Out of state tournament roundup for 12-9

By Curt Herron – For the IWCOA

Oak Forest wins title at Westosha Central Stateline Scuffle

Oak Forest captured top honors and five other Illinois teams placed among the top eight at the 29-team Westosha Central Stateline Scuffle, which took place in Salem, Wisconsin. A total of fourteen Illinois teams participated.

Coach John Sebek’s Bengals scored 202 points to capture the title by 72 points over the hosts. Zion-Benton (122) took third, Dundee-Crown (116) was fourth, Wheeling (115) finished fifth, Lakes Community (111.5) placed sixth and Warren Township (93) claimed eighth.

Oak Forest received titles from Alexandra Sebek (104-110), Charlotte Pedroza (115-121), Maya Coreas Funes (145-158), Ryann Reeves (153-167) and Isabel Peralta (168-182) while Marjorie Rodriguez (111-116) and Iyobosa Odiase (140-151) both took second place.

Taking third for the Bengals were Victoria Taylor (117-122) and Jessica Komolafe (173-193) and finishing fourth were Camila O’Leary Salas (117-122) and Rionna Jean Jurik (120-128). Aliyah Blount (95-104) and Madelyn Sears (130-139) placed fifth and Cyniah Poindexter (128-134) claimed sixth while Leann Abdallah (115-121), Jordan Clyne (119-128) and Bryanah Carrera (125-129) took seventh.

“We wanted to wrestle this event to see new competition out of state as well as see other teams from the northern end of the state,” Sebek said. “A lot of the girls were a bit nervous wrestling out of state for the first time but they definitely showed up. It was a fantastic event and hats off to the Westosha Central High School wrestling staff for putting on an awesome tournament with a lot of good competition.  We brought 17 girls to the event, with only 10 scorers allowed, and we had 9 girls place in the top 3, with seven girls in the finals.

Coach Hal Lunsford’s third-place Zee-Bees had four title winners, Emily Ortiz (125-129), Jahmariona Thompson (130-139), Naomi Foote (138-146) and Grace Johnson (141-146). They placed third with only six competitors and all of them were in the top five with Nathaly Tenorio (120-128) and Adrianna Ketchum (126-138) taking fifth.

Other Illinois champions were Wheeling’s Elise Burkut (120-128) and Jasmine Rene (173-193), Warren Township’s Jaylyn Trevino (85-89), Dundee-Crown’s Diamond Rodriguez (95-104), Crystal Lake South’s Annalee Aarseth (107-112), Grayslake Central’s Gianna Arzer (119-128) and Lakes Community’s Ava Babbs (126-138).

Additional second-place finishers from Illinois were Lakes Community’s Haven Sylves (107-112) and Josephine Larson (173-193), Dundee-Crown’s Ruby Gavina (119-128), Wheeling’s Stephanie Solano (155-170) and Cary-Grove’s Denver Gier (168-182).

There were four All-Illinois title matchups. Aarseth won by fall in 3:27 over Sylves at 107-112, Arzer recorded a pin in 2:43 over Gavina at 119-128, Peralta was a winner by fall in 1:10 over Gier at 168-182 and Rene won a 2-1 decision over Larson at 173-193 in a rematch of last week’s 190 championship at Waukegan, which Larson won 3-1.

All of the other Illinois champions but one used falls to win titles. The exception was Babbs, who captured a 9-5 decision at 126-138.

Other third-place Illinois finishers were Lakes Community’s Zaryia Mouzon (95-104) and Christina Hasner (128-134), Dundee-Crown’s Iris Torres (104-110) and Daniella Ibanez (138-146), Warren Township’s Isabella Miron (115-121) and Jane Kelly (125-129), Grayslake North’s Quinna Sheets (126-138) and Alyson Alvarenga (130-139), Wheeling’s Krystal Diaz (141-146) and Nikol Orendarchuk (145-158) and Crystal Lake Central’s Cait Jones (168-182).

Also claiming fourth-place finishes were Crystal Lake South’s Mayayla Miranda (140-151), Karrina Del Valle (145-158) and Kayla Hadfield (173-193), Grayslake North’s Jacqueline Cordova-Marquina (153-167) and Jeniah Robinson (155-170), Grant’s Kayden Manis (104-110), Dundee-Crown’s Elisa Martin (111-116), Lakes Community’s Lilyann Blasius (115-121), Lake Forest’s Bree Hirsch (126-138), Prairie Ridge’s Angela Thrush (138-146) and Warren Township’s Hanna Bairstow (141-155).

