High School Sports RSS: Wrestling

Stuart family carries on wrestling tradition

Sun, 21 Jun 2009 04:00 CST

Bryan Stuart and his father, Ron, are partners in Grizzly Grappling, a youth wrestling program. "He's been a coach all of his life. He's made a big difference in so many kids' lives," Bryan Stuart says.

Comeback kids: Oak Park rallies to win title

BY SETH SCHWARTZ — Sat, 28 Feb 2009 14:00 CST

Led by Nick Dardanes and Ellis Coleman, Oak Park rallied to defeat Minooka 33-30 Saturday night to capture the Class 3A dual team wrestling state title at U.S. Cellular Coliseum in Bloomington.

Who's No. 1? Montini has a strong case

BY MIKE CLARK mclark@suntimes.com — Sat, 28 Feb 2009 14:00 CST

Montini knocked off Crystal Lake Central in the Class 2A team wrestling semifinals and then routed Yorkville 52-6 in the championship Saturday night at U.S. Cellular Coliseum.

Learning experiences for Mt. Carmel, Lemont, Oak Forest

BY MIKE CLARK mclark@suntimes.com — Sat, 28 Feb 2009 14:00 CST

Mount Carmel went one and out in the team state wrestling tournament Saturday at U.S. Cellular Coliseum, falling 30-26 to Edwardsville in a Class 3A quarterfinal. Lemont also lost 30-25 to Triad and Oak Forest couldn't keep up with Crystal Lake Central in a 58-12 loss.

Live blog: Team state wrestling finals

Sat, 28 Feb 2009 14:00 CST

YourSeason's Mike Clark will be following the action all day from the team state wrestling tournament at U.S. Cellular Coliseum in Bloomington.

Lemont, Oak Forest aim to make statements

BY MIKE CLARK mclark@suntimes.com — Thu, 26 Feb 2009 18:00 CST

Thanks in part to the addition of another class to wrestling's team tournament, Oak Forest and Lemont both earned state berths for the first time in school history. Both will compete in Saturday's Class 2A quarterfinals in Bloomington.

Providence all too familiar with script

By CURT HERRON For The Herald News — Thu, 26 Feb 2009 04:00 CST

Wrestling: Providence Catholic High School's wrestling program has risen to the top of the sport because of its unique style of doing things. During coach Keith Healy's 17 years at the helm, it's featured a mix of finding ways to win close matches while adding in bonus points.

Nobody's laughing anymore

Thu, 26 Feb 2009 00:01 CST

Wrestling: Minutes after Mitch Brozovich put the finishing touches on Minooka's 25-24 high school wrestling victory over Providence, coach Bernie Ruettiger touched on the magnitude of the Indians' accomplishment. No Joliet-area wrestling team had defeated Providence in a dual meet in 14 years.

Maggi gets Mount Carmel righted

Wed, 25 Feb 2009 04:00 CST

With momentum slipping away at Tuesday's Class 3A Marist Dual Team Sectional, Mount Carmel's Mike Maggi knew his match at 125 pounds was crucial.

Emotions run high at state wrestling

BY PAUL JOHNSON -- FOR THE BEACON NEWS — Tue, 24 Feb 2009 18:00 CST

The individual state wrestling championships in Champaign is one of my favorite events of the year.

Klimara, Cooper, Oster take titles

By CURT HERRON For The Herald News — Sun, 22 Feb 2009 04:00 CST

Wrestling: The Joliet area could not have asked for a much better start to Saturday's Class 3A state finals at the Assembly Hall. Providence Catholic's Eddie Klimara and Edwin Cooper and Lockport's Jameson Oster all walked away with championships in the first three weight classes.

Another title for Van Duyne

Mon, 23 Feb 2009 00:01 CST

Wrestling: Everybody knows what comes after 3-2-1 ... blast off. And that's exactly what Wilmington High School senior standout John Van Duyne did in the first period of his 135-pound championship match in the 1A state wrestling tournament Saturday night at Assembly Hall.

