Grant misses Munster but nearly wins Erb
Even without a full lineup, the Grant wrestling team made a push for the championship of the 46th Annual Rus Erb Tournament Saturday at Glenbrook South.
Top-ranked Grant 189-pounder Lee Munster missed the powerful 17-team meet this weekend due to a neck injury, but the Bulldogs still managed to finish second to Sycamore, 180.5 to 171.5. Munster is due back in the lineup Jan. 2.
Area squads had a very solid weekend at Glenbrook South with Carmel (148 points) making a strong late push to capture third place. The Corsairs managed to edge Wheeling (145 points) in fourth, and Stevenson (144.5 points) in fifth.
Buffalo Grove placed eighth with 73 points with Cary-Grove (64.5) placing 11th and Wauconda (54.5) 15th.
Freshman Cameron Kennedy was one of two champions for Grant with a 7-5 decision at 103 for the crown. Grant 130-pounder Jason Montemayor won his title match with a 15-9 decision.
"If you would have told me we had a chance to win this tournament I wouldn't believe it without Lee wrestling, but we had a chance," said Grant coach Ryan Geist. "It was a tough tournament and something we can build on for the rest of the season."
Carmel 160-pound senior Shane Siefert (13-0) remained undefeated this season with a 5-1 decision in his finals match against Angelo Rivera of DeLaSalle.
"I only had two matches that went the full length and I thought I wrestled pretty well," said Siefert, who reached state last winter. "I've got to face a couple of tough people in about 10 days, but it's nice being undefeated right now and winning two tournaments."
Wheeling had two individual champions including junior Luke Smith, who also remained perfect with an 18-0 record at 135. Smith posted a technical fall in 5:05 over Marian Catholic's Steven Murphy, who placed second in the state last year at 119.
"He (Smith) needs to wrestle like he did today to be a state champion," said Wheeling coach Neal Weiner. "It was very impressive to see him get a technical fall against a guy who was second in the state last year."
Wheeling junior Chris Johnson (19-2) also brought home an individual crown for the Wildcats with a 3-1 decision over Niles North's Mike Ayala in the finals.
"It was a great tournament, there was a lot of competition, and I'm very happy with a first," Johnson said. "I'm hoping to be a state qualifier and I'm working to get at least a state place and keep getting better."
Buffalo Grove's Eugene Blackmon was the 112-pound champ for the Bison while Stevenson 215-pounder Tommy McGovern took second place after holding an 8-3 lead over Loyola's Tom Kelly in the finals.
Junior Danny Sabatello also placed second for the Patriots at 119 with teammates Alec Berger (112), and Jordan Sherman (135) both placing third.
"We know we obviously have a long way to go and we realize we are just not where we need to be right now," said Stevenson coach Shane Cook. "He (Sabatello) has lost to two of the top kids in the state at his weight class so it's been a learning experience and he knows where he has to get to beat those guys in February."
Grant senior Carl Williams was the runner-up at 285 while teammate Jose Jimenez placed third with a pin over Carmel's Evan Palmer at 125.
Buffalo Grove's Jordan Rathje also placed third at 119 along with Carmel's J.P. Hough at 130, Carmel's LaRon Biere at 171, and Cary-Grove's Rich Kerstin at 215.
Other fourth-place finishers were Buffalo Grove's Hunter Ori (103), Carmel's Tim Hourihan (140), Carmel's Frankie Swindell (145), Grant's Scott Ray (160), Wheeling's Joel Rangel (171), Stevenson's Brandon Weber (189) and Carmel's Steve Lester (285).
"Some guys stepped up and I thought Shane Siefert had a pretty good tournament at 160," said Carmel coach Bob Kuykendall. "LaRon Biere had a nice tournament at 171 and some guys fought through wrestlebacks and did a nice job."