Wildkit Wrestlers Counting On Solid Core

Three young wrestlers from Evanston represented Team Illinois at the Cadet National tournament back in June in Fargo, North Dakota, the first time that many Evanston grapplers have ever made that elite squad in the same year.

And two wrestlers --- not the same guys --- are returning to the Evanston Township High School lineup after advancing to the sectional last year in the Illinois High School Association state tournament series.

That group should form a solid core as the Wildkits open their 2023-24 season on Tuesday with a quadrangular meet at Willie May Fieldhouse. They’ll also compete Saturday at the Vernon Hills Invitational.

The Kits are coming off a season in which they compiled a 19-7 won-loss record in dual meet competition. They claimed 5th place at the Central Suburban League tournament.

Returning senior standouts Eron Atac, Thomas Jackson and Marco Terrizzi combined for 84 victories last winter and will provide the guidance and leadership for a young crew that figures to be led by two promising newcomers, Jeremy Marshall and Rodrigo Salinas.

But, as usual, ETHS head coach Rudy Salinas still has some spots to fill in the starting lineup even though more than 100 guys (and about a dozen girls) came out for the sport this year.

Complicating the start of the season is the fact that for the first time in memory, there’s no school at Evanston for the entire week, so families are taking their grapplers out of town for the Thanksgiving holiday. And both Jackson and Terrizzi are hampered by injuries to start the year and probably won’t be available.

“We always try to do the best we can with what we have,” Salinas said. “We’re looking forward to the underclassmen stepping up and filling some roles, and we’re hoping the seniors will do their personal bests this year. We’re excited that those 3 guys who were all-conference (Atac, Jackson, Terrizzi) are back and have a chance to build on that success.”

Terrizzi has piled up 75 varsity wins, including last year’s 30-9 record, and could potentially crack the all-time top 10 victory list at ETHS with another big year. He was one of the Evanston products who competed for Team Illinois in the summer, and he’ll start at 132 pounds.

Atac will drop down to a more normal weight for him --- 126 pounds --- after competing at mostly heavier classes a year ago. That didn’t prevent him from winning 28 of 44 matches against bigger guys.

Salinas always appreciates individuals who will “take one for the team” and that’s just what Atac did.

“He weighed about 132 and we had him wrestling 138 almost all of last year,” the coach noted. “I think he’ll have a better chance (to advance to State) at 126. Eron is a yessir-type of guy who will do anything to help our team and wrestling up is partly about a mindset. He was happy just to be in the lineup, I think.”

One of those Team Illinois competitors, Jeremy Marshall, isn’t new to the high school scene. He posted a 12-8 record as a freshman at the varsity level last year --- at 285 pounds --- and came on strong at the end of last season to win that starting job over some upperclassmen. Half of his wins came via fall last winter.

Rodrigo Salinas is entering the high school ranks as a freshman with an already impressive resume. He competed against freshmen and sophomores as an 8th grader --- and beat most of them --- to make the Team Illinois squad and represents a final opportunity for Coach Salinas to guide one of his sons through the sport the entire family loves.

Rodrigo’s older brothers, Ricardo and Rafael, rank 1-2 on the list of career victories at ETHS and those are some big shoes to fill. Neither one of them, however, qualified for the Cadet Nationals as 8th graders.

“Rodrigo is excited to be wrestling in high school now (he’ll start at 157 pounds), and I know his Dad is super excited,” said Coach Salinas. “I’m looking at retirement (after coaching at Lane Tech and ETHS) about four years down the road, so I’m hoping to see him through the rest of his (high school) career.

“It was different not having a Salinas in the lineup last year. I’m motivated even more now because I want to be there for Rodrigo. I’m fortunate that he loves the sport, and I’m not going to take it for granted that he’s here. I’m going to enjoy every day of it. He has his own journey and destiny ahead of him, but I think he’s going to be the biggest of the brothers.”

Rodrigo placed 5th in the state as an 8th grader in the Greco-Roman competition and was 6th in freestyle. “He really came of age over the summer, and he beat some state champions at the regional tournament in Fort Wayne (Ind.),” noted his father.

To add to the family affair, older brother Rafael will serve as an assistant coach at ETHS this year.

Evanston’s lineup to start the season is anything but set. Freshman Nico Biglari figures as the top choice at 106 pounds --- a weight where the Wildkits typically have to forfeit --- and senior Harper Papachristo will suit up at 120.

At 138, junior Brian Lemus is the coach’s choice as the squad’s most improved grappler from a year ago, but he’ll have to fight off a challenge from senior Manny Holloway to keep the No. 1 spot. There’s also a two-man battle for the starting job at 150 between seniors Chris Carra (6-0 as a junior) and Henry Parris.

Senior Xavier Starks has the edge at 165 and Josh Marty could be the one to beat at 175.

On the girls side, Victoria Kienzle has been added to the coaching staff after Dillin Randolph stepped down due to family obligations. The Wildkits have qualified two girls for the IHSA state finals in both 2021 and 2022 and will look to build on last year’s 9-4 dual meet record.

The IHSA has added a regional tournament to the mix starting this year and Evanston will again host a sectional tourney.

Top candidates to represent the Wildkits best in postseason competition include a pair of seniors, Natalie Graettinger and Priscilla Hartwell. Graettinger just missed qualifying for State competing at 145 pounds, and finished with a 20-18 overall record. Hartwell came on strong at the end of the year for a final mark of 8-6.