CENTRAL WRESTLING PREVIEW Balanced lineup, experience boosts Devils

November 22, 2007

 COACH: Jim Zajicek (6th season)

 2006-07 RESULTS: 15-6 in dual meets, 3-3 in West Suburban Conference Silver Division (tied for 3rd); seventh at Willowbrook Regional

 RETURNING STARTERS: Seniors Evan Goss (112 pounds), Chase Culbertson (189) and Rob Mains (285); juniors Tim Knowles (130), Tom Jung (140) and Pat Clegg (215); and sophomore David Lutz (145)

 OTHER VARSITY RETURNEES: Juniors Alex Orton (125), Nick Auriemma (135) and Allan Cameron (189)

 NEWCOMERS: Senior Mike Novak (171), juniors Schwyn Francis (152), Quinn Francis (160) and Dimitri Simeakis (171); sophomore Brad O'Donnell (119); and freshman Terry Ward (103)

 OUTLOOK: Despite graduating two of its best wrestlers in program history in Frank Battaglia (3rd at state at 152) and two-time state qualifier Matt Tolbert (119), as well as sectional qualifier Milo Imrie (160), Hinsdale Central could be a better dual-meet team this season with more overall balance and experience.

"We've always had some holes with kids who may not have been ready to wrestle on the varsity level," said Zajicek, who has built the program's numbers to 80 wrestlers. "This year, we have every weight class covered, and as long as we stay healthy, we should be a fun team because we have a crew of kids that has the potential to be a 20-match winner at all 14 weight classes."

Third-year varsity wrestler Knowles could have the most potential, while Mains is the most improved and Culbertson is a two-time all-conference pick.

Knowles finished 27-13 and earned all-conference honors last season but suffered a knee injury the week of regionals just as he appeared to be hitting his stride.

"Tim Knowles could be all-state if the cards fall in line," Zajicek said. "Last year, he had just broken into the 'best of the rest' (rankings) and was looking really good when he hurt his knee. He wrestled a lot of good kids close."

Mains appears poised to make a big jump after going 27-14 and finishing fourth at regionals to just miss a sectional berth for a top-three finish last year.

"He is so much better than he was a year ago. He has so much more confidence and a different level of toughness," Zajicek said. "Last year, he lost six matches that if he had a little more confidence he would have had a better year. Those are the ones I expect him to win this year. I not only expect him to win, I expect him to dominate."

Culbertson finished 23-13 last year and 22-12 as a sophomore and could benefit by being pushed by Cameron (13-6), who will fill-in early in the season with Culbertson gone on a family trip.

Lutz (20-15), Jung (13-13), Goss (10-20), Clegg, Orton and Auriemma are among Red Devils who have shown progress thanks to strong offseason commitments. Zajicek said Jung "worked harder than just about anyone" with 50 offseason matches and 50 offseason workout sessions in open gyms.

Among the newcomers, Ward has an extensive youth wrestling background as a state champion who won national tournaments. He was limited the last two seasons by concussions but has 30-win potential, Zajicek said.

O'Donnell lost only one match during the freshman team's regular season and placed second at the frosh-soph conference tournament. Both Francis brothers lost only one junior varsity match last year and placed second at the frosh-soph conference tourney. Simeakis and Novak could alternate at 171 after Simeakis won their challenge match 2-1.

"This is the type of team I love coaching," Zajicek said. "They're very attentive kids, they're on time and they worked hard in the offseason."

Whether that's enough to fulfill one of Zajicek's longtime goals of winning conference remains to be seen. Defending champion Lyons Township, which graduated six all-conference wrestlers, and defending runner-up Oak Park figure to be tough again.

"We have a fairly young team, but I think we've got a shot," Zajicek said. "I don't think there's going to be an undefeated team in the conference. I think it's going to be how the weight classes match up from week to week."

 KEY TO SUCCESS: "Winning the close matches because we're going to have a lot of them -- doing the little things that turn a loss into a win," Zajicek said.

-- by Jeff Davis

January 18, 2007

Hinsdale Central wrestling coach Jim Zajicek couldn't say enough good things about his wrestlers after last weekend.

And that was after the Red Devils even had lost a couple of meets.

