Wheaton wins Krupke

The Wheaton co-op boys gymnastics received contributing scores from eight gymnasts and won Friday’s Ralph Krupke Invitational at Lake Park handily with 154.550 points.

Mundelein, whose second-best all-arounder, Tim Beranek, only competed on high bar, placed a distant second with 143.45 points.

Downers Grove North, whose top all-arounder, Luke Wychocki, missed the meet, placed third with a 135.65.

Wheaton sophomore Ethan Sansone won the floor with a 9.6, pommel horse with a 9.5 and parallel bars with a 9.4 to lead the winners. He took third in the all-around with a 51.9.

“I like to think of this kind of meet is just like state,” he said. “It’s just like a small part that adds up to the final part, which is state.”

Wheaton senior Mark Ciesielski placed second on floor with a 9.5 as well as on vault with a 9.35.

“(Coach Greg) Gebhardt is really pushing us and we’re trying to make him proud,” Ciesielski said. “I’ve been doing this for a while now, so it’s just going out there and making sure I can contribute.”

Also coming up big for the winners were Zach Neal and Danny Heller. Neal’s 8.55 on still rings and 8.85 on high bar were team bests. His 8.4 on parallel bars and 7.1 on pommel horse also contributed to the team total. Heller scored an 8.9 on pommel horse and added a pair of 8.8s on vault and high bar.

Chris Jordan’s scores on still rings and parallel bars were also helpful, as was the 8.1 both Max Jurkowski and Austin Peabody registered on floor and a 6.8 on still rings from Evan Murray.

“It was great to see how they stood up against these teams,” Gebhardt said. “We still haven’t started working full routines yet. We need to do that, but I like what they’re doing and I think I can really see us being a tough team in the end.”

Mundelein’s Colin McCarthy placed second in the all-around with a 52.35. He took third on vault and parallel bars. Teammate Cameron Mueller recorded a 9.3 on still rings to take second and was fifth in the all-around with a 47.4. Beranek was sixth on high bar with an 8.5.

Strah Sopcic was the only all-arounder for Downers Grove North and placed fourth with a 49.75. John Schubert competed in all but still rings, placing second on high bar with a 9 and third on floor with a 9.4.

“My meet felt pretty good, although I probably should fix up my pommel horse and add to my high bar,” Sopcic said. “The big part of this meet was to have fun and give it your all since it’s right before spring break.”

Naperville North senior Billy Suta was dissatisfied with his effort a week ago at Hinsdale Central’s Krupicka Invite but rebounded to take first in the all-around with a personal-best 54.91.

Suta had a 9.1 or better in every event except for vault, where he stumbled a bit to post an 8.41. He won high bar with a 9.5 and still rings with a 9.4.

“I think I was just on today. I was well rested and felt very good,” he said. “This is where I wanted to be this season, so this feels great.”

Suta’s team placed seventh with a 125.4.

Host Lake Park took fifth with a 132.9. Sam Flory was the Lancers’ top finisher, placing third on pommel horse with a 9.2.

“It’s our best score of the year, but I felt we left a lot out there,” Lake Park coach Keith Matune said. “I think we should’ve been in a position to take third today and challenge for 140 but had some big mistakes at the wrong time.”

Conant’s Brian Reedy was ninth in the all-around with a 45.3 to help the Cougars place sixth with a 131.15.

Fenton’s Luis Catalan was third on still rings with an 8.8, while Eric Owusu won vault with a 9.37. The Bison were eighth with a 123.82.

“My warmup was a little bit better,” Owusu said. “I missed up my steps and stayed tight. I wasn’t expected to win after that, but I actually increased my score from the last meet.”

The final two teams were Glenbard South and Hinsdale South. The Raiders scored a 117.95, and the Hornets closed with a 110.58.