Fenton in fine form at Rolling Meadows
With the trip of a lifetime on the horizon, Fenton close the window on the first half of its wrestling season on a high note by sweeping all three of its opponents Thursday at Rolling Meadows.
The Bison, who will be on their way to compete just outside of Fresno, Calif., at the Doc Buchanan Tournament just after the New Year, went past Metea Valley, Eisenhower and the tourney hosts to push their overall record to 14-3.
"This was a good way to get everyone some work before we leave for California next week, which should be a memorable trip for everyone who will be making the trip," said Bison coach Brian Hastings. "We were dropped from the Rex Whitlatch at Hinsdale Central this year, so we were looking around at other tournaments to get into. And with our connections with the Tirapelle family (Steve Tirapelle is the head coach at Clovis High School, and his sons wrestled at Illinois), we were able to sign up to go."
Hastings and his staff organized fundraising efforts at Northwestern football games to help defer travel and lodging costs, which he figured totaled 100-plus hours worked.
"Going to a high-profile event like this one in Clovis will be a real test for the guys, and it's an opportunity no one will ever forget," Hastings said.
On Thursday, most of the Bison took full advantage of their opportunities, including their opener against Metea Valley. Fenton won 43-30 with a late push fueled by a decision from Dylan Butts (21-1) at 182, and the first of three pins from heavyweight Isaiah Brock.
"Dylan has been outstanding throughout the season thus far, and for Isaiah, we're very happy to see him bounce back from a rough go of it lately," said Hastings.
"The room is very different this season after we lost nine of our starters from our regional lineup last season," Butts said. "That's why it's important that the seniors like myself work hard and set a great example for those who will be the future of our program."
Butts, a 2A state qualifier last year, also enjoyed a banner year in football this fall, earning all-state honors while rushing for nearly 900 yards and scoring 12 touchdowns. He also excelled as a defensive lineman.
"Getting downstate last year, then being pinned twice after winning my first-round match, left a bad taste in my mouth," Butts said. "But it helped motivate me during the off-season to work as hard as I could to prepare myself for the postseason and hopefully another trip downstate."
The Bison broke open a close dual with Eisenhower to register a 48-15 victory, then ended their day with a 42-22 defeat of the host Mustangs.
Rolling Meadows head coach John Bassler welcomed back a trio of key competitors from time spent on the injury list: Eric Guerra (120), Eric Morales (132) and Dulguun Tungalag (138). They all looked sharp on the day, particularly in a 31-30 loss to Metea Valley.
"Both Guerra and Morales suffered knee injuries at the Whitlatch two weeks ago, while Tunga had a bursa sac issue before that, so it's great to have all of them back and near 100 percent," Bassler said. "And once we get our best guy back (Michael Womeldorf) from concussion protocol, our lineup will be able to do some damage."
In that loss to Metea Valley, Meadows came back from an early deficit (19-6) to draw even at 19-19, with the visitors gaining a 6-point advantage following a pin at 195 pounds.
"With us having so many guys out, and a handful of holes in our lineup, I still was very pleased with the effort and results today," said Metea Valley coach Claudio Torres, who club just finished up two days in the high-profile Dvorak last weekend. "That was an incredibly talented tournament for us to take part in, and while some wonder why we go there, I believe it's important for my guys to measure themselves against the best and to see where they stand, and find what they need to improve on from here on out."
Torres was quick to praise senior Harsh Anchan (126, 16-10) for his work at the Dvorak and for the season thus far.
"There was a point in this season when Harsh had wrestled four or five returning state qualifiers from a year ago, and never backed down from any of them," Torres said. "And that's kind of the way things have gone for him all year - one tough guy after another. But he'll be so much better for it when it really counts down the road.
"We've been without our lone state-ranked guy (Phillip Sims, 138) and we have just five guys on this team with varsity experience. But when everyone is back and in the right spots in our lineup, we'll be good to go for the last half of the season."
Torres' will take his club to the two-day Kaukauna Cheesehead in Kaukauna, Wis., on Jan. 4, where last season Metea Valley finished 19th out of a 31-team field, with Sims taking fourth at 120.