Grayslake North, Cary-Grove perfect at Palatine
The Grayslake North wrestling team started off strong and never looked back Saturday at the Palatine megadual meet.
With six teams competing in the field, the Knights opened the day with a 37-19 victory over Carmel before posting a 60-15 victory over the host Pirates' short-handed team in the second round.
Grayslake North (17-5) closed out the day with an impressive 51-22 victory over Plainfield North, which went 0-3 on the day.
Cary-Grove (7-7) was also a perfect 3-0 on the day as the Trojans defeated Plainfield North 36-31 in Round 1, Carmel 39-33 in Round 2 and Palatine (2-10) 63-18 in the final round.
Lake Zurich (12-10) went 2-1 as the Bears beat Palatine 44-30 to open the day. The Pirates had to forfeit six matches in each meet since they had six key sophomores wrestling at the Notre Dame sophomore tournament.
Lake Zurich added a 36-23 victory over Plainfield North, but the Bears lost to Carmel (12-6) 44-27 to end their day.
Grayslake North senior Rich Downes (27-2) added three more victories at 135 as did junior teammate Jimmy Prince at 215. Both of those wrestlers will be aiming to return to the Class 2A state meet next month.
Grayslake North teammates Andrew Soulis (160), Jack Becker (171) and Zach Young (189) also added three wins apiece.
“It was a very good day and I just thought our kids battled,” said Grayslake North coach Tom Frye. “We came to a different area to get some different looks against some 3A competition and we're starting to jell.”
Starting at 152 pounds, Cary-Grove's meet against Carmel went down to the wire. But the Trojans were able to hold on for the 6-point victory, despite decisions by Carmel teammates Evan Palmer (140) and Bobby Dandino (27-4 at 145) to close out the meet.
The Corsairs got three wins from senior 152-pounder Tim Hourihan (27-3), Brian Waldron (119), Dominic Panico (103) and Jake Cochrane (285), while 140-pounder Evan Palmer went 2-0.
“I'm pretty happy so far this season, but not satisfied,” said Hourihan. “I want to keep moving forward, keep pushing the pace and work harder every day.”
Carmel coach Bob Kuykendall still sees much room for improvement from his squad after going 1-2.
“I thought we could have wrestled better in spots, but this is all practice as you know to get ready for regionals,” Kuykendall said. “What we look for is progress, and if we can take some things and learn from them then it's worth it.”
Cary-Grove 171-pound senior Collin Hansen (20-4) was impressive with three more victories Saturday, while teammates James Smrt (125), Garrett Glueck (135), Danny Hendrickson (160), Max Kersten (189) and David Henry (215) all won their bouts against Carmel and Palatine.
“We're slowly learning how to win dual meets, and I think the key today was getting pins when we needed to get pins and not getting pinned,” said Cary-Grove coach Dan Cysewski. “From last year to this year (Hansen) is, by far, our most improved wrestler. He's starting to figure out the sport a little more now that he is a senior.”
Lake Zurich 145-pounder Zach Ullman (25-4) went 2-0, while teammates Brandon Arteaga (125), Sean Lynch (130) and Alex Nigro (135) won their bouts against both Palatine and Carmel. The Bears forfeited four weight classes between 160 and 285.
“I think our guys have just gotten better throughout the year and I have only two seniors on varsity,” said Lake Zurich coach Dan Strickler. “We've been talking about working as a team, and (Matt) Mueller has been a team player and a huge example of what we want.”
Palatine 112-pounder Javier Rivera went 3-0, as did 285-pound teammate Nick Hoover.
“We sent all six of our sophomores to the tournament at Notre Dame so, wrestling eight weight classes, I was looking to break even at 4-4,” said Palatine coach Dan Collins. “Most of the teams here are competitive, and they have full lineups with juniors and seniors. We're young and learning.”