WW South cuts Ewoldt competition down to size

They are known in the room as the chainshaw group, this trio of Ben Flores, Qarin Johnnic and Andrew Ives.

And they helped shred the competition Saturday afternoon for host Wheaton Warrenville South, who lifted the championship trophy at the 39th Ed Ewoldt Wrestling Invitational.

Flores, Johnnic and Ives earned their second consecutive individual crowns, and Aaron Schliesmann (120) and George Beck (220) joined their team mates atop the podium as the Tigers made it two team titles in a row after outscoring runnerup Fremd 221.50-189.

Schliesmann (14-8) extracted a measure of revenge in his final, defeating Alex Heston 9-7 one week after dropping an 8-6 decision to the Romeoville senior.

Homewood-Flossmoor (141), Burlington Central (131) and Niles West (116.5) rounded out the top five in a tournament which was even after the quarterfinals before the Tigers side erupted in the next round.

"What a terrific day's work from the guys," said Wheaton Warrenville South coach Matt Janosek, who directed a pair of head-to-head victories over Fremd during the semifinals before Flores (138) and Ives (152) followed suit and defeated their Vikings foes to keep the Tigers' advantage safe.

"During my first three years, we've been a .500 club," said Johnnic, (21-1) whose brilliant effort at 145 pounds earned last year's fourth-place state finisher a second straight Outstanding Wrestler award. "But the commitment to excellence and work ethic from everyone on this team is so much higher, and it shows with us being 16-3 thus far, and a great win today with everyone making a contribution."

Janosek credits the chainsaw group with giving the team a positive buzz.

"Qarin, Ben and Andrew are great leaders on this team," Janosek said. "Our senior group is very strong in that way, and they all have been the catalyst in having a strong first half of the year - and hopefully an equally strong second half, especially when the postseason rolls around."

Fremd's young team kept pace with WW South thanks in part to 195-pound champ Alex Jacobs (20-1) and 138-pound runner-up Dominic Lorig (14-7).

"The day didn't quite end the way it began," said first-year Fremd coach Dan Ruettiger, "but each week we're getting better, and guys like Alex and Dominic are leading the way, both in and out of the room."

Fremd was without standout sophomore heavyweight Zach Nemec, who is expected back soon after already earning titles at Prospect and Harvard.

"The atmosphere in the room is great, and coach (Ruettiger) is the reason for that," began Jacobs, who won his second Ewoldt title after a 9-0 major over Kyle Blankenberg (Burlington Central). "I didn't feel as if I was at my best at the Harvard Tournament (where Jacobs finished second), but since then I've gotten back to where I wanted to be, mentally and physically, where I've gotten back on top of dealing with my diabetes."

Fremd had three second-place finishers. Burlington Central had a pair, with freshmen Austin Macias getting himself yet another championship following a strong six-minute performance against Jake Jones of Wheaton Warrenville South in a 6-3 decision in the 113-pound final.

"I felt like I could have wrestled a better match, but one of the things about transitioning from club is the different styles of my opponents, and the adjustments you have to make from week to week," said Macias, who is now 16-0 with three tournament titles along with a No. 2 ranking from IllinoisMatmen.com

"The work rate and desire to get better is first rate from Austin," said Burlington Central coach Vince Govea. "It's rare to see that from a freshman, but he's in at 6:00 running and training, and it continues in the room after school. He's become a terrific addition to our team and program."

The Rockets have proved they belong when measured against their 3A opponents during the weekends, finishing fifth overall behind Huntley, Fremd and Dundee-Crown at Harvard two two weeks ago.

"We're in the hunt, and staying closer at each tournament this year thus far, and we're getting plenty of improvement from everyone in our lineup along the way," Govea said.

Senior Christian Quiles was second overall at 160 pounds, falling in OT to Mike Hall of Homewood-Flossmoor 4-2.

Elgin's Nathan Romero won at 132 pounds to improve to 10-3, and with teammate Dan Easter (126) provided a nice one-two punch for the Maroons. Elgin earned a respectable 82 points, good for ninth place.

Romero held off Quinn Bergles 5-3, while Easter, just back in form after missing most of the first half with an injury, was defeated 6-2 by Scott Pechter of Niles West in his final.

"I feel great right now," said Romero, who was a sectional qualifier last season. "I began the year at (138), but 132 is where I belong, and since gettting (there) I've gone 9-1, including my 3 wins today."

Romero, who hopes to study engineering at Illinois next fall, likes what he sees from Easter as well: "Dan looks great just coming back, and once he gets his conditioning, he's going to have a great second half of the year."

Larkin competed short-handed, but despite having just 11 competitors the Royals still managed to come away with seven medals overall. Larkin's best finish came from junior Leo Martinez (13-4), who earned fourth place at 152.

"Leo has already equaled his win total from a year ago, so he's made great progress over the past year," said Larkin coach Steve Hoyt.

Hoyt was pleased to see Roosevelt Hopkins (160) earned the first varsity medal of his career.

"We only have two seniors, and our program numbers are up to 63, so things are looking brighter with each day," said Hoyt.

Senior Cliff Eiring was a bright spot for Tony Ganas and his Hoffman Estates team, which collected 78 points, and eight medals.

Unfortunately for Eiring (21-5), his opponent in his final was the aforementioned Johnnic, who needed just 2:20 minutes to record a technical fall.

"Cliff had been a tremendous surprise, and a real inspiration to this program," said Ganas. "He's made up his mind to get better, and the commitment and hard work has seen his turn things around to the point where he feels he can compete at a higher level."

Eiring, who has 14 pins, recorded another at 1:16 to reach the finals.

WW South fans cheered Ives during his technical fall at 4:12 over Matt Kurtishi after back-to-back success from Flores and Johnnic before Beck brought the fans off their seats during a 2-1 OT thriller over Justin Minor.

"George just finds a way to grind things out," Janosek said. "He did it in his semifinal and again in the final, and he's one of those guys that helps set the tone and pace in our room this season."