Redhawks Defeat Downers Grove South at IHSA Dual Sectional
2/20/2024
NCHS 40 – Downers Grove
South 21
Naperville Central
defeated host Downers Grove South by a score of 40-21 to win the IHSA Dual
Sectional and qualify for IHSA Dual State.
It will be only the third time in school history that Central’s
wrestling team will be heading to the Elite Eight. Naperville Central qualified for state as a
team in 2009 and 2012. NCHS will face Yorkville
in Bloomington on Friday, February 23 at 7:00pm with competition happening a
the Grossinger Motors Arena.
By draw, the contest
started at 175 pounds where Henry Rydwelski took on RJ Samuels. After no score in the first period, Rydwelski
picked down and escaped within the first minute. Rydwelski then scored a key takedown late in
period two and Samuels countered with an escape. Samuels picked down to start the third
period, losing 3-1 and closed the gap after an escape. Rydwelski stayed offensive until about 30
seconds left, then switched to defense to win 3-2. Central has a 3-0 team point lead. At 190 pounds, Jake Smetters took on Matt
Lapacek. Smetters gave up two takedowns
in the first period, but battled in both neutral and down positions. Down 4-1, Smetters picked up to start the
second period and earned near-fall points on a cradle. Lapacek battled out of it and scored a
reversal. Lapacek attempted several
turns, but Smetters stayed tough. Going
into third period and up 6-3, Lapacek picked neutral and scored a takedown
again. A cradle by Lapacek slipped
allowing an escape by Smetters and the match ended with the Downers Grove South
wrestler winning 8-4 and tying the team score 3-3.
Central then ran
off four wins in a row. At 215, newly
minted state place-winner Niko Besteiro battled Mack Piehl for six hard
minutes. Besteiro earned a stall warning
early, then scored a big takedown midway through the first period. A cradle attempt failed and Piehl was able to
escape. Besteiro reversed to start the
second frame but Piehl escaped. Then
Piehl answered with a half way through the second period. Besteiro escaped to go up 5-4. Piehl, picking down to start the third, knotted
the score with an escape. With 1:10 to
go, Besteiro earned a stalling point to move up 6-5. Another stalling point for Besteiro finished
the match with a 7-5 win. Central now up
6-3 in team score. Heavyweight pitted Will
Erbeck against bit Jacobi Spraggins.
Both wrestlers worked underhooks for the entire first period. With no score, Erbeck picked down and earned
a reversal to start the second. As
Spraggins attempted a stand up, Erbeck returned him back to the mat and on his
back. The resulting fall at 2:57 in the
match put Central ahead 12-3. Cycling
down to the lower weights, Jake Moore took on Trevor Dinaso at 106 pounds. Moore scored a takedown quickly on an
underhook-single. Moore then rode out
Dinaso for the entire remaining period.
Second period Dinaso picked down and Moore continued to prosper on top, only
getting warned for stalling with 30 seconds left. Up 2-0, Moore picked down and fought off
multiple attempts at a turn. Moore then
nearly escaped a couple of times, but got returned. Nevertheless, Moore earned the 2-0 victory to
improve the team score lead to 15-3.
Moving to 113 pounds, Jacob Cochran faced Miguel Castaneda. Castaneda got the first takedown, but then
got called for locked hands and gave up an escape point that allowed Cochran to
tie the score 2-2. Cochran got in on a
single, but Castaneda was able to perform a “cut-back” takedown that also
resulted in two points for near-fall. A Cochran
escape made the score 6-3 heading to the second. With Cochran on the bottom, Castaneda earned
three more near-fall points off a lift and return. Cochran answered with a reversal. Castaneda battled off several turn attempts
from Cochran to keep the Mustang up 10-5.
Castaneda went down for the third period. Again, Cochran worked multiple turns but was only
able to earn a stall point to finish behind 10-6. South closed the team score deficit to 15-6.
