Chance Marsteller walks off the mat after losing to Isaiah Martinez at University Nationals (Photo/Sam Janicki)On the same day Chance Marsteller waived his right to a preliminary hearing for alleged crimes last month the local district attorney claimed the former Oklahoma State and Lock Haven University wrestler was drunk and had illegal drugs in his system during those incidents.
Clinton County district attorney David Strouse said Tuesday that Chandler S. Marsteller, a four-time undefeated Pennsylvania state wrestling champ for Kennard-Dale High School, had cocaine and marijuana in his body, and a blood alcohol level of .274, more than three times the legal limit.
At the preliminary hearing, Strouse added a charge of public drunkenness against Marsteller, who had been originally charged with six counts each of aggravated and simple assault and recklessly endangering another person, two counts of disorderly conduct and one count of open lewdness, according to the arrest report.
Marsteller is free on $50,000 bail and is now staying his parents. According to his attorney, Ryan Gardner, the 21-year-old wrestling phenom will be undergoing intensive counseling.
Marsteller's next court appearance - a formal arraignment -- is scheduled for Oct. 17, but Gardner said it could be waived.
Marsteller had been on the roster at Oklahoma State for two seasons, but was suspended from the team last February for an unnamed violation of team rules. He left the Cowboys to return to his native Pennsylvania, announcing that he would enroll at Lock Haven and wrestle for the Bald Eagles.
On August 25, Lock Haven police reported they received calls that a naked man was banging on doors at a university-owned apartment complex. Police said they found Marsteller clad in a towel, and took him into custody after he dropped it twice, exposing his genitals.
Once under arrest, Marsteller threatened police, yelled obscenities and banged his head on the partition between the front and back seats of the police cruiser, according to the police report.
Police said they used pepper spray to get him to stop and instead of taking Marsteller to the county jail, transported him to Lock Haven Hospital for detoxification.
According to the incident report, Marsteller was handcuffed behind his back and lunged at a hospital staff member trying to obtain information.
Officers said they attempted to restrain Marsteller, but he repeatedly banged his head on the floor, causing injuries to his nose and face and profuse bleeding.
According to the arrest report, he kicked, elbowed and head-butted the officers and pulled vigorously on his handcuffs while attempting to stand. He is accused of spitting blood into one of the officer's eyes, the report states.
Police said Marsteller continued to act violently until the effects of several doses of a tranquilizing agent took effect. The incident in the hospital lasted nearly an hour, police said.
The following day, Lock Haven University announced that Marsteller was "no longer associated" with the Pennsylvania school.
Marsteller had a 166-0 career record at Kennard-Dale, tallying four Pennsylvania state titles to become only the fifth undefeated four-time state champ. The highly-recruited wrestler had originally committed to Penn State before switching to Oklahoma State. However, Marsteller's two years with the Cowboys were challenging. The wrestler who had won a 170-pound title at the 2013 PIAA championships was struggling to compete in college at 157 pounds. In his Thfirst season (2013-14) at the Stillwater school, Marsteller compiled a 14-4 record wrestling unattached as a true freshman. Last season, the Keystone State phenom went 6-5 before coach John Smith suspended him in mid-January for an undisclosed violation of team rules for the remainder of the year.
This summer, Marsteller announced he would be transferring to Lock Haven in his home state.
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