Glover leads Crystal Lake South contingent to state

Josh Glover has had his eyes set on one thing all season: the State Farm Center in Champaign.

The Crystal Lake South 113-pound wrestler has focused on returning to the IHSA individual state tournament all season and hasn't bothered thinking about all his tournament wins or his perfect record.

Glover fulfilled his goal of getting back to the state meet when he won the 113 title at the Class 2A Deerfield individual sectional on Saturday.

"It's just another tournament," Glover said of winning his sectional. "State tournament is the only one I care about."

Glover was one of three sectional champions for the Gators. Shane Moran won the 182 title while Andy Burburijia won at 285.

The top-four finishers advanced to the three-day state tournament that will be held in Champaign starting Thursday.

Glover ran out to a 5-0 lead after one period and increased it to 7-0 after two. He increased his hold on the match to 9-0 before he won the title with a fall. The senior is 26-0 on the season after his title and semifinal pins, building off his No. 1 ranking in Class 2A at 113 by the Illinois Wrestling Coach and Officials Association.

Burburijia defeated Fenwick's Jimmy Liston to win his title by a 7-4 decision.

Moran has had the same mindset as Glover. The No. 2-ranked wrestler at 182 in Class 2A by the IWCOA, Moran won his title match 13-0 after winning his semifinal match by a 3-1 decision.

While sectional titles are nice, the senior is focused on winning a state title.

"It means a lot," Moran said. "I won a sectional title before but I still have unfinished business at the state series. I still have work left to do."

Grayslake Central earned four state wrestlers led by Anthony Alanis, who won the 106 title by a fall. He won all three matches in the sectional thanks to falls.

Aaron Cramer won the 170 title thanks to a 7-5 decision. The No. 3 ranked wrestler in his weight and class by the IWCOA won a 4-0 decision in the semifinal and a fall in the quarterfinals.

"It means a lot," Cramer said. "I won a sectional title before but I still have unfinished business at the state series. I still have work left to do."

Matty Jens finished third at 182 while Tyler Weidman finished fourth at 113 for the Rams.

Alanis is excited to head to the state tournament and prove his talents against the state's best.

"It means a lot to me," Alanis said. "Last year I didn't win it and all year I've been looking forward to the state series and now I'll have the opportunity to prove to everybody that I'm the best."

Prairie Ridge's Mikey Meade won the 126 title when he defeated Wheeling's Patrick Tinsley on a 3-2 decision. The freshman won his quarterfinal match by a fall and his semifinal match thanks to a 1-0 decision.

Tyler Evans lost his title match at 120 when Antioch's Edgar Albino came back in the last seconds to win the title. Eddie Ferree finished second for the Wolves at 160.

Meade knows how important it is to qualify for state as a freshman but he's ready for the stat rush.

"It means a lot," Meade said of winning a sectional title. "But I'm ready for state."

Cary-Grove's Wade Abrams continued his return to wrestling this season by winning the 195 title. The senior won the title by fall, improving his record to 23-1 on the season. He won his semifinal with an 8-0 decision and his quarterfinal by fall.

Rannin Gruen finished fourth at 126 and will join Abrams at the state meet.

Abrams missed the last season because of the COVID-19 pandemic, so to get back to the state meet made all the waiting worth it for the Trojan senior.

"It feels great, moving on to state," Abrams said. "That was the goal and now moving on to whatever I can do there."

Crystal Lake Central's Connor Lezama was the Tigers' top finisher on Saturday when he finished second at 152 while Jon Barrick also earned a second-place finish, his at 195.

Dillon Carlson (160) and Ben Butler (170) both finished third while Payton Ramsey (106) finished fourth.

Tigers coach Justen Lehr was proud of his team's effort in a tough sectional.

"It was a good day," Lehr said. "This was a really tough sectional."

Woodstock will have three state qualifiers after a strong performance on Saturday. Caleb Sciame (120) and Gavin Loiselle (220) both finished third in their respective weights while Sean Ryan finished fourth at 195.

Sciame has not only worked all season for this moment, but the past four years as he's developed as a wrestler.

"It's awesome," Sciame said. "I've been waiting four years for this, ever since I came out of middle school it's been my dream. It's awesome."

Jayden Colon led the way for Montini when he won his 145 title on a 8-1 decision. The IWCOA-ranked No. 2 wrestler in his weight and class won both of his quarterfinal and semifinal matches by fall.

David Mayora followed up Colon by winning the 152 title, his by 14-6 decision. The IWCOA No. 4 ranked wrestler also won both his quarterfinal and semifinal matches by fall.

Colon was proud of his win and is excited to see what he can do in the state meet.

"It feels really good," Colon said of his sectional win. "It makes me feel better about my state, like me being better at state. I just need to improve some things."

Jimmy Liston finished second for Fenwick to lead the Friars on Saturday. The senior lost his title match after earning a 12-5 semifinal win and a fall in the quarterfinal.

Both Martin Paris (160) and Conor Paris (182) fell in their respective semifinals and finished fourth in their respective weights.

While Martin Paris would've liked to have won a sectional title, he's excited for the chance as a state qualifier.

"It's great," Martin Paris. "My football team just won a state championship. My goal was to be a state placer, but state qualifier, we'll see what I do next weekend."

Antioch will have six state wrestlers after a strong performance on Saturday. Edgar Albino won the 120 title with a come-from behind win in the final seconds.

Gavin Hanrahan (106) and Caleb Nobiling (138) both finished second in their respective weights. Ben Vazquez (145) and Anthony Streib (132) both finished third for the Sequoits.

Ben Vazquez was proud to qualify for the state, the first in his family, but knows he still has more work to do.

"I just have to go out there and do my thing," Vazquez said.

Wauconda will have two state qualifiers after Lucas Galdine placed third at 106 and Matthew Merevick finished fourth at 220.

"It's great," Galdine said. "I've been putting a lot of work into this, it's only my fourth year so it's been tough but I've put in a lot of work and I think it's paid off."

Garry Gurevich led the way for Vernon Hills when he finished third at 138. Jake Psaras finished third at 195 as both wrestlers are looking for strong performances at the state meet.

"I lost in the blood rounds my sophomore and junior years, so I don't want to make it three years in a row where I lose in the blood rounds," Gurevich said.