Ben Stehura enters his 10th season as the head coach of the Cleveland State wrestling program in 2017-18.

During his time at CSU, Stehura has coached five Eastern Wrestling League champions and 10 NCAA qualifiers.

Stehura used a young squad for much of the 2016-17 season, but the Vikings emerged with some strong individual performances nonetheless. Three true freshmen started every dual while seven of the 10 Vikings to compete at the Eastern Wrestling League Tournament were doing so for the first time in their career. Nick Corba earned an at-large berth to the NCAA Championships, the first at-large berth earned by a Viking in Stehura’s tenure. Corba claimed two bonus-point wins at the national tournament, the first Viking to achieve that feat since 1995.

The 2015-16 season was a successful one for Stehura and CSU, as he helped a pair of wrestlers to NCAA Championship berths. Both Riley Shaw and Sam Wheeler reached the round of 16 at NCAA’s as each hit the 30-win mark for the year. At the EWL Championships, Shaw won the title at heavyweight, while the Vikings had six wrestlers place in the top four at their respective weight classes. The Vikings went 4-2 in EWL dual meet action and finished tied for second, only finishing behind nationally ranked Edinboro. 

The Vikings have finished second in the EWL regular season in two of the past four years. 

Stehura has been heavily involved in coaching the Olympic styles of wrestling, serving as the head coach for Team Ohio the past eight years at the Junior National Freestyle Tournament in Fargo, N.D. The 2015 Ohio Junior National Team finished second in the country. 

In addition, he has helped 15 athletes qualify for Olympic and World Team trials. Stehura has also coached 10 U.S. Senior Open All-Americans and more than 20 UWW JR and University age group All-Americans. He coached Nick Corba to a UWW Jr. World Greco Roman Team berth in 2015.

For five seasons before coming to CSU, Stehura was the head coach at Limestone College, a Division II college, in Gaffney, S.C. The first head coach in Limestone College history, Stehura played an integral part in developing the program.

In 2007-08, he guided the Saints to a 15-4-1 mark, the first winning season in team history. While there he coached one NCAA national champion, three NCAA All-Americans, five NCAA national qualifiers and eight NCAA All-Academic Team members.

He began his coaching career as a graduate assistant for Cleveland State in 2001 under Jack Effner. During that time, he was part of a staff that qualified 10 wrestlers for the NCAA Championships, had three EWL individual champions and 14 EWL placewinners. In addition, the 2003 squad finished third at the EWL Championship after placing second during the dual meet campaign.

Stehura is a 2000 graduate of Lock Haven where he earned his Bachelor’s of Science in secondary education/geography and social studies. Stehura proceeded to earn a Master’s in Education Administration in 2003.

Stehura resides in Richmond Heights with his wife Michelle and three children:  Oscar, Helen and Stella.