Hononegah snares 2nd Clint Arlis title
By Chris Walker for the IWCOA
In just the fourth Clint Arlis Invitational tournament ever at Batavia, Hononegah junior Rocco Cassioppi won his third consecutive title while helping the Indians win the invite for the second time on Saturday.
Hononegah outscored runner-up Lincoln-Way East, 217-187.
Washington was third with 150.5, Hersey took fourth with 142.5 and Maine South was fifth with 135 to round out the top five team performances.
Downers Grove North (119.5) took sixth and was followed by Batavia (116), Iowa-Grant/Highland (107), Wheaton North (106), Plainfield North (98.5), Bolingbrook (69), McHenry (65), York (59), Harlem (52), Lemont (36), Oswego East (36.5), Vernon Hills (33) and Jacobs (25).
Hononegah had 10 placers, including four champions: Logan Harris (113), Rocco Cassioppi (150), Bruno Cassioppi (165) and Brody Sendele (175).
“Just a lot of guys trying their absolute hardest,” Bruno Cassioppi said. “No one was giving up in any matches, we’re always the guys first back on the line, trying to score points, whether that be bonus points or getting back in the match.”
Harris is just a sophomore but already a key part of the Hononegah wrestling family.
“We’re like a family here and Logan is a great kid obviously,” Bruno Cassioppi said. “He loves working hard. He gets extra practices in, of course, so we’re going to build him up as much as we can because he’s great person to have. He definitely loves the sport, which is really cool.”
Kristian DeClercq (120) and Jackson Olson (126) fell short in their respective title matches, placing second for the Indians.
Evan Musil (144) was fourth, Logan Person (138) took fifth and Alex Martin Pecino (190) and Isaiah Martinez (132) placed sixth.
JT Theis (138) and Max Mularz (157) won titles to lead the Griffins to second place in their first appearance in the tournament.
Colton Zvonar (190) and Justin Powers (215) placed second for the Griffins while Kaidreaus Richardson (150) and Ryan Stingily (85) bounced back from losses to take third place. Additionally, the Griffins received a pair of fifth-place finishes from Timmy Lorimer (106) and Salah Dajani (113) while Zachary Ankarlo (165) took sixth.
Washington’s Symon Woods (106), Josh Hoffer (215) and Sean Thornton (285) went home as champions while helping the team take third place.
Logan Makiney (132) took second for the Panthers while Cruise Brolley (157) and Wyatt Leman (175) placed third.
106 – Symon Woods, Washington
The finish line is nearing for Woods who is now a senior at Washington.
“It’s gone by so fast,” he said. “I can’t believe it’s almost done. Tough times, you know, it was a long four years but also quick, too. I had some guys keep me in my place for sure. Everyone is looking to get better so it’s always going to be harder and harder every year, but I focus on what I want and that’s what I wanted.”
Woods would win the 106 title via three straight tech falls, getting past Lincoln-Way East’s Timmy Lorimer, Batavia’s Joey Calvillo and finally Bolingbrook freshman Julian Medina in the finals.
“I was just ready to go, ready to wrestle and just another tournament to get ready for February,” Woods said. “I did (wrestle the way I wanted to) for the most part, but there are some things that I’ve got to work on in the room and even out of the room, but it’s keep my head up, moving forward, that’s what I want.”
As Woods pushes himself toward a strong final finish, he’s also pushing his team which is ranked no. 4 in Class 2A and currently just behind IC Catholic, Providence Catholic and Glenwood.
“We have some really good guys all around,” Woods said. “We’re looking to come together as a team for sure.”
Calvillo earned an 18-5 major decision over Lemont’s Alex Powers to take third, and Lorimer won by fall over Jacobs’ Travis Wilgosiewicz to take fifth.
113 – Logan Harris, Hononegah
Call him Underhook Harris!
This sophomore discovered how devastating his underhook could be early on this season and he’s continued to utilize it to get excellent results, including joining three of his teammates as champions on Saturday.
Harris outscored Iowa-Grant/Highland sophomore Griffin Wineski, 11-5, in the 113 final.
After opening with a bye, Harris blanked Washington’s Sage Davis, 7-0, in the quarterfinals and won by tech fall over Downers Grove North’s Carter Walter in the semifinals.