Others taking fifth place were Warren Township’s Alyssa Bentley (104-110), Ashley Bridges (128-134) and Ashley Fugelseth (140-151), Grayslake North’s Amara Facundo (107-112) and Victoria Marquez (138-146), Dundee-Crown’s Perla Lomeli (141-155) and Mackenzie Lessner (153-167), Lake Forest’s Kamile Rayome (119-128) and Cary-Grove’s London Goldsberry (145-158).

Additional sixth-place finishers were Grant’s Evelyn Gonzalez (117-122) and Aubrey Hopkins (120-128), Wheeling’s Layah Woods (126-138) and Madeline Chicas (141-155), Lakes Community’s Osmairi Medina Alvarado (111-116), Cary-Grove’s Shelby Pijut (125-129), Warren Township’s Erin Bush (153-167) and Dundee-Crown’s Ayline Tinajero (168-182).

Eleven individuals tied for the most team points with 26, including three each from Oak Forest (Pedroza, Reeves and Sebek) and Zion-Benton (Foote, Johnson and Ortiz) plus one from Wheeling (Burkut). East Troy, WI’s Isa McGinley and Kylie Schmidt, Glendale Martin Luther, WI’s Nadia Lathan and Wilmot Union, WI’s Morgan Rutherford were the other four individuals who scored 26 team points. 

Pedroza had the most falls in the least time, which was three in 1:45 while Babbs and Milwaukee Reagan, WI’s Aliana Rauter were the only individuals to claim a win by technical fall. Milwaukee Reagan, WI’s TaHonesty Donnell had the most total match points with 47 while Babbs tied for second in that category with 32, however Babbs prevailed in what mattered most, a 9-5 decision between the two in the 126-138 finals.

Championship matches at the Westosha Central Stateline Scuttle

85-89 – Jaylen Trevino (Warren Township) F 0:48 Monica Hernandez (Milwaukee Reagan, WI)

95-104 – Diamond Rodriguez (Dundee-Crown) F 1:03 Raven Ringhand (Oregon, WI)

104-110 – Alexandra Sebek (Oak Forest) F 1:24 Addison Friedrichs (Janesville Parker, WI)

107-112 – Annalee Aarseth (Crystal Lake South) F 3:27 Haven Sylves (Lakes Community)

111-116 – Margaret Gillmore (Westosha Central, WI) F 1:41 Marjorie Rodriguez (Oak Forest)

115-121 – Charlotte Pedroza (Oak Forest) F 0:46 Eva Rivera (Greenfield, WI)

117-122 – Morgan Rutherford (Wilmot Union, WI) F 0:31 Rubi Egurrola (Kenosha Bradford, WI)

119-128 – Gianna Arzer (Grayslake Central) F 2:43 Ruby Gavina (Dundee-Crown)

120-128 – Elise Burkut (Wheeling) F 1:06 Sienna Melby (Westosha Central, WI)

125-129 – Emily Ortiz (Zion-Benton) F 0:47 Jazlene Solis (Greenfield, WI)

126-138 – Ava Babbs (Lakes Community) D 9-5 TaHonesty Donnell (Milwaukee Reagan, WI)

128-134 – Isa McGinley (East Troy, WI) F 1:08 Payten Kent (Janesville Parker, WI)

130-139 – Jahmariona Thompson (Zion-Benton) F 0:40 Karen Pisano (Westosha Central, WI)

138-146 – Naomi Foote (Zion-Benton) F 1:50 Maggie Hansen (Burlington, WI)

140-151 – Kylie Schmidt (East Troy, WI) F 2:33 Iyobosa Odiase (Oak Forest)

141-146 – Grace Johnson (Zion-Benton) F 1:09 Anna Kienbaum (Edgerton, WI)

141-155 – Makayla Howard (Edgerton, WI) F 4:30 Jada Oparie-Addoh (Oregon, WI)

145-158 – Maya Coreas Funes (Oak Forest) F 3:42 Anayiz Castro (Shoreland Lutheran, WI)

