Feature Stories

By Mike Garofola

In a season like no other, one which has been significantly affected by the Coronavirus pandemic, the sport of wrestling reappeared. And Marian Central Catholic continued to show remarkable consistency during these turbulent times.  

The resilience and togetherness of the Hurricanes was on center stage Sunday afternoon at Antioch, when the East Suburban Catholic Conference power swept away the competition at the Antioch 2A regional, during the kickoff weekend for the Illinois Wrestling Coaches and Officials Association’s 2021 state tournament.  

“It’s great to be wrestling on a weekend and to have the guys wrestle multiple matches, and to be back in the atmosphere that we all enjoy, and have missed,” said Hurricanes head coach David Silva, who celebrated eight individual champions, including three-time state champ Dylan Connell and teammate Scotty Burke.  

“It would have been great to have a regular IHSA sponsored state tournament, but this is the next best thing, and I know all of us appreciate the IWCOA putting all of this together – especially for the seniors, who might not have had anything if not for this,” said Connell, who won easily at 182 pounds to run his 2021 record to 17-0, after a perfect 44-0 season in 2020.

Connell, who will wrestle this fall at the University of Illinois, will leave for Champaign in the middle of July, while Burke (15-2 at152) on his way to wrestle at Loras College. Burke will stay home and train a little while longer before heading to Dubuque where he will have a chance to crack the starting lineup.  

“I cannot wait to wrestle at Loras – the coaching staff, wrestling program, and campus — it’s a great fit for me,” said Burke, a three-time state qualifier, and fourth-place medal winner. Burke will room at Loras with Jack Sullivan of Wauconda, who finished third in a loaded 126-pound bracket. Two-time state medal winner Elon Rodriguez of Marian Central Catholic won the bracket at 126, topping Antioch sophomore Caleb Nobiling (14-3) on the title mat.  

Nobiling enjoyed a sensational rookie season for Antioch, which lifted the team trophy at regional with ease last season, then sent a program record nine wrestlers to the 2A state tournament.   “It was a really good freshmen year for me (obviously) I would have liked to have done better at state, but fourth overall was pretty good, and I know what I have to do to be better,” said Nobiling, who won 41 in 2019, and will soon turn his attention to the start of football camp, where he is deployed as a running back.   Nobiling conceded a fall late in the third period to Rodriguez (18-0), who finished second at the 2020 state tournament.  

“We have a lot of new faces on our team, but (David) Silva and our coaching staff have done a great job of sorting out our lineup, and getting us ready for this tournament – which I really appreciate the IWCOA putting together for us,” said Rodriguez, who will wrestle at Triton College this fall.  

Two of the new faces to the Hurricanes this season are former Aurora Christian star Chris Moore (138), who won a state title in 2020 at 106 pounds, and Harvard four-year veteran Nik Jimenez, the 126-pound 1A runner-up.  

Crystal Lake Central collected a trio of first place trophies at Antioch: Dillon Carlson (145,17-1), Caden Ernd (170, 6-0) and Julian Ryerson (195) who was a state qualifier a year ago with a 30-19 record.   Ernd, third overall at state with an impressive 39-5 record last year, will be joining Connell at Illinois in the fall, after taking a long look at Davidson, Northwestern, and Campbell in North Carolina.  

“I’ve been training at Poeta since eighth-grade, and (Mike) who was the assistant for awhile, and now the head coach, had a tremendous influence on me as to where I would go to college, so it’s a great fit to be there with him, and several other wrestlers that I know,” said Ernd.  

“I was really excited to hear there would be a state tournament schedule for us after we lost last season,” said Carlson, whose postseason a year ago was cut short due to an elbow injury which required surgery.  

“This coming high school season is really big for me – beginning with the IWCOA tournament, then continued workouts at Poeta to help get me ready for my senior year,” added Carlson.   The affable Grayslake Central senior, Jake Lester, who lost in the blood round at sectionals in 2020, defeated Joe Swanson of Cary-Grove with a 5-2 decision to win the 220 pound division.  

“THIS is my state tournament,” Lester said with a smile.  

“We all lost a season because of Covid, and there was nothing any of us could do about it, but I’ve been lifting, working out, putting extra time in with Joey Jens (Lesters’ former teammate, and 2020 state runner-up) as well as Apollo Gothard (state champion from Lemont) – in order to make a serious run at a state title,” said Lester, who will join the work force at his father’s family business when the season is over.  

“Jake has been working hard – he’s doing everything he needs to get himself ready for these next three or four weeks,” said Grayslake Central head coach, Matt Joseph.  

