Libertyville advances three to State

By Jon Kerr | Libertyville Review

The present — and future — of Libertyville’s wrestling program were on display at the Barrington Sectional on Saturday.

First, the present: 120-pound senior Pat Fitzgerald won his final four matches to qualify to the Class 3A state tournament. His semifinal wrestleback — against Grant’s Ben Soumar — was the big one, ensuring a trip to Champaign. It was an instant classic, as Fitzgerald outlasted Soumar 3-1 in overtime.

“In my mind, I was going to play it safe, and then (Soumar) kept attacking, and I got more aggressive,” said Fitzgerald, who also qualified for State as a sophomore. “Then, in the OT match, I had a nice shot and finished it right away — nice and clean. It was do or die anyway. It’s either I make it or I don’t. So why not give it everything I got?” He then pinned Prairie Ridge’s Eric English in overtime to clinch third place.

Regarding Fitzgerald (37-10), no one can say he didn’t earn his second career trip to State. Fitzgerald, who won preliminary match over Glenbrook South’s Amra Otgonbaatar 7-2, put himself in survival mode, when he fell to Harlem’s Zac Denny 3-1 in his second bout.

“To come back from possible elimination to take third place? That was huge,” said Libertyville coach Dale Eggert. “I’m thrilled.” Fitzgerald finished the tourney 5-1.

Moving on — to the future — two other Wildcats who qualified for State are sophomores.

Kayne MacCallum (19-10) claimed a runner-up finish at 152 pounds. He sealed a trip to Champaign by earning a 2-1 decision over Stevenson’s Justin Weber in the semifinals.

“As a sophomore, it’s amazing,” MacCallum said about making the finals. “I have a lot of work to do to get ready for State.” He wound up losing to Crystal Lake South standout Tom Gerszewski by fall (1:22) in the title match. Gerszewski is now 40-1.

Libertyville sophomore Steve Polakowski (31-9) also claimed a state berth with a fourth-place finish at 113.

“If he didn’t beat a returning State qualifier from Deerfield (Keven Hoogheem, in a second-round match on Friday), we knew he’d have a hard time coming through,” Eggert said. Polakowski came through in the clutch, downing Hoogheem 7-4. Then, after getting pinned by Harlem’s Jordan Northrup in the semifinals, he used a 3-2 decision over McHenry’s Mike Sikula in the wrestleback semifinal to gain a state qualification. Polakowski came ever so close in the third-place match, dropping a 6-5 score to New Trier’s MJ Pritchard.

Hard luck: Another wrestler expecting to qualify for the state tournament was Austin Pettinato (29-11). But the 145-pounder severely sprained his ankle in a regional final match on Feb. 4, and he was unable to practice during the week leading up to sectionals. But after defaulting Friday, Pettinato decided to give it a go on Saturday. However, his ankle was not healed, and Pettinato missed several takedown chances. The Libertyville junior lost a 7-6 decision to Waukegan’s Michael Carajal. 

“That was tough,” Eggert said. “Injuries happen. That’s the way it goes.” Teammates had Pettinato in mind when they were earning their own trips to Champaign.  “He was going so hard — working at his best ability — and got screwed up in regionals,” MacCallum said. “He’s a junior, so he’ll be back.” Added Fitzgerald: “Austin should have easily made it down. I was very upset for him. I was basically winning those matches for him.”

Five other Libertyville wrestlers competed in the sectional. Chris McDermand (285) was one win shy of qualifying for State, losing in the wrestle backs to Barrington’s Ben Calamari. Kevin Barbian (220) went 1-2. He had an opening-round win over Wheeling’s Jesus Rodriguez. The sophomore finished the season 24-17.

Polakowski, Pettinato earn league crowns

By John Kerr | Libertyville Review

On a day when Libertyville High School recognized its storied wrestling past, it was forging ahead in the present.

Hosting the North Suburban Conference league meet Friday and Saturday, the Wildcats staged a reunion of their 2002 sectional championship team. As names such as Jeff Keske, Anthony Panico and Jim Friend were recognized for past accomplishments, current wrestlers such as Steve Polakowski assured their own legacies. The 113-pound sophomore earned a conference championship, decisively winning all three of his matches. Polakowski’s run to the crown culminated in a 3-0 decision over Grant’s Noah Drabek.

