Metallo, Addison Trail have a blast
With his first wrestling tournament title within reach, Addison Trail's Anthony Metallo left little doubt who was claiming top honors at 145 pounds at the Chris Chappell Invitational at Glenbard West.
The Blazers senior came out aggressively and didn't let up until he had pinned Morton's Jordan Enriguez at the 3:24 mark. Metallo was one of several Addison Trail wrestlers who shined Saturday as the Blazers defended their 2014 Chappell crown with 247 points.
"Right off the bat I just attacked, attacked, attacked and he couldn't really stop me … it was awesome. I was just itching for that one," said Metallo, who had reached the finals with an 8-3 defeat of the Hilltoppers' Devin Knowlton in the semifinals.
Metallo, one of the Blazers' team captains this season, really wanted a title Saturday, and now he really wants to earn a trip to state later this season.
"This is my first tournament that I've won in my high school career," said Metallo, 17-3 on the season. "So I came out with a little fire under my butt. I just came out ready. I wanted this one. I wanted to win."
"It was awesome. Winning tournaments like these will help us in the room to train hard. It's a good feeling," added Metallo, who lost in the sectionals last year, one round shy of qualifying for state. "This year I need to make it to state."
Also picking up titles for Addison Trail were Mike Huyhn (113 pounds), Jorge Arellano (138), Brandon Webb (160), Larry Thomas (170) and Eddie Valdez (220).
Huyhn, a co-captain for the Blazers, notched his second straight 113 title at this event.
"I think I did good today," he said after beating Glenbrook North's Brandon Lopez by major decision in the finals. "I turned him a lot."
Blazers coach Rob Serio has come to expect great things out of Metallo and Huyhn, but he was glad to see them have plenty of company on the podium.
"It was a good day. We had some kids that were just over .500 win titles today, and that was huge for us," said Serio, whose team improved to 9-4 in duals with a 44-16 defeat of Fenton on Friday. "Morton's a very, very good team and so is Glenbard West. It was a great day."
Glenbard West took second in the eight-team meet with 227.5 points, with Morton in third place just three points behind the hosts. Elk Grove, paced by a second-place finish from Daniel Jamieson at 220 pounds, was fifth with 117 points.
The Hilltoppers recorded top-three finishes at 10 weight classes, including titles from Charles Farber (106 pounds), Matt Shoub (152), Nate Orrison (182) and heavyweight Darien Kaufmann.
Orrison, a co-captain for Glenbard West, improved to 19-3 on the year with three wins. He said defense was a key for his success, especially in a 3-2 thriller over Morton's Noel Ibarra in the finals.
"Overall I thought my defense was good," he said. "I didn't get taken down at all. I thought that was the key to all my victories today, good technique."
Kaufmann, who also won a 3-2 final for the Hilltoppers, recorded a pin of Elk Grove's Pedro Martinez in the semis before edging the Blazers Karim Fuentes in the finals at 285 for his team-leading 20th win of the season.