Staff Directory
- Title:
- Head Coach
- Email:
- Phone:
- 491-4636
Set to enter his 11th season at the helm, Matt Storniolo has transformed Northwestern Wrestling into a rising force in the Big Ten and a national contender. Since taking over before the 2015-16 season, he has produced 16 All-Americans, five Big Ten champions, and one individual national champion in Ryan Deakin. Led by Deakin, Storniolo piloted the Wildcats to back-to-back top-10 finishes at the NCAA Championships in 2021 and 2022 — Northwestern’s best run since the late ‘80s.
Storniolo was originally tabbed the interim head coach for the program on October 26, 2015, and was elevated to permanent status on March 24, 2016. Prior to his promotion, he served as an assistant coach for six seasons for the Wildcats.
Since his elevation, Storniolo has kept Northwestern consistently in the national conversation, qualifying five or more wrestlers to the NCAA Championships in six of his ten seasons. Most impressively, the 2022 Wildcats sent wrestlers from all ten weight classes to the national tournament for the first time since 1970 and just the third time in program history. Under Storniolo's leadership, five Northwestern wrestlers have become multi-time All-Americans: Deakin, Sebastian Rivera, Michael DeAugustino, Chris Cannon, and Lucas Davison.
Northwestern's most decorated wrestler under Storniolo, Deakin's 2022 National Championship at 157 pounds capped off a remarkable career. With Storniolo's leadership, Deakin wrestled to a pair of undefeated seasons as a Wildcat, finishing 21-0 in the shortened 2020 season and 18-0 in his 2022 run to the championship. The 157-pounder finished his career as the fourth four-time All-American in program history, the third three-time Big Ten Champion, and the ninth National Champion. He finished his time in Evanston with a 114-15 career record, posting an .883 winning percentage that ranks third all-time in Northwestern annals.
As a team, Storniolo guided the 'Cats to five straight top-25 finishes at the NCAA Championships from 2018 to 2023. The streak was highlighted by a sixth-place finish in 2022 - just the fourth top-six finish in Northwestern history. During the run, 15 wrestlers claimed All-American honors, including four per season in 2020 and 2022, which matched the program record.
Prior to his promotion to the head seat, Storniolo also mentored program greats Andrew Nadhir, Jason Welch and Jason Tsirtsis during his time as an assistant with the program. After arriving in Evanston ahead of the 2009-10 season, Storniolo's mentorship paid dividends at the 2011 NCAA Championships, when both Nadhir and Welch wrestled above their tournament seeds and placed sixth at their respective weight classes. Welch would go on to finish in the top six at both of the next two NCAA Championships as well, capped off by a national runner-up finish in 2013. Most impressively, in 2014, Storniolo worked extensively with redshirt first-year Jason Tsirtsis during his National Championship season at 149 pounds. With Storniolo on staff, the 'Cats wrestled to two top-ten national finishes in a three-season span between 2012 and 2014.
Before coming to Northwestern, Storniolo spent two seasons as a volunteer assistant at Old Dominion, where he trained closely with Ryan Williams, the 2009 NCAA runner-up at 141 pounds.
Storniolo began his college wrestling career at Penn State, reaching the finals of the Big Ten Championships on his way to winning the conference's Freshman of the Year honors. After transferring to Oklahoma, Storniolo reached the Big XII Tournament finals each of the next three years, claiming the league championship as a senior in 2007.
A four-time qualifier for the NCAA Championships, Storniolo earned his first All-American honor by placing seventh as a sophomore before improving to a fourth-place finish as a junior. In his senior campaign, he entered the tournament as the second-ranked wrestler in the nation.
Before college, Storniolo wrestled to an undefeated senior year at State College Area High School in Pennsylvania en route to a state championship. He was also named a high school All-American.
Storniolo graduated from the University of Oklahoma with a Bachelor of Science in human relations.