“We’ve had 14-15 kids in our room on a consistent basis, three of which are freshmen, who if they continue to work hard will give us a very good core of young guys to build from, including Joey Jens’ younger brother (Matthew) at 170.   Coaches Mike Buhr of Wauconda, Justen Lehr of Crystal Lake Central and Will Petersen of Cary-Grove all share the same stories when it came to roster numbers, and turnouts, and varied degrees of success during the fractured half-season that teams just completed.  

“There were a lot of factors to how many kids were in our room – thanks in part to some of the guys playing another sport, like (Colin) Husko, who’s a great shortstop,” said Buhr. Buhr had a steady 17-18 wrestlers with a solid bunch from 126-152, which he hopes to build from.   Mike Ness of Antioch won the heavyweight division in Antioch after his 7-4 decision over JP Sullivan from Lakes, who is also a nationally-ranked power lifter.   Other individual champions on this day were: Josh Glover (106), Charlie Fitzgerald (113) and Nick Davidson (120) from Marian Central Catholic, in addition to Lake Forest senior Bennett Duggan (160, 23-1) who was also a 2020 regional champ.  

“I would call this day a huge success,” proclaimed Antioch’s long-time coach, Wilbur Borrero, who also served a meet director at his own venue.  

“Since this regional was at a school facility, and not an independent location, we had to follow certain guidelines such as temperature checks, and mask wearing – but everyone cooperated, and followed the rules, and it turned out to be a fantastic day for everyone. I was thrilled we could host this regional,” added Borrero.  

The top six from each weight class advanced to the sectional meet at Pure Elite Fitness venue in Arlington Heights on June 19.   The final numbers on the leader board went like this:   Marian Central Catholic 293 overall points; Antioch 151.5; Crystal Lake Central 146.5; and Lake Forest with 101, rounding out the top four.  

“Congrats to Marian, they have a very good team, with several of their guys four-year wrestlers, who have made the commitment to the program and David (Silva),” Borrero said. “And for us, I was happy with our effort. We’re obviously missing a few of our guys but we got ourselves some good results, and now we hope to get some of them through at sectionals.”

By Gary Larsen

With the IHSA not hosting an individual or dual team state tournament this year due to the pandemic, the IWCOA will host its own individual state tournament in Springfield from June 21-26.

The IHSA sanctioned a wrestling regular season but once it was announced that there would be no state tournament, there was never a doubt that the IWCOA would try to fill the void.

The planning for that tournament has been an arduous process but it has been guided from the outset by one simple goal: “Every kid from the inner city of Chicago to the rural parts of Illinois — we want to give every single kid the opportunity to participate and try to qualify for the state tournament. And we want to give them a great experience,” IWCOA member Rob Porter said.

Porter has been one of the chief planners for the tournament, which kicks off with individual varsity boys regionals in all three classes on Sunday, June 13. Sectional meets will take place June 19.

The state finals at the Bank of Springfield Center will kick of Monday, June 21 with the girls’ state tournament. The boys’ state finals that week will take place as follows: the frosh-soph finals will take place Tuesday and Wednesday; Class 1A on Thursday; Class 2A on Friday; and Class 3A on Saturday, June 26.

Rob Porter, Executive Board Member

Porter has been involved in Illinois high school wrestling for decades as a coach and administrator. Once the decision was made to run a state tournament, numerous questions naturally arose.“Where do we start? How do we do something like this, especially in such short a time?” Porter said. “So it was a lot of meetings about what we wanted it to look like and what kind of competitions we wanted.”

Countless meetings landed on a state tournament with a few alterations sewn in. For starters, instead of 16 regionals for each of Illinois’ three classes, the IWCOA will hold 8 super-regionals each for 1A, 2A, and 3A boys competition. Instead of eight schools at each regional there will be 16 schools present. Four individual sectionals will then take place for each class.

Additionally, the top six wrestlers in each weight class will advance to sectional competition, and the top four sectional finishers at each weight will advance to the state finals.

That’s the easy part. What hasn’t been easy was finding locations, sponsors, addressing costs, and coordinating such a massive undertaking.
“It has opened my eyes to how much work the IHSA really puts in to having these state events,” Porter said. “They really work hard. I’ve also seen how much passion there is for our sport, state-wide.

“I’ve been excited to pitch in and help out but it’s certainly not just me. Our president, Roy Snyder, (board member) Deb Nason, coaches like (DG North’s) Chris McGrath have all stepped up and helped out.”

