Burlington Central 2nd to Sycamore at Rochelle regional

ROCHELLE - Without specifying names, Saturday's Rochelle Class 2A regional wrestling meet was somewhat like interpreting the GOP Iowa primary.

Eight of the nine schools had a top seed and all but three favored wrestlers lived up to their billing.

While only one of three Sycamore wrestlers won a championship match, the Spartans compiled 154 points to be the lone team advancing as a unit.

Four of Kaneland's six competing for a title were victorious, yet the Knights were third (131) in the standings.

Slipping ahead of them was Burlington Central (131), also with a single champion but sending the same number - seven - as Sycamore and Kaneland to the Washington sectional next weekend.

Hampshire's three champions were second most to Kaneland's quartet of bracket winners, plus the bulk of the Whip-Purs' four state hopefuls.

As interesting as those myriad results were, all that matters to anyone now is what happens when the process next plays out in the New Hampshire-equivalent, Washington.

"Quite frankly we weren't always competitive in previous tournaments and even our guys who didn't move on, wrestled hard and made me proud," Hampshire coach Brian Iossi said. "Yes, we hoped for more, but we'll take what we got and feel real positive."

That mix of emotions played out in a variety of matches including the day's most notable showdown at 152 pounds where Kaneland's George Strang (31-9), ranked No. 6 in 2A, earned a 3-2 UTB (Ultimate Tiebreaker) decision over Hampshire's Wylie Allen (33-4, rated No. 7).

"Following up last year's (initial regional title) feels great," Strang said. "I trusted in my conditioning, kept pushing the pace looking for any opening, and just fought through the overtimes."

The setback clearly left Allen drained more by frustration than fatigue.

"My goal remains winning at sectional," Allen stated flatly. "So I'll watch the film and dedicate every single minute of practice this week to correct what I did wrong. Not a lot went wrong, but the bottom line to me is I didn't win."

Since the top three wrestlers at each weight class earn sectional berths, championships weren't do-or-die, but more for seeding which is why third-place matches often drew the loudest response from those in attendance plus the wrestlers themselves. Case in point: Burlington Central's Jackson Brummel (23-15), who captured third at 220 via a 2-1 sudden-victory round triumph.

"You work all this time on technique, making weight, lifting, conditioning, scratching for a point in this or that meet, and it finally pays off. It's almost impossible to explain," Brummel said. "It's not just great, it's like the ultimate gift you could ever want."

In addition to Strang, Kaneland had three other state-ranked entrants live up to expectations. At 106, Austin Kedzie (34-7) proved his No. 2 state rating with a trio of pinfall wins (2:15, 1:33 and 2:26 for the championship match).

"I'm always trying to wrestle my best and more pins mean more team points," Kedzie noted. "Plus I want to let them (future foes) know I'm ready."

At 170, No. 9-rated Riley Vanik (34-5) wasted even less time with his message flattening his opposition in 24 and 44 seconds.

"I loved the feeling of winning a regional last year and I know it's all about peaking at the right time," Vanik said. "I just want to be a little better every single match."

Class 2A's No. 4-rated 182-pounder Colin Gussman (32-4) was solid in a 10-5 decision over No. 12-ranked Michael Beaudoin of Sycamore.

"Because I feel only I can keep myself from winning, I think of every chance as wrestling against myself. Be ready to perform and don't make mistakes," the Kaneland junior said.

Knights' freshman Nathan Orosco (24-12) lost a 3-2 finale to Rochelle's Justin Hernandez (27-8), who has honorable mention status in the state's 113-pound division. Kaneland 160-pounder Hayden Patterson (22-15) was also a runner-up and moves on along with 195-pounder Zac Parker (29-15), who took third.

Burlington Central's highly-regarded Austin Macias - rated No. 6 - improved to 36-1 after sticking his foes in 1:47 and 2:48. A regional winner and state qualifier at 106 last year, Macias viewed his day as "taking care of business and reminding folks I'm the real deal."

At 126, No. 9 Nick Termini (31-8) lost a 5-1 title bout to Belvidere North's Ecclesias Fambro (28-3), who is listed as honorable mention at 120.

"Today was a reminder to me to stay hungry, keep working hard, and come prepared," Termini said.

Central's Adam Mengel (31-9) came up short 8-2 in the 145 championship tangle with Rockford Boylan's Sean Barelli (34-4) while Rocket teammate T.J. Titock (24-17) was the 170-pound runner-up. Matching the aforementioned Brummel as a third-place winner were Central 182-pounder Erik Hansen (14-17) and heavyweight Jacob Janavich (13-25), who both had to capture rematches to qualify for the sectional meet.

Hansen was pinned in 5:44 in an opening bout with Hampshire's Souriya Syavong but pinned a No. 3 seed in 37 seconds and then avenged his loss to No. 4 Syavong with an 11-5 win.

"(Qualifying) is awesome," Hansen insisted. "I'm lucky to have someone like T.J. pushing me at practice, but overcoming some injuries and getting revenge makes advancing extremely special."

Janavich began his day pinning Sycamore's Tim Riley before being stuck in a semifinal that sent him into the wrestleback. The second time he had Riley looking at lights in 3:07.

"I think the result means I really wanted (sectional) more because it can be hard to find new moves against someone you just beat," Janavich said. "Sometimes they know what they want to change up on you, so you simply have to gut it out."

Having to endure the win-or-stay-home third-place bouts in three of the four final rounds was gut-wrenching for coach Vince Govea.

"Those matches did a number on my stomach," Govea joked. "Having two guys with sub-. 500 records move on is a surprise and finishing second as a team is also pleasant. At the same time, we didn't have a full lineup all year so we knew if we wanted to win we had to get every point possible via major decisions, tech falls, or pins. Those extras got us second today.

"This is my fourth year but I think someone would have to really research the old files to find when or if we've ever had seven go to a sectional," Govea said.

Some of Wylie Allen's disappointment stemmed from not being able to stand atop the awards stand as three Hampshire teammates did. Brother Casey Allen (29-8, ranked No. 11) followed up his Fox Valley Conference championship by recording a 5-1 title decision.

"After the first (scoreless) period, I was confident in my ability to control the outcome," Allen said. "It was more a matter of staying alert on my feet, avoiding mistakes and simply being tougher."

Confidence was part of Max McGowan's success at 160 pounds. Listed as honorable mention for his weight, McGoan (30-7) upset No. 6-rated Alex Harvey of Rochelle with a 3;26 pinfall victory. He followed with a 5-2 title decision over Kaneland's Patterson, who had sent No. 10 Cunningham to the wrestleback where Harvey brought the Spartan standout's individual season to a close.

"The key was not letting a first-period takedown get into my head," McGowan said. "The hard work and training from practice keeps me believing. Opponents may know what I'll do, but that doesn't mean they can stop me."

The Whip-Purs' big man, Pawell Bamas (29-12) outlasted Freeport's B.J. Thomas in a 3-2 championship tangle after reaching the final via pin.

"He was a little tougher than I originally thought, but I never had a doubt about my ability to come out on top," Bamas said. "I felt in control and was prepared to get points just as easily as I could deny them."