Third time the charm for Cabral

Sun, 22 Feb 2009 00:01 CST

Wrestling: Twice before, Angel Cabral came down to the University of Illinois in search of a state championship. And twice before, he went home disappointed. Cabral, Lemont High School's junior heavyweight, turned his luck around in dramatic fashion in the 2A state wrestling tournament on Saturday night at Assembly Hall

Mercadante, Villanueva claim third at state

By PAUL JOHNSON For The Courier-News — Mon, 23 Feb 2009 04:00 CST

Wrestling: Being a senior that had never before advanced to the spectacle that is the IHSA State Wrestling Finals can be a daunting task. But St. Charles East senior Daniel Mercadante was not fazed by the big stage at the Assembly Hall at the University of Illinois one bit.

Team sectional pairings

Sat, 21 Feb 2009 18:00 CST

The state team wrestling meet is just around the corner. Here are the sectional matchups.

Oswego's Howell left wanting more

By PAUL JOHNSON For The Beacon News — Sun, 22 Feb 2009 04:00 CST

Wrestling: Heading into the Class 2A state meet at the University of Illinois in Champaign this weekend, all eyes were on a potential battle between Oswego junior Dan Howell and Montini star Grant Goebel at 215 pounds.

Not what Proctor ordered

By PAUL JOHNSON For The Sun — Mon, 23 Feb 2009 04:00 CST

Wrestling: In the third period of Class 3A's 160-pound state championship match Saturday at Assembly Hall, Neuqua Valley junior Nick Proctor wanted to get something going. Buffalo Grove's Kyle Czarnecki had other ideas, however. Leading 3-2 on the strength of a second-period takedown, Czarnecki kept Proctor on the mat for most of the third period and wound up winning the state championship by that score.

Wilmington sends five to semifinals

Sat, 21 Feb 2009 00:01 CST

Wrestling: The little guy had to work a little harder than normal -- but he was OK with that because of the end result. Alex Jones, the Wilmington High School junior who pinned his way through regional and sectional competition and spent less time on the mat in five matches than it normally takes to wrestle one, put in a full 6 minutes during his 103-pound quarterfinal match in the 1A state tournament on Friday night at Assembly Hall.

Southlanders make splash at state wrestling

Sat, 21 Feb 2009 04:00 CST

Diontae Brown, A.J. Knoll and John Grubisich have been ranked among the top wrestlers in the state for the past few years but haven't had anything to show for it.

LWC's Farmer takes Chase

By CURT HERRON For The Herald News — Sat, 21 Feb 2009 04:00 CST

Wrestling: Justin Farmer feels that he doesn't get the respect that he deserves, but that doesn't bother him. After all, the Lincoln-Way Central senior has a second-place medal at 119 from last year and a third-place medal at 112 from 2007 to his credit.

Villanueva, Mercadante advance to semis

By ALEX LAWSON For The Courier-News — Sat, 21 Feb 2009 04:00 CST

Wrestling: Dundee-Crown's Miko Villanueva and St. Charles East's Daniel Mercadante advanced to the semifinals of today's State Wrestling Finals after winning twice Friday in Champaign.

Marian Catholic's perfect pair

Fri, 20 Feb 2009 04:00 CST

Marian Catholic senior wrestlers Mark Marianovich and Elias Larson are unbeaten, each with a 38-0 record. But they haven't won every match this season.

Providence's Cooper looks to grab state title

BY RON KREMER -- HERALD NEWS — Wed, 18 Feb 2009 18:00 CST

For the last 363 days, Edwin Cooper has been a young man on a mission. He went downstate as a freshman with a handful of his Providence wrestling teammates and came within one match -- and one big move -- of winning the Class AA 103-pound championship.

JT's Juarez moves to head of his class

Sat, 14 Feb 2009 00:01 CST

Wrestling: In the toughest bracket in the state's toughest sectional, Joliet's A.J. Juarez showed how a little energy and a lot of experience can be used to overcome a bit of misfortune. Juarez, a junior 119-pounder who has been plagued for the last year by a rash of injuries, scored 26 points in winning two wrestling matches on Friday night at the Lincoln-Way Central Sectional.

