Boys gymnastics: Glenbard West's big day includes lopsided invite victory
Saturday was about as good as it gets on the gymnastics front for Glenbard West.
It began with the sixth annual Steve Kafka Invite in the morning in Glen Ellyn, where the Hilltoppers dominated the field, posting a 154.3.
It concluded with the team making the short drive to the UIC Pavilion to see the greatest college gymnasts compete in the NCAA Championships, including Glenbard West alum Alex Diab, who won the still rings national championship for the University of Illinois.
"It was a really cool day," Glenbard West senior Daniel Eichin said. "It's been a lot of fun this season, so I'm glad to be a part of this team."
Eichen and Aiden Rudolph both won an event and Alexander Demeris won two at an invite that honors Kafka, the longtime former coach of the Hilltoppers, who led them to a state title in 1996 and retired 10 years ago.
"We're all working really hard and we know we still need to work on some things," Eichen said. "We hit some of our sets and we missed some, but overall it was a good meet."
The Hilltoppers didn't utilizing anyone as an all-arounder, which afforded several gymnasts with the opportunity to contribute and add to the team score. Notable finishers included Shea Rudolph, who was second on pommel horse and high bar, as well as Coley McArdle, who tied for third on pommel horse. Len Phuong and Andrew Lopez finished third on still rings and vault, respectively.
"Some of the lesser-known guys really stepped up," Eichin said. "Andrew really pulled through and beat both of the Randolph brothers on rings, and Coley and Len really pulled through and helped inspire the team."
Glenbard East was the distant runner-up with a 128.
Senior Marc Le led the Rams by winning the all-around with a 51.8. He also was the still rings champion, took second on vault and parallel bars and tied for third on pommel horse.
O.J. Miles also had a big meet for the Rams, especially on floor, high bar and floor, while Peter DeLaCruz, Eddie Pojman and Josh Vu added key scores for the Rams.
Glenbard South edged Addison Trail 111.3 to 111.15 for fourth place.
Sean McLaughlin took fourth in the all-around with a 39.8 and led the Raiders in four events. Senior Ryan McConville had the team's best score on vault and high bar.
"Sean had a really good meet," Raiders coach Lee Wood said. "He has been working real hard on his routines. It's great to see him put everything together, and Ryan is really coming into his own, starting to produce big tricks on high bar. He is feeling more comfortable every meet."
The Blazers showed how much they've improved in such a short time.
"Our team has been consistently improving with our skills and form," Blazers coach Mike Galfi said. "I'm proud of the strides we have made so far this year and I look towards riding that momentum into conference next weekend."
Matt Wojdak's brilliance on floor earned him third place behind Demeris and Rudolph.
"Matt continues to impress me with his efforts towards improving his high-level skills and making even the most difficult moves look easy," Galfi said. "He has handled the stress of a freshman competing at the varsity level with ease. His landings at the last few meets have been amazing and we really want to push for a state final bid."
Chicago Taft's Sean O'Connor won the vault and was the runner-up in the all-around.