Hatta Trick

Penn wrestler Ben Hatta is the son of an NCAA champion andPenn wrestler Ben Hatta is the son of an NCAA champion andthe grandson of an Olympian-and a star in his own right Hatta's grandfather, a national judo coach for Japan, was the first person to introduce Olympic-style wrestling to the Japanese. Later, Hatta's grandfather became friends with former Penn wrestling coach Austin Bishop after meeting him at the 1932 Olympic Games. When visiting Bishop at Penn, he even wrestled in the same practice room that his grandson and the rest of the Quakers practice in today. Hatta's grandfather introduced his son, Tadaaki, to the sport of wrestling. Tadaaki came to the United States at the age of 18 to wrestle for Oklahoma State, where he won an NCAA championship in 1965 in the 115-pound weight class. Tadaaki later served as a coach on both the Japanese and Mexican Olympic coaching staffs and was named an assistant coach for the 1996 United States Olympic wrestling team. "My two sons were exposed to the sport at a young age," Tadaaki said. "When I was coaching in high school, I used to take them to matches and tournaments, and they used to sit under the chair I was sitting on. And after the match or tournament was over, they'd get out on the mat and start wrestling each other." Hatta and his brother attended St. Edward High School in Lakewood, Ohio, a high school wrestling powerhouse that has won nine national championships. After winning the Ohio state wrestling championship at 112-pounds his senior year to become St. Edward's 39th state champion, Hatta was recruited to Penn by coach Roger Reina. "My wife and I went out to visit Austin [Bishop] a year ago last spring," said Reina, adding that Bishop had passed away this past summer. "He asked me how recruiting was going, and I told him that Ben Hatta was coming in. The name rang the bell, and he put it all together. And he was delighted that his good friend's grandson was now going to come wrestle for Pennsylvania." The amazing coincidence also startled Reina. "My jaw hit the floor when I was sitting in his living room and it came together in front of me," the Penn coach said. As a freshman, Hatta was relegated to wrestling third-string at 118 pounds, the lightest weight class, behind two-time team captain Gary Baker and fellow freshman Randall Braunfeld. But with the graduation of Baker, a three-time NCAA qualifier, a void was created at the bottom of the Penn wrestling lineup. "The 118-pound weight class is important in some special respects such that you get off to a good start in dual-meets, you start out on a positive foot in tournaments," Reina said. "He's the first one to go out there. And so in that respect, having a successful person at 118 is really important. There were pretty big shoes to fill in that weight class." Hatta knew that the vacant varsity spot was there for the taking, and he spent much of his summer working out with nationally-ranked wrestlers at Iowa State in the hopes of gaining the 118-pound slot in the Quakers lineup. "I just knew that this year I had to do it -- that this could be my year," Hatta said. And Hatta has taken full advantage of the opportunity. After claiming the spot from Braunfeld and winning at the season-opening Keystone Classic at the Palestra, Hatta has established himself as one of the top wrestlers on the Quakers squad. Hatta has compiled a 20-8 record so far this season and will be the second seed in this weekend's Eastern Intercollegiate Wrestling Association championship tournament in Syracuse, N.Y. "I just want to do as best I can and learn from my mistakes," Hatta said. "I want to become a better all-around wrestler and constantly improve on what I've done in the past." Hatta's rapid improvement as a first-year starter was one of the keys as the Red and the Blue recaptured the Ivy League championship title this season after a one-year hiatus as runner-up. "I'm proud to be a part of a team that's growing in success and in tradition," said Hatta. "I think we're finally earning our spot in the national light in how we are ranked and how we are looked upon as a team to be reckoned with. It's exciting for me to see us get better and better every year." Hatta has high goals for the remainder of the season. He is hoping to win the EIWA championship and qualify for the national championships. And after hearing about the feats of his father and grandfather, Hatta has realized that anything is possible with a little hard work. "Eventually, I expect to be an All-American and possibly a national champ and follow the path that my father set," Hatta said.