“It’s really nice,” said Polakowski, who improved to 27-7 overall. “All that hard work pays off.” A takedown in the second period all but won the match for Polakowski, who held on and, “chopped (Drabek) him down at the start of the third period. I hit his wrists right away. I knew I could ride him out the whole period if I kept it up with the intensity.”

That intensity was hatched when he picked up the sport at Highland Middle School in the sixth grade. It wasn’t until he landed at Libertyville as a freshman that Polakowski made a quantum leap. Working out with older teammates such as senior Pat Fitzgerald (126), and the lighter Noah Strong (106) has helped with his pace. A November victory against St. Rita’s powerful Colton Kielbasa was revealing in how it proved to Polakowski that he could compete with the state’s best.  “I got a big takedown and reversal, and got a bunch of back points and a big lead,” Polakowski said. “It was nice to make it to the finals.” And as he walked to the podium after being announced as the first-place winner, he was congratulated by members of the 2002 team. All at once, Libertyville’s past and present were on display.

Recap: It was day worthy of celebration for the Wildcats, and for one member, specifically. Saturday marked long-time head coach Dale Eggert’s birthday. A conference championship would have been icing on the cake, but Libertyville’s second-place finish (213 points) behind Grant (224.5) provided plenty of smiles all around.

“(Grant) is a good team, and we fought hard the whole day. It wasn’t a very good Friday but it was an excellent Saturday,” said Eggert, not mentioning his birthday. The Wildcats ended the tournament with two champions — Polakowski and Austin Pettinato (145) — who defeated Zion-Benton’s Adrian Collier 7-1 in the first-place match. Libertyville had four second- and third-place finishers, allowing them to leapfrog from Friday’s third-place spot into the runner-up position on Saturday.

Second-place winners were Fitzgerald (30-11) at 126, Charlie Meyer (21-16) at 132, Kevin Barbian (22-14) at 220 and Chris McDermand (28-9) at 285. Third-place winners were Kyle May (27-8) at 120, Josh Hirth (17-17) at 138, Kayne MacCallum (14-9) at 152 and Sal Ayala (26-12) at 160. Other medalists were Austin Koziol at 170 (5th place) and Connor O’Donnell at 182 (6th place).
Eggert was particularly pleased with MacCallum, who’s rounding into form after starting the season late while recovering from a knee injury. “He wrestled in a really tough class and beat a returning State qualifier (Vernon Hills’ Danny Klema),” Eggert said. “He’s back to where we expect him to be.”

It was the first time since 2008 that Libertyville didn’t win the conference tournament. The Cats have bigger goals in mind, such as winning their own regional. The Wildcats will watch quite a bit of video in preparation. “We’re going to show highlights of each match and confront them on mistakes,” Eggert said. “These guys know what they are supposed to do. It’s now time to do it.

Click HERE for brackets from the 2012 North Suburban Conference Wrestling Championships

McDermand making leap to top of heap

By Jon Kerr | Libertyville Review

The jump from under-levels to varsity can be fraught with land mines and speed bumps for high school athletes. Some make the transition, others don’t. In the case of Libertyville High School wrestler Chris McDermand, one can term his upward mobility a success. 

Competing at the freshman level last season, the 6-foot-1, 285-pounder was undefeated. He had the record — and skill — to make the jump to varsity as a sophomore. But there were some missing pieces. “He had to come a long way in terms of fitness,” said Libertyville coach Dale Eggert. “It’s not easy being a sophomore in the upper weights.” So he kept wrestling, qualifying for the USA Wrestling Cadet Greco-Roman & Freestyle Nationals in Fargo, ND last summer. An injury kept him from competing, but the journey was a catalyst for this season. His stamina improved along with his intellect, as McDermand’s understanding of mat strategy has catapulted him to a 23-8 record so far this season, including 14 pins.

“He has some good hips, so most of his pins come on upper body locks,” Eggert said. “He can also turn it from the top position as well, so he’s got a pretty good arsenal going. He wants to hear what you have to say and works hard at what you tell him to do.” Much of that comes from assistant coach Roy Seeger, who’s helped shape McDermand’s style. That was on display Saturday at the Lyons Township Quad, as McDermand pinned his opponents from DeKalb and Conant. He won his match against a Warren foe 2-0 on Friday. 

A three-sport athlete, McDermand swaps his football shoulder pads for wrestling gear in November, then competes in discus and shot put in track, beginning in March. “A football player who wrestles is tough. He doesn’t like to get smacked in the face,” Eggert said. “With shot and discus, they get to work on explosiveness, which will come in handy.”