Hinsdale Central (11-5) completed a busy stretch of six matches in three days with a 4-2 record after beating Homewood-Flossmoor 43-29 and Willowbrook 40-27 and losing to St. Charles East 30-28 Saturday in its own quadrangular and losing to West Suburban Conference Silver Division co-leader and area-ranked Oak Park 39-15 Friday in Hinsdale.

The Red Devils defeated Lisle 54-21 and Morton 42-21 Jan. 11 at home.

"The guys don't see it very often where we go 2-2 on the weekend and I'm praising them," Zajicek said. "But we wrestled about as well as we could and we lost to better opponents.

"We're really starting to wrestle that style I've been trying to coach the last few years, and Saturday was an example of that and even Friday (was). The kids wrestled hard through the end of the period, through the whole match and never gave up easy points. That's a true testament to how hard they've worked."

But Zajicek hardly wants the Red Devils to be satisfied.

"Now what are we going to do to take that next step to be the team that wins those matches?" he said. "That's going to take work in the offseason and continuing to bring better and better athletes into the program."

Seniors Matt Tolbert (119 pounds) and Frank Battaglia (152) won all six of their matches for Hinsdale Central. Tolbert moved up to 125 to edge Oak Park standout Lillashawn Coleman 5-4, topped an undefeated Morton wrestler 9-4 and had two pins. Battaglia topped Oak Park's Peter Lovaas 6-5 and added four pins and a technical fall.

Battaglia became the Red Devils' career wins leader at the Geneva Invitational Jan. 6, surpassing 1997 graduate Ben Black's 120 wins. Black will be on hand when Battaglia is honored for his feat today, Thursday, Jan. 18, against Hinsdale South (11-5) in Hinsdale.

Hinsdale Central's Tim Knowles (130), Milo Imrie (160) and Chase Culbertson (189) finished 5-1 in the three meets. Knowles pulled out two 7-4 decisions, including one over state qualifier Jake Schnall of St. Charles East, whom he beat for the second time this season. Culbertson had three technical falls and 9-0 and 10-4 decisions, while Imrie posted two pins, a technical fall and two seven-point decisions.

Andrew Sullivan (171) and Rob Mains (285) each went 4-2 with three pins, while Allan Cameron (215) was 4-2 with two pins.

Hinsdale Central senior Matt Tolbert didn't win his school's Rex Whitlatch Invitational a few weeks ago like he had hoped, but he did the next best thing Dec. 28.

Tolbert beat the wrestler who did win his coveted Whitlatch crown -- and convincingly -- earning a 15-5 major decision over Leyden's Chris Reed in the 119-pound championship at the Berman Holiday Wrestling Classic at Palatine.

Tolbert (20-1) didn't get the chance to meet Reed at Whitlatch Dec. 16 after getting caught with a move and pinned in 49 seconds by West Aurora's Josh Zinzer in the semifinals for his only loss of the season, but came back to win two matches to take third. Reed then beat Zinzer 14-11 in the final.

"It was nice to beat the guy who won it because I really wanted that tournament and I got caught. I thought I'd send a message to him," said Tolbert, who had seven takedowns in the final to finish 4-0 in the tourney with a pin and 14-5 and 11-6 decisions.

"(That) loss just made me want it more. I just practiced hard and got in some extra conditioning (over the holiday break). I knew I was going to bounce back."

Like Tolbert, Hinsdale Central senior Frank Battaglia has bounced back from his only loss of the season in the Whitlatch finals. Battaglia (19-1) pulled out two close matches to finish 4-0 and win the 152-pound championship. Sophomore teammate Tim Knowles (130 pounds) took fourth and senior Milo Imrie (160) was eighth for the Red Devils, who placed 10th in the 25-team field with five starters missing because of holiday vacation conflicts.

"I wanted to come back from the (4-0) loss (against Lockport's Luke Roth) and really step it up another notch and wrestle better," Battaglia said. "I had a lot of tough matches. I felt like I won the big scrambles, wrestled until the end of the match, really wrestled well. This was basically a check point to see where I am because we're coming to a peaking time for state, and I felt great. It was a confidence boost."

Battaglia beat Palatine's Ross Grande 3-0 in the final by getting a takedown and escape at the end of first and second periods after edging Oswego's Devin Larsen 1-0 in the semifinals.

"Those are the close matches that he was always in when he was always getting the point scored (against him) late in the period and on the edge of the mat," Hinsdale central coach Jim Zajicek said of Battaglia, who also won by pin and 10-1. "So he's doing exactly what happened to him as an underclassman, and that's a good sign. That's what he needs to do in order to be a state placewinner, which is what his goal is."

