West Aurora Wrestlers Advance to Elite Eight

There was no denying West Aurora Tuesday night at the Class 3A dual-meet team sectional at Hinsdale South in Darien.

The Blackhawks raced out of the gate with 18 consecutive points in winning the first four matches and never look back in downing Neuqua Valley, 48-15.

By virtue of its triumph, West Aurora will make its debut in Bloomington with its Elite Eight appearance Saturday morning against Minooka, the defending state champion.

“It’s nice to be on the first team ever to get down there,” said West Aurora standout Nicholas Drendel, the 125-pound third-place finisher who improved to 43-1 on the season with his match-opening win at 130 pounds.

In fact, all four individual state qualifiers for West Aurora competed one weight above their class in the individual state series.

“Some of it was by necessity,” said West Aurora coach Mike DiNovo.

Miguel Venecia and Nathan Pealstrom followed the 1-0 Drendel win with consecutive falls at 135 and 140 pounds.

“I think the other sports I do helped me with my endurance,” said Pealstrom, a sectional champion last year who has battled a right knee injury throughout the regular season.

Greg Jacquez extended the run with a decision at 145 pounds, but it was the non-state qualifiers who also did series damage for the Blackhawks (22-3).

Aaron Hett had a first-period fall to negate two simple-decision wins by the Wildcats (14-13), extending the cushion back to 18 points at 24-6.

Neuqua Valley senior Casey Greenberg provided a glimmer of hope with a fall at 189 points, but any momentum was stalled when Michael Ortiz posted a major-decision win at 215 for West Aurora.

It would be a common theme on the night.

“We couldn’t get any momentum,” said Neuqua Valley coach Mick Ruettiger. “You have to give West Aurora credit.”

Fourth-place-at-state Andrew Geers’ 4-0 win at heavyweight was the final triumph for the Wildcats.

Just as they began the night, the Blackhawks ended the match with another unanswered run, scoring 20 straight points in the five-match run.

“I had to do what I needed for the team,” said unheralded freshman Anthony DeCarlo, who had a first-period fall at 103 pounds to start the match-ending steamroller.

By time his older brother Joseph DeCarlo ended the festivities with a fall at 125 pounds, West Aurora had authored a new chapter in its wrestling program.

Luke Pigott, the Wildcats’ other state qualifier, concluded his Neuqua career by posting a 39-9 season record with his 11-5 win at 160 pounds.