For Chris McDermand, so far so good.

LHS vs. Warren: In a battle for the conference lead, Libertyville (14-4, 4-1) lost control to Warren, dropping Friday’s dual meet 25-22.

The meet came down to the 182-pound weight class. With the match tied at 22-22, Austin Koziol dropped a close one, falling 3-2. The highlight was at 113, where Steve Polakowski won his match 3-0. Pat Fitzgerald also won his match at 126, prevailing 3-2, while Austin Pettinato came up with a clutch pin at 145 pounds.

“It’s a great meet, and they have a really good team,” Eggert said. “We’re doing everything we can to stay in the game with those guys.”

Lyons Township Quad: The Wildcats had no time to stew over the loss, as they had a quick turnaround, wrestling in the LT Quad a day later. And Libertyville performed well, winning all three matches handily. The Cats topped the host Lions 36-18, downed DeKalb 46-9 and clipped Conant 43-19. Freshman Joey Gunther scored a pin at 138 against a Lyons Township foe, and also won his match against a DeKalb opponent. Fitzgerald and Josh Hirth (138) also scored solid wins against their DeKalb counterparts. 

“I admit it’s kind of a downer losing the night (of) the biggest meet of the year,” said Eggert. “But wrestling is the kind of sport where you better bring it the next day, as you can get thumped pretty good. I thought we rose to the occasion (at LT).”

Libertyville meets its match in Oak Park

By John Bumbales | Daily Herald Correspondent

With the No. 1-ranked team in the state in town for a triple-dual meet, host Libertyville knew it had to be ready to wrestle Saturday.

The first round went quite well for the Wildcats as they posted an impressive 42-14 nonconference victory over Wheaton North. But the second round would not go nearly as well as top-ranked Oak Park (13-0) posted a 43-12 victory over Libertyville (11-3) after trailing 9-6 early in the dual meet. The Wildcats did bounce back with a strong performance to end the day as they toppled St. Rita 39-17. Wheaton North (8-9) lost a 35-31 match to St. Rita to start the day before falling to Oak Park 52-21 in the final round. Oak Park added a 56-9 victory over St. Rita in the opening round.

Sophomore Chris McDermand (285 pounds) was one of two Libertyville wrestlers to capture three victories on the day. McDermand pinned St. Rita’s Brendan Galbraith in only 53 seconds to give the No. 18-ranked Wildcats a commanding 36-17 lead with one match remaining. Senior Kyle May (120 pounds) also picked up three victories for Libertyville, with the benefit of a forfeit win against Oak Park.

“Oak Park just out-horsed and out-hustled us at many weight classes, and they’re just a great team,” said Libertyville coach Dale Eggert, whose team hosts Warren in an NSC Lake Division showdown next Friday. “McDermand is really coming on strong and he is a pinner. He placed at the Harlem tournament and he’s been hot.”

Noah Strong (106), Pat Fitzgerald (120/126), Charlie Meyer (132), Austin Pettinato (145) and Austin Koziol (170) all went 2-1 for Libertyville.

It’s advantage Libertyville in win at Mundelein

By John Bumbales | Daily Herald Correspondent

This is one North Suburban Conference wrestling meet host Mundelein hoped would be much different heading into the season. But losing 18 points due to three forfeits, the Mustangs did not stand much of a chance Friday night as Libertyville pulled away in the second half of the dual meet for a 43-20 NSC Lake Division victory.

Starting at 113, Mundelein built a quick 6-0 lead on a pin by Matt Hutchinson. Libertyville (9-2, 4-0) responded with 120-pounder Kyle May’s 9-4 decision over Gilbert Ceniceros before Libertyville 126-pound senior Pat Fitzgerald (20-6) recorded a technical fall in 3:24 to give the Wildcats an 8-6 advantage early on.

“I think this is the best I’ve ever wrestled, and I’m more aggressive than last year,” said Fitzgerald, who reached the state meet as a sophomore. “I push the pace a lot more this year and I’ve changed my style a lot since last year.”

Libertyville’s Charlie Meyer won a 4-0 decision over Dan Winberg at 132 before undefeated 138-pound senior Matt Ornoff (22-0) got a technical fall to deadlock the score at 11-11. Ornoff’s victory adds to his school record with 135 career wins against only 21 losses. The previous record was 123 wins set in 2004. Mundelein coach Tom Buenik knew the odds were stacked against his squad heading into Friday’s meet.

