Same position, different situation for Montini's LaBarbera
CHAMPAIGN - Josh LaBarbera was back in a familiar spot for the final weekend of the Class 3A individual wrestling season Friday.
He was simply wearing a different uniform.
One year after earning all-state distinction for Metea Valley, LaBarbera, who transferred to two-time team state champion Montini after the conclusion of the school year last spring, capped a frenetic day for the nationally rated Broncos.
LaBarbera had the only offensive points in his 220-pound collision with Barrington junior Evan Roper. The uncommitted senior prevailed 3-2 to become the fifth Montini athlete to qualify for the championship finals on Saturday at the University of Illinois' State Farm Center.
"I was staying strong, mostly staying focused," LaBarbera said after improving to 37-8 on the season. "Pressure is a privilege not everyone gets to have. I was believing in my coaches."
LaBarbera had a tough decision after competing at 195 pounds last season.
" (Montini coach Israel Martinez) thought I should go 220," LaBarbera said. "I do what my coaches want me to do. Whatever they want is perfect for me."
The Montini coaching staff endured nail-biters at both ends of the spectrum the entire evening.
Montini sophomore Joe Fernau had to beat the top two seeds, Moline junior Charlie Farmer and Will Baysinger, simply to reach the finals at 106.
Baysinger, the Prospect freshman wunderkind, had his season-long 45-match winning streak halted by Fernau 4-3 in the first semifinal.
"He's a great dude," Montini 152-pound champion Joe Roberts, a transfer from Yorkville who has committed to North Carolina State, said of Fernau. "I am glad to have him as one of my teammates."
Montini features two Michigan recruits in Dylan Ragusin and Fidel Mayora.
The former retained his bid for a second consecutive state championship by turning back Oak Park-River Forest 126-pounder Jacob Rundell - who handed Ragusin a regular-season defeat - 3-2.
Mayora, however, will have to compete in the third-place bracket for a second time as the two-time state runner-up fell to OPRF top seed Joshua Ogunsanya 5-3.
"Fidel is a good kid," Martinez said. "Winning a state title is not going to define him. Dylan Ragusin is a state champion. He is our senior leader."
Trevor Swier is in the state championship match at 182 pounds for Montini as the senior survived Moline 42-match winner DeAnthony Parker 4-2.
Nick Gonzalez, Nain Vazquez and Braden Stauffenberg all dropped heartbreakers for the Broncos at 113, 120 and 138 pounds, respectively.
"We've got to be ready to wrestle on the whistle," Martinez said of a common denominator in the defeats.
Three local Class 3A athletes made semifinal appearances in succession between 170 and 195 pounds.
But Antonio Torres, Alonzo Smiley and Elijah Brockie had the misfortune of facing superior wrestlers.
Torres, the Waubonsie Valley 170-pound sectional champion, and Brockie, a 40-match-winning 182-pounder from Willowbrook, could not get past the second period against David Ferrante and Dzhabrail Khurshidov.
Ferrante, the Huntley defending state champion, vanquished Torres with a technical fall.
For Brockie, at least he made it to the second period against Khurshidov, the West Aurora standout who steamrolled his way to the 195-pound championship with three consecutive falls.
Smiley was also dispatched to the consolation draw as the Glenbard North senior fell 16-8 to Pekin senior Jared Dowell.
"Trying to dictate your match (is the most difficult aspect)," Torres said. "You know they are the defending state champion. You have to always give respect but not too much."
In addition to the seven local wrestlers who fell in semifinal matches, an equal number of area athletes remain in medal contention among Class 3A hopefuls.
In the Class 1A tournament, IC Cathollic Prep freshman sensation Saul Trejo Jr. reached the 106-pound finals with a 4-2 triumph over top-seeded Jarek Wehrle of Vandalia.
But the Knights' Nicholas Renteria could not duplicate the feat two weight classes later at 120.
Fenton senior Daniel Ramirez (152) is the only possible all-state candidate among the ever-dwindling Class 2A programs in the area.