Yorkville prepares for state

By PAUL JOHNSON For The Beacon News — Fri, 13 Feb 2009 04:00 CST

Wrestling: All season long, Yorkville wrestling coach Shane Darnell kept his injury-riddled team up by speaking about being ready for February. Now healthy, the Foxes are in February. And they are certainly ready, as evidenced by their dramatic, come-from-behind Class 2A Sandwich Regional championship.

Burlington brings nine to sectional

By BRANDON MANGIA For The Courier-News — Fri, 13 Feb 2009 04:00 CST

Wrestling: Burlington Central hit a milestone at its own Class 2A wrestling regional last Saturday by advancing nine wrestlers, and hopes to make history again this weekend at the Fenton Class 2A Individual Sectional. In their fourth year at Class 2A, the Rockets have yet to advance any wrestlers Downstate but have all the pieces in place to break through this time around.

Plainfield Central moves 10 wrestlers to sectional

Fri, 13 Feb 2009 04:00 CST

Wrestling: The Minooka Indians, with six individual champs and 11 sectional qualifiers, scored 205 points Feb. 7 to overpower an 11-team West Aurora Regional field that included three of the top six ranked teams of illinoismatmen.com.

Minooka's Rangel all set for shot at state

Thu, 12 Feb 2009 04:00 CST

Minooka's Marcus Rangel win in regionals earned him a spot on the top half of the 135-pound bracket for competition in the Lincoln-Way Central wrestling sectional coming up this weekend. Plainfield Central's Joey Uccardi will be on the bottom half. And the two very well could meet again -- for the third time in three weeks, this time with a berth in the 3A state tournament hanging in the balance.

Minooka's Boboski leads way

Sun, 8 Feb 2009 00:01 CST

Regional wrestling: A collarbone injury cost Brian Bokoski a month of his senior wrestling season at Minooka High School. He just now is making up for that lost time. Bokoski took on the hometown boy with the big headlock in one of the marquee matchups during the final round of wrestling Saturday at the West Aurora Regional.

D-C advances five wrestlers to sectionals

By JOEL REUTER For The Courier-News — Sun, 8 Feb 2009 04:00 CST

Regional wrestling: Despite falling slightly short of coach Al Zinke's expectations, the Dundee-Crown Class 3A Regional was a successful one for the host Chargers as they will send five individuals to sectional action.

Burlington Central advances nine

By ANDY ROHR For The Courier-News — Mon, 9 Feb 2009 00:01 CST

Regional wrestling: Three regional championships and six other sectional qualifiers gave host Burlington Central a solid result at its Class 2A wrestling regional on Saturday. Although the Rockets finished second behind Rockford East (191-175), nine Central wrestlers will head to the Fenton Sectional next Saturday.

SC East finishes a strong second

By BRANDON MANGIA For The Courier-News — Sun, 8 Feb 2009 04:00 CST

Regional wrestling: St. Charles East knew Glenbard North was the favorite heading into the Elgin Class 3A Wrestling Regional on Saturday. With that in mind, St. Charles East was determined on at least second place as a team and to have a good showing individually, as first-through-third-place finishers advanced to sectional action.

Wrestler's eyes on 3A regional prize

Fri, 6 Feb 2009 00:01 CST

Wrestling: Deufel, Rudy: Two individuals, one mindset At this time of the year, it is commonplace on the high school wrestling beat to watch as teams and individuals taper off, their workouts gradually declining in difficulty and their focus turning to storing up energy for the postseason push.

Providence hits its stride

By CURT HERRON For The Herald News — Sat, 31 Jan 2009 04:00 CST

Wrestling: Providence Catholic's wrestling team recorded the big victories against Mount Carmel on Friday. And the Celtics also pulled out all of the come-from-behind wins in their Chicago Catholic League dual meet with the Caravan.

