OHIO CITY, OH - On Saturday, August 22, Saint Ignatius High School celebrated Wildcats Roar and inducted five new members into the Athletic Hall of Fame. The names include Mike Szweda '95, Bryan Panteck '01, Matt Miller '02, Ed Zdolshek '09, and David Habat '10. Their plaques will line the halls of the Athletic Hall of Fame at Saint Ignatius.
The night would also celebrate the Hall of Fame's 40th anniversary, with many past inductees in attendance. Saturday was a celebration of the past, present, and future of Wildcat athletics. Meet our new inductees, and learn how they left their mark as student-athletes.
As a student-athlete at Saint Ignatius High School, Mike Szweda '95 became the first Wildcat lacrosse All-American, leading the team to back-to-back final four appearances, while also helping lead the football team to win two state championships. He earned All-Ohio and MSLA Player of the Year in
lacrosse, setting program records in goals, assists and points, and was an All-Sun West
selection in football.
"Mike's an incredible athlete," says childhood friend and high school teammate Ryan Lavelle '95. The two met in their early teens, playing football together for St. Anne's
Catholic Church in Cleveland Heights. Szweda attended St. Dominic in Shaker Heights, but when his parish couldn't field a team, he joined St. Anne's. They bonded on a city championship team there and later won state championships together at Saint Ignatius in 1993 and 1994. Coming in as a freshman wasn't easy.
"Playing freshman year was the hardest thing I had ever done up to that point—between the running, the working out, and the practices," Szweda says. "I remember thinking, 'Wow, if you want to do this, you're going to have to do it all the way.'" And do it all the way, he did. He started as a receiver because, as he puts it, "like everyone, I wanted to catch passes and score touchdowns."
But at the end of his sophomore year, during his one-on-one with legendary Coach Chuck Kyle '69, coach told him he wanted him to focus on defense. Szweda was happy to play anywhere. He ultimately became the Wildcats' monster back. Szweda stays humble when reflecting on his career. Asked about the time he scored 12 defensive points in a single game, he laughs:
"Honestly, the first touchdown—it was almost like I can't believe I'm going to pick up this ball and there isn't anyone in front of me, so I just ran with it." He continues, "And the second one was like, 'Oh, look what I found.' I was in the right place at the right time. The team was doing all their jobs, and it was just there for me to pick up."
He was equally unstoppable on the lacrosse field, unafraid of contact, and skilled with the stick. "Lacrosse was grassroots at the time," he says, noting they
played on sloped fields in the Cleveland Metroparks. Assists were the stat he valued most. "I knew if I had a bunch of assists, that meant other guys were having goals, and we'd have a good chance to win." Adding with a team-first mindset: "I was really focused on getting everyone on the team involved." Szweda says he always knew he'd follow his brother Scott '91 to Saint Ignatius. "Anything my brother was doing, I was going to do as well."
One of the great lessons he learned was how to lead. "We had such tremendous upperclassmen to emulate. We saw it every day—how they carried themselves
in the gym and in the classroom—and we knew that's what we were supposed to do. They led by example."
A particularly touching moment came when Szweda received the voicemail from President and Chief Mission Officer Fr. Raymond P. Guiao, S.J. '82, informing him of his Hall of Fame induction. "Fr. Guiao left me a message that said, 'I don't know if you remember me.' Ironically, I wrote my college entrance exam about Fr. Guiao. He inspired me and helped me stay focused on academics and schoolwork, so yes, I remembered him!"
Mike lives in Richmond, VA, with his wife, Tayrn, and daughter, Sydney.
Growing up in the 1990s, when his older brother was the starting quarterback for the Blue and Gold, Bryan Panteck '01 knew he wanted to carry on his family's legacy at Saint Ignatius High School. Panteck's brother, Geoff '96, was the signal caller for the 1995 State and National Championship team. When Bryan stepped foot on campus, he knew the expectation was simple: work hard. Panteck worked closely with longtime offensive coordinator and the late coach Nick Restifo,
Hon. '19.
"The best part of his coaching was that he did not mince words. It was a joy to be coached by him," Panteck says. "I was fortunate to be coached by him and to become great friends with him." Panteck earned the starting quarterback job as a junior and held the position through his senior season. In his two years as the
starter, he compiled a 21-3 record. During the 1999 season, Panteck suffered an injury during the Wildcats' postseason run. Saint Ignatius went on to defeat Huber Heights Wayne in the OHSAA State Championship Game, securing the program's eighth state title. In the closing seconds, Head Football Coach Chuck Kyle '69 sent Panteck onto the field to take the final snaps in victory formation.
"There were not high expectations coming into that season. We came together as a team and made a run in the postseason," Panteck says. "Everybody on the team did their part during the 1999 season."
