Libertyville's Pucino poised to make a run at state title

Reaching the top of the podium in high school wrestling is never an easy task by any stretch of the imagination, but No. 1-ranked Libertyville senior Danny Pucino is just the individual to do it if all goes well for the stellar athlete between now and Feb. 22.

Pucino's road to his current top-ranked status has been a long and arduous one beginning with his earliest days in the sport at the Libertyville Wildcats youth group starting at age five.

From there, Pucino moved on to the Wrestling Factory in Lake Forest in sixth grade before starting his competitive wrestling career at Oak Grove Middle School.

But it was at Libertyville High School that people really started to take notice of Pucino as he exploded onto the scene as a freshman when he just missed getting a medal downstate at 126 pounds.

Then he took third in his sophomore year before placing second last year to Oak Park's Eddie Bolivar, who handed Pucino (44-2) a heartbreaking 7-5 loss in the 132-pound finals.

"It was my first time being in the state finals so I was a little nervous," said Pucino, who will wrestle at the University of Illinois next year along with former teammate Michael Gunther and current teammate E'lan Heard, who has also committed to the Fighting Illini.

"But with the knowledge and training I have now I think it would be a different story, and I think about it every day."

Not only does Pucino have the benefit of wrestling for Hall of Fame coach Dale Eggert, who has a 576-157-2 record heading into his 33rd season, but Pucino's father, Scott, had a long and successful wrestling career at both the high school and college levels.

"Having him (Eggert) as a coach is awesome because he's seen it all, he knows what to expect, and his knowledge is great," said Pucino, whose father was a Division I All-American at the University of Rhode Island as well as a coach at Boston University.

"He (Eggert) taught me how to learn the game on film and break it down, and since starting off in the club he helped me build some simple skills that I didn't think were missing that really helped get me over the edge."

Libertyville has a long history of success and tradition dating back to the first North Suburban Conference meet in 1956. The Wildcats have a total of 28 all-staters and 108 state qualifiers under the guidance of Eggert alone. Libertyville also has three state champions, four second-place finishers, and 10 third-place finishers. Mike Baumann was the last Wildcat wrestler to bring home a state title in 1991, and Pucino has a good chance to be the fourth in school history.

Eggert knows that Pucino can go the distance at State Farm Center in Champaign in late February, but there are no givens when the state meet rolls around.

"He's very athletic for starters, he's spent a lot of time at the sport, he has great technique, and he's got it all," said Eggert, who placed second in the state his senior year at Libertyville before wrestling at Southern Illinois.

"He's one of the favorites. It would take a heck of an effort for an opponent to beat him."

Pucino said that he has done some fine tuning to his training and diet regimen entering his senior season meaning little to no McDonald's, Burger King, or other fast food for the time being, And he wants to make sure that if he does fall short of his ultimate goal that deep down he knows he did everything he could possibly do to win the state crown.

"It's been my goal since I was a little kid to win the state title, and everything I do right now is so I can win a state title," said Pucino, who also looked up to former Libertyville wrestler Joey Gunther, who is a senior at Illinois.

"I don't shy away from working hard, and I want to know I worked the hardest I absolutely could if I don't win it."

Family has been a huge part of Pucino's success and drive over the years as he enters the final stages of his high school career, which seem to have gone by in a heartbeat.

"My Mom (Meg) and Dad have always been there for me, and they've always supported me to achieve my goals and back me," added Pucino, who went 50-3 as a sophomore. "He (Scott Pucino) was a two-time state champion in high school, and a four-time New England Conference champ."

Eggert has certainly enjoyed coaching Pucino over the past three years, and he knows that not too many wrestlers of his caliber come down the pipeline even for a storied program like Libertyville's.

"It's been a pleasure, and it's been a thrill watching him do the incredible, athletic moves that he does," Eggert said. "I'm confident in him putting his best foot forward when it counts, and he's clearly one of the favorites."