Libertyville's fine with fourth
MOLINE -- In coach Dale Eggert's 22nd years as the leader of Libertyville's wrestling program, he and his boys will enjoy the coming Monday in a big way.
They'll be delivering a fourth-place Class AA trophy to the school.
"It's a great accomplishment," said Wildcats senior Trey Ayala. "It's really exciting. We've had a good team all year, and I'm proud of all the guys."
"It's an unbelievable feeling, and so many things have to fall just right," Eggert said. "We had to get by Wheeling and Grant to get here, the kids wrestled a great (quarterfinal) dual against Granite City, and another against Lincoln-Way Central."
The Wildcats guaranteed themselves the program's first state finals trophy in wrestling by winning 35-23 in a quarterfinal dual over Granite City, in Moline's historic Wharton Fieldhouse.
Let history show that senior Everett Indart's 7-5 decision at 135 pounds clinched the team win that advanced Libertyville to a state semi-final and the assurance of downstate hardware.
"We knew if we wrestled tough, we'd be able to get past them," said Wildcats senior Jake Hogan. "We went every match, one at a time, and got it done."
Joey Callen (152), Tom Nield (285), and Kyle Manolovic (125) all beat state qualifiers in the win over the Warriors, while Matt Bystol (103), Hogan (215) and Ayala (140) all posted wins.
The Wildcats earned a 9-5 edge in matches won against Granite City.
"(Louis) Mazzetta also won a great match, and Eric Klein has been out of the lineup for five weeks, but he won his match for us," Eggert said.
Libertyville lost 39-15 to eventual state champion Montini in the semis, before battling Lincoln-Way Central throughout a 31-25 loss on the third-place mat.
"They were favored, but we knew we could wrestle them tough," said Hogan. "We had a lot of good matches against them."
Hogan pinned the Knights' Joe Mahy, while Callen, Nield, Bystol, and Mazzetta all won matches against the Knights.
Bystol, Ayala, Indart, and Shane Michelsen all posted wins against Montini.
Libertyville had a young squad last year, but gained momentum as the season wore on and came into this year ready to fight.
"A lot of guys came a long way in the off-season, and thought we could have a pretty good club," Eggert said. "I think we were better than a lot of people figured."
"We were confident coming into the season," Ayala said. "We had a lot of guys work hard in the off-season, and that's what it takes to improve.
"We've got a lot of underclassmen, and we get a lot of support for the program."
Seniors Indart, Ayala, Callen, Hogan, Nield, and Logan Miller all posted 30-plus wins this year, as did junior Mazzetta. Senior Klein posted 20-plus wins.
The sophomore Bystol led all Wildcats with 40-plus wins, and was an individual state qualifier along with Ayala this season.
"Just being a part of the first Libertyville team to win a trophy downstate - that's awesome," Hogan said. "You always want to do better, but I can be satisfied with this."