153-167 – Ryann Reeves (Oak Forest) F 1:26 Elisabeth Bixby (Shoreland Lutheran, WI)

155-170 – Nadia Lathan (Greendale Martin Luther, WI) F 5:59 Stephanie Solano (Wheeling)

168-182 – Isabel Peralta (Oak Forest) F 1:10 Denver Gier (Cary-Grove)

173-193 – Jasmine Rene (Wheeling) D 2-1 Josephine Larson (Lakes Community)

185-208 – Jana Kopak (Greendale Martin Luther, WI) F 2:18 Danna Andrade (Milwaukee Reagan, WI)

215-240 – Taryn Armbruster (Greendale Martin Luther, WI) F 1:13 Genevieve Galin (Burlington, WI)

Team standings at the Westosha Central Stateline Scuttle

1. Oak Forest (202), 2. Westosha Central, WI (130), 3. Zion-Benton (122), 4. Dundee-Crown (116), 5. Wheeling (115), 6. Lakes Community (111.5), 7. Greendale Martin Luther, WI (96), 8. Warren Township (93), 9. Milwaukee Reagan, WI (92.5), 10. Oregon, WI (91), 11. Shoreland Lutheran, WI (78), 12. Grayslake North (77), 13. Edgerton, WI (75), 14. Greenfield, WI (65), 15. Janesville Parker, WI (57), 16. Crystal Lake South (54), 17. East Troy, WI (52), 18. Wilmot Union, WI (50), 19. Cary-Grove (34), 20, Burlington, WI (33), 22. Grant (25), 23. Grayslake Central (15), 24. Lake Forest (21), 25. Crystal Lake Central (15), 26. Prairie Ridge (12), 27. Racine St. Catherine, WI (6), 28. Mundelein (5), 28. Kenosha Indian Trail, WI (5).

Davino captures championship at Walsh Ironman

St. Charles East’s Ben Davino was the lone Illinois champion at the Walsh Ironman, which featured individuals from 130 schools who  participated in Walsh Jesuit’s tournament in Cuyahoga Falls, Ohio. Thirteen individuals from Illinois finished in the top eight in the event.

Mount Carmel scored 76.5 points to place 12th while St. Charles East scored 74 to finish 13th. Warren Township (47.5) was 24th and Marist (38.5) tied for 31st. Other Illinois schools in the tournament were Marmion Academy, Hononegah, IC Catholic Prep, Joliet Catholic Academy, Loyola Academy, Washington Community, Montini Catholic, Normal Community and Unity.

Davino went 6-0 to win the 132 championship, defeating Perrysburg, OH’s Marcus Blaze 3-2 on an ultimate tiebreaker in the title match. He opened with a win by technical fall, followed that with a 20-6 major decision and then got a fall in 1:06 before winning 5-2 on a tiebreaker in the quarterfinals over Blair Academy, NJ’s Matthew Lopes. He advanced to the title mat with a 9-4 decision in the semifinals over Union County, KY’s Jordyn Ranney. It was Davino’s third trip to the finals and his second championship. Davino won the 126 title last year and took second place at 120 in 2021.

Warren Township’s Aaron Stewart took second place at 157 after dropping a heartbreaker in the finals 3-2 on an ultimate tiebreaker to Stillwater, OK’s Landyn Sommer. Opening with a fall and win by technical fall, Stewart was then involved in four nail biters, winning 2-1 in round three, 3-1 in the quarterfinals over Baylor School, TN’s Hunter Sturgill and 4-3 in the semifinals over State College, PA’s Asher Cunningham.

Mount Carmel’s Colin Kelly claimed second place at 175  after losing by fall in 4:52 to Parkersburg South, WV’s Gage Wright. Kelly opened with a win by technical fall, a pin and a major decision before getting a 3-1 win in sudden victory in the quarterfinals over Faith Christian Academy, PA’s Adam Waters and then he captured an 11-4 decision over Liberty, MO’s Peyton Westpfahl in the semifinals.

Coach Alex Tsirtsis’ Caravan had another medalist, Seth Mendoza, who took third at 126. Mendoza opened with two wins by technical fall and a pin before claiming a 3-2 decision over Union County, KY’s Jayden Raney in the quarterfinals. After suffering a tough loss in the semifinals, 9-5 in sudden victory to Wyoming Seminary, PA’s Luke Lilledahl, Mendoza won two close matches, winning 3-1 by sudden victory over Stillwater, OK’s JJ McComas to claim third place. This was the third time Mendoza has placed at the Ironman, taking seventh last season at 113 after placing fifth at 106 in 2021.