Central got two
more wins in a row starting with Ty Martin over Harris Kelliher at 120 pounds. Martin scored a quick takedown, allowed an
escape, then got a second takedown with a go-behind. Martin allowed another escape, and scored
another takedown, this time placing Kelliher to his back for a three point
near-fall. Up 9-2, Martin again gave one
to get two for an 11-3 lead. Martin then
worked a bar arm for a three point near-fall.
Martin picked neutral to start the third period. A fireman’s carry scored two and three points
for nearfall, enough to win the match by technical fall 19-3 putting the Hawks ahead
20-6. At 126 Mitchell Kaszuba scored the
first takedown, a double against Jadon Dinwiddie. Kaszuba scored on top using a ball-and-chain
to move up 4-0. In the second, Kaszuba earned
a quick escape and then a takedown on a single leg, trip to move ahead
7-0. Dinwiddie picked neutral to start
the third period. He slipped on a headlock
attempt that put Kaszube ahead 9-0 and the ride out finished the match with
that score. Team score: 24-6. At 132, Vince Bern moved his feet aggressively
against Drew Woolsey. Woolsey earned a
takedown with 30 second left in the period and rode for the 2-0 lead. Woolsey escaped after picking down and Bern
answered with a takedown to pull within one.
Woolsey then escapes and scored a takedown after Bern attempted an ankle
roll-through. With the score 6-2, Bern
picked neutral. Woolsey scored another
takedown, but gets called for stalling on top.
Bern was able to escape but Woolsey answered with a last final
takedown. Woolsey wins 11-4, but Bern’s
holds off a bonus point. Team score
24-9.
Junior CJ Bierman
returned to the lineup to face Jordan Christin-Holley at 138 pounds. Both wrestlers battled on their feet with Bierman
controlling the center. With a 0-0
score, Bierman picked down to start the second period. Bierman scored an escape after a failed mat
return by Christin-Holley. Then Christin-Holley
failed on a takedown attempt and Bierman took advantage with a front headlock
that resulted in a big pin. Team score
30-9. Senior state-qualifier Hagan
Taylor took the mat against Nick Spirek.
Taylor started quickly with a takedown and near-fall points off a front
headlock and near cradle. Spirek was
able to get out of the predicament and get an escape. Another missed shot by Spirek resulted in
another front headlock by Taylor. Taylor
missed the cradle but was able to turn Spirek with a bar-arm / half
nelson. Taylor the allowed another escape
but followed with another takedown, putting Spirek on his back. Taylor did not let go, getting the pin and six
more team points for the Redhawks. The
team score became mathematically insurmountable 36-9 with three matches
left. At 150 pounds TJ Johnson quickly
scored a takedown against Redhawk Yusuf Sikander that put Sikander on his
back. Sikander fought for a while, but
was pinned in the first period. With the
team score 36-15, Chris Bern took center stage against Hugo Contreras-Lozano at
157 pounds. Contreras-Lozano gets the
first takedown and nearly put Bern to his back.
But, Bern fought it off and escaped to make it 2-1. Bern returns with a takedown of his own, but Contreras-Lozano
escapes to tie the score at three apiece.
The second period saw Bern pick bottom and get a quick escape. Bern then opened a lead with a takedown and a
half nelson putting Contreras-Lozano to his back. Contreras-Lozano answered with an escape and
Bern scored another takedown with just a second left on the clock in the second
period to go up 11-4. Contreras-Lozano picked
down. Bern tried bar arms and tight
waists, but allowed an escape. Bern scored
a defensive takedown to go up 13-5. Contreras-Lozano
got an escape with 30 second left, but Bern scored a takedown to earn a major
decision, and bonus point with a score of 15-6.
With the team score at 40-15, Central sent out freshman Nicolas Olvera against
Connor Kelly at 165 and the final match.
Kelly earned a quick takedown, then turned Olvera to his back for the
fall. Final score 40-21.