Jake Barzowski said he got serious about wrestling when he attended Lincoln Middle School in Park Ridge.
By the time he was a sophomore at Notre Dame, he said he was thinking about wrestling in college. He verbally committed to St. Cloud (Minn.) State before his senior season. The Huskies, an NCAA Division II program, won their first team national title last year.
But Barzowski wasn’t recruited like many of the area’s top football and basketball players. In fact, he said he, with the help of Notre Dame coach Augie Genovesi, contacted dozens of colleges to raise his profile.
Once Barzowski and Genovesi narrowed down the list of schools where there was mutual interest, Barzowski corresponded with those coaches via e-mail. He estimated he traded about 10 e-mails with St. Cloud State, which he chose over SIU-Edwardsville, Notre Dame (Ohio) and Old Dominion.
“It was something I had to do myself,” Barzowski said. “I did my best to spread my name around. Coach (Genovesi) helped me out, too, by contacting schools. I just wanted to have as many options as possible.”
His individual season ended on Friday, Feb. 19, at the Class 3A state tournament at the University of Illinois’ State Farm Center. Barzowski (41-3) went 1-2 at state at 138 pounds.
“I didn’t wrestle well,” Barzowski said. “I was not scoring, not hand-fighting. The losses were on me.”
Other Dons at the state tournament were senior Tom Simon (32-16), who finished 0-2 at 220, and junior Josh Barzowski (33-9), who went 1-2 at 152.
The Dons were scheduled to compete at the Class 3A Larkin team dual sectional on Tuesday, Feb. 23.
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Maine South
Ibrahim Nasir will be missed in many ways, Maine South coach Kevin Hansen.
He was a two-time state qualifier who concluded his senior season by going 1-2 at 220 pounds at the Class 3A state tournament. But Nasir (38-6) also was a mentor to some of the younger wrestlers in the program, according to Hansen.
“He will be known as one of the better wrestlers we’ve had here,” Hansen said. “He had a winning attitude that we want the other guys to adopt.”
Freshmen James Bartell and John Halvorsen were two Hawks who looked up to Nasir, Hansen said. Both qualified for the sectional tournament and won a combined 54 matches in this season.
“Ibrahim was our best wrestler, and they want to be that one day,” Hansen said. “They watched how he worked, how he carried himself.”
As the season wore on, Halvorsen started warming up and drilling with Nasir. He even tried to go live against him, but Hansen said he shut it down as soon as he saw it.
“Once a week, he’s over there trying to wrestle him,” said Hansen, laughing. “Ibrahim is too big for him. I always told [Halvorsen] no.”
Halvorsen was in Champaign last week to cheer on Nasir. But Hansen also said it was a business trip for the freshman.
“It’s part of his learning process,” Hansen said. “He got to see a lot of close matches, guys who are grinding out wins not with technique or skill, but with guts. Down there, you do whatever it takes to win. That’s something he saw from Ibrahim all year.”
Nasir plans to play football at Middlebury, a Division III school in Vermont, in the fall.
Evanston
When asked on Sunday, Feb. 21, if he was proud of what he accomplished during his senior season, Jaalen Banner immediately said no.
After all, the 182-pound Banner recently had his Evanston career come to an end with one loss at the Class 3A state tournament at the University of Illinois’ State Farm Center.
“I got some regrets, a lot of regrets,” he said.
Banner (43-8) paused for several seconds.
“I am a little proud of the season, but I wanted to achieve more,” he added.
This was Banner’s first full season in the varsity lineup. A torn meniscus in his left knee cost him a chance to start at the outset of his junior year. Banner returned to action midway through the season, but he did not compete in the postseason.
Evanston coach Rudy Salinas applauded Banner’s determination.
“He’s a role model,” Salinas said. “His work ethic, his behavior. He was always respectful. He deserves to be proud of everything he’s done. It’s going to be hard to replace guys like him.”
Banner said he’s looking to wrestle in college. His top choices are St. Cloud (Minn.) State and Minot (N.D.) State. Both are NCAA Division II programs. St. Cloud State won its first national title last year.
“The sky is the limit for him,” Salinas said. “His body hasn’t matured yet. He’s just starting to tap into his abilities.”
Junior 106-pounder Chris Rivera (46-7) and senior 126-pounder David Rivera-Kohr (41-3) also ended their seasons in Champaign. Rivera went 0-2 while Rivera-Kohr went 1-2 in Champaign and finished with 166 career victories. He leaves as the program’s all-time wins leader.
New Trier
In his first appearance at the Class 3A state tournament, Trevians sophomore Patrick Ryan lost both of his matches at 132 pounds. Ryan (37-10) was pinned in the first round before losing an 8-5 decision in the first round of the back draw.
Matt Harness co-hosts a golf podcast called Teeing Off. Find it on Twitter (@Teeing__Off
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