IC Catholic Prep takes the 2A crown
By Gary Larsen for the IWCOA
BLOOMINGTON — The four semifinalists at this year’s IHSA 2A Dual Team state tournament had won a combined 27 IHSA team state titles. Montini had won 16 state crowns, Washington had won six, and Mahomet-Seymour had five.
The fourth team just joined the party.
IC Catholic Prep won the program’s first team title in Bloomington on Saturday, topping Montini and Washington to cap a history-making season. It was also the program’s first state finals trophy of any kind.
“We’re hoping it’s the start of a dynasty,” IC Catholic senior and individual state champion Deven Casey said. “I see our program as a place where we just want to win, and we want people to think of us as a place where winners want to be.”
Program superiority comes and goes in Illinois. Programs can have a long downstate run and then just as quickly, that dominance fades. With only two seniors departing from this year’s team, IC Catholic seemingly has the pieces in place to embark on a recurring run to the team state finals.
But whatever the future holds, in the moments just after IC Catholic’s 46-17 win over Washington, Knights coach Danny Alcocer stood firmly in the present moment.
“I’m just really proud of these guys right now,” Alcocer said. “They came together and they wrestled a great tournament.
“It’s definitely satisfying. It’s what we’ve worked for. It’s what the goal was at the beginning of the year, was to get down here and win the team state trophy. Our guys put in the work and they got it, so I’m happy for them.”
After winning its state quarterfinal dual 47-22 over Geneseo, IC Catholic had a familiar foe standing in its way in Saturday’s semifinal round — Montini Catholic (26-4). Montini coach Mike Bukovsky’s boys won 37-26 over IC Catholic in a dual on Dec. 31, and Montini also beat IC in a sectional dual to end the Knights’ season last year.
Saturday’s semifinal did not disappoint.
The two teams split 7-7 in matches won, and Montini led 27-26 with one match left to wrestle: IC’s Jacob Alvarez and Montini’s Isaac Mayora at 138 pounds. A scoreless first period gave way to a 1-0 Alvarez lead on an escape to start the second period. Alvarez put another three points on the board in the third and rode Mayora out for the 4-0 win that put his team in the state title dual.
That’s one big, pressure-packed moment for a freshman to handle, in what to that point was his team’s biggest dual of the season.
“I didn’t really think much about it. I went in just thinking it was another match,” Alvarez said. “There’s a lot of pressure there, but you just can’t think about it. Besides, pressure is a privilege. It’s all a part of the process and it’s a rule in our program to never panic.
“It was really a big goal, to beat Montini. They’ve beaten us every time we’ve wrestled them so that was just a big one for us.”
Veteran coach Bukovsky has seen it all downstate and knows what’s needed to win an evenly-fought downstate dual.
“We needed to find a way to get a couple bonus points and we thought we had some in a couple matches, but didn’t close them out,” he said. “And that’s what it’s all about down here.”
That set the stage for the state championship dual between IC (11-6) and Washington (21-4).
The Panthers started fast from the gate, getting tech fall wins from individual state champions Peyton Cox (150) and Wyatt Medlin (165), and a major decision win from Cruise Brolley (157), to grab a 14-0 lead.
Individual state champ Brody Kelly (175) stopped the bleeding for IC Catholic with a tech fall win, and teammate Isaac Barrientos (190) won a major decision to cut Washington’s lead to 14-10. Washington state champ Josh Hoffer (215) won a 7-2 decision over state third-place medalist Foley Calcagno to give Washington a 17-10 lead with eight matches left to wrestle.
Then came a run of momentum by IC Catholic that felt like an avalanche inside Grossinger Motors Arena: the Knights swept the final eight matches to run away with the state title.
IC heavyweight and state fourth-placer Anthony Sebastian got a takedown in overtime to win a 4-1 decision over Sean Thornton, and at 106 state fourth-placer Dom Pasquale followed with a 7-3 decision over sixth-placer Symon Woods.
Third-place medalist Sam Murante (113) won by fall to give IC its first lead at 22-17, and sixth-place Kannon Judycki (120) won a major decision to give the Knights their fourth straight win and a 26-17 lead with four matches left to wrestle. IC also had two state champions and a state runner-up yet to wrestle.
IC’s momentum run put Washington coach Nick Miller in the unenviable position to start bumping his lineup around.
“There were three matches we knew we had to have to stay competitive in it, and we made some changes to catch up once we fell behind,” Miller said. “We know they’re tough in their lower weights and that would be a battle for us.”
One of the marquee matches of the entire weekend took place next, when IC state champion Max Cumbee (126) and Washington’s 120-pound state champion Noah Woods squared off.
A 1-1 match after three periods gave way to a scoreless first overtime period, Cumbee escaped for a 2-1 lead in the second OT, and then rode Woods out for the win in the third overtime.
“He’s a tough kid and I knew it was going to be close,” Cumbee said. “I just had a better gas tank and I was able to ride him out. I put in a lot more hours than I did last year. More hours, more practices, and not a single day off. So it was a lot of work.”
Miller had different plans for the state champion Woods before the IC win-streak forced his hand.
“Our plan was to wrestle Woods at 120 against Judycki and wrestle (Logan) Makiney up against Cumbee,” Miller said. “But at that point we knew we had to take a chance and make up something. It’s tough when you’re playing behind and you have to adjust, but the boys fought hard and I’m proud of them. We knew it was a tough one and we had to be perfect and we just weren’t tonight.”