Warren Township coach Brad Janecek had one other medalist, Caleb Noble, who dropped a 4-2 decision to Hononegah’s Rocco Cassioppi in the 106 quarterfinals but then won three-straight tight matches, including a 6-4 win in sudden victory to reach the third-place mat, where he fell 10-1 to Pomona, CA’s Ignacio Villasenor to take fourth.

Washington Community’s Wyatt Medlin bounced back from his third-round setback to St. Charles East’s Tyler Guerra at 138 by getting five-straight consolation wins, which included four close decisions to become the Panthers’ lone medal winner. He took fourth place after dropping a 1-0 decision to Blair Academy, NJ’s William Deraker.

Marist’s Will Denny took fifth place at 150. After falling 4-2 to Bethlehem Catholic, PA’s Kollin Rath in the quarterfinals, Denny won two decisions and lost another before finishing with a 3-1 decision over Dublin Scioto, OH’s Ty Wilson in his final match.

Hononegah’s Rocco Cassioppi won a 4-3 decision over Normal Community’s Caden Correll in his opener and beat Noble 4-2 in the 106 quarterfinals to advance to the semifinals, where he lost 11-3 to Faith Christian Academy, PA’s Joey Bachmann. After losing his next match, he took fifth with a 5-1 decision over Blair Academy, NJ’s Vincenzo Anello.

Loyola Academy’s Kai Calcutt lost by fall in the 215 quarterfinals to Wyoming Seminary, PA’s Jude Correa but then won two matches to assure himself of a medal and he wound up taking sixth place.

St. Charles East’s Tyler Guerra got a 5-2 decision over Washington Community’s Wyatt Medlin in the third round at 138 and then won a 4-1 decision over Baylor School, TN’s Mathew Hart in the quarterfinals. After getting edged 3-2 in the semifinals by Dublin Coffman, OH’s Omar Ayoub, Guerra had medical forfeits in his final two matches to finish sixth.

The other medalist for coach Jason Potters Fighting Saints was Dom Munaretto, who placed seventh at 113. He got bumped into the consolation bracket following a 7-3 quarterfinal loss to Brecksville, OH’s Rylan Seacrist. He went 2-1 after that, edging Marmion Academy’s Nicholas Garcia 3-2 in the seventh-place match. He won an Ironman title at 106 last season.

IC Catholic Prep’s Michael Calcagno took the hard route to a seventh place at 215 after falling in the first round. Calcagno won five-straight matches in the consolation bracket before losing but then captured a 15-3 win over Crown Point, IN’s Will Clark to capture seventh place.

Nicholas Garcia captured eighth place to lead Marmion Academy. He fell 7-2 in the 113 quarterfinals to Notre Dame, PA’s Ayden Smith and split two close matches before losing 3-2 to Munaretto to take eighth place.

Ten medalists at the Women of Ironman Tournament

Ten Illinois competitors finished in the top eight at their weights at  the inaugural The Women of Ironman, an event which included individuals from 79 schools, that took place at Walsh Jesuit in Cuyahoga Falls, Ohio. 

Joliet Township had half of those medalists and that helped it to a seventh-place finish with 64 points and Loyola Academy took 15th place with 31.5 points. Hononegah (19), Joliet Catholic Academy (16) and Bolingbrook (15) also competed and they all had medal winners.

IWCOA Coach of the Year Liz Short’s Joliet Township co-op, which includes athletes from Joliet Central and Joliet West, were led by a third-place finish from Fernanda Miranda (235) while Eliana Paramo (115) placed fourth, Chloe Wong (105) took sixth, Vanessa O’Connor (145) was seventh and Bianca Campos (170) took eighth.

Also finishing in third place were Loyola Academy’s Harlee Hiller (115), Hononegah’s Angelina Cassioppi (125) and Bolingbrook’s Katie Ramirez-Quintero (135) while Joliet Catholic Academy’s Cheya Bishop (170) placed fifth and Loyola Academy’s Amelia Nidelea-Polanin (110) took sixth place.

