Hard-working Chargers have lofty goals

Dundee-Crown senior wrestler Chris Rust apologized to a reporter recently for being tardy for a phone interview.

Rust and four of his teammates were working out after practice on their own at Lifetime Fitness in Algonquin the night before.

"A bunch of us go over there a couple of days a week and work out," said Rust, who listed six of his teammates who attend the workouts.

Rust, though, isn't the only one fond of putting in extra work in the Dundee-Crown program.

While Rust made it to 88 of a combined 109 open gyms (made available to all Dundee-Crown students), weight training sessions and wrestling camps, junior teammate Jeremy Lee (whose triplet brothers Jermaine and Josh are also on the team), made it to a staggering 108.

"I went to a lot, but I really didn't keep count," said Lee. "I missed one because I had something important to do with my family so I couldn't make it."

Work ethics like those are what have built the foundation of the area's most successful high school wrestling program.

And with 10 wrestlers in the lineup that are either third or fourth-year varsity performers, the Chargers, who hit the 20 dual-win barrier for the seventh time in program history last year, could be poised to add even more lore to their already storied program.

D-C is looking for its record eighth straight Fox Valley Conference championship this season and 15th overall since the merger of Crown and Dundee high schools.

That list of veterans includes 2007 Daily Herald All-Area performers Mike Lukowski (39-4), Ryan Horcher (32-8) and Jack Lewis (33-12). Lukowski finished fifth in the state at 189 pounds and is looking to become just the second D-C wrestler to win 2 state medals. Horcher also qualified for state last year, while Lewis was a state alternate.

While Lukowski, Horcher and Lewis won 104 matches by themselves, fellow returnees Cody Muscat (34-11, sectional qualifier), Bob Libricz (24-14, sectional qualifier), Jeremy Lee (19-13), Austin Tanner (13-13, sectional alternate), Rust (18-16) and Jonathan Blume (16-9) bring back a combined 124 varsity triumphs from last season.

Blume has applied for entrance to the United States Naval Academy and if accepted, he would be the sixth D-C wrestler to enter a U.S. service academy, joining the likes of twins Bill and Mark Niketas (only set of twins to be admitted into a service academy according to D-C coach Al Zinke), Rodney Cornwell and 1985 Class AA state champion and 2-time state medalist Larry Kaifesh (who is now a Lieutenant Colonel in the Marines).

"The experience we have is really important," said Lee. "When we step on the mat, we already know what the game plan is. The seniors we have are real helpful. They keep the team pumped up. If we mess up or are struggling, they can help us out. I think we are prepared for anything."

Horcher, a 2-time state qualifier, said there is little substitute for experience in wrestling.

"We have a lot of depth and a lot of experience on the team," said Horcher, a 3-sport athlete at D-C who said he will likely pursue baseball in college. "That experience is what will make us standout. Half of the lineup is seniors. There is a lot of good leadership too. That's very important. If you lead by example, the guys on the team and the younger guys in the program as well are learning what it takes to be successful. We're showing these newer guys how things get done."

During the annual season preview chat, Zinke, a Hall of Fame coach who according to IHSA records is just 21 wins shy of 500 for his Crown and Dundee-Crown coaching career, listed nearly 25 names that could make a contribution to the varsity team.

"We've never had this much depth," said Zinke. "It's a blessing. We've got a lot of potential. We've got a lot of competition in the room and a lot of seniors that we're looking for leadership from and to take control and I think they will. It's going to depend on work habits. This is a great group of kids that has an opportunity to be good."

In terms of work habits, both Rust and Lee felt their off-season commitment wasn't anything out of the ordinary.

"It's about pushing yourself beyond where you were the day before," said Rust. "You work each day to get better."

"I did it so I can get better," said Lee. "Hard work gets you better and I think that is what makes the team better."

Dundee-Crown has made two previous major postseason statements. Both the 1985 and 2004 teams took fourth in the state team series.

"The 1985 team had 12 solid guys, but we couldn't afford to lose anybody," said Zinke. "The 2004 team took fourth, but we thought we could have done better. We lost a couple of starters and had no depth to replace them."

Now Zinke has the depth and the talent to boot. And his wrestlers are anxious to see how the 2007-2008 season plays out.

"We've got real high expectations," said Rust. "We've all been working real hard. We expect to be able to do good things this year."

"Based on our efforts and our work ethic and the talent we have, if we put it all to use I have a feeling we can go very far this year," said Horcher.