Heavy hitters crowd the Berman championship bracket

Wrestling behemoths Sandburg, Lyons Township, Lincoln-Way West and Deerfield flexed their collective muscle at host Palatine High School on Tuesday, filling many of the brackets with their atheltes to set up an exciting finish Wednesday in the 61st annual Berman Holiday Wrestling Classic.

Top-rated Sandburg leads the prestigious 33-team field by 59 points over Lyons Township (104), followed by Lincoln-Way West (103 and ranked third in Class 2A) and Deerfield (100).

Lincoln-Way East (86.5) and Barrington (80.5) each hold hope for a fifth-place finish, while Oswego and Wheeling, with 71.50 and 68.50 points respectively, look to edge closer to the leaders Wednesday evening.

"This is a great tournament, and the reason we came here this season, so we'll do our best to finish strong tomorrow," said Wheeling coach Neal Weiner, whose club is here for the first time. It's also the first appearance for Sandburg, which ten days ago captured the 50th annual Rex Whitlach title at Hinsdale Central over Oak Park-River Forest by nearly 80 points.

Despite the domination of the aforementioned big four, there will be several athletes from the area who will compete in the 10:30 a.m. semifinals Wednesday morning with an eye on advancing to the finals, which are set to begin at 2 p.m.

Mundelein senior Alec Riportella (120, 19-2) looked strong as he advanced into the semis against No. 2 seed Uri Ariza.

The Mustangs star, who earned a regional crown a year ago but fell short in his bid to reach the state tournament, opened with a pin on Tuesday before recording a 4-0 victory over 2015 state qualifier Kyle Clough of Deerfield, who won 40 matches last season.

"It's all about coming out strong, and with a lot of intensity, always looking for more, and to keep the pace and pressure up against my opponents," said Riportella, who underwent surgery to correct a tear in his right shoulder during the off-season.

Dane Durlacher (20-0) will join his teammate at 106 pounds, and will meet Nick Donovan (20-1) of Glenbard East.

Junior Alex Mitchell (Libertyville), who earned the top seed in this high-profile weight class, will take his nearly spotless 17-1 record into the semifinals, where he will meet Austin Kedzie (15-1) of Kaneland.

Kedzie's teammate at 182 pounds, junior Colin Gussman (16-0), a 2015 state qualifier, advanced after a solid effort against Warren senior Brandon Escamilla next meets No. 2-rated Patrick Brucki (20-0) of Sandburg.

"This is a great opportunity to make my mark and to get noticed against a top-rated guy from 3A," Gussman, who won 34 bouts last year. "After I suffered my first takedown of the season in my quarterfinal, it kind of upset me, and helped me get back in the flow and finally take control."

Kaneland's Riley Vanek (170, 16-0) is still alive in the front draw and will next meet top-seeded Sage Heller (27-2) of Deerfield, who entered the tournament at No. 7 in the state poll.

Also in this class will be Lakes senior, Jared Smith, who is slowly rounding into shape after opening the season in dress clothes as he dealt with a bout of mononucleosis.

"I'm not quite near 100 percent, so it's important for me to get on and off the mats as quick as possible," said Smith, who became just the second wrestler in Lakes program history to bring home a state medal last season when he carried away a fifth-place trophy at 170 pounds. "The goal for me this year to first place - it's a reasonable one, but you have to set a something that high, then go after it."

With just a few training sessions under his belt, Smith will face the No. 2 seed, Brian Krasowski (Sandburg, 18-1) who also happens to No. 5 in the 3A rankings.

Metea Valley senior Dylan Ervin (19-1) pinned his way into the semis and will have No. 4 seed Zach Khoury (Warren, 16-1) up next at 195 pounds.

"It was all about training hard during the off-season, not just to get stronger but to get better, and to push myself when there's not much more to give," said Ervin. "Because it's later on, during the last four weeks of the season and at the state tournament, that you'll be mentally and physically ready for those tough times and tough matches."

Sky Arend (18-4) is on the top half of the 195-pound bracket and meets top seed Cole Bateman of Sandburg, while No. 2 seed.

Reigning 220-pound state champion Josh King of Hinsdale South looked to be in midseason form during his first two matches as he rolled into the semifinals with consecutive pins. King, who is on a collision course with No. 1 Matt Allen (20-0) of Hinsdale Central, won a title here last December.

Barrington's Markus Hartman (126, 20-3) and Max Guhde (160, 21-2), who helped the Broncos lift the team championship trophy here a year ago, remain in the front draw.

Hartman, with a pin in the quarters, secured his place opposite No. 2 seed Gehrig Simon of Lincoln-Way West. Guhde, a senior, earned a major decision in his opener and followed up with a tech-fall over a teammate of Simon's. Guhde next meets No. 2 seed Ben Schneider (19-1) from Sandburg.

Guhde quietly fashioned a solid junior campaign, winning 24 matches en route to an appearance in the sectionals in his home gym. But he's in a more prominent role this year, and he's thriving.

"It's a little different for me compared to last season, when we had so many stars in our lineup, many of whom were seniors - while this year, as one of the few seniors on our roster, my role has changed to become more of a leader, setting a positive example to our younger guys while looking to be the best that I can be on an individual basis," said Guhde.

The second day of the tournament opens with matches in the backdraw beginning at 9:30 a.m.