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Wrestling: Sandburg rules SWSC once again
during the championship semifinal 138 pound match Saturday afternoon in Joliet ,
January, 21, 2012.| Ray Luna ~ For Sun-Times
Friday’s snowstorm forced the SouthWest Suburban Conference wrestling tournament into becoming an all-day affair on Saturday.
But after nearly 12 hours of competition, the final result was not much different than in past SWSC meets where Sandburg won the unofficial team title.
The Eagles had four champions to help them capture top honors in the 16-team event by a 347.5-263 margin over runner-up Lincoln-Way Central in Joliet.
Winning championships for Sandburg were Sebastian Pique (120), John Pellegrino (126), Dan Garcia (132) and Ricky Robertson (170).
Pique won 9-4 over Lincoln-Way Central’s Joey Nelson, Pellegrino edged Joliet Central’s Drake DeBenedetti 3-2 and Garcia beat returning champ Robbie Mikenis of Lincoln-Way Central by a 5-2 score.
Capturing titles for host Joliet Central were Trayvon Zabala (113) and Sharod Wilson (182) while Bolingbrook got firsts from Issac Jensen (220) and Rob Bain (285).
Two-time champ Zabala (28-2) won 9-3 to avenge an earlier loss to Lockport’s Austin Strzelczyk while Wilson defeated Lockport’s Tyler Johnson by a 12-3 score.
“I worked hard for this match and I did all that I could do in order to beat him,” Zabala said. “And I’m going to keep working harder so that I can get better.”
Bain (19-0) won 11-4 over Andrew’s Cory Chojnowski in a clash of unbeatens while Jensen got an escape with a second left to claim a 7-6 win over Lincoln-Way East’s Joey Allegretti.
Lockport’s Shaun’Qae McMurtry (38-1 at 160) won his third straight title while Lincoln-Way East’s Kyle Langenderfer (138) and Stagg’s Kevin Moylan (145) became two-time champs.
Langenderfer (34-2) won 4-0 over Joliet West’s Jim Spangler in a battle of returning state placewinners while McMurtry edged Sandburg’s Chris Pajak by an 8-7 score.
“I got a pin against him last time,” Langenderfer said. “So I knew he was going to be a little more resistant to what I did on my feet. But I still had a solid match.”
Other title winners were Joliet West’s Matt Koran (195), Lincoln-Way Central’s Tyler Schneider (152) and Thornton’s Kris Williams (106)
Koran (27-2) defeated Homewood-Flossmoor’s returning champion Donnie Bell 6-1 in the finals while Schneider claimed a 5-2 win over Sandburg’s C.J. Brucki.
“I was just trying to push the pace as much as I could and keep the tempo going,” Koran said. “I’m trying to be in prime condition so that I’ll head into regionals strong.”
“I think this is the best conference in Illinois so you have to be good in order to win it,” Schneider said. “I felt tired in the second and third periods but finished it.”
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