The Class 3A Leyden Regional provided a dose of good news and some bad news for Oak Park-River Forest’s wrestling team.
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The Huskies welcomed back Allen Stallings at 220 pounds after the junior missed at least a week after re-aggravating a back injury. Stallings was one of 11 individual regional champions for OPRF in a dominating 262.5-point performance in Franklin Park.
The defending Class 3A state champions will compete in the Glenbard North Sectional Friday and Saturday.
OPRF won Saturday without 285-pounder Adam Lemke-Bell, who signed a letter of intent Feb. 4 to play football at Northwestern. Both Stallings, a defensive lineman, and Lemke-Bell, a left tackle, were starters for the Huskies’ football team in the fall.
Further tests ruled Lemke-Bell out of the regional after the senior injured his right foot in his first-round match Jan. 24 at the OPRF Invitational. Lemke-Bell originally believed he dislocated his big toe, but an exam revealed a torn ligament and a broken bone.
Lemke-Bell said he may still be able to participate in the dual-team sectionals Feb. 24 following the Feb. 21 individual state meet.
“It was nice to see my [teammates] do well, but I wish I could have been there with them at the regional,” Lemke-Bell said.
Lemke-Bell’s foot is in a splint and he is wearing a walking boot. He could miss the postseason for the second time in three years; a broken right hand ended Lemke-Bell’s season in 2013.
Stallings returned after suffering his first loss of the season when he could not compete in his final match at the Sandburg Mega Duals Jan. 17. Stallings injury defaulted when his back muscles flared up.
Stallings played through an injured back during the football season. But without much time to rest, it has not healed fully. He has visited two chiropractors and applies ice and heat between meets.
“I’m getting close to 100 percent,” Stallings said.
Stallings couldn’t predict how well his back will hold up at the sectional meet. He did not compete in the OPRF Invitational and missed Hinsdale Central’s Whitlatch Invitational in December. He was able to compete Jan. 2-3 at the Clash in Rochester, Minn.
“I’m limited in my shots and I can’t take that many in my matches,” he said.
Stallings (11-1) earned his title at Leyden with a 9-4 victory over Willowbrook’s Christian Chavez (20-10).
OPRF won every weight class except for 106 and 285, while Max Metzger was runner-up at 170.
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