Glenbard North keeps DuPage Valley Conference streak going
Preseason reports of Glenbard North's potential demise as the DVC's top wrestling team were greatly exaggerated.
"We didn't want to be the team to break the streak," said Panthers senior Jimmy Chase.
Mark Hahn's wrestling program at Glenbard North won its 11th consecutive DVC tournament title Saturday, sending seven wrestlers to the title mat and crowning seven champions.
The Panthers posted 238 team points to second-place West Aurora's 190, with Naperville Central finishing third by a single team point.
Chase (135 pounds), Dan Rios (112), Joey Gosinski (119), Tony Ramos (125), Dalton Boland (130), Marty Schecht (140) and Charleston Soko (171) were all DVC champions at West Chicago.
"It was a good day. Our guys came in and wrestled well," Hahn said. "I thought Rios wrestled fantastic, (Gosinski) came back at 119, and it was great to see those guys each get a conference championship out of it."
Rios won a 6-4 decision with an overtime takedown of Wheaton North's Adrian Laskero for his title, and Gosinski pinned West Aurora's Miguel Venecia in overtime for his second conference title.
Ramos became only the fourth wrestler in the DVC's 33-year history to become a four-time conference champion, winning the title at 125 by major decision over West Aurora's Josh Zinzer.
"It's one of those goals that I was hoping would happen along the way," said Ramos, a two-time returning state champion who raised his season record to 38-2 with a 9-1 decision title win over Zinzer.
In the process Ramos won the Gene Drendel award as the tournament's outstanding lower-weight wrestler. West Aurora's Mario Gonzalez won the Al Collins Award as the top dog of the upper weights.
It was Gonzalez's third DVC title, and he improved his record to 33-1 with a major decision title win over Wheaton Warrenville South's Mike Olp. "I won (the DVC) freshman year, lost it sophomore year, and the next two years I didn't want to just win it, I wanted to dominate," Gonzalez said.
The Blackhawks had four second-place wrestlers in Venecia, Zinzer, Nicholas Drendel (103) and Sam Pealstrom (140).
West Aurora also managed a second-place finish despite forfeiting at 215 and 285 pounds. "I expected us to compete for first even though we're missing people at those two weights," said West Aurora coach Mike DiNovo.
"We had some good performances today, and some others that need to get better. Mario was terrific. He's a terrific kid, and a terrific wrestler."
Naperville Central got a title from Adam Gebner (152), seconds from Josh Tardy (130) and Nick Weithman (215), and all but one of the Redhawks' wrestlers finished higher than their seeds.
Gebner was in control throughout his title win over Wheaton North's Will Gemmell.
"I feel really comfortable in the top position right now. All day, I felt like I was really in control," Gebner said.
Wheaton North's fourth-place finish featured a title from Dominick Schmit (160), thanks to a late takedown of WW South's Jim Franke, and seconds from Laskero, Gemmell and Mikey Fredrick (145).
"(Franke) relaxed for a second, and I just capitalized on it," Schmit said. "We push each other hard in the room, and I felt like I was in better condition than the guys I wrestled today."
Glenbard East's Parker Settecase won the title at 215, while teammates Sam Pennisi (171) and Spencer George (285) placed second. WW South got a title from Tim Savenok (145) and seconds from Olp, Franke and Spartacus Chino (135).
Naperville North crowned two champions on the day in Frank McKeown (103) and Mike Albanese (285). Albanese posted three pins in winning his title, and McKeown posted a major decision, a technical fall, and a major decision over West Aurora's Nicholas Drendel for the title.