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St. Charles East takes Upstate Eight title again

Ben Anderson was at the forefront of a memorable afternoon by St. Charles East, which opened the day with a modest lead before running away from runner-up Glenbard East and the rest of the field to win its second straight Upstate Eight Conference wrestling tournament title.

Anderson (35-1) would pin his way to another conference title, while four of his teammates joined the junior atop the podium to help the tourney hosts outscore Glenbard East 279.5-220, and third-place West Aurora, which finished with 216 overall points.

"We were in much better shape today than we were last year after the first day, and it didn't take the guys very long to get a lead that would be nearly impossible to give away," said Saints head coach Jason Potter.

"We left a few wins out there today, so we'll get after that, along with a few other things when we get back in the room on Monday."

One year ago, the Saints led Glenbard East by just 2 points (105-103) at the opening whistle of day No. 2 only to step on the gas pedal and stay on it until slowly pulling away from the Rams in what would be a 19-point margin at the end (261-242) to lift the big trophy.

"It was a great day for me because I won my first individual title, but for our team, it's even better (because) we not only won at home, but we also won the last team title before the UEC breaks apart next year," said senior, Niko Derain (31-3), who beat Alex Posada (Glenbard East) 3-2 in his 145-pound final.

The Saints, along with Batavia, Geneva and St. Charles North will join the new DuKane Conference next school year along with Glenbard North, Lake Park, Wheaton North and Wheaton-Warrenville South from the DVC.

Anderson's mastery of the 120-pound weight class was a thing of beauty, but one that the affable Saints' star spent little time talking about, instead turning his attention to regionals in two weeks when he and his teammates will find themselves in one of the best in the state that includes state powers Glenbard North, Wheaton North and Glenbard East.

"I went into the final wanting to open things up, and trying to score as much as I could in order to put pressure on Reese (Martin, Glenbard East) because he's such a great opponent, but now it's time to focus on the postseason and advancing downstate and getting on the podium there," said Anderson, who beat the Rams' senior last year in the finals.

Justin Benjamin (126, 31-4) and Justin Hull (285, 32-3) scored championship medals on this day, as would freshman Jake Penzato (30-8), whose 106-pound title would give the Saints five on the day.

Another rookie sensation, Mike Caliendo (Batavia, 25-5) enjoyed a marvelous first UEC visit when he outlasted the Saints' Mark Guerrero (26-4) in the 113-pound final.

"I always felt I could be in a position to win here, and after getting tired of losing matches that I shouldn't have I finally turned things around for myself, including today," said Caliendo, who won the first of three titles by the Bulldogs.

Alec Wolff (182, 36-2) and Ben Pham (195, 31-5) went back-to-back later in the day for Glenbard East, with Wolff's a repeat performance after the senior put the finishing touches on his 182-pound title with a fall at 1:31

"The coaching staff and I have put in a lot of extra work together to help me expand my moves, cradles and singles, and with me getting bigger and stronger from last year to this season, I really feel I can reach my goal of getting downstate and winning a medal," said Wolff, who is anxious to erase the disappointment of failing to advance out of the Lyons regional last season.

Batavia's Justin Major (138, 19-5) was nearly flawless on this day, conceding just three points on the day, including a 1-0 shutout of Armando Martinez (31-8) a quality athlete from Geneva.

"I had a lot of catching up to do after I injured my foot over a month ago, and even though this win wasn't pretty, I feel like I am right there and ready for the postseason," said Major.

Angel Cruz's story is one of persistence, a life lesson for the 132-pound champ from Batavia, who found himself on the JV after losing a challenge match to a teammate early into the season.

"After I lost that match I just moped around and felt sorry for myself for awhile until getting my starting spot back when I won a challenge match," said Cruz (20-10) who was third here a year ago.

"My coaches had faith in me, and I learned a lot about myself during that time, and now all I want to do is wrestle as hard as I can to get downstate."

The Batavia trio would help the Bulldogs earn fourth-place overall with 168.50 points over fifth-place Geneva (101.5), which was led by Michael Donatelli (37-2) whose superb effort at 160 pounds gave the state-ranked Vikings senior yet another masterpiece to add to his 2017-2018 resume.