“I was just getting to my underhook, really,” Harris said. “That is kind of my gimmick right now. So in my first tournament I won my first match and lost my second match, but during my second match I realized that the underhook was very easy to get to so I just started using it from there.”
Harris couldn’t have imagined high school wrestling would be as enjoyable of an experience as it’s been. Of course, being a key contributor to one of the elite programs in the state definitely helps.
“Jackson (Olson/126), Bruno (Cassioppi/165) and Brody (Sendele/175), all those guys are all absolutely terrific as leaders,” Harris said. “Honestly, I couldn’t have done what I did without them. They’re everything to the team. Sometimes during practice they lead it, know what I mean? Like the coaches kind of sit off on the sidelines sometimes. It’s amazing. I didn’t imagine it would be like this.”
Vernon Hills’ Charles Dominguez blanked Walter, 6-0, to take third place, and Lincoln-Way East’s Salah Dajani pinned Tyson Rivard (3:25) for fifth.
120 – Kai Enos, Batavia
Enos, the top-ranked kid at 120 in Class 2A, acknowledged that his start left something to be desired as he fought to a 7-5 victory over Hersey’s Cole Anselmi in his quarterfinal match after opening with a bye.
“My first match I started out a little slow,” Enos said. “I thought I could just get to my shots better. I got to my offense, but was slow in the first match, but in my second and third match, I picked it up. I made a few mistakes, but then really cleaned it up in the last match.”
Enos piled on the points in a 14-0 major decision over Wheaton North’s Luke Edwards in the semifinals before defeating Hononegah’s Kristian DeClercq, 9-5, in the finals.
“I mean, there’s definitely room for improvement so I guess at this point in the season we just got to keep training as hard as we can and just work on what we need to work on,” Enos said. “We need to go back and look at our film, see where we’re making mistakes and just improve upon it and make sure we don’t do it again.”
Anselmi won by fall over Downers Grove North’s Damian Garcia (5:43) to take third place, and Harlem’s Jaydee Doke won by fall over Edwards (1:43) to take fifth.
126 – Oleksandr Havrylkiv, Hersey
Havrylkiv was talking about practice after coming away with the title at 126.
“I didn’t really care about this tournament,” he said. “My goal is state so this is just practice.”
Havrylkiv, ranked second in Class 3A at 126, picked up victories over a pair of highly ranked opponents, including the no. 3 and no. 5 ranked guys in his weight class in 3A. He defeated Plainfield North’s Aidan Durell by an 11-6 decision in the semifinal and earned a 6-1 decision over Hononegah’s Jackson Olson to take the 126 title. Durell is ranked fifth and Olson is third.
“I trained hard and I just work hard and practice every day,” he said. “I was analyzing these kids to prepare for them so I could beat them. I feel good.”
Durell outscored Lemont’s Cory Zator, 10-9, to bounce back and take third place, and over on the fifth-place mat, Jacobs senior Ben Arbotante pinned Wheaton North’s Daniel Hyde (4:56).
132 – Brett Harman, Maine South
Harman picked up a tech fall win over McHenry’s Nate Hunt and another win by fall over Wheaton North’s Caden Cahill (3:21) to earn his spot in the championship round where he defeated Washington’s Logan Makiney, 7-1.
Hersey’s Joe Romano earned a 7-1 decision over Batavia’s Kyle Pasco to take third place, and Wheaton North’s Caden Cahill won by fall over Rockton Hononegah’s Isaiah Martinez (1:26) to take fifth.
138 – JT Theis, Lincoln-Way East
Battling illness recently, Theis simply wasn’t feeling that great. He hasn’t necessarily been thrilled with his wrestling either so getting a chance to re energize and return to action worked wonders for the Frankfort area senior.
“I was sick, and coming off this sickness I’ve been working hard the past week and wanted to get back on course,” he said. “I’m feeling pretty good. I didn’t miss any competitions but I was losing a lot and it really got in my head so I was working really hard.”
Theis, like the rest of the Griffins, hadn’t been to Batavia previously.
“I had not been to this tournament before,” he said. “It was a great tournament. I would love to come back. I had a great time.”
