Mundelein feels fine, top Stevenson
Visiting Mundelein was facing a major uphill struggle after falling behind Stevenson 19-0 in North Suburban Conference wrestling action Friday night.
But the Mustangs pulled off a great comeback as they took a 22-21 lead late before capturing a 31-28 Lake Division victory over the Patriots in Lincolnshire.
Starting the dual meet at 130 pounds, Mundelein (10-8, 4-1) saw Stevenson (10-5, 3-2) jump out to a 6-0 lead as Nick Pagano's 8-2 decision was followed by teammate Charlie Deutsch's 1-0 decision over Eric Arcos at 135.
Stevenson's Nathan Millman added an 11-3 major decision at 140 before an 8-2 decision by teammate Taras Martyniouk at 145 and a pin by Bobby Vagun at 152 put the Patriots ahead 19-0.
The Mustangs got on the scoreboard when Devin Ringwald posted a 3-2 decision over Evihn Vaszily at 160. Then Mundelein 171-pounder Steve Avalos (21-7) earned a pin in 48 seconds before 189-pounder Adam Avalos (27-4) won a 8-5 decision over Ivan Havrylyan to make the score 19-12.
Stevenson's Stefan Melnyk posted a 12-5 decision at 215 to boost the lead to 22-12, but Mundelein took control of the meet after that point.
"We lost some close matches at heavyweight and 160, we knew they had a good team, and we had to have those matches to win but they didn't go our way," said Stevenson coach Shane Cook. "We got pinned twice, and in a close meet you can't afford to do that."
A third-period takedown carried Mundelein's Freddy Martinez to a hard-fought 3-1 decision over Adam Leja in the 285-pound bout before Mundelein 103-pounder Payton Cruz recorded a pin in 1:33 to cut the Pats' lead to 22-21.
Mundelein 2007 state qualifier Eduardo Dominguez (27-4) won by forfeit at 112 to give the Mustangs their first lead at 27-22.
Then Mundelein's Tanis Arcos sealed the victory by posting a 16-2 major decision to clinch the team win with a 31-22 advantage.
Stevenson 125-pounder David Lamberti won the final match by forfeit to account for the final score.
"I thought we were going to beat them because at the beginning of the season we didn't have our full lineup, but now we have our full lineup," Dominguez said. "I think I've gotten a lot better since last year and I should be able to place downstate."
Libertyville is closing in on the Lake Division crown next week, but the Mustangs can take second place with a win at Warren next Friday.
"We started off at a tough weight (against Stevenson), and a lot of our young guys took it on the chin against the heart of their lineup," said Mundelein coach Tom Buenik. "The win at heavyweight (by Martinez) was huge and the pin at 103 (by Cruz) was huge. That allowed us to go back to our regular lineup."