"I was a little slow coming out of the gate with me giving up that first takedown to (Malik) Milazzo (West Chicago, 27-7) but when I got the lead back, I began to feel more like myself to finish pretty strong," said Donatelli, now a dazzling 37-2 overall.

"It's a little different for me this year because more of my opponents are after me because of my record so I've got to dial things up in my training from here on out in order to get downstate and on the podium."

Donatelli will be one of the favorites at the Larkin sectional in three weeks.

Bartlett junior Trent Johnson (27-7) would become the first Hawk since 2013 to win a UEC crown following his 7-4 decision over Addison Jennings of St. Charles East.

Jennings would receive the annual Ed Washington Sportsmanship award before the final session began.

Johnsons' victory at 170 pounds ended a five-year wait after former state champion Sal Annoreno won the third and final league title before going on to star at NIU.

"It couldn't happen to a nicer kid, and one that has worked really hard since coming to our program, overcoming) an injury in the football season then giving the guys on the varsity and in our program something to celebrate and be proud of," said Hawks head coach John Glorioso.

Johnny Acevado would give third-place West Aurora its lone champion after the junior defeated Tommy Schroeder (29-5) of St. Charles East in his 152-pound bout with a fall at 5:41.

Acevado, fifth last year at 145 pounds, would jump-start his championship run when he upended No. 2 seed Cole Martin (32-8) of Glenbard East in his semifinal to advance.

"When the brackets came out and I saw I could meet Cole in the semifinals, I knew then who I had to go through in order to get into the final, and even though I was exhausted in that second period, and was scared to death during the final 30 seconds during two mad scrambles, I was able to beat a great opponent," said a thrilled Acevado.

Coach Andrew Platas' club would earn an impressive one dozen medals, the same as Batavia, and one behind the top two sides in the tournament.

  Mark Guerrero of St. Charles East wrestles and beats Justin Valle of Larkin at 113 pounds Saturday during the Upstate Eight wrestling tournament at St. Charles East High School. Brian Hill/bhill@dailyherald.com
  Brothers and St. Charles East Wrestling Coach Chris, left, and Jason Potter watch Ben Anderson of St. Charles East wrestle and beat Reid Coyle of Batavia at 120 pounds Saturday during the Upstate Eight wrestling tournament at St. Charles East High School. Brian Hill/bhill@dailyherald.com
  Ben Anderson of St. Charles East wrestles and beats Reid Coyle of Batavia at 120 pounds Saturday during the Upstate Eight wrestling tournament at St. Charles East High School. Brian Hill/bhill@dailyherald.com
  Reid Medlin of West Aurora loses to Reese Martin of Glenbard East at 120 pounds Saturday during the Upstate Eight wrestling tournament at St. Charles East High School. Brian Hill/bhill@dailyherald.com
  Alex Cruz of Batavia wrestles Justin Benjamin of St. Charles East at 126 pounds Saturday during the Upstate Eight wrestling tournament at St. Charles East High School. Brian Hill/bhill@dailyherald.com
  Honor Nguyen of Geneva wrestles Paul Keams of Bartlett at 126 pounds Saturday during the Upstate Eight wrestling tournament at St. Charles East High School. Brian Hill/bhill@dailyherald.com
  Honor Nguyen of Geneva wrestles Paul Keams of Bartlett at 126 pounds Saturday during the Upstate Eight wrestling tournament at St. Charles East High School. Brian Hill/bhill@dailyherald.com
  Ben Anderson of St. Charles East wrestles and beats Reid Coyle of Batavia at 120 pounds Saturday during the Upstate Eight wrestling tournament at St. Charles East High School. Brian Hill/bhill@dailyherald.com
  Jake Penzato of St. Charles East wrestles and beats Jimmy Espinoza of Glenbard East at 106 pounds Saturday during the Upstate Eight wrestling tournament at St. Charles East High School. Brian Hill/bhill@dailyherald.com
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