Made even greater by his success.
“I got great practice partners, great guys pushing me all around and great coaches,” he said. “So I’ve been working hard and our coaching staff really gets us to peak at the right time, right before the state series, so we’re doing good.”
Maine South’s Emmett Mazukelli slipped past Batavia Elias Chaney, in a battle among seniors for third place, 8-7, while for fifth place Hononegah’s Logan Person was awarded fifth place as Iowa-Grant/Highland’s Hayden Aultman had a medical forfeit.
144 – Jack Colleran, Maine South
Colleran wrestled four matches, including his 14-3 major decision win over McHenry’s Ryan Johnston in the 144 finale.
After opening with a pin of Plainfield North’s Anthony Parton (0:46), Colleran got a tech fall over Washington’s Cayden Park and a 10-0 major decision over Hersey’s Nolan Variano.
Variano earned a 13-2 major decision against Hononegah’s Evan Musil to capture third place, and Downers Grove North’s Alex Hengles had a 17-0 tech fall win over Iowa-Grant/Highland’s Max Kelley for fifth.
150 – Rocco Cassioppi, Hononegah
For some the third time is the charm. For Cassioppi, the third time resulted in his third title as Cassioppi earned a tech fall against Maine South’s Gavin Hoerr to win at Batavia for the third time in as many tries.
Cassioppi won here at 126 last season and was the champion at 106 during his freshman season in 2024.
On Saturday, he pinned Lincoln-Way East’s Kaidreaus Richardson (1:22), Wheaton North’s Jay Doherty (0:30) and Oswego East’s Noah Snow (2:25) en route to the title match at 150.
Richardson defeated Hersey’s Honorio Yin, 9-4, to take third place, and Doherty earned a 14-3 major decision over Snow to take fifth.
157 – Max Mularz, Lincoln-Way East
Mularz pinned his first two opponents: Maine South’s Josh Nelligan (1:02) and Iowa-Grant/Highland’s Bryar Yelinek (2:24) before he went the distance in the semifinal, beating Washington’s Cruise Brolley, 10-6.
Maine South’s Caden Ljubenko delivered a similar challenge in Mularz’s title match and once again Mularz stood strong, earning the 5-3 decision.
Washington’s Cruise Brolley pinned Bolingbrook’s Diego Segura (3:27) to take third place, and Downers Grove North’s Billy Rausch earned an 11-0 major over York’s Benji Gorny to take fifth.
165 – Bruno Cassioppi, Hononegah
This year’s Most Outstanding Wrestler honors went to Cassioppi who finished his day by earning a tech fall over Iowa-Grant/Highland senior Jaxon Busse.
“A lot of it was mental for me,” he said. “I wasn’t able to wrestle here last year because of an injury. I won my freshman year, but last year with the injury, coming back, just showing that I still got it. They had me as a third seed so it was a little bit of a prove-myself moment, so it was really good.”
Cassioppi earned a tech fall over Downers Grove North’s Griff Lockwood to get started, pinned Maine South’s Chris Kumiga in 46 seconds and scored an 11-2 major decision against Hersey’s Frank Tagoe to advance to the finals.
Tagoe won a hard fought battle between seniors for third place, earning a 4-3 decision over York’s Jackson Hanselman, who was coming off a title last Saturday at the 50th Sycamore Invitational. Then in the fifth-place match, Batavia’s Colin Peyton finished strong with a 10-8 win against Lincoln-Way East’s Zachary Ankarlo.
175 – Brody Sendele, Hononegah
Just because he doesn’t always smile, doesn’t mean Sendele isn’t having a good time.
The junior, who improved to 30-3 on the season after scoring a 17-5 major decision over Iowa-Grant/Highland’s Brock Hinderman to win the title at 175, received some playful teasing from his teammates and others who attempted to get him to crack a smile at the awards podium after the invite concluded.
“The environment we have is a very good one, we try to make it fun,” Sendele said. “That’s the most important thing, is having fun.”
Wins on the road to the title for Sendele included a tech fall against Hersey’s Victor Gallegos, a really quick pin of Harlem’s Charles Faulkner in the quarterfinals and another tech fall in the semifinals against Washington’s Wyatt Leman.
