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Scouting dual-team wrestling, Northwest

Scouting dual-team wrestling

Class 3A

The subject of how to improve the dual-team wrestling state tournament better has long been a topic of conversion by coaches and fans alike.

Many feel it might be best just to eliminate it entirely, calling it a season when the final championship match is completed in Champaign.

The regular season, followed by a demanding state series which concludes with three exceptionally long days downstate, tends to take the wind out of the sails of even the elite wrestlers, who are then asked to continue to make weight and train for yet one more week.

A greater task, though, is the chore of keeping many of the competitors who did not advance in the individual tournament ready for action. For many of these competitiors, it's been more than a couple of weeks since their regional exit.

Compounding matters further is the usual array of sectionals which typically feature the top couple of team in the state at qualifying site, thus watering down the eventual elite eight who compete downstate.

Imperfect as the system may be, here's a look at how it's structured this season. Two venues will host a handful of teams from the Mid-Suburban League who are thrilled to be competing and find themselves just 1 win away from reaching the elight eight at U.S. Cellular Coliseum on Saturday in Bloomington.

at LarkinProspect (19-6) vs. Notre Dame (18-12), 6 p.m.

Advancement: Winner advances to meet either Lockport or Moline in dual-team quarterfinals at 9:00 this Saturday.

Who to watch: Prospect: State qualifiers Andrew Baysinger (106, 35-9), Miguel Romero (132, 27-12), Tanner Strobel (152, 27-6), Bobby Jarosz (160, 29-12), Matt Wroblewski (182, 41-2), Alex Koczwara (195, 37-8). Notre Dame state qualifiers Jake Barzowski (138, 41-3), Josh Barzowski (152, 33-9), Tom Simon (220, 32-16), plus: Andy Ponitowski (120, 32-7), Matt Bernal (285, 25-14).

Outlook: After falling short in its attempt to overcome both Barrington and Conant at the MSL tournament, Tom Whalen's team rebounded to get the result it wanted at regionals, edging Conant by 6.5 points (196-189.5) to capture its third consecutive regional title and earn a spot against Notre Dame. Prospect handled Notre Dame earlier this season, 47-15. That was then, and this is now - at least that's Whalen's outlook on that 32-point victory. The Knights won't be lacking for motivation, as what looked like opportunities for three medalists in the individual tournament did not develop.

The Knights are a solid bunch in the lower weights but truly excel at the upper classes, where with Strobel, Jarosz, Wroblewski and Koczwara they can win big and gather those all-important bonus points. A win would put Prospect in the elite eight for a second straight season.

When Notre Dame overwhelmed the regional field, including runner-up Evanston by 40 points (197.5-152.5), the Dons also sent 10 of their wrestler into the Conant sectional tournament, and later three advanced downstate.

The Dons' fifth regional title in the last six years came just a few weeks after coach Augie Genovesi won his 500th career victory. The Dons' all-star coaching staff includes long-time Conant coach Jim Cartwright, along with Bill Scully, formerly of Hoffman Estates. Genovesi and Cartwright are both in the National Hall-of-Fame, while all three have earned Hall-of-Fame honors here in Illinois.

Glenbard North (21-5-0) vs. Oak Park-River Forest (27-3-0), 6 p.m.

Advancement: Winner advances to meet either Deerfield or Hononegah in dual-team quarterfinals at 9 a.m. Saturday.

Outlook: Glenbard North has been a dominant force in the DuPage Valley Conference and at the regional level, so competing here is nothing new for the Panthers. However, the task facing Glenbard North is a tough one, as the opponent is the team ranked No. 1 in the state (and No. 8 in the nation).

Oak Park-River Forest features the top-ranked 160-pound in America, Isaiah White. He's flanked by eight others who earned state medals last weekend in Champaign. The task ahead will be formidable for Mark Hahn's team, currently ranked No. 9 by IllinoisMatmen.com.

Led by two-time state champion Austin Gomez (126, 40-1) the Panthers boast wonderful talent at the lower weights, and the one-two punch of Gomez and Abe Assed (120, 38-11) is impressive. Joe (138) and Tom Czernek (160) will bring experience they gained from the state tournament last weekend, while Mike Milan (32-12) who was 1 win short of joining his teammates downstate and has been steady all season.