Corporate sponsors have also stepped up. Wrestling gear companies like Rudis and Dollamur will have a presence in Springfield, along with Gatorade, LiUna Labors International Union, National Guard, and Illinois Matmen, which will partner with the IWCOA and live stream the state tournament.

Securing sites for regionals and sectionals posed a challenge, since many high schools could not host events as they typically do, requiring the IWCOA to pursue more unconventional locations.

Luckily, Pure Elite Fitness Center in Arlington Heights, Stratford Square Mall in Bloomingdale, and the Naperville Athletic Center all agreed to host regionals in Class 3A beginning on June 13.

Where participation is concerned, the board put out feelers to gauge how many high school wrestlers returned to the sport for the spring season, after the traditional winter season was canceled by the IHSA.

IWCOA surveyed schools offering wrestling and a 30 percent return rate revealed 60 percent participation by wresters during the spring’s regular season.

“A lot of them have had to choose between multiple sports and activities occurring at the same time this year, so we expected those number to drop and they have,” Porter said. “But wrestling is happening. We have a kid on our team that wrestles and plays baseball. So there are kids doing both. It’s been an interesting year.”

The cost to run a state tournament is considerable, and the IWCOA is hoping that sponsorships, sign-up fees, donations, and tickets purchased by fans in Springfield will help defray that cost.

But if the organization takes a financial hit, it’s willing to do so for the sake of competition.

“We’re a charitable organization and we have a budget,” Porter said. “That budget is there for a rainy day, and it’s pouring outside right now. But that’s what the IWCOA is all about — supporting the sport of wrestling in the state of Illinois and if we lose a little money in order to do that, that’s all right.”

“It won’t be perfect but we don’t want to walk away from this year with kids not having the opportunity to be a state qualifier for the first time in their life. Or maybe they just missed being a state place-winner in the past. Or maybe they were set to be state champs this year but because of the pandemic they didn’t get that opportunity.”

“We want the top wrestlers in the state of Illinois to participate in this event. We want it to be a true state championship and we hope the top wrestlers view it that way.”

For more information on the 2021 IWCOA State Series, visit this link:

https://iwcoa.net/2021-iwcoa-state-championships/

WRESTLING PROGRAMS LOOK TO TAKE THE STING OUT OF COVID – AN IWCOA FEATURE STORY

by Mike Garofola

In sports (or the sport of wrestling) injuries are inevitable.
Even when  athletes are in peak physical form, and specifically train to stay fit and mobile, a single errant misstep, awkward landing or violent collision can bend joints and limbs in ways they aren’t meant to move.

And while coming back from any injury can will test any athlete – the battle with COVID, which has proved to be a heartless monster, is unlike any injury wrestlers have had to overcome.

The IHSA recently threw the sport a lifeline when it announced a regular season, albeit, a truncated one, which is scheduled to begin April 19.

Long before this announcement, coaches all around the state, including a trio of sensational leaders, have kept their guys engaged in a variety of ways – while providing positive energy, and moral support in order to insure their program remains physically and mentally ready should the 2021 season come true.

Dale Eggert, Pete Alber and Marc Pechter have each tasted regular and postseason success all throughout their careers – watching their lads navigate themselves through the rigors of a long, and arduous campaign in order to find themselves on the podium in Champaign.

Eggert, Alber and Pechter, like each and everyone of their peers, work hard to bring the best they can out of their men, not to only achieve success, but also, and perhaps more importantly, help mold them into fine young men.
While The COVID-19 pandemic has tested and stretched the mental and physical being of all,Eggert the brilliant long time head coach at Libertyville High School – remains unwaveringly optimistic – knowing as long hope remains, the possibility of overcoming this near year long battle will end on a positive note.

“I’ve seen a lot in all my years in this sport, but nothing quite like this,” admits Eggert, who, if there is a 2021 campaign, will begin his 34th as the man in charge at Libertyville, and his 43rd overall..

“You feel badly for all of your guys, everyone in the sport for that matter.”
“(But) it’s especially difficult for the seniors, who all know there’s a chance that high school wrestling – for them – may have ended last February.”

Eggert, for those you may not know, sits just outside the top 5 in career victories in the IHSA with 595, to go along with 114 state qualifiers, in what is a sensational coaching resume.

Year in, and year out, Eggerts’ lads are always among the most technically and tactically ready wrestlers, which makes a Libertyville wrestler a difficult opponent to pry open during a match.

Libertyville, like every other program in the state, were allotted 20 ‘contact’ days last fall, but after a pair of Wildcats shortened the contact days after becoming infected, Eggert and his staff led just a dozen days.

