa., High School and Fairmont State College. He was an NAIA all-american with the Falcons.

Other inductees include Erik Burnett, Nick Burgess, Fred Feeney, Paul Oberdst, Troy Roth and Alex Stepanovich.

He and his wife, Nancy, have two daughters, Shannon and Stefani, and five grandchildren.

On Sunday, Oct. 29, Joe Giovengo, Shane Kildow and Rick Price will receive their honors inside the Embassy Suites in Charleston. The social begins at 1 p.m., with dinner being served at 1:45.

Giovengo will be honored posthumously. All three will be presented with the ‘Lifetime To Wrestling Service” award.

GIOVENGO was a key contributor to the sport, mostly as a coach and mentor for youth in the Ohio Valley. He started the Benwood Bruisers Youth Wrestling Club in 1997 and ran it until his untimely death in 2022.

Giovengo also coached at his alma mater, Bishop Donahue, until it closed and then coached high school and middle school wrestling at Linsly from 2010-22. He coached the Little Monarch Wrestling Team from 2012-2022 and was founder, coach and director of the Ohio Valley Wrestling League from 2000-22. The league has grown to 12 teams and more than 300 wrestlers, which includes the girls-only Valkyrie Club, the first girls-only team in the Mountain State.

As a wrestler, Giovengo was a two-time W.Va. state placer, placed in the OVAC Tournamernt and was the PAC-8 champion at Union Junior High in 1989.

He graduated third in his class at Bishop Donahue and was a member of the National Honor Society.

He is survived by his wife, Michelle, and children Juliana, Isabella, Nico and Romeo.

KILDOW recently retired as a wrestling official after 35 years of service in Ohio and West Virginia.

The Union Local High School and Ohio University graduate has officiated 27 West Virginia state high school and a like number of regional tournaments, along with 29 Ohio district tournaments for four Ohio state championships.

Kidow was selected as the 2010 West Virginia Wrestling Official of the Year. Four years later, he was presented with the Larry Deaton Ohio Valley Athletic Conference Wrestling Official of the Year.

A resident of Belmont, Ohio, he and his wife, Patty, have three children — Taylor, Luke and Katie.

PRICE is a graduate of Oak Glen High School where he won a West Virginia state championship in 1967. He then matriculated to West Liberty where he captured three West Virginia Intercollegiate Athletic Conference championships. A three-time captain for the Hilltoppers, his .913 winning percentage (57-5-1) is still a program record.

Price coached at Beaver Local High School from 1973-89. From 1990-2010 he served as an assistant wrestling coach, helping wrestlers reach their full potential on-and-off the mat.

Upon his retirement, the wrestling locker room at West Liberty was named in his honor in 2011.

Price and his wife, Che Che, reside in Wellsburg. They have three children — Holly, Shannon and Matthew.