“We knew we would stack up well with them at the lower weights, but we were starting in a hole because of the forfeits,” said Buenik, whose team is 1-3 in the Lake Division. “Ornoff is doing well — he’s wrestling his style, and he wrestled at 138 for the second time this season.”

Junior Austin Pettinato recorded a pin in exactly one minute at 145 to give the Wildcats the lead for keeps at 17-11. Mundelein’s Jake Long got a last-second takedown for a 4-2 decision over sophomore Kayne MacCallum at 152 to cut the gap to 17-14, but that is as close as the Mustangs would get the rest of the way. An 8-0 major decision at 160 by Libertyville’s Sal Ayala boosted the lead to 21-14 before Mundelein made one final stand. Javier Dominguez posted a 9-2 decision for the Mustangs over Austin Koziol at 170 to make the score 21-17. But then forfeit victories by Connor O’Donnell at 182 and Kevin Barbian at 195 gave the Wildcats a commanding 33-17 lead with three bouts left. Tim Grote added a 13-2 major decision for Libertyville at 220 before 285-pound teammate Chris McDermand’s forfeit win made the score 43-17. Mundelein 106-pounder Ray Ceniceros edged Noah Strong 5-3 with a late takedown to account for the final score.

“They were behind the eight ball with the three forfeits, but other than that it was a good meet,” said Libertyville coach Dale Eggert, whose team will face No. 1-ranked Oak Park in a triple-dual meet Saturday. “Pettinato locked up a good move and got him (Connor O’Shaughnessy) on the first takedown.”

Libertyville’s Pettinato driven to succeed

Libertyville Review | December 16, 2011

The first thing you notice about Libertyville junior wrestler Austin Pettinato is his drive.

“He brings the intensity that the majority of our guys don’t have,” Wildcats coach Dale Eggert said. “He’s mentally tough and always wants advice. When you give it, he wants to implement it. Whatever you can offer, he’s full-speed ahead.”

For Pettinato, it is natural to follow the advice of Eggert.

“He makes me want to learn and listen,” Pettinato said. “He doesn’t just teach you to wrestle; he’s helped me become a better person.”

Pettinato understands the necessity of maximizing every practice and every conditioning session. He didn’t play football this fall in order to devote his full attention to wrestling.

“I wanted to be in the best possible shape,” he said. “I’ve been wrestling my whole life and I’m dedicated to this. You’re on the mat for six minutes. I want to be able to go as hard as I possibly can (for those six minutes).” Through 24 matches, Pettinato has an 18-6 record in the 145-pound weight class.

“When you lose, you have to learn from your mistakes,” he said. “I’ve learned from every one of my matches.”

Pettinato wrestled his first year on the freshman team and his varsity time as a sophomore was limited by injury. At the end of the season, he qualified for the freshman-sophomore state championships. He placed third at 130 pounds, which qualified him for the inaugural frosh/soph national championship. This season, he placed third at the Barrington Tournament and second at the Hoffman Estates Tournament.

“He’s grown a lot this season,” Eggert said. “He continues to make the most out of each week.”

Metea Valley Quad Recap:

McDermand leads way: Sophomore Chris McDermand led the Wildcats to a 3-0 record at the Metea Valley Quad on Friday. This ran the Wildcats’ record to 8-2.

McDermand won all three matches via pin. “He’s developed the confidence to go out there and be aggressive right away,” Eggert said. “He’s making things happen and that’s a credit to him. He’s becoming a very dangerous wrestler.”

The Wildcats defeated Crystal Lake South (33-24), Metea Valley (55-12) and Schaumburg (37-20). “We weren’t very aggressive at the start against Crystal Lake South but we finished strong,” Eggert said.

Steve Polakowski won three matches (113), two via pin. Noah Strong (103), Pat Fitzgerald (120), Kyle May (126) and Charlie Meyer (132) each won two matches. Joey Gunther (138) made his varsity debut and won 9-4. “He had four solid takedowns,” Eggert said. “It was an impressive win.”

Dvorak Recap:

 Fitzgerald, Pettinato and McDermand all finished in the top eight at the 32-team Harlem Invitational on Dec. 22-23. Pettinato and Fitzgerald reached the semifinals, placing fifth and sixth, respectively. Four of McDermand’s five wins came by pin and he placed seventh. Polakowski, May, Meyer and Connor O’Donnell (182) each won two matches. Kayne MacCallum (152) came through with a victory in his first action of the season. Sal Ayala (160), Austin Koziol (170) and Tim Grote each won a match.