Knowles (16-8) continued to impress in his second varsity season. He finished 3-2, including a solid 4-3 win over St. Charles East senior Jake Schnall (10-4), a state qualifier who beat Tolbert when they were freshmen. Knowles won his first two matches 10-0 and 3-0 before falling 12-2 to Minooka's Kevin Bokoski (19-1) in the semifinals. Knowles lost to Mundelein's Nick Kainrath 10-7 for third.

"Tim Knowles looked great," Zajicek said. "He's having a great year, and he's listening real well, which is all we really ask of the kids."

Imrie (14-7) went 2-3 with 6-4 and 4-3 wins, losing to Warren's Bryce Howard 5-3 in overtime in the seventh-place match.

The Red Devils (109.5 points) finished 10 points behind ninth-place Glenbard East. Minooka (269.5), Lincoln-Way Central (194.5) and Lyons Township (193) were the top three finishers.

Hinsdale Central senior Gerome Diadula (171) finished 3-2 with a pin and technical fall. Junior Chase Culbertson (189) was 2-2 with two pins and Mike Novak (145) and sophomore Allan Cameron (215) earned their first varsity wins.

December 14, 2006

Hinsdale Central senior wrestlers Matt Tolbert and Frank Battaglia made their move in a hurry to win championships at the Downers Grove South Invitational Saturday.

It just happened to be the same move -- a side cradle.

Tolbert won the 119-pound title by pinning Oswego's Sam Chamberlein in 43 seconds, while Battaglia claimed the 152-pound crown with a pin of Oswego's Devin Larsen in 1 minute, 50 seconds. Both champs had three pins on the day to improve their records to 9-0 with eight straight pins.

"It's kind of funny because both me and Matt got the guy in the exact same way. That was pretty cool," Battaglia said. "When you end the side cradle, you get it locked up to the point where the guy's leg is over his head and there's just no possibility of him getting out at all."

Battaglia, whose other two pins came in the second period, won the 145-pound title at Downers South last year. He hopes to reach state for the first time since his freshman year.

"That kid (in the final) was probably the best kid I've wrestled so far," Battaglia said. "I've been working a lot and switching it up and not just doing the same old stuff.

"I feel great right now. I would say this is the most confident I've been in the four years I've been here. Every match I'm going out there and wrestling my match. I got a taste of (state) freshman year and haven't since. I've never been more hungry for it."

Tolbert, who also had pins in 3:08 and 34 seconds, is hungry for his own return to state after breaking his ankle days before sectionals last season. He placed fourth at state at 103 as a sophomore. He won at Downers South as a sophomore, but sat out the invite last year and as a freshman with a rib injury.

"I feel good. What's nice this year is it seems like it's a lot easier to make the weight. I feel stronger. It's been a nice transition from 112," said Tolbert, who has signed with Purdue. "I want to win state. Anything less would be a disappointment."

Tolbert and Battaglia led Hinsdale Central (145.5 points) to third behind Bolingbrook (197) and Batavia (194) and ahead of Downers South (139.5) in the nine-team field.

Hinsdale Central freshman Dave Lutz (140) finished third by pinning Batavia's Andrew Thomas in 51 seconds to finish 4-1 with three pins. Junior Evan Goss (112), sophomore Tim Knowles (135), seniors Steve O'Donnell (145) and Milo Imrie (160), sophomore Pat Clegg (215) and junior Rob Mains (285) placed fourth, with each scoring three points or less but losing by six points or less in their third-place match, including Clegg's 3-2 loss.

"We're close," Hinsdale Central coach Jim Zajicek said. "Underclassmen are going to learn from their mistakes. They're hopefully going to see some different results in the tournaments down the road."

Hinsdale Central (5-1) beat Glenbard West 45-26 Friday in its West Suburban Conference Silver Division opener. Tolbert, Knowles, Lutz, Battaglia, Chase Culbertson (189) and Mains had pins.

The battles in which Hinsdale Central senior Milo Imrie engages on the wrestling mat might be nothing compared to the ones he could be involved in following high school.

Imrie is preparing for life in the military through an improved discipline and work ethic in his sport, and he's reaping the rewards.

