Libertyville chasing North Suburban three-peat
After winning the Lake Division title for a fourth straight time last week, the Libertyville wrestling team will be going for the three-peat as overall North Suburban Conference champions Saturday at Lakes.
The one-day competition’s semifinals are slated for around noon before first-, third- and fifth-place matches begin at 4:15 p.m.
The Wildcats will be trying to capture their record 19th conference championship.
Based on the regular season dual meets and current rankings, Lake Division runner-up Warren (5-1) looks like the team with the best chance to pose a serious challenge to Libertyville (6-0) for the title of the 14-team conference.
Libertyville has a lot of depth and experience, with Pat Fitzgerald (119 pounds) and Sayad Banifazl (152) winning NSC crowns in 2010.
Luke Miller, a state qualifier last year, is a major force for the Wildcats at 189, while teammates Luke Gaeth (125/130) is also state-ranked.
Libertyville can also turn to senior Richard Vachula (215) and junior Charlie Meyer (125/130) for leadership. Key freshman Kayne MacCallum (152/160) and sophomore Austin Pettinato (135) have also been standouts.
Head-to-head matches between Warren and Libertyville will go a long way in deciding which team will ultimately capture the crown.
“I’m just thrilled that we put a bunch of really good Lake Division dual meets together and won the championship in what I think is a very tough division,” said Libertyville coach Dale Eggert. “Our attitude toward the conference tournament is to be aggressive, be smart and have mental toughness. However the chips fall, they fall.”
Warren will try to counter Libertyville’s strengths with 285-pound senior Josh Dust (19-2), who is ranked third in Class 3A. Dust has been out with a torn labrum, but he should be ready to compete.
The Blue Devils have other key wrestlers, including T.J. Parker (28-3) at 160, Brandon Tyler at 140, Aaron Brewton at 152, Danny Hicks at 171, Shakiem Chapman at 189, Jovan Dubose at 215 and Craig Mason at 103.
“For my first year, I couldn’t be happier with the kids I have,” said Warren coach Jim Ouimette, who replaced longtime coach Mark Tiffany following last season. “I think we can beat Libertyville if everybody wrestles up to their potential. I think it will be a very close tournament. But there will be some key matchups between us and them that will have to go our way.”
After Libertyville and Warren, the picture is somewhat unclear, as Stevenson, Prairie Division champion Wauconda, Grant, Mundelein and Zion-Benton hope to make a push for at least a top-five finish in the final standings.
Stevenson has two big-time senior wrestlers to lead its surge. Defending state champ Danny Sabatello is ranked second in the state at 125, and Brandon Weber is ranked third at 215.
There could be a big showdown in the offing between Weber and Wauconda senior Brian Kent in the 215-pound finals. Kent (25-1) is ranked sixth in Class 2A and placed second to Grant star Lee Munster last year at 189.
Wauconda has added depth with Devin Tortorice (27-4) at 103, Tim Alvarado at 152 and Pete Kootstra (28-5) at 160. Stevenson will turn to Max Nolan at 130, Justin Weber at 145, Mark Futterman at 152 and Ken Waks at 171.
Vernon Hills could also make a big impact with 125-pounder Gideon Yim, who is ranked third in 2A. Teammates Dan Klima (36-5 at 145) and 285-pounder Jeremy Brazil (eighth in 2A) are also major forces for the Cougars.
Mundelein’s Payton Cruz, a 2010 state qualifier, has put together another great season along with 130-pound ranked junior Matt Ornoff. Nick Dudzinski (112) is another impressive wrestler for the Mustangs along with Dan Winberg (135), Pablo Mata (160) and Ray Ceniceros (103).
Lake Zurich hopes to soar behind Brandon Arteaga (125), Sean Lynch (130), Alex Nigro (135) and Zach Ullman (145).
Grant has a ranked individual in 112-pounder Ben Soumar, while teammates Jack Kramer (103), Devin Monroy (140), Tony Cashmore (160) and Quinton Quarles (215) have also been outstanding.
Antioch has a host of key grapplers, including 2010 state qualifiers George Gonzalez at 145, and Zach Epker (sixth in 2A) at 189. Mike Gussarson (125) and Lee Shannon (285) also lead the Sequoits.
Round Lake’s Giovani Navarette will be tough at 125, as will teammate Matt Hansen at 103.
The host Eagles have ranked individuals in Tyler Booth at 135 and Kyle Gibson at 140.
Top-ranked Class 2A squad
Fox Valley Conference meet: Crystal Lake Central is the favorite to win the two-day Fox Valley Conference meet, as the Tigers have the top-ranked individual in the state at four different weight classes.
The 14-team tourney begins today at 5 p.m. at Grayslake Central with quarterfinals slated to wrap up by about 8 p.m. The competition continues Saturday at 10 a.m. with first-, third- and fifth-place matches slated for around 1:30 p.m.
Valley Division champ Crystal Lake South is expected to be CLC’s toughest challenge along with Grayslake North, McHenry, Cary-Grove, Dundee-Crown and Johnsburg.
Grayslake North senior Rich Downes (31-2) is ranked fifth in Class 2A at 135, while junior teammate Jimmy Prince (28-5) is No. 4 at 215.
The Knights also hope for a great showings from junior Angel Cabrera (28-5) at 119, senior Jack Becker (27-7) at 171 and senior Sean Bergstrom (28-6) at 125.
“Our entire squad has a better than .500 record and we need to keep our matches close and rely on our fundamentals,” said third-year Grayslake North coach Tom Frye, whose team went 4-2 in the FVC. “We also pride ourselves on wrestling all six minutes, and we’ve done a great job of doing that this season.”
The host Rams have four returning state qualifiers, including Kevin Hein (third in 2A) at 189, Joey Valdivia (sixth in 2A) at 215, Dylan Hay (eighth in 2A) at 135 and Bobby Raines at 103.
East Suburban Catholic Conference meet: Carmel heads into the eight-team East Suburban Catholic Conference meet (4 p.m., today) at Marian Catholic with high hopes The finals of the eight-team meet are slated for 8 p.m.
Perennial power Marist will be the team to beat followed by Notre Dame, Carmel and St. Patrick.
Carmel senior Brian Waldron is 33-3 at 119, while teammate Tim Hourihan is 32-3 at 152. Jake Cochrane has a 29-7 record at 285, while 103-pound senior Dan Carvill is another key performer for the Corsairs.
“I don’t think we will be able to advance in the standings on (Marist and Notre Dame) because you carry points into the tournament based on your dual meet record,” said Carmel coach Bob Kuykendall. “You’re all-conference if you place in the top three so our goal is to get as many as we can in the top three and get ready for regionals.”