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Wrestling: Lemont claims South Suburban tourney title
Updated: January 28, 2012 11:29PM
Lemont coach John St. Clair said he’d never seen so many members of his team wrestle in the championships in one day.
Nine Indians advanced to the final round and four won titles as Lemont (208 points) scored its third consecutive title at the South Suburban Conference Tournament on Saturday at T.F. South.
The Indians boasted individual medalists in four of the 14 weight brackets to run away with the team crown at the 14-team meet. Reavis (139.5), Argo (121), Shepard (118) and T.F. South (98) completed the top five. Richards (81), Oak Forest (75), Tinley Park (74), Bremen (73), Hillcrest (60), Eisenhower (41.50), Oak Lawn (28), Evergreen Park (21), and T.F. North (7) rounded out the field.
“I know I’ve never had this many kids in the finals of any tournament before,” Lemont’s fourth-year coach said. “Nine kids in the finals is definitely a good thing. It was fun, it was a good day.”
It was a lofty accomplishment, considering the Indians are No. 2 in the Class 2A rankings according to Illinois Matmen’s latest poll, and are coming off a fourth-place finish in last year’s state tournament. In 2010, Lemont took third.
Jake Latanski started the Indians’ individual honors at 126 pounds, nipping Evergreen Park’s Jessie McClain 3-2 in the final. Latanski escaped two holds in the final minute to force extra periods, ripping free from McClain’s grip once more in the second overtime to earn the victory.
Glen Malecki (132 pounds) won a 22-10 shootout over Reavis’ Sam Almousa in his title tilt. Malecki jumped out to a quick 8-2 lead and never looked back. It was his third conference crown.
“He was really fast. Touched my head a lot, and I knew one of us was going to have to shoot,” Malecki said. “So I wanted to be the one shooting the whole time.”
In perhaps the most exciting match of the finals, Lemont’s Chris Giatras outlasted T.F. South’s Joe Young 2-1 at 182 pounds. Each wrestler had the opponent in the air in this bout.
“I knew he was strong and I knew he was explosive, so I just wanted to stay on my toes to capitalize on one of his mistakes,” Giatras said. “When I was in the air, I was thinking, ‘Just keep your cool, don’t freak out.’ I’m comfortable off my feet. I don’t mind it.”
Jake Kaminsky also scored a title for the Indians at 152, topping Argo’s Marek Kowal 4-1 on a pair of takedowns.
Reavis’ Joe Kennedy overpowered Lemont’s Mark Kirkman with a 5-1 decision for the title at 160, avenging a loss to Kirkman earlier in the season.
“We let a couple matches get away in the semis, where I think we could’ve had more guys in the finals,” Rams coach Charlie Manning said. “Our kids, they’re not afraid to wrestle anybody. Whether it’s Lemont, Marist or any one of these top schools, you put your foot on the line and you’ve got to give them all you’ve got.”
Bremen’s Julio Chavez used a late surge to dispatch Shepard’s Mike Scaccia at 120. Bremen’s Adeyemi Sosina made quick work of Lemont’s Jim Brennan at 145, notching a pin 31 seconds into the match.
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