At that point, IC’s win was in the cards. Individual state champ Casey (132) and state runner-up Aidan Arnett (144) won by fall, and Alvarez won by tech fall at 138.
“We started kind of slow and that’s what we anticipated because they’re a really good team,” Alcocer said of Washington. “But then we got rolling. So we knew what we were in for but once the ball got rolling there, the momentum was real. Our lower weight guys really did a great job led by our senior captain (Casey). The lower weight guys really got it done for us. I’m proud of those guys.”
Casey and senior Nate Brown (165) will depart the program, and Alcocer is grateful for what they’ve done for IC Catholic wrestling.
“I can’t say enough about Deven Casey,” Alcocer said. “He’s a phenomenal leader and a phenomenal person. And Nate Brown is a football player who came in at about 175 or 180 pounds and we asked him to cut down and he did. That helped make all the difference and now he can go home as a state champion.”
Washington reached the state championship dual for an astounding ninth time in the last 11 years. Six team titles and three runner-up finishes spanned that time, and graduating senior state champion Cox fully expects the program to continue vying for the team title.
“I won’t be back next year, but we will,” Cox said. “I’ll be up in the stands with the parents next year to cheer everybody on.
“The standard is always to win and we have a tough schedule for a reason. And I can tell you that there is not a single person on our roster who is satisfied with (second place). So we’ll be back next year. I love each and every one of those guys. Some of them can make me real mad at times, and I know I can make some of them real mad too, but there’s nobody I’d rather win with or lose with than these guys.”
When the dual ended, wrestlers, coaches, and the IC Catholic faithful naturally went wild, celebrating the program’s first team state title.
Alcocer applauded his stable of talented, committed wrestlers, and wants it clear that he’s not the only cook in the IC kitchen.
“It’s really a ‘we’ mentality at IC Catholic,” he said. “We wouldn’t be able to do it without our assistant coaches. It’s a phenomenal coaching staff. Assistant coach Tony Norton, Haley Augello is a former Olympian, Cory Stanley, Dave Baysinger, Randy Spaulding, Martin North — they all put in the time, energy and effort.
“I’m proud of all of them and thankful to our administrators for allowing us to travel. We go to Ohio, we go to California, we wrestle a national schedule, and we wouldn’t be able to do it without the support of our administration.”
THIRD-PLACE: MONTINI VS. MAHOMET-SEYMOUR
The third-place dual featured a pair of teams with coaches who have recently celebrated their 500th coaching wins; Mahomet-Seymour’s Rob Ledin won No. 500 last year, and Montini’s Mike Bukovsky won his 500th this season.
Montini won 50-24 over Mahomet-Seymour in the battle for third place, earning a 10-4 in matches won. It marked the third time Montini has placed third in Illinois, to go with its three second-place finishes and 16 state titles.
“A lot of our guys did a super job all year,” Bukovsky said. “We got hit by a few blows right around Christmas time and lost some kids, so we kind of lost some bodies at the wrong time while other teams gained a few bodies. But that is what it is.”
Bukovsky coached Montini to eight state titles before stepping down after the 2010 season. He returned as head coach mid-way through the 2022-23 season after a few down years for the program and has reignited the flame. The Broncos placed second in Illinois in his full-time return to coaching the program last year.
“I’m just glad we’re back where we need to be,” Bukovsky said. “Our guys are buying in again and there’s a lot of pride in the program and that’s where it needed to be. So I’m really happy about that.”
Mahomet-Seymour returned to the state’s Elite Eight for the fifth time in six seasons under Ledin, and placed third in 2022. One of the storied programs in Illinois, Mahomet-Seymour won five state titles in seven years for coach Marty Williams through the 1980s.
Prior to that, coach Bob Handlin led the program to two third-place finishes in 1980 and 1981. Current IWCOA president Rob Porter coached at his alma mater for 12 years, ending in 2001, leading the program to four third-place finishes (1991, ’94, ’97 and ’01). Tom Porter coached Mahomet-Seymour to a fourth-place finish in 2002.
This season had its share of adversity for the Bulldogs, but they persevered all the way to the IHSA Final Four.
“We are very ‘Bulldog Proud’ of our wrestlers this season,” said Ledin, in his 19th season as head coach at Mahomet-Seymour. “We put our best lineup on the mat at regionals and never looked back. Illness, injury, and a variety of other factors kept us from performing as a team at tournaments and duals but that didn’t stop our resolve to keep improving and knowing that we were capable of great things this season.
“We are young team and we look forward to continued improvement for our young wrestlers over the next few years. We’re also very thankful for a supportive wrestling community here in Mahomet.”
Joining the 500 Club in wins last year, Ledin is just grateful for the success that has come his way.
“I have been very fortunate to have many great memories and milestones over my career,” Ledin said. “I feel very fortunate to be part of Mahomet-Seymour’s tradition.”
Mahomet-Seymour (15-9) won 45-32 over Crystal Lake Central (22-6) in Friday’s quarterfinal round, while Montini (27-4) won 56-13 over Glenwood (19-7).
Mahomet-Seymour topped Lincoln 45-19 at the Lincoln Sectional and Montini won 55-21 over Oak Forest at the Brother Rice Sectional. Glenwood won 49-22 in a sectional dual over Marion to advance downstate, while Crystal Lake Central won 43-19 over Wheeling.
The other two teams at this year’s Elite Eight were Geneseo and Brother Rice. Geneseo (16-3) advanced downstate in a 45-25 win over Sycamore at the Geneseo Sectional, and sectional host Brother Rice (16-7) won 60-12 over Riverside Brookfield.