Scouting DuPage County boys swimming
Top teams: Hinsdale Central, Naperville Central, Metea Valley, Neuqua Valley, Waubonsie Valley,
Top players: Addison Trail/Willowbrook: Ethan Wallace, jr.; Zachary Thompson, fr.; Benet: JP McAveeney, so.; Nick Michaels, sr.; Bram Williams, sr.; Downers Grove North: Robert Bonanno, sr.; Ben Ellstrom, fr.; Downers Grove South: Sam Dumford, jr.; Dexter Allendorfer, sr.; Glenbard West/South co-op: Michael Hsu, jr.; Matt Wenta, sr.; Hinsdale Central: Brian Portland, sr.; Brian Powell, sr.; Adam Pircon, sr., Franco Reyes, so.; William Bowater, so.; Elliott Arnold (diver) sr.; Craig Smith, jr.; Billy Leader, fr.; Hinsdale South: Jason Yang, sr.; David Kulhavy, sr.; Kedrick Shin, sr.; Ryan Chu, sr.; Lake Park: Eric Sgarbossa, so.; Brian Bayer, sr. Metea Valley: Jordan O'Brien, sr.; Matt Salerno, sr.; Connor Cast (diver) sr.; Alex Dillmann, jr.; Kevin Kluge, jr.; Connor Mitsch, so.; Naperville Central: Scott Piper, jr.; Phillip Sajaev, so.; Christian May, sr.; Liam Coakley, sr.; Connor Walsh, sr.; Eric Gerlach, jr.; Jimmy Fox, jr.; Michael Stern, so.; Ryan Lehane, jr. Naperville North: Thomas Petersen (diver) sr.; Joe Cassano, sr.; Billy Troy, sr.; Joe Tomashek, sr.; I.I. Qiao,fr.; Neuqua Valley: Joe Widuch, sr., Simon Shatinsky, sr.; Brett Whaley, sr.; Matt Ciezczak, jr.; Joey Dalesandro, jr.; Austin Mollway, sr.; John Ruan, fr., Michael Peters, jr.; Waubonsie Valley: Michael Schwers, jr.; Eric Weng, so.; Bradin Krug,sr.; Kai Motoyama, jr.; Taggart Lohmann, jr.; Reilly Devine, jr.; Ethan Morse, fr.; Jared Simpson, fr.; West Chicago/Batavia co-op: Garrett Clasen, fr.; Tyler Cook, fr.; Ryan Sego, fr.; Keegan Hawkins, fr.; Wheaton Academy: Tyler Sesvold, so.; Wheaton co-op: Max St. George, sr.; Matt Rogers, sr.; Evan Sheriff, so.; Luke Cooperman (diver), jr.; York: Peter Barabolak (diver), so., Jack Fiorini, jr.
Outlook: This year will be just a preview of how strong the DuPage Valley Conference will be in boys swimming when the three Valleys from the Upstate Eight join the powerful conference. The new DVC will include seven of the eight DuPage County teams that scored at state last year. Only Hinsdale Central, which finished third at state, will not be a member of the new super-conference.
The team to beat in the current DVC will be Naperville Central, which placed fourth at state and returns a ton of talent. Piper is a true star who finished sixth in the 100 backstroke and seventh in the 200 IM. He was also a member of the Redhawks' 200 medley relay and 400 free relay that scored last year. "Scott is ahead of where he was a year ago," said Naperville Central coach Mike Adams. "He's bigger and stronger and that combined with his talent and his work ethic make him one of the best swimmers in the area." Sajaev came on strong last year and scored in the 100 breaststroke. Fox, Gerlach, May, Coakley and Walsh also have state meet experience. The Redhawks are loaded.
Within the league Naperville North, Wheaton co-op and Lake Park provide strong competition, though they don't have the depth and experience of Naperville Central. Diver Petersen, who should vie for one of the top spots at state, is the only scorer returning for the Huskies. However, coach Andy McWhirter has a lot of young talent that will be heard from by the time the postseason gets here. "There are great opportunities for some of the younger guys to earn their spots. I think our guys will surprise themselves with how good they are at sectionals."
St. George, who will swim at Duke next year, is the leader of the Wheaton co-op team. He was fourth in the backstroke and ninth in the 200 IM last year and he's also a valued member of the relay teams. "Max would be a state qualifier in every event," said Wheaton coach Jacob Ayers. Rogers is another state qualifier who has his eye on a top 12 finish this year. Wheaton also has one of its most talented freshman classes in years, so this team should continue to be strong in the future. Ayers is hoping for St. George, Rogers, diver Cooperman and a pair of relays to make state this year. Lake Park lost a lot to graduation, but Sgarbossa proved last year that he "can swim with the big guys," according to coach Dan Witteveen. The Lancers have a pair of relays that could make the state cut.
In the Upstate Eight, Metea Valley, which finished seventh in state, is the preseason choice, though Neuqua Valley has a deep and talented squad and Waubonsie Valley is on the rise. The Mustangs, whose O'Brien and Salerno finished 1-2 in the breaststroke, are hoping to win a state trophy by finishing in the top three. ''We'd love to be state champs," said Metea Valley coach Mark Jager. "We have more depth than last year so we have more options on the relays. Depth will also be an asset for Neuqua Valley. Widuch and Whaley are among those who can fill relay spots, which is where coach Chad Allen sees the Wildcats scoring most of their points. He believes Widuch can score in the backstroke and Peters is a threat in either the breaststroke or the IM. "We'll be fighting for a top 10 spot,' Allen said. Waubonsie Valley had a great deal of success last year, but the Warriors are looking to push it to the next level. Schwers is looking to move up to top six in the fly, while Weng and Krug are potential scorers. "We're still a young team," said Waubonsie coach Nick Arens. "We're looking to take a big step without a lot of seniors."
The West Chicago/Batavia co-op team may not have the numbers that their competitors have, but the future looks bright thanks to an excellent freshman class. "Our great freshmen have grown up swimming with and against each other," coach Nicole Cleveland said. "They're ready to go. We knew this would be the year when this class arrived." The coach thinks Clasen, Cook and Sego are all candidates to make state this year. Clasen is already under the cut in two events.
Hinsdale Central is primed to grab another trophy at state with a deep, experienced group. Reyes, who finished in the top six in both the butterfly and the breaststroke has been swimming in international meets with the Panamanian Junior National Team. Portland is looking for a state title in the 100 free and Pircon was top 12 in the 500 free. "We have a lot of guys returning from three relay teams that finished in the top six," coach Bob Barber said. "Portland will play a big role on all three relays. We're traditionally a strong relay team, and hopefully we have the guys who can bring us top six again in all three. We have a lot of talent and should be one of the contenders for state."
Key dates: Dec. 6: Naperville Central at Hinsdale Central Dec. 13: West Chicago Relays; Dec. 20: Neuqua Valley Invite; Downers Grove South Invite; Dec. 27: Naperville North College Events; Jan. 3: Aquapentathlon at Waubonsie Valley; Jan. 8: Metea Valley at Neuqua Valley; Jan. 9: Naperville Central at Naperville North; Jan. 10: Hinsdale South College Events; Jan. 17: Hinsdale Central Diving Invitational; Downers Grove North Trojan Invite; Jan. 30-31: Metea Valley Mustangs Invite; Feb. 7: Conference meets; Feb. 21: Sectionals; Feb. 27-28: State meet at New Trier.
- Neil Shalin