“I was pushing the pace and getting my stuff in, and I was just like taking over the match, basically doing what I do,” Sendele said. “Just progressively getting better throughout the year, every day trying to get a little bit better each day. There’s always room for improvement so that’s just what we’re trying to do.”
Leman defeated Wheaton North’s Julian Flores, 9-6, to take third place, and Hersey’s Gallegos received a medical forfeit victory over Faulkner to take fifth.
190 – Ryan Rosch, Wheaton North
Rosch, who didn’t wrestle in the 50th Sycamore Invitational a week ago, looked well rested as he pinned Hersey’s Drew Frank (1:27) and earned a major decision over Downers Grove North’s Jack Helsdon before winning his title match, 19-12, over Lincoln-Way East’s Colton Zvonar.
Batavia’s Jack Brown earned a 12-3 major decision over Helsdon for third place, and York’s Beau Walker nearly did the same for fifth place, outscoring Hononegah’s Martin Pecino, 12-5.
215 – Josh Hoffer, Washington
For the second straight season, Hoffer is the 215-pound champion.
The University of Illinois recruit earned a tech fall over Lincoln-Way East’s Justin Powers. Last year, Hoffer doubled up Marmion’s Joey Favia, in the final, 4-2.
“I just keep moving, like having more committed attack, not just faking, and pulling on guys’ heads,” he said. “It was just being more committed and level changes and stuff like that.”
Since he’s heading to Champaign to wrestle after he graduates later this spring, Hoffer had special interest in the history behind the Clint Arlis Invitational which was shared before the finals when Clint’s dad, Tom, the former Batavia boys head wrestling coach, who is now an assistant coach, addressed the wrestlers and fans in the stands.
The late Clint Arlis was a three-time state qualifier and two-time conference champion for the Bulldogs who continued his wrestling career at the University of Illinois where he was teammates with Mike Poeta, the current Illinois coach.
Poeta and Artis were roommates, teammates and great friends.
Poeta shared a video message, “…what he did at U of I was nothing short of amazing. He worked so incredibly hard. He was so dedicated and turned himself into a starter at U of I, and not just the guy in the weight class, but a guy to be feared at the weight class,” Poeta said. “He had a very successful senior year and the last guy I want to see on the other side of that line was Clint Arlis because I knew he was going to bring it. He was all heart and heart is what embodies Clint. And (a few years ago) we started the Clint Arlis Heart Award and it goes to the hardest working guy on the team who I see in the future being a superstar, a guy that is a huge contributor to the program, and I get a goosebumps even thinking about who got it last year and who gets it this year because they’re such special kids and getting an award based on such a special guy.”
“It was kind of cool seeing how a (University of) Illinois guy came through this tournament and wrestled there, Hoffer said. “I think the guys that did well here they wrestled hard and kept wrestling through positions, and I think some of the guys had tough matches against tough kids, but I think they came back and bounced back.”
All four of Hoffer’s wins came via tech fall. Before he finished off Powers, he built substantial leads to get past Jacobs’ Lucas Retzler (21-6), Vernon Hills’ Timur Arzumanov (22-5) and Downers Grove North’s Nate Ilona (22-6).
Downers Grove North’s Nate Olona earned an 11-2 major to get past Plainfield North’s Jack Nowicki and take third place, and Harlem’s Chandler Jack received a medical forfeit win for fifth over Arzumanov.
285 – Sean Thornton, Washington
Thornton finished strong for Washington as he joined teammates Symon Woods (106) and Josh Hoffer (215) as champions. Washington competed without its two-time state champion, Wyatt Medlin.
After opening with an 11-0 major decision over Hononegah’s Wyatt Kinney, Thornton proceeded to pin McHenry’s Marc Walsh (1:53) to advance to the finals.
Downers Grove North’s Colin Murphy took Thornton the distance, but Thornton was able to prevail in the low-scoring clash, 2-1.
Lincoln-Way East’s Ryan Stingily recorded a 13-5 major decision over Plainfield North’s Liam Corona to take third place, and Walsh pinned York’s Arthur Verwoerdt (0.57) to place fifth.