The Panthers are the underdog, but they have history and tradition in this tournament on their side with a 3A state title in 2011 along with third-place finishes in 2010, 2012 and 2015.

at GrantWheeling (22-5) vs. Grant (18-2), 6 p.m.

Advancement: Winner advances to meet either Edwardsville or Providence Catholic in dual-team quarterfinals at 11 a.m. Saturday.

Who to watch: Wheeling state qualifiers Mason Skloot (113, 29-12) and Jaylen Shaw (152, 33-11) plus Manny Ramirez (106, 32-11), Tristan Guaman (138, 37-14), Carlos Montiel (160, 37-14), Yoni Medina (220, 31-15), Zach Yfantis (285, 28-17).

Grant state qualifiers Christian Kanzler (126, 39-6), Cole Berg (145, 36-6), Justin Gilich (160, 31-9), Jacob Melton (170, 181-2) along with Dylan Mannes (138, 29-9) and Kobe Lear (152, 33-9).

Outlook: Wheeling's recent victory at Glenbrook South was the 10th regional triumph in program history and first since 2009. Leading it was the dean of MSL coaches, Neal Weiner, who is closing in a 500 victories in a career which has spanned over 30 years. It's a young Wildcats lineup, featuring mostly with sophomores and juniors, and just two seniors in its regional starting lineup.

Weiner has a terrific assistant on his staff in the former state champion from Buffalo Grove, Nick Blackshaw, and his desire to make them into a tougher, more tournament-ready bunch is beginning to show results.

The Wildcats outscored league rival Fremd 208-186 at the regional thanks in part to a half-dozen individual titles, led by eventual state qualifiers, Skoot and Shaw, and a total of 11 sectional qualifiers, including Tristan Guaman (138) who led the club in wins along with Montiel.

Wheeling should have an advantage from 182 on up with its three sectional qualifiers (Robert Torres, Yoni Medina and Zach Yfantis) ready to make a difference in the final outcome, after combining for nearly 80 victories between them.

The Bulldogs haven't skipped a beat since Lenny Grodoski took over for the well respected and highly successful Ryan Geist this season. The clear leader on the mats for Grant is three-time state qualifier and 2016 state medalist Christian Kanzler, who brings a wealth of competition experience plus tremendous leadership.

Grant lost the middle of its lineup to graduation after last season. But in a program which builds from within, Grodoski turned to several varsity newcomers who'd been waiting for there chance to shine. The trio of Lear, Beg and Gilich bring plenty of grit and could hold the key to who moves on, and who stays home after this night.

Deerfield (23-3-0 vs. Hononegah (13-3-0), 6 p.m.

Advancement: Winner advances to meet either Glenbard North or Oak Park-River Forest in dual-team quarterfinals at 9 a.m. Saturday.

Outlook: Seventh-ranked Deerfield has been on the upswing ever since Marc Pechter took over the Warriors program. Along with the help of a terrific bunch of assistants, Pechter has assembled a program which has become the pride of the Central Suburban League as well as one of the best in the state the past few seasons.

After some online discrepancies in the team scoring race between Deerfield and Stevenson were finally resolved late in the evening at the regional level, the Warriors edged the Patriots by 1 point to earn their dual-team sectional spot.

The Warriors will need to counter the upper-weight strength of the No. 10-rated Indians, who have state qualifiers Jordan Shahrikan (192), Blake Zalapi (220) and heavyweight state medalist Tony Cassioppi (44-3) in place but are driven by state champion Fernie Silva (152, 40-2), who won it all after three previous visits downstate.

The brothers Heller - Sage (170) and Holden (113) - led the way downstate for the Warriors, with the senior (Sage, 44-5) finishing second to Matt Rowland and the Holden (42-6), a sophomore, earning a fourth-place medal. There's plenty of lower-weight quality and depth in the lineup, too, but Deerfield will be missing three-time state medalist Andrew Mehrholz, who suffered a season-ending injury during his sectional final.

Hononegah, which finished fifth at the Dvorak (Deerfield was sixth) has talent at its lower weights also, but that's where Deerfield has been at its best. Hononegah is after a second straight trip to the elite eight.

- Mike Garofola

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