12/29/2023 - 12/30/2023
NCHS 47 - Glenbard West 23
NCHS 15 - Yorkville 52
NCHS 33 - York (Elmhurst) 36
NCHS 27 - Lockport 43
NCHS 26 - Chatham Glenwood 47
NCHS 30 - Barrington 31
Naperville Central restarted their wrestling season after a thirteen day layoff competing at the competitive The Flavin 16-team dual meet tournament hosted by DeKalb High School. The Redhawks took fourth place in the eight team “Wayne Miller” Bracket on day one which qualified them for the Bronze Pool on day two. Will Erbeck, Central’s outstanding heavyweight, turned in the team’s top performance by winning all six matches, four by fall. The junior leads the team in wins with a 22-2 record. Mitchell Kaszuba won all three matches on day one, two by major decisions, improving to 16-5 on the year. The 126 pounder sat out day two due to injury. Jake Cochran (113) and Ty Martin (120, 126) both finished with 4-2 records. Three of Cochran’s wins were pins and he now ranks second on the team with 18 wins against 6 losses. Junior Aaron Nussbaum (215) posted his first career varsity win at the event as well as freshman Justin Skryd (150).
Central opened the event by defeating Glenbard West by a score of 47-23. The Hawks won eight of twelve matches and the two teams traded forfeits. Five of those wins came by fall. Next up the Hawks faced Yorkville, a team that took 4th in state last year. Yorkville won the match 15-52. Ty Martin (120) and Mitchell Kaszuba (126) both came away with wins, including bonus points. Will Erbeck won by forfeit. Dual three saw the Redhawks take on Elmhurst York. The contest came down to the final match with York coming out on top 33-36. After a loss at 175 pounds, Jacob Smetters (190) won by fall. York answered with a pin at 215. Will Erbeck flexed his muscles after earning a first period fall at heavyweight. After Naperville Central gave up a forfeit at 106 and York gave up forfeits at 113 and 120, senior Mitchell Kaszuba won by decision 14-7. York then rattled off wins at 132, 138, 144 and 150. Chris Bern (157) stopped the bleeding with a 7-1 decision and John Carens battled to a 5-1 win, but it wasn’t enough to overcome the team score deficit.
Day two a depleted Redhawk team faced three very competitive teams, starting with Lockport. The Porters defeated the Hawks 43-27. The loss was not without some highlights for NCHS. Jacob Smetters (190) won by fall and Will Erbeck continued his winning streak with a 8-6 hard-fought victory. Jacob Cochran (113) continues to improve earning a second period fall. Freshman Justin Skryd earned his first ever varsity win making quick work of Naseem Jabar of Lockport earning a pin in 31 seconds. Surely looks like the first of many by the standout. Henry Rydwelski won the last match of the dual with a late, second period fall. In the second dual Central fell to Chatham Glenwood 47-26. Will Erbeck (285) earned another pin. Jacob Cochran (113) earned his second victory of the day with a second period mat-slapper. Hagan Taylor (144) scored a technical fall, winning 22-5. Sophomore Yusuf Sikander (157) battled to a third period fall. Henry Rydwelski (175) added the final win with a 10-7 win.
Dual three saw Naperville Central take on Barrington to a battle that was decided in the final match. Central won seven matches while Barrington won six. The two team forfeited 106. Cochran (113) nearly won his fifth match of the competition, but lost by one, 6-5. Senior standout Ty Martin earned four takedowns in route to a 12-4 major decision. Central gave up falls at 126 and 132. The Redhawks answered with a fall from CJ Bierman (138) and a 11-7 victory from Hagan Taylor (144). Barrington came back with wins against Javier Sevilla and Yusuf Sikander at 150, 157. Down by eight team points, the Redhawks cut the Barrington lead to one with decisions from John Carens (165) and Henry Rydwelski (175). Rydwelski’s win was a major decision 13-3 scoring six takedowns to add to his team-leading total of 56. After a Barrington victory at 190, the Hawks needed a pin from Aaron Nussbaum at 215. The junior scored six takedowns to earn his first ever varsity win by a score of 16-8.