Hiller won by fall in 4:31 in the 115 quarterfinals over Tri-Valley, OH’s Kandice Spry but then dropped a 6-4 decision to Bultler, PA’s Ana Malovich in the semifinals. Bouncing back with a fall, Hiller captured third place with another fall, this one in 1:54 over Paramo. Hiller ranked second overall with 43 total match points and tied for fourth place with 18 points in one match.

Cassioppi won a 14-4 major decision in the 125 quarterfinals over Tulsa Union, OK’s Aiyiana Perkins but then dropped a 7-4 decision to NorthMont, OH’s Lacie Knick in the semifinals. Following a 5-0 decision, she met Perkins again for third and won a 2-0 decision.

Ramirez-Quintero won 7-1 in the 135 quarterfinals over Harrison, OH’s Lilly Kinsel before falling 4-2 by sudden victory in the semifinals to Blair Academy, NJ’s Corryenne McNulty. She won a major decision and then beat Kinsel again, this time 7-5, in the third-place match.

Miranda got pinned in 0:17 by Tulsa Union, OK’s Azreal Smith in the 235 quarterfinals. But she assured herself of advancing to the third-place mat with a first-period fall and then won with another pin, in 4:19, over Olentangy Orange, OH’s Jenny Huaracha-Arellanos.

Paramo fell in the quarterfinals to Bultler, PA’s Ana Malovich but then won three in a row, which included two falls, to compete in the third-place match at 115 against Hiller, who pinned her in 1:54.

Bishop fell in the 170 quarterfinals to Loveland, OH’s Elizabeth Madison but won three of her final four matches with falls to take fifth place. Nidelea-Polanin lost her opener at 110 and then had to win twice, which included a 4-3 decision, to help her finish sixth.

Wong won by fall in 2:39 over Tulsa Union, OK’s Skylar Tran in the 105 quarterfinals before getting pinned in 1:16 by Harrison, OH’s Chloe Dearwester in the semifinals. But she was unable to win her next two matches, losing by fall in both, to place sixth.

O’Connor lost in the 145 quarterfinals to Columbia, OH’s Youstina Hanna and then split her two matches to take seventh while Campos fell in the 170 quarterfinals to Erie Prep Academy, PA’s Alexandra Alli and won her next match before losing the next two to place eighth.

Brother Rice edged for title at Pueblo East Invitational

Brother Rice put up a good fight in its quest to win the Pueblo East Invitational in Pueblo, Colorado but the host team prevailed by a 160-158.5 margin to claim top honors in the 19-team competition.

Leading the way for coach Jan Murzyn’s runner-up Crusaders was Mac Murzyn, who took second place at 285 after getting pinned in 1:05 by Centarus, CO’s Xavier Valentin-Bradford. Brother Rice had six third-place finishers as well as two more who took fourth place.

Finishing in third place for the runner-u Crusaders were James Bennett (132), Jack O’Connor (144), Gambino Perez (165), Colin Goggin (175), James Crane (190) and Nick Baser (215) while Dan Tait (106) and Oliver Davis (138) both claimed fourth place. Baser ranked second in most pins in the least time with four in 4:39. 

Quincy Senior has two champions at Baltzley Invitational

Owen Uppinghouse (165) and Bryor Newbold (175) both captured titles for Quincy Senior at the Baltzley Invitational, a 13-team invite that was held in Johnston, Iowa. The Blue Devils finished eighth in the tournament. Uppinghouse won a 9-8 decision over Johnston, IA’s Jacob Helgeson in the 165 finals and Newbold claimed a 4-1 decision over Waverly-Shell Rock, IA’s Braxten Westendorf in the 175 finals.

Triad places third at Hazelwood West Girls Tournament

Although Triad and Belleville East didn’t have many competitors in the event, both teams had two champions at the 12-team Hazelwood West Girls Tournament, which took place in Hazelwood, Missouri.

Triad claimed third with 61 points and placed all of its five entrants in the top five with Kelsey Davis (115) and Harmony Martin (145) winning titles in the round-robin competition. Daisy Smith (120) took third place and Imani Hawkins (135) finished fourth. Davis and Martin won all four of their matches with falls.

Belleville East only had two individuals participating, and both Alexcia Hardin (110) and Kami Ratcliff (155) won championships. Hardin recorded four falls and Ratcliff had pins in both of her matches.