Omar powers Porters past L-Way Central

BY RON KREMER -- HERALD NEWS — Thu, 29 Jan 2009 18:00 CST

Lockport's Abe Omar scored a 5-1 victory over Lincoln-Way Central's Joe Souder to help the Porters put away the Knights 38-18 in a Senior Night dual on Thursday.

It's full speed ahead for Lockport's Stenberg

BY RON KREMER -- HERALD NEWS — Tue, 27 Jan 2009 00:00 CST

Lockport's Mark Stenberg has his eyes fixed on the bigger prize. He wants to climb atop the state medal podium before he sets off for Northern Michigan University to begin his collegiate career and to train for spot on the U.S. Olympic Greco-Roman wrestling team.

Lockport earns first conference title

BY CURT HERRON -- FOR THE HERALD NEWS — Sat, 24 Jan 2009 16:00 CST

Lockport had never won a wrestling conference title in the 50-plus years it's competed. But it ended that long drought in an impressive fashion on Saturday after winning the SouthWest Suburban Conference meet by 45 points.

Kelly completes quest, takes city title

BY MIKE CLARK -- SUN-TIMES mclark@suntimes.com — Sat, 24 Jan 2009 16:00 CST

On a day when favorites had a hard time, Kelly�s two returning champions defended their titles and the Trojans beat out Lane 278-254 for the city championship at the Broadway Armory.

Royals, Feliciano making strides

By BRANDON MANGIA For The Courier News — Mon, 26 Jan 2009 04:00 CST

Wrestling: Everyone on the Larkin wrestling team knew the Royals were much improved this year. It was just a matter of proving it on a large stage. The Royals got that opportunity on Saturday at the Upstate Eight Conference Tournament and took full advantage. Larkin scored 101 points to end in a fifth-place tie with host South Elgin.

Batavia makes it out as lead dog

By PAUL JOHNSON For The Beacon News — Sun, 25 Jan 2009 04:00 CST

Wrestling: Batavia, DeKalb and Sycamore each went 6-1 in conference dual meets, with Yorkville right behind them at 5-2. And the three top teams battled until the final match of the day on Saturday to determine the winner.

Minooka rolls over Plainfield North

By CURT HERRON For The Herald News — Fri, 23 Jan 2009 00:01 CST

Wrestling: Brian Bokoski is pleased by how well his wrestling team is doing but wasn't very happy about missing out on most of his senior season. But after suffering a separation of his collarbone, the Minooka senior had little choice but to sit on the sidelines and watch his teammates compete.

Plainfield C. puts a hurtin' on Romeoville

Fri, 23 Jan 2009 00:01 CST

Wrestling: Plainfield Central's Eric Oyster and Romeoville's Donny Simpson drilled together, neither one placing much emphasis on their off-season sparring matches because they never expected to meet again during the high school season.

East wrestlers eyeing solid effort in UEC

By BRANDON MANGIA For The Courier-News — Thu, 22 Jan 2009 04:00 CST

High School Wrestling: Every team in the Upstate Eight Conference knows that Neuqua Valley is the team to beat this Saturday at the UEC Tournament, hosted by South Elgin.

Neuqua Valley stars at Lockport

BY CURT HERRON — Sat, 17 Jan 2009 16:00 CST

Neuqua Valley upset Lockport 35-29 to highlight a 3-0 performance at Lockport's Mega Duals on Saturday. In the final meet of the day, Lockport won 40-27 over Plainfield Central, which had gotten off to a 17-0 start.

Winchell, Garcia pick up slack for Joliet

Sat, 17 Jan 2009 04:00 CST

Wrestling: Joliet Township's home run hitter was sitting in a folding chair next to the mat. So, as 119-pounder A.J. Juarez continued to nurse a sore back, the Steelmen turned to their singles and doubles hitters to pick up the slack in a 43-12 high school wrestling victory over Plainfield South on Friday night.

