One of the hardest things for Leyden senior Husam Alabed to do Saturday, Feb. 13, at the 3A Conant Sectional was watch from his front-row bleacher seat as his twin brother, Wesam, wrestled in the 126-pound third-place match.
Evanston senior David Rivera-Kohr defeated Wesam Alabed 7-3, but Wesam had already wrapped up a state qualifying berth with a 15-4 win over St. Charles North’s Kobe O’Brien in the consolation semifinals.
Wesam Alabed (36-7) was the only Leyden wrestler to advance to the state meet, Feb. 18-20, at the State Farm Center in Champaign.
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“Wesam is a very coachable kid,” Leyden coach Mike Fumagalli said. “We always do our homework and he executed the game plan (against O’Brien).”
Compared to many of the wrestlers competing at sectionals, the Alabed twins are new to wrestling. While the Alabeds began wrestling as freshman, many on the Conant mats started out in youth feeder programs with the Illinois Kids Wrestling Federation.
Wesam and Husam Alabed were born in Park Ridge and now live in Rosemont. They grew up in Damascus, Syria, with their mother, before returning to the Chicago suburbs after eighth grade.
Wesam Alabed said he continues to follow the news of refugees emigrating to flee the Syrian civil war.
“That was my hometown, Damascus. I watch it, but it’s actually kind of sad,” he said.
The Alabeds got their first taste when a Leyden physical education teacher, John Schiemann, suggested they try out for the wrestling team as freshmen. Schiemann has been an assistant boys and girls soccer coach since 2007 and doesn’t even coach wrestling.
“I feel we were quick leaners,” Husam Alabed said. “I feel like if we had done wrestling earlier, we would have been near the top.”
Wesam Alabed’s older brother by five minutes, Husam, was a spectator at Conant after losing the final match of his career about an hour earlier in the 160 consolation semifinal. Bobby Jarosz (27-10) of Prospect eliminated Husam Alabed (37-10), 18-6.
“I was definitely disappointed by my (lack of energy), coming up short,” Husam Alabed said. “I’m proud Wesam made it. He earned it. He has worked all year for it.”
Twitter @geomwilcox