Peter Tolk '86

Peter Tolk was another of those gifted athletes who made their mark in more than one sport for Fairfield Prep.

As a football player, Tolk was a three-year starter at linebacker, captained the team his senior year and was a named a first team all-conference and all-state choice in his senior season, as well as being named a first-team Bridgeport Post All-Star in 1985.

But Tolk’s forte was wrestling, a sport still in its halcyon days at Prep. But Tolk helped bring it to the forefront. Often competing against much heavier competition in terms of weight class, Tolk was a two-time Class LL state champion and a three-time Class LL finalist. He won the 167-pound championship twice and also was a two-time state freestyle champion.

Tolk wrestled with the varsity for four seasons, but in his last two years the Jesuits went 14-2 and 19-3, respectively, in dual meets. Tolk was a co-captain his senior year and he helped lead Prep to a third-place finish in the Class LL tournament. 

Tolk was also a two-year member of Team Connecticut and competed in the National Junior Olympic Tournament. 

After graduation, he wrestled for four seasons at Franklin and Marshall and was the team captain his senior year. 

Tolk went into coaching after college, becoming the assistant varsity wrestling coach at The Hackley School in Tarrytown, NY, a member of the Ivy Preparatory School League that consists of private schools in Manhattan, The Bronx and Westchester.

Tolk coached there from 1990-1993, revamping the program to the point where it eventually produced many league champions. He later spent time as a volunteer assistant at Prep as well as at Trumbull High in the mid-1990s.