Kaneland seniors set winning tone

By CHRIS PALL For The Beacon News — Fri, 16 Jan 2009 04:00 CST

Wrestling: A.J. Wagner scored Kaneland's first victory, notching a pin in twenty seconds in the third match of the contest and propelled the Knights to a 39-34 victory over Geneva in a Western Sun Conference dual.

Oak Park whips Hinsdale Central

BY CURT HERRON — Thu, 15 Jan 2009 18:00 CST

Oak Park made a big statement against Hinsdale Central in the West Suburban Conference on Thursday. The Huskies rolled past the Red Devils 46-12 in a showdown of first-place WSC teams in Hinsdale.

Q & A with Glenbard North's Tony Ramos

BY TAYLOR BELL — Thu, 15 Jan 2009 18:00 CST

Glenbard North's 130-pound wrestler Tony Ramos answers questions from Taylor Bell.

L-Way Central's Farmer returns just in time

Fri, 16 Jan 2009 04:00 CST

Wrestling: Nearing the mid-point of January, Lincoln-Way Central's Justin Farmer finds himself playing a whole new ballgame. He missed the first half of the wrestling season because of a suspension that followed on the heels of a school code of conduct violation. He first returned to the Knights' lineup on Jan. 3 and then staged a coming out party at the Lincoln-Way Central Mega-Duals on Saturday.

Joliet's little man makes his Mark

Fri, 16 Jan 2009 00:01 CST

Wrestling focus: There is a word to describe a guy like Mark Johnson. No, not short. While it is true he has been overlooked by some in the high school wrestling community because of his size, he makes up for a 5-2 frame with speed and power.

Saturday's wrestling roundup

Sat, 10 Jan 2009 17:00 CST

Scores and highlights from Saturday's wrestling action.

Thursday's wrestling roundup

Thu, 8 Jan 2009 16:00 CST

Scores and highlights from Thursday's wrestling action.

Ledbetter leads Plainfield Central

Fri, 9 Jan 2009 16:00 CST

Wrestling: Tyler Ledbetter trailed by one point in his 145-pound wrestling match against a cross-town rival. He called on that experience to help pull him through in a 14-6 victory over Plainfield North's Josh Moore in a Southwest Prairie dual on Thursday night.

Porters continue early-season dominance

BY CURT HERRON — Sat, 3 Jan 2009 16:00 CST

No. 4 Lockport continued its early-season dominance by sweeping a quad meet against Romeoville, Glenbard South and WW South on Saturday.

Montini captures Dvorak Invitational title

BY SETH SCHWARTZ — Tue, 23 Dec 2008 13:00 CST

No. 2 Montini started fast and didn�t slow down, running away with the Al Dvorak Invitational title Tuesday at Harlem High School. Frank Baer (140) and Grant Goebel (215) both took first for the Broncos.

Lane takes down Kelly

BY MIKE CLARK -- SUN-TIMES — Tue, 23 Dec 2008 13:00 CST

Though Lane edged Kelly for the Public League tournament title last winter, the memory of a regular-season loss to the Trojans was very much on the Indians' mind heading into Tuesday's dual.

Lockport captures 2nd at Dvorak

By CURT HERRON -- FFor The Herald News — Wed, 24 Dec 2008 04:00 CST

Lockport High School's wrestling team had a breakthrough performance on Tuesday. The Porters not only finished in the top 10 for the first time in recent memory at the Al Dvorak Memorial Invitational, but they did much more.

Plainfield Central makes a statement

By CURT HERRON For The Herald News — Sat, 20 Dec 2008 04:00 CST

Wrestling: The Wildcats made a major statement on Thursday when they did something that no one else had come close to doing this year, and that was to defeat the Indians. Plainfield Central won 33-23 home over Minooka.

Plainfield C. snaps back

By CURT HERRON Special to The Herald News — Fri, 19 Dec 2008 04:00 CST

Wrestling: The drought is over for the Plainfield Central wrestlers. The Wildcats snapped a long losing streak to rival Minooka on Thursday when they took a 33-23 decision over the Indians in Southwest Prairie Conference action.