Glenbard North edges Naperville Central
Wrestling powerhouse Glenbard North proved it is not as invincible as everyone thinks.
In a matchup against Naperville Central on Friday night, the dual meet came down to the last match in a battle of 145-pounders.
The Panthers had Jon Salazar going while the Redhawks had Cam Needham. Salazar ended up winning the match 10-6 and Glenbard North won 30-25.
"I was so nervous before that match because I knew everything was riding on it," Salazar said. "I just felt like leaving and hiding and not showing up to the mat."
Salazar did show up for the match and wrestled with great poise and within his abilities. Salazar was leading the match 8-6 with just over a minute left, but Needham took a shot, got Salazar's leg but got the takedown out of bounds for no points.
After the two wrestlers went back to the center of the mat, Needham took a shot that Salazar blocked, spun on and ended up scoring 2 more points to seal the victory for both himself and iss teammates.
"We have put him in so many tough situations this year where we really depended on him," Glenbard North coach Mark Hahn said of Salazar. "He has only been wrestling for two years for us and he is a senior. He just has tremendous natural ability. I wish I could have redshirted him for the first two years and have him for two more. He is one of the most hardworking kids that I have, and I feel really good that all his hard work has been paying off so he can experience something like this."
Naperville Central coach Rob Porter said that he was very impressed with the turnout of the crowd but said that he would have liked to let them leave with the taste of victory. He also said the Panthers are a tough opponent who are a good measuring stick for where the Redhawks stand at this junction of the season.
"He had lots of pressure on himself," Porter said about Needham. "He thought he got the takedown inbounds that would have tied it up at 8-8, but he was out of bounds. He is a teenage boy and he felt the weight of the world on his shoulders and maybe rushed that next shot. He took a chance.
"But Glenbard North is a really solid team and it was a hard back-and-forth match and meet. It was hard to predict who would win what match."
The Panthers won two matches by pinfall as 103-pound Johny Gosinski pinned Mitch Lee at the 3:26 point of their match and 171-pound Chris Wahrman pinned Nate Delisle at the 4:36 mark.
The Redhawks James Martin (285 pounds) pinned Rion Donahoe after Martin got an escape and caught Donahoe in a headlock and put his shoulders to the mat with 32 seconds left in the second period.
"I knew this meet was going to be close," Hahn said. "Everyone wrestled tough on both sides, and I had a feeling it would come down to 145 pounds. It was just back and forth all night with some surprises."