Sabatello, Smith set the tone at Barrington
Danny Sabatello set the benchmark for excellence in his dream season a year ago, when the Stevenson junior carried off the Class 3A state championship trophy at 119 pounds in Champaign.
If his performance during the first day of competition at the 20th annual Moore-Prettyman Memorial tournament in Barrington yesterday afternoon is any indication of what's ahead this year, then this potent attacking machine will be one of the most feared in his weight class when the state series rolls around in late February.
The Purdue-bound standout rolled over a pair of opponents to record back-to-back technical falls and book his place in today's 11 a.m. semifinals at 125 pounds against NSC rival Luke Gaeth of Libertyville while helping the Patriots end the day in seventh place overall with 81 points.
State-ranked Lyons and East Suburban Catholic power Marist are 1-2 in the standings, separated by 13 points (109.5-96.5), with Hinsdale Central (90), host Barrington (86) and reigning tourney champion Plainfield Central (85.5) rounding out the top five.
Zion-Benton (78) stands just 2 points ahead of Neuqua Valley (76) and another 8 ahead of Crystal Lake South, which is 10th in the field of 32.
Day 2 of the tournament begins at 10 a.m. today with wrestleback action.
“Winning that title last year is something that I will always have, but the celebration stopped on that day, with the focus almost immediately turning toward preparing for my senior year, and hopefully another state championship,” said Sabatello, who worked nearly everyday of the off-season at the prestigious Izzy Style Wrestling Camp to hone his skills.
“We told (Danny) that he had to train as if he had finished in second-place during the off-season,” said Stevenson coach Shane Cook, “and he did, and he has come out early on and has just looked dominant.”
The same could be said for Wheeling senior Luke Smith, who made life miserable for his two victims on Friday with a pair of falls, the second coming just 1:33 into his quarterfinal bout with Justin Weber (Stevenson) to earn a place in the 145-pound semifinals against Lucas Polka of Lyons.
“To be truthful, this season won't be complete if I don't win a state title,” said Smith, who enters his final year at the No. 1 rated wrestler at 145 pounds with a dazzling 118-11 overall record and two state medals, including second-place last year. “I've had a lot of success in this building during my career, and winning a third straight title here would be great. But it's just a notch on the ladder, which leads to the championship trophy.”
Smith's teammate Chris Johnson, ranked No. 3 at 189 in preseason state polls, will meet Casey Greenberg of Neuqua Valley in the semifinals.
Maine West's Eddie Scanlon nearly upset No. 4 seed Pete Koostra (Wauconda) in a 9-8 decision in a 160-pound quarterfinal.
Koostra represents a solid contingent from the North Suburban Conference still alive in the championship bracket, which included state qualifiers Pat Fitzgerald (119) and Luke Miller (189) from Libertyville, who himself had some trouble in his 2-1 quarterfinal victory over Paul Albani of Hoffman Estates.
Barrington, which lost the heart of its 3A state medal-winning team from a year ago in Dan Santoro, Luke Miller and Kalvin Argueta, managed to keep itself in the hunt with junior Adrian Gonzalez earning a semifinal spot opposite Nick Nasenberry of Plainfield Central at 112 pounds.
“I didn't expect to have a first-round bye (Friday) morning, so it was really important to stay mentally focused during a long wait before wrestling in my first match of the day,” said Gonzalez, a fourth-place state medalist at 103 pounds last February who is on a collision course with Crystal Lake South junior Nick Fontanetta. Fontanetta topped Gonzalez here last November for the 103-pound crown.
Fontanetta and his Gators' teammates did well on this day, with Kean Loupee (160) easily advancing at 160 pounds along with Tom Gerszwinski (140) and Mike Romanelli (215).
Cary-Grove also fared well and will have Cory Meyer and Collin Hansen, who stunned No. 3 seed Mike Rende (Lyons) 9-3 in his 171-pound quarterfinal, competing in today's semis.
“I remember how it felt to be in the stands in Champaign last year, and knowing that I was just as capable of others who were down on the big floor competing in the state tournament inspired me to work harder during the off-season,” said Meyer, who as the No. 2 seed will face No. 3 Clay Shelton of Plainfield Central at 130 pounds.
Huntley had a disappointing afternoon after No. 1 seed and state qualifier Lucas Rogers was sent into the backdraw following a 6-2 loss to Jim Spangler of Joliet West. And at 160 pounds, Josh Symbal was defeated 10-4 by Jack Pearson of Lyons.
Earlier in the day, No. 2 seed Matt Zeis was pinned by Romanelli at 7:49.
Neuqua Valley, which said goodbye to a star-studded cast featuring Nick Proctor, Matt Cavallaris, Andy Spangler and Alex Cizek, will likely miss out in the hunt for its usual lofty finish here. But the Wildcats still find themselves within striking distance of a top finish if all goes well on Day 2.
“We're a totally different team, but over the long haul, we're going to be just fine because we have a great mix of young and experienced talent, with six or seven returning guys who will help us get through the early stages of the season,” said Neuqua Valley coach Mick Ruettinger, who will have Luke Piggott (152), Connor Swier (171), Andrew Geers (285) and Greenberg ready for their semifinal bouts.
Piggott, a senior, finished eighth in the state at 152 pounds last season, when Neuqua Valley finished second in the team tournament.