Vernon Hills flexes its upper-weight lineup strength
After getting postponed against Warren on Thursday night due to inclement weather, visiting Mundelein and Vernon Hills squared off in a rare North Suburban Conference wrestling dual meet to open the 2015 part of their season Friday night.
Starting the meet at 145 pounds, the Mustangs kept it close with the Cougars in a 12-12 deadlock after four matches.
But Vernon Hills (13-7) took command of the meet after that point with its upper weights really doing some damage en route to an impressive 52-24 NSC crossover victory over Mundelein (5-10).
Vernon Hills 145-pound senior Peter Vanderbloomer (22-3) showed why he is basically a lock to return to the Class 2A state meet in February as he pinned his opponent in 3:39 to stake the Cougars to an early 6-0 advantage.
Then Mundelein 152-pound senior Brae Cruz (17-2) showed why he is also a serious contender to reach the Class 3A state meet in February as he pinned his opponent in 3:14. Ironically, Cruz went to state as a sophomore when he wrestled for the Cougars.
A forfeit win at 160 by Mundelein senior Chris Adams gave the Mustangs a brief 12-6 lead.
But the Cougars really got rolling after that point as a pin by 170-pound senior Patrick Pranica (11-8) in 3:36, a pin by 182-pound senior Jake Stinson (9-6) in 1:39, a forfeit win by 195-pound senior Max Donato (13-7), a pin by 220-pound sophomore Collin Turley (10-8) in 3:14, a pin by 285-pound senior Joe Blitstein (19-4) in 1:27, and a pin by 106-pound sophomore Jesse Goldufsky (13-5) in 2:49 gave Vernon Hills an almost insurmountable 42-12 lead with five bouts remaining.
"This year we're definitely in the best shape we've ever been in, and we haven't wrestled a team that is in better shape than us," said Stinson, who is one of four captains on the Cougars' squad. "We're definitely looking to keep improving on an upward plane and we're hoping to get five state qualifiers this year."
Besides Cruz continuing his great 2014-15 campaign, which included a runner-up finish at the powerful, 31-team Palatine tournament just before the new year, Mundelein did have some other very bright spots in its lineup.
113-pounder Marco Rosales pinned his opponent in 3:28 before 120-pound junior teammate Alec Riportella (14-1) recorded a pin in just 50 seconds to cut the Vernon Hills lead to 42-24.
"We need to do more, but we're a really young team," said Mundelein coach Vinny Jiuditta, whose team will be heading out to the Sycamore tournament on Saturday. "They (Cruz and Riportella) are the hardest workers in the room for sure, they do everything we ask them to do, and we're looking forward to them doing some good things this season."
With the lead cut to 18 points, the Cougars got rolling again when 126-pound junior Angel Tino (18-7) posted an 11-0 major decision over Bryce Swanson to officially clinch the team victory at that point.
Vernon Hills junior Issam Khayr (8-6) held off Carlos Hernandez for a 2-0 decision in a classic defensive struggle in the 132-pound match.
Then Vernon Hills 138-pound junior Jeff Echeverria (14-12) posted a 14-7 decision over Alex Hendon to put the finishing touches on the Cougars' first win of the new year.
"Our goal was one match at a time, keep it close, and those guys (at upper weights) started pinning," said Vernon Hills coach Jerry Miceli, whose team will compete in the Leyden Invitational Saturday. "We did really well over Christmas break, and we're getting healthy so we're getting there day by day."
When the post-season rolls around, Vernon Hills will face some tough competition against the likes of Carmel, Lakes, and other squads vying for a trip to state in both the individual and team state tournaments.
"I was really happy with the way the kids wrestled and they were ready to go tonight," added Miceli, who has coached numerous state medalists in his previous 14 seasons. "Angel Tino really worked hard in the off-season and he's really been a surprise in the room."