Imrie finished second at 160 pounds at Hinsdale Central's 18-team Rex Whitlatch Invitational Saturday, losing only 5-4 to Lemont's Nick Simone in the championship.

Still, Imrie's 3-1 finish that included a pin and 10-0 semifinal decision improved his record to 11-4 this season. After giving up a takedown to start the third period in the final, he earned a stalling point and then an escape with 45 seconds left to get within a point, but couldn't get a late takedown.

"I'm happy with second because I never even made it past the third round in my past years here, so this was a pretty big improvement for me," said Imrie, who was seeded second. "Sophomore and junior year, I just didn't care that much. This year, I'm joining the Marines after high school and learning how to put the effort in means a little more to me than it did last year."

Imrie leaves for boot camp in August after first considering the military in eighth grade following in the footsteps of his uncle, a Vietnam veteran. His father, Gordon, and uncle, John, wrestled at Hinsdale Central, with his uncle placing second at state in 1966.

"I have good grades, but I want to do something I'm really proud of before college," said Imrie, who scored an outstanding 35 on his ACT and 2,280 on the SAT.

Imrie was one of five top-five medalists for the Red Devils, who placed sixth with 123.5 points behind Leyden (128) and ahead of Hinsdale South (113) in the two-day tourney. West Aurora (226), Minooka (217) and Lockport (161.5) were the top three finishers.

Hinsdale Central senior standouts Frank Battaglia (152) and Matt Tolbert (119) finished second and third, respectively, after both suffered their first losses of the season. Sophomore Tim Knowles (130) placed fourth, and junior Rob Mains (285) was fifth with three pins.

"We had an OK day," Hinsdale Central coach Jim Zajicek said. "With how strong the field was, I said if we were in the top half, I'd be satisfied. If we were in the top five, I'd be happy. And we were fourth or fifth all the way up 'til this last round (so) that was a little disappointing."

The second-seeded Battaglia's face screamed disappointment even after the gym had begun emptying out. He lost to Lockport's Luke Roth 4-0 in a championship battle of top-five, state-ranked wrestlers after edging Minooka's Steve Olin 7-5 in the semifinals. Roth -- who was named the tourney's Outstanding Wrestler -- rode Battaglia most of the final two periods. Roth scored all his points in the final 1 minute, 26 seconds on a technical violation on Battaglia (13-1, 10 pins) for applying pressure after the ref's whistle and a takedown.

"I'd rather not win this one and beat him downstate when it matters," Battaglia said. "I don't think I wrestled as smart as I could have. He's obviously really good on the mat and I just felt like I was better on my feet, and I spent most of the match on the mat so I lost. As long as I don't dwell on it and make myself better for it ... ."

The top-seeded Tolbert (14-1, 9 pins) was stunned to get pinned by West Aurora's Josh Zinzer in 49 seconds in the semifinals when he got caught in an arm lock. Tolbert came back to dominate No. 2 seed Marcus Rangel of Minooka 15-5 in the backdraw and then Naperville Central's Chris Muscato by 22-7 technical fall for third place. Zinzer lost 14-11 in the finals.

"Overall, I wrestled well, but he caught me in like a throw and that was it," Tolbert said. "I was upset, but this is going to make me work that much harder. There's so much ahead of me still (that) I can't get down over this."

Knowles compiled a 4-2 record, beating Hinsdale South's Jon Goldsher 5-3 to avenge a loss last year before losing to Homewood-Flossmoor's Jimmy Scrementi 10-4 in the third-place match.

Hinsdale Central's Gerome Diadula (171) and Chase Culbertson (189) finished 2-2.

On Dec. 13, Hinsdale Central lost to York 36-31 in a West Suburban Conference Silver Division dual that came down to the final match for the third year in a row. The Red Devils, who won 30-29 in the teams' previous two meetings, lost the final four matches -- 9-3 at 215, 6-3 at 285 and by pins at 103 and 112.

Hinsdale Central's winners were Tolbert (pin in 1:57), Knowles (pin in 1:22), Tom Jung (pin in 3:18 at 135), John Song (8-6 at 145), Battaglia (pin in 2:57), Imrie (16-7) and Culbertson (11-5).

"We got outscrapped," Zajicek said. "They won the close matches, scored the points on the edge of the mat, scored the points right at the end of the period. If we add those scrappy points that we needed, we win instead of lose."