Warren wins tense at Libertyville

The North Suburban Conference wrestling showdown between host Libertyville and Warren truly lived up to its hype Friday night.

Neither team ever had a firm grip on the lead the entire way in the defensive struggle of a dual meet.

But when all was said and done, the visiting Blue Devils had pulled out an exciting 25-22 NSC Lake victory to put them in the position to win the division crown outright next Friday at Stevenson.

Eighteenth-ranked Warren (15-2, 5-0) became the first team to beat Libertyville (11-4, 4-1) since the Blue Devils and Lake Zurich both defeated the Wildcats in 2007.

Accomplishing that feat was certainly not easy at all Friday night as fourth-ranked 195-pounder Shakheim Chapman (24-1) opened the meet with a 5-0 decision over Libertyville’s Tim Grote.

At 220, Libertyville’s Kevin Barbian defeated Matt Miller 4-1 before teammate Chris McDermand beat Sawyer McCaffery 2-0 at 285 for a 6-3 lead.

The see-saw battle continued with Warren 106-pounder Mike Malles earning a 7-2 decision over Noah Strong before Libertyville 113-pounder Steve Polakowski’s 3-0 decision over Craig Mason gave the hosts a 9-6 edge.

Libertyville’s Pat Fitzgerald followed with a 3-2 decision over Martin Martinez at 120 for a 12-6 advantage. But a key 4-3 decision by Warren’s T.J. Kuhn over Kyle May at 126 cut the gap to 12-9.

Then Izzy Santiago moved up a weight class for the Blue Devils and he won an 8-3 decision over Charlie Meyer to deadlock the score at 12-12 with six matches left.

“It was great to see the kids respond like they did tonight,” said Warren coach Jim Ouimette. “We changed our lineup a bit tonight and it worked out really well. It was an unbelievable meet and it came down to those last matches. So to come here on their senior night was very impressive.”

Warren went ahead 15-12 when Blake Howard moved up to 138 and Howard toppled Josh Hirth 5-1.

But the Wildcats got a huge pin from 145-pounder Austin Pettinato in 4:28 to put Libertyville in front 18-15 with four bouts to go.

Then came a gigantic win for Warren 152-pound senior Aaron Brewton (25-1), who got a takedown on sophomore Kayne MacCallum with 15 seconds left en route to a 5-4 decision and an 18-18 tie.

Libertyville’s Sal Ayala posted an 11-3 major decision at 160 for a 22-18 lead. But Warren’s Danny Hicks answered that with a 12-2 major decision at 170 to make the score 22-22.

That meant the final outcome would rest on the shoulders of Warren’s Gabe Butts and Libertyville’s Austin Koziol at 182.

And after building a 3-1 lead, Butts was able to hold on for a 3-2 decision to set off the Blue Devils’ long-awaited celebration.

“It was too close for me, but we did it and Gabe pulled out a win,” said Chapman. “We’ve been setting this goal ever since summer camp and this definitely gives us a confidence boost.”

Libertyville will still be a serious contender to win the overall NSC crown for the fourth straight year on Feb. 4. But Warren and Grant will provide major challenges at that tourney.

“Obviously the pin at 145 (by Pettinato) was the turning point because up to that point there were no bonus points,” said Libertyville coach Dale Eggert, whose team won six of the 14 matches. “In a dual meet with as much at stake as tonight you have to figure you are going to have close matches and guys know how to stay in the match.”