New downstate standard for Carmel Catholic
Carmel Catholic's wrestling team experienced a history-making day in the Class 2A Antioch individual sectional Saturday.
The Corsairs broke their previous record of four wrestlers reaching the state meet by qualifying five for the 79th annual showcase beginning Thursday at State Farm Center in Champaign.
Riley Palm (32-3) got Carmel going in the final round, as the 106-pound freshman posted a technical fall over North Chicago's Jerimiah Duty to take home first place.
Then came another championship for Carmel, as top-ranked 120-pounder Mike Tortorice (37-3) captured a 6-4 decision over Harvard's Sergio Esquivel.
"I'm really happy with what I've done here, but the real competition is at state," said Tortorice, who placed third at state last year. "I have to just stay aggressive the whole time and not give them an inch."
Besides having five state qualifiers for the first time, the Corsairs have a shot at their first state champion in school history, despite the fact that 160-pound senior Nathaniel Morris (37-1) is no longer undefeated after a 3-2 loss to Woodstock's Kevin Zange in the finals.
Carmel senior Kenny Barber will be making his third appearance in the state meet after taking third place at 132 pounds, while junior teammate Bobby Pryhocki was probably the biggest surprise of the weekend for the Corsairs. Pryhocki's fourth-place finish at 138 earned him a trip to Champaign.
"Breaking the school record was a huge motivation for our team, and they came up with big wins when we needed them," Carmel coach Bob Kuykendall said. "Bobby (Pryhocki) came into this tournament with the right mindset and he put together quality matches."
The host Sequoits were also impressive in the rugged field, as they had four individuals reach state led by champions Patrick Schoenfelder (46-2) at 152 and George Bessette (32-5) at 195.
Antioch also got second-place finishes from Nathan Dlugopolski, who lost to No. 1-ranked Travis Piotrowski (38-0) of Prairie Ridge at 126, and senior teammate Jake Gross at 113.
"The losses are always disappointing, but I'm excited for them, and if we can bring some medals back it's always nice," said Antioch coach Wilbur Borrero, whose team will wrestle host Fenton Feb. 23 in the team sectional. "Pat (Schoenfelder) is tough, but the bottom line is that he has to be into every match and he can't take time off."
Grayslake Central was another area team to shine. The Rams got three individuals downstate led by senior Larry Augustine (145), sophomore Austin Connelly (120) and freshman Alex Cramer (138), all of whom took third place.
"The boys did a really nice job of not looking past anyone, winning each period, and winning each match," Grayslake Central coach Matt Joseph said. "It was a nice surprise to see Austin (Connelly) make it. He beat a kid from Crystal Lake Central (Connor Burns) who he had lost to in early December to get to the third-place match."
Lakes senior Jared Smith will be making a return trip downstate after a fourth at 170, while teammate Ishmael Velasquez also qualified with a fourth at 126.
Wauconda coach Tom Nance's final trip to the state meet will include third-place finishers Tyler Stankiewicz (182) and Jose Munoz (126). Nance is retiring after 32 years.
Vernon Hills senior Jeff Echeverria reached state with a second at 14. St. Viator's James Valentino advanced for the second time in a row with a third at 285.
"He's a little banged up, and he lost a tough match 5-2 in the semifinals," St. Viator coach Jason Churak said of Valentino. "No matter where he lines up, he should make more noise than he did on his previous trip. I think he will be ready to go for it at state."