Neuqua Valley settles for 3rd place
Neuqua Valley wrestling coach Mick Ruettiger was in a peculiar spot Saturday evening as the Class 3A West Aurora regional was winding down. The Wildcats had six athletes advance to the championship round, guaranteeing an automatic berth to the Lincoln-Way Central sectional next weekend. But Neuqua Valley had its grander plans of a regional championship dashed in the top-notch field.
Second-rated Minooka, with six overall champions and five other qualifiers, captured the team title with 205 points. Plainfield Central, ranked sixth, was second, and third-ranked Neuqua Valley was third with 167 points.
"No, not one bit," Ruettiger said when asked if the Indians' championship effort was easier to swallow considering the squad is coached by his older brother Bernie. "I'm happy for him, but it doesn't make it any easier. We wrestled well; we just didn't have the depth that Minooka has."
Matt Cavallaris' 11-3 major decision earned Neuqua Valley its first of three regional champions on the day at 112 pounds. The middle to upper weights are the Wildcats' domain, though, and junior Alex Cizek had a reversal, 2-point near-fall sequence midway through his 145-pound match to secure a 7-2 victory over Minooka freshman Kalvin Hill.
"It's exciting, but I'm really not done yet," said Cizek, in his first year on varsity. "I wrestled this kid before. I kind of knew his style."
The Wildcats' Nick Proctor had one of the most dominating championship efforts with a 16-2 major decision at 160 pounds. The junior was third last season at 145 pounds.
"My key was getting the first couple of points and dominating from there," Proctor said. "Overall, I thought I performed well."
Proctor led but 2-0 after the opening period, only to seize command and close out the match with a takedown and near fall seconds before its one-sided conclusion. Alex and Mike Zozulia both qualified for Neuqua Valley at 189 and 215 pounds, respectively.
Top-seeded Alex Spangler suffered his fourth loss of the season against 35 wins in a 3-2 championship loss at 140 pounds for Neuqua Valley; Dan Burk was the sixth Wildcats' finalist, dropping a 6-2 verdict at 171 pounds.
The 135-pound bracket included three of the top-four competitors in the state, and senior Adam Stine outlasted West Aurora senior Vince Morris to claim the Wildcats' final sectional berth. Waubonsie Valley failed to land any championship berths, but senior Mike Lyons snared one of two advancing team slots with a memorable 6-4 overtime win in the third-place match at 160 pounds.
"This is my first year wrestling with diabetes," Lyons said. "In past tournaments my blood sugar was mixed. I pretty much have perfected it now."
Daniel Kelly was the Warriors' other qualifier with a 11-8 third-place result at 171 pounds.