The Wildcats finished in 18th place. “Almost every school that placed ahead of us was ranked somewhere in the top 25 so we were OK with 18th,” Eggert said.

Click HERE for brackets from the 24th Annual Al Dvorak Memorial Wrestling Invitational

Libertyville’s Gaeth earning respect in Division III

Libertyville Review | December 16, 2011

Libertyville High School graduate Luke Gaeth, a freshman at Milwaukee School of Engineering (MSOE), has earned honorable mention status on the latest d3wrestle,com rankings.

Gaeth, who wrestles at 125 pounds, has a 13-6 overall record. He took third in Saturday’s North Central College Invitational — winning 4-3 in triple overtime in the third-place match.

Earlier this season, he took second in the Knox Invitational and fourth in the MSOE Invitational.

With two-time state champion Steve Congenie of Willowbrook still on the sidelines rehabbing from off-season surgery, the 34th annual Hawk Invitational was without its top individual attraction when competition began in Hoffman Estates on Saturday. Lincoln-Way Central seized its opportunity to become star of the day with a commanding performance, earning 11 medals with two individual champions en route to the team title by 45 points.

The Knights collected 214.5 points to outdistance 2A power Notre Dame and Central Suburban League favorite New Trier (third at 162.50). Reigning North Suburban Conference champ Libertyville (152.0) finished fourth overall with Naperville Central (136) rounding out the top five.

While area teams were unable to get into the top three, they were able to celebrate four championships. South Elgin senior Cody Pych won at 170 pounds, and Libertyville’s Pat Fitzgerald avenged a loss to Joey Nelson (Lincoln-Way Central) suffered last season with a 3-2 victory over Nelson to capture the 120-pound crown. Fitzgerald (11-2) wrestled a marvelous tactical match against his state-ranked opponent, whose long, lean body offered plenty of challenges during the 120-pound final.

“It was important to keep him tied up and as close to me as possible, because if he was able to extend, I was going to be in a lot of trouble,” said Fitzgerald, who struck first with a well disguised single to go up 2-0 in the first period before taking the lead for good with an escape after starting in the down position to start the third period. “I began the season at the Moore-Prettyman at 126, and that’s not a good weight for me. But I feel very good at either (120) or 112, that’s for sure.”

Kyle May (126), Charlie Meyer (132) and Sal Ayala (160) all finished third in their respective divisions for the Wildcats, while junior Austin Pettinato (10-3) dropped a 12-7 decision to Tim Donnelly (Notre Dame) in his 145-pound final, as did Kevin Barbian at 195.

Click HERE for tournament brackets from the Hoffman Estates Hawk Invitational.

By John Bumbales | Daily Herald Correspondent

The 21st Annual Moore/Prettyman Memorial Wrestling Invitational was definitely a tough test for Lake County area teams and individuals Saturday at Barrington.

The two-day tournament concluded with the host Broncos rolling to the championship of the 30-team meet with 273.5 points to easily topple runner-up Plainfield Central with 164 points. Libertyville led the way for Lake County squads with a fifth-place score of 135 points to outdistance North Suburban Conference rival Grant (130.5 points) in seventh. Stevenson’s young team edged Lake Zurich 71-62 for 16th place while Lakes’ short-handed squad placed 22nd with 46 points. Wauconda (42 points) ended up in 26th place.

Libertyville had seven top-eight placewinners, including sophomore Steve Polakowski, who placed second at 113 pounds. Junior Austin Pettinato added a third-place finish for the Wildcats at 145 while teammate Pat Fitzgerald posted a 5-0 shutout over Wauconda’s Devin Tortorice for fifth place at 126. Josh Hirth placed fifth for Libertyville with a 6-5 overtime win at 138.

“I actually think that fifth was a little higher than I thought we would be and everybody but one guy won two matches,” said Libertyville coach Dale Eggert. “Everybody got a win so I’m happy with that. I’m very happy with the second place (by Polakowski) because it’s not easy to get to the finals in this tournament.”

Charlie Meyer added a sixth for Libertyville at 132 while Lake Zurich’s Brandon Arteaga placed eighth at 132. Libertyville’s Sal Ayala posted a 7-2 decision over Lake Zurich’s Scott Hoff for seventh at 160 while Stevenson’s Ian Burns placed eighth at 170.