Sports
Wrestling: Central's Tardy, Neuqua's Geers Finish Second at Sectionals
The duo headlines a group of six Naperville wrestlers who will compete at the state tournament in Champaign next weekend.
DOWNERS GROVE–Naperville Central senior Josh Tardy would have loved to have picked up a championship at 135 pounds in Saturday’s Class 3A Downers Grove North Sectional.
But a second-place finish to the state’s top-ranked wrestler and a ticket to next weekend’s state tournament at Assembly Hall in Champaign sufficed.
Tardy (34-7) reached the finals, but fell to Brother Rice’s Mike Avelar (23-1) by a 9-3 decision.
Find out what's happening in Napervillewith free, real-time updates from Patch.
“I’m really glad that I made it to the finals,” Tardy said. “I didn’t want to go through wrestlebacks. I would have liked to have won it, but he’s ranked No. 1 and those are the kind of guys I’m going to see downstate. It was a good opener right there before state. He’s probably the strongest wrestler I’ve ever faced. You can’t move him.”
With his ticket to state already punched, Tardy knew that he could test the waters against Avelar.
Find out what's happening in Napervillewith free, real-time updates from Patch.
“I wasn’t really that nervous going into the match,” Tardy said. “I knew he was the better wrestler, so I had nothing to lose. I just went out there and wrestled.”
Tardy did avoid a third straight weekend of facing Naperville North senior Frank McKeown. McKeown (37-9) will be in Champaign with Tardy, however, after placing third by a 9-3 decision over Blake Santi of Lake Park.
Both wrestlers will have teammates headed down I-57 with them next weekend, as well. For Central, Luke Roth (29-8) took third at 189 pounds and North’s Wayne Yuan (40-8) was fourth at 103, both earning state berths in the process. Both wrestlers are sophomores.
Regional team champion Neuqua Valley also will be represented at the individual state meet next weekend. Sophomore heavyweight Andrew Geers received the test of a lifetime in the finals Saturday. He drew the task of facing the state’s top-ranked heavyweight, Jack Allen of Hinsdale Central.
Geers (37-6) was pinned by Allen (42-0) in the second period, but took a lot out of the experience.
“He’s fast, he’s quick, and that’s what you need to see,” Geers said. “I knew he had a double, but I didn’t know he was that quick. When you see a heavyweight going that quick, he better win state. It shows me what I can work on better because the best can do anything they want on you.”
Just reaching the finals was a long-term goal of Geers’, and he achieved it.
“It’s exhilarating, man,” Geers said. “I’ve wanted that since I was in fifth grade and I started wrestling. I want to try to place in Champaign.”
Senior teammate Luke Pigot (38-8) will join Geers in Champaign. He placed third at 152 pounds.
Three area wrestlers fell one win short of qualifying for state. Max Obreicht of North (130), John Graeber of Central (145) and Breon Hoosier of Metea Valley (160) all came up just shy of a state berth.
