JEFFREY REINHART jreinhart@LNPnews.com

This just in …

You can take the coaching vacancy sign down outside Manheim Township’s wrestling room.

Longtime Lancaster County wrestling guru Joe Narkiewicz will be named the Blue Streaks’ next head coach, pending school board approval, the New Era has learned.

He will replace Jan Minnich.

Narkiewicz, the former principal at John Beck Elementary School, was Township’s junior high coach last year, and he led the Streaks to a 16-5 overall record. Five of his wrestlers qualified for the finals of the Elizabethtown Optimist Tournament, and three won individual championships.

“We’re very excited about having a guy like Joe running our wrestling program,” Township athletic director Kevin Raquet said.

Narkiewicz also previously served as head coach for Wheatland Junior High, where his teams earned a pair of section championships. And he was a volunteer assistant in Warwick’s wrestling program. He’s coached wrestling in the country for more than 30 years.

This is his first high school varsity coaching job.

Narkiewicz’s three sons – Brent, Eric and Kyle – all wrestled for Warwick, and all went on to wrestle in college. Brent and Eric graduated from Penn State; Kyle from Virginia.

Township will be looking to improve on last season’s 9-10 overall record – 1-5 in Section 1 matches – in Narkiewicz’s rookie season as head coach.