Panteck still holds the school record for most passing touchdowns in a single game. In the 2000 season opener, he threw six touchdown passes in a 48-14 victory over Toledo St. John's Jesuit. Later that season, Panteck earned first-team All-Ohio honors as the Wildcats' signal caller.
Panteck would be a two-time varsity letter winner for the Track and Field team under coach Kyle. "He is a true motivator and every week was all about
preparation," Panteck explains. "There were a bunch of members of the football team that ran track in the spring, so it created a team effort and camaraderie that
we carried into the fall."
During his senior season, Panteck completed 55 percent of his passes for 2,416 yards and 27 touchdowns. In two years as a starter, he would finish with the
third-most touchdown passes with 42 in program history. He continued his football career at the University of Northern Iowa.
"Saint Ignatius has always taught me how to overcome adversity and how to respond to situations," Panteck says. "It taught me to respond positively and move forward through any situation."
Bryan lives in Strongsville, OH, with his wife, Stephanie, and his sons, Cooper and Brady.
Matt Miller's '02 connection to Saint Ignatius began long before he ever put on a Wildcats uniform. His earliest memory is attending the 1991 State Championship football game as a first grader, watching the Wildcats defeat Centerville 24-21. By third grade, he already knew the words to the alma
mater by heart.
That early love and admiration for Saint Ignatius made it deeply meaningful when he joined the football team as a freshman. He arrived as a quarterback from St. Raphael, but when he saw Nate Szep '02 with the quarterbacks on that first day of practice, he made a pivotal decision.
"Nate was a St. Bernadette's kid, and I was a St. Raphael's kid. We played against each other dating back to flag football in fourth grade," Miller recalls. "When I saw him with the quarterbacks on that first day of practice, I said to myself, you know what, I'm not gonna play quarterback, I'm gonna try to play receiver—it worked out pretty well."
The decision paid off. Miller became a record-setting wide receiver, amassing over 100 receptions, 2,000 receiving yards, and 26 touchdowns over his career, while helping lead the Wildcats to state championships in 1999 and 2001. He credits much of his success to an extraordinary coaching staff. Not only did the Wildcats have Chuck Kyle '69, Nick Restifo Hon. '19, Jack Corrigan '70, and Marty Eynon, but recent graduates who had just started their careers returned to coach—men like Eric Haddad '94, Darin Kershner '95, Keith Laschinger '94, Scott Mutryn '94, Tom Rini '95, and Mark Wazevich '93. "These guys who we looked up to growing up, who were a part of the early State Championship teams—they were now coaching us."
Miller's senior football season was one for the record books, setting the school record with 14 touchdown receptions, but he remembers it for different reasons. "There was a lot of adversity that year. We lost four games. We had to win the last game of the regular season just to get into the playoffs. And once we got in, we got on a roll, and there was no stopping us." The Wildcats went on to defeat St. Xavier 37-6 for the state championship.
On the baseball diamond, Miller was a two-year starting shortstop and the cornerstone of the team's first-ever state championship. He made the final catch to seal the victory over Milford. Miller missed a significant portion of his senior season due to mononucleosis, but the team's depth carried them through. When they reached the Final Four, they were confident — and delivered the first OHSAA baseball championship in school history.
The team's success was built on continuity. "Brian Morgan '93 was my freshman basketball coach and was also going to be the freshman baseball coach that year,"
Miller recalls. "Coach Morgan coached us as freshmen, then moved up to varsity, and coach Brad Ganor took over. We stayed with that same group of coaches throughout our four years. That type of continuity is pretty unheard of as you go from freshman to senior year."
A five-time varsity letter winner, Miller was part of three state championship teams, two in football, one in baseball. Among them, the baseball championship means the
most. "The players were close-knit, and so were the players' parents," he says. When Miller received the voicemail from Fr. Raymond P. Guiao, S.J. '82, President and Chief Mission Officer, notifying him of his Hall of Fame induction, he couldn't believe it.
"It was surreal getting that call." Miller remains grateful for the opportunity to win as part of a team. "There's nothing like winning as a team. Winning individually is nice—winning as a team and being able to celebrate with others takes it to a whole other level. It teaches you to work with others, to handle adversity with others, and how to handle conflict. And it teaches you how to succeed, not only on a field, but beyond the field."
Saint Ignatius has left a lasting impact on Miller's life. "Saint Ignatius has had the greatest impact out of any institution in my life. It's been bred into me since I was very
young. It's been a part of my life since I was in first grade. It's a part of my life now. I still commit my time and efforts to this school. My father, my uncles, my cousins, my
brothers—all went here. We all still commit our time and efforts to this very special place. I can't imagine going anywhere else. Saint Ignatius, to me, is the epitome of a
high school education. And I thank God every day that I got the chance to attend Saint Ignatius."