“It was great seeing 30+ guys in person as we worked on agility, conditioning, footwork, technical things (and) just having dialogue with everyone as a team,” said Eggert.

When this was over, Eggert knew he had to continue to keep his men engaged, so he got creative by piecing together Video Homework Assignments. These assignments would include: * viewing a video on defensive moves that scored, and how many of each type there were.* viewing (4) matches of former Wildcats’ great, Danny Pucino (now at Illinois) – and listing how many takedowns the 2019 state runner up tallied.* viewing a Nutrition-Weight Control-Making Weight video.

“We’re all very fortunate to have a head coach like (Dale) Eggert,” proclaimed senior, Chase Baczek, who enjoyed the virtual assignments, and used them to supplement time spent at the Poeta Training Center along with teammate Josh Knudten, and a handful of others, who trained at Poeta also.
“(Eggert) is amazing,” continues Baczek.

“The virtual work is great. There’s technical, and conditioning things we work on, plus it helps us all stay in touch with each other a couple of times a week.”

Baczek, who found himself in the 170-pound ‘Group of Granite’ division came ‘this’ close to earning a trip downstate last season when he lost 2-1 in his state qualifying bout at the Barrington sectional.

“(David) Ferrante and Luke Rasmussen went one-two at state, and another guy (Richardo Salinas) finished sixth – so it was tough weight class last season, and that’s why it is important to have a season in order to get downstate and get on the podium,” admits Baczek, who finished at 37-9 in 2020.

The affable Libertyville senior would compete at the Super 32 at 182 pounds, and despite the high level competition (felt) the trip to Myrtle Beach was well worth the experience.

Baczeks’ partner in the room, Josh Knudten, who was one of (3) from Libertyville to make it downstate is a big fan of Eggerts’ virtual program as he looks ahead to a hopeful 2021 campaign.

“I look forward to the assignments we receive each week,” begins the junior. (It) helps keep me focused and mentally and physically good about myself, as does my regular workouts during the week.”

Knudten, who won 32 a year ago, continues his training as if the regular season were about to begin.

“I eat, lift, condition, and continue to train like we were in our season, and with the vaccine now here, I am feeling really good about us having a wrestling season (and) for me, it’s all about going out there looking to prove myself as a person who can compete for a state title.”

For all the success the Dakota program has achieved – and there’s been plenty – Peter Alber, and Andrew Wenzel remain cautiously optimistic of a 2021 wrestling season. Pete Alber has lifted plenty of dual team state championship trophies, and since taking over the Dakota program in 2005, has celebrated dozens of individual titles along the way, including his own in 1981 – but this stoppage in play due to COVID is something that just breaks his heart.

“(It) just stinks there’s that chance of not having a season – but it especially difficult knowing it could happen to our seniors,” admits Alber. We’re all holding out hope the season does in fact start in April, but without a state tournament, so we’ll see what eventually happens.”

Dakota has collected (5) dual-team state titles under Alber, including his first in 2006 in advance of a marvelous four-year run (2013-2016) when the program brought four straight.

“There’s a lot of tradition and pride when it comes to Dakota wrestling – that’s why it’s difficult not having the guys around full time (everyday) in the room,” begins Alber. Having them in the room makes life normal for them – it gives them purpose each and everyday, and allows them to see their friends and teammates on a daily basis – which is what they all need.”

Prior to opening up to in-person learning after Thanksgiving, Dakota High School was in full ‘remote’ which meant Alber and his staff were not allowed in to coach.

“I know a lot of the guys were working hard on their own (also) getting extra work off site at their respective clubs, and traveling out of state to compete when the opportunity was available to them.”

Like his head coach, Andrew Wenzel is keeping his fingers crossed he and his mates have a season come mid-April.

“We’re all hoping to have a season, it’s something we talk about – and coach (Alber) has remained upbeat about our chances whenever we talk and get together,” says the top man in the Dakota program.

“It’s obviously tough for all of us, especially the seniors, but also for our freshmen, who I want to see experience their first high school wrestling season.”

Wenzel has a freshmen brother (Noah) who looks to be ready to compete at 195 this spring. After considering a handful of Ivy League schools, then watching his No. 1 choice (Stanford) announce it would drop the program – Wenzel signed on to attend, and wrestle at the Air Force Academy.

“I know I made the right decision to go to the Academy, it’s a great place for me to wrestle, and to challenge myself in the classroom,” says Wenzel, who will already know Jared Van Fleet, who was a four-time state medal winner while starring at Stillman Valley High School. After his commitment to the service in completed, Wenzel will look to go onto medical school.

