John Prezzia has spent the past two years wondering "What if?"

Prezzia, a senior at South Side Beaver High School who won a PIAA wrestling title as a freshman, has spent most of the last two years recovering from surgeries to his knees and shoulders.

"It's been frustrating," said Prezzia, referring to the five surgical procedures he went through his sophomore and junior seasons at South Side Beaver. "I worked hard to get back on the mat and when I start to get in a rhythym ... bam ... and I'm back to square one."

The most recent of his surgeries came in February after injuring a shoulder at the Powerade Christmas Tournament.

"I ripped all the ligaments in my shoulder," Prezzia said. "It was so bad that I had to be careful walking down the steps after the surgery, because [the doctors] were afraid it might come apart again."

The doctors also told Prezzia to stay off his feet during the recovery period to give his knees more time to recover from previous surgeries on them.

"I was off for six months," Prezzia said. "It was really tough watching my teammates compete and knowing that I couldn't. I'm so competitive. It was driving me crazy to sit and watch."

Prezzia's career at South Side Beaver began with a bang. He surprised everybody by winning the 103-pound title in the PIAA Class AA tournament as a ninth grader. Prezzia had finished second in the WPIAL and third in the Southwest Region, so the PIAA title was unexpected.

It was the first PIAA wrestling title in Beaver County history. Four months later, Prezzia took it to the next level by winning a USA Wrestling Cadet National Freestyle title while competing in the 98-pound weight class.

"John was at the top of the world, and then it all came crashing down with the injuries," South Side Beaver coach Ron Ledbetter said. "His comeback has been inspirational for the entire team. He works so hard. It would be nice to see him back in Hershey again this year."

Prezzia recorded a 49-2 record as a freshman. His sophomore season started late due to knee surgery, but Prezzia returned and earned another trip to Hershey by placing third in the WPIAL and fifth in the Southwest Region at 112 pounds. He eventually finished fourth in the PIAA after a pair of 1-0 losses to the eventual champion and third place finisher.

Prezzia had a 23-8 record his sophomore year and was off to a 10-2 record last season when the shoulder injury sidelined him. With that in mind, Prezzia opened his senior year with a career 82-12 record.

"I began drilling and running at the end of July," Prezzia said. "I'm in good shape, but not where I want to be. I was off for so long that I need to condition my muscles by working as hard as I can during practice."

Prezzia is off to a 5-1 start as a 135-pound senior. Four of the six matches, and his only loss, came at the Chartiers-Houston tournament, which was held this past weekend.

"John is a middle weight for the first time, which is much different than wrestling in the lower weights," Ledbetter said. "He has recovered from the injuries, but is not reacting like he used to. That will come with more time on the mat."

Prezzia's only loss came in the finals of the Chartiers-Houston tournament. He dropped an 8-4 decision to Avella's Mitch Spencer.

"I wrestled poorly the entire weekend," said Prezzia, who recorded two falls and a decision in his victories at Chartiers-Houston. "I haven't wrestled enough matches yet to start clicking. I know I can do it. It's just been so long since I was winning on a consistent basis. I'm so anxious for that to happen again."

Prezzia's appearance in the Chartiers-Houston tournament finals was his third in four years. He won titles during his freshman and junior seasons.

"John's next big test will come at the Powerade tournament after Christmas," said Ledbetter, referring to the Dec. 29-30 tournament at Canon-McMillan High School. "He's considering a drop to 130 pounds, but we're not sure yet."

One might think the five surgeries Ledbetter has had would scare away college recruiters. That has not been the case.

"I've been to a lot of training camps over the years and have been able to meet some of the top wrestling coaches in the country," Prezzia said. "I received heavy interest from four schools -- Oklahoma, Missouri, Wisconsin and Illinois. After visiting all four, I picked Wisconsin."

Ledbetter was not surprised.

"Nothing John does amazes me," Ledbetter said. "He's a good student who is very dedicated and focussed. John has always wanted to wrestle in the Big 10 Conference. Now he'll get that chance."

Prezzia expects to redshirt his first year at Wisconsin.

"I'm very impressed with the coaching staff." said Prezzia, referring to head coach Barry Davis and assistant Donny Pritzlaff.

"They spoke on my level. I definitely want to redshirt my freshman year. I need a year to get stronger and more physically prepared."