Matt lives in Bay Village, OH with his wife Jennifer and three children.
Before Saint Ignatius Hockey became a national ice hockey powerhouse, the program endured some difficult years in the early 2000s. During that time, a young boy
from Parma, Ohio, set his sights on attending the school at the corner of Lorain Avenue and West 30th Street. Ed Zdolshek '09 began playing hockey at the age of three and quickly fell in love with the sport.
"I loved being on the ice. My dad was my youth coach, and when it was time for a line change, I went to him and said, 'I don't want to come off,'" Zdolshek recalls. "My dad told me the only position that doesn't come off the ice is the goalie. Ever since, I have fallen in love with the position and have known I wanted to be a goalie."
In fifth grade, Zdolshek met Head Hockey Coach Pat O'Rourke '90. When he arrived on campus as a freshman, Zdolshek was eager to get to work and become part of the culture surrounding the Hockey Cats. Zdolshek would help lay the foundation for what the Saint Ignatius Hockey program would eventually become. He started all four seasons for the Blue and Gold, establishing school records for wins (58), save percentage (.928), goals-against average (1.68), shutouts (25), and saves in a single game (74).
That single-game saves record still stands today. Zdolshek made 74 saves in the 2010 OHSAA District Final against St. Edward at the Brooklyn Recreation Center. The Wildcats ultimately fell to the Eagles after six overtime periods, but the game remains one of the most memorable contests in the history of
the rivalry.
"I wish the result was different, but being a part of the historic rivalry was something special to begin with," Zdolshek says. "The atmosphere was unmatched. Thousands packed the arena, and after all these years, people still talk about that game."
The Parma native was named a team captain for the Wildcats, earned Cleveland Plain Dealer Goaltender of the Year honors twice, and was named Defensive MVP three times. Zdolshek continued his hockey career at Nazareth College before playing professionally in the minor leagues with Rochester, Manchester, and Watertown.
In 2019-20, Zdolshek returned to his alma mater as the Wildcats' goalie coach, beginning the next chapter of his Saint Ignatius hockey journey. Since returning, he has been part of several memorable postseason runs, including the Wildcats' 2024 State Championship victory over University School.
"To climb the mountain with that team was such a reward and an awesome experience. It was a full-circle moment for me with Saint Ignatius," Zdolshek explains. "When you are a part of Saint Ignatius, you are family forever. Being able to come back and give back to the kids, I'm just so grateful to have the opportunity to do that."
Ed lives in Cleveland, OH with his dog, Belle, and enjoys spending time with his longtime girlfriend.
In second grade, David Habat '10 began embracing every obstacle placed before him, developing the skills, resilience, and character that would shape his wrestling career. His journey to Saint Ignatius High School began when he met former Head Wrestling Coach Mark Sullivan at the State Tournament.
Coach Sullivan challenged Habat from a young age, encouraging him to compete against collegiate-level talent. Habat held his own against more experienced
wrestlers, showcasing the skill and potential that would define his career.
"Coach Sullivan did a million things for me that I appreciate. I could go on for days talking about how great a coach he was for me," Habat says. "He was always there for me, even during challenging times during my high school career."
Habat went on to become a four-time Ohio State Tournament place winner. During his junior season, he captured a State Championship in the 145-pound weight class. As a senior, he finished as a runner-up in the State Tournament at 152 pounds. He also placed third at the State Tournament as a freshman and sophomore. Habat finished his high school career with an impressive 147-16 record, including a 28-4 mark during his senior season.
"My goal coming into Saint Ignatius was to be a four-time State Champion, and my freshman year, I lost in the tournament. It didn't feel good at the time, but it was beneficial for my career," Habat explains. "After the loss, I came back in the tournament to take third place. That was a big moment for me."
Habat continued his wrestling career at Edinboro University, where he became a four-time NCAA National Qualifier for the Fighting Scots. He was also a two-time
All-American wrestler. He earned the distinction of an Olympic alternate in both 2016 and 2020. Internationally, Habat competed for Team Slovenia for four years. He would earn a silver medal in the Mediterranean Games and a bronze medal at the
European Championships.
Today, Habat continues to give back to the sport that has shaped his life. He runs Elevate Wrestling & Jiu Jitsu Club, where he trains youth, high school, and college
athletes.
"One of the biggest takeaways from Saint Ignatius that I use at Elevate is that you are more than a wrestling coach. It is more than just teaching kids moves and putting them together," Habat says. "It is being a role model, helping kids enjoy the sport, giving them life lessons, and helping them grow to be men."
David lives in Bath, Ohio, with his wife, Christina, son Maverick, and daughters Kennedy and Dani.
For our complete list of Athletic Hall of Fame inductees, please visit this
link.