There’s another reason Wenzel wants to see his final year at Dakota finish in the room – and that will be securing a second 1A state title after earning his first during his sophomore season. In the championship bout a year ago, Wenzel would take on Logan Deacetis of Prairie Central in contest between the top two men all season long at 170 – with Deacetis holding on for a 3-2 victory.

“Logan was a great opponent, but if I had to do that match over again, I would have push the pace a little more, and get to my offense better.”

Back in the day, Deerfield wrestling would have a difficult time taking one step forward, without taking two back. With the Warriors program dangerously close to being put out of its misery – enter Marc Pechter, who in time, turned his club into one of quality, and success by changing the culture from top-to-bottom.

“Deerfield had not won a single dual meet in conference in the ten years prior to me coming here, so there were a lot of things we had to meet face on in order to getting us to where we wanted to be,” said Pechter, who last year would guide his men to a 12th consecutive divisional title in the Central Suburban North.

“Those were tough times back then when I got here, but (we) got through it – and now we have to get through another rough time with COVID.”
While Pechter would enjoy ten days of pure bliss during the first ever family vacation over the recent holiday break, it also meant for the first time, he and his staff would not be around his guys in the room, and at tournament competition.

“It really hurts to see the guys sitting (this) out right now – especially the seniors, I just can’t fathom them possibly seeing their wrestling careers cut short by a year,” admits Pechter.

“It’s been important for me to stay in touch with the team, making sure they’re staying with their workouts, and academics, while for our upperclassmen – reaching out to college coaches so our guys don’t slip through the cracks and get lost during these times.”

Just like Dale Eggert, the Warriors head coach uses zoom meetings to show a wide variety of subjects to keep his men connected, including: an ESPN documentary on Iowa wrestling, or Dan Gable as a guest speaker, who focused on how to cope during hard times, while also providing inspirational words about USA wrestling.

“We have the guys watch video from the previous years (highlighting) individual and team efforts at duals, tournaments, and the postseason,” adds Pechter. Whenever the Warriors get together, Pechter and his stafff stress the importance of first rate hygiene, masks and social distancing – whether lifiting on their own, or part of skill work in small groups.

“Dale, Peter, myself, and everyone else around the state are hoping to have a regular season, and maybe even a state tournament led by the IWCOA – we might even do some outdoor competition out on the football stadium turf as part of a fund-raising event.”

Taking a look back at the 1A-3A IHSA State Individual Championships through the lens of videographer J.D. Oliva and brought to you once again from the Dale Eggert archives. Stay safe and stay healthy Illinois wrestling fans!

IHSA State Individual Wrestling Championships

Class 1A State Bracket
Class 2A State Bracket
Class 3A State Bracket

Happy New Year Illinois wrestling fans! Here’s a pleasant diversion today brought to you straight from the archives of videographer J.D. Oliva and Coach Dale Eggert. Enjoy!

Here are highlights from the 2009 IHSA Individual State Wrestling Championships!

2009 Class 1A Brackets
2009 Class 2A Brackets
2009 Class 3A Brackets

Class 1A Highlights

Class 2A Highlights

Class 3A Highlights

Merry Christmas wrestling fans! 2008 was the final year of the IHSA two-class system for wrestling. Enjoy these highlights from the IHSA Individual State Championships including a special bonus in Class AA from the Spangler-Blanton semi-final at the end! Thanks again to J.D. Oliva and Dale Eggert for bringing us these memories! Happy Holidays and stay safe!

IHSA Individual State Wrestling Tournament Championship Brackets

2008 Class A Brackets
2008 Class AA Brackets

Class A Highlights (The video was damaged beyond the 171 wt. class. Apologies to the finalists from 189, 215 & 275.)

Class AA Highlights

From the archives of wrestling videographer J.D. Oliva are this week’s highlights from the 2007 IHSA Individual State Wrestling Championships.

2007 IHSA State Final Brackets

2007 Class A Brackets
2007 Class AA Brackets

Back in 2006, former Streamwood and NIU wrestler and current coach, author and filmmaker J.D. Oliva began video taping the IHSA State Finals, among his other video productions. Here are highlights of those Class A & AA finals from 2006. The IWCOA thanks J.D. for his permission to share these highlights with you. Also, thanks goes out to Libertyville Head Coach Dale Eggert for getting these videos up online for us!

2006 IHSA State Final Brackets

Class A Brackets
Class AA Brackets

Class A Highlights

Class AA Highlights