Marmion takes Moore-Prettyman title
Marmion Academy lived up to its pre-tournament state rating when it delivered a masterful performance Saturday evening to capture the championship trophy at the 28th annual Moore-Prettyman Invitational in Barrington.
The Cadets gave Nate Fitzenreider the perfect start to his head coaching career when they outscored runner-up Lockport 290-213.50, using nine overall medals, plus three individual titles to ensure their victory over the 27-team field.
"It was a terrific beginning of the season," admitted Fitzenreider, who was an assistant to head coach Donny Reynolds last year, then took over the program when his former boss went back to his alma mater, Providence Catholic, during the offseason.
"Diego Sotelo (106), Trevor Chumbley (145) and Peter Ferraro (170) led the way with their first-place wins, but the rest of the guys showed if we continue to work hard and stay healthy that we can do something special before the wrestling season comes to an end."
Sotelo, the state runner-up a year ago in his rookie season, looked to be in midseason form after two days, dominating his weight class which included a fall at 2:34 in his final with Waubonsie Valley junior Evan Bruner.
"I got kind of a late start to my offseason training, but I worked as hard as I could to get myself ready for what I hope will be another chance at a state title this season," said Sotelo, who missed time after suffering a broken leg over the summer.
Sotelo and his teammates would watch state power Lockport collect the next three championship rings with 2018 state champ and No. 1 rated Matt Ramos (120) recording a 9-4 decision over his longtime friend and offseason workout partner Michael Jaffe.
The Cadets' senior, who recently committed to join his older brother AJ at Harvard next fall, along with Ferraro, was one of three from his club to finish second overall with Nathan Callaway (132) and Patrick Daum (182).
Ferraro would cruise through the 170-pound bracket, defeating Wheaton North senior Quintan Nelson 11-4, while Chumbley, the No. 1 rated 145-pounder in the state, overcame a poke in the eye to edge the upset-minded Giovanni Cassioppi (Hononegah) 3-2.
"It's exciting to have everyone back and healthy so we can fill out our lineup this season (and) I know if we stay that way, we'll be right there at the end to challenge for a state title," opined Chumbley, who will wrestle next season at Northwestern.
While the top two scoring teams hauled off most of the silverware, fans of Barrington, Metea Valley and Prospect were treated to some thrilling results from their heroes.
Junior Luke Rasmussen (160) sent the home crowd into orbit when the Broncos senior upset 2018 state runner-up Brad Gross (Marmion Academy) in the semifinals then continued his magical run when he eased past Plainfield South senior Jake Kendall 5-4 in his final.
"Last season didn't end the way I wanted it to so that provided me with the motivation to work and train as hard as I could to get myself ready to be at my best this year," said Rasmussen, who was a regional champ a year ago.
Two-time state qualifier Jose Ramos (Prospect) looked the part of state medal winner come February after pinning his way to the 285-pound title.
The Knights' senior spent just 1:23 on the mat to reach the semifinals, then needed all of 2:26 to send off Andrew Bejarano (Plainfield South) and win the top prize.
"(Anthony) Cassioppi (two-time state champion from Hononegah) has been here at this tournament the past two years and he's been impossible to beat, so it felt great to win a great tournament like this one," said Ramos.
Junior Josh Labarbera claimed the lone title over the two days after a hard fought 3-2 decision against the aforementioned Patrick Daum.
"Josh is a great kid - he is strong in his academics, he does hours upon hours of community service, and he's a great leader of the team and if we can continue to work to clean up a few things as the season goes on, he will have a great chance of getting on the podium at the state tournament," said head coach Claudio Torres.
Labarbera, who was third here last season, won 37 last year on his way to his first state tournament appearance.