CHAMPAIGN — This time, St. Charles East senior Ben Davino didn’t have to wait long.
And in the process, he made history.
The random draw began the championship matches of the individual state meet Saturday night at 132 pounds, where Davino took on Rockton Hononegah’s Thomas Silva in Class 3A.
“This was the first time I ever was the first one up, but it was great,” Davino said. “It just gave me less time to worry. I like to score fast and really push the pace all the time.”
Davino needed just five seconds for his initial takedown at the State Farm Center, capping his extraordinary career with the 20-5 win by technical fall for his fourth straight state championship.
In all, Davino (50-0) won each of his four state matches by technical fall. None of them for the Ohio State recruit lasted beyond the middle of the second period.
Later, Davino was matched by Joliet Catholic senior Dillan Johnson, the Wisconsin-bound heavyweight who won his fourth state title in a row.
“This has been a goal of mine for I don’t know how long,” Davino said. “I’m just super grateful for the opportunity to compete for four state titles.”
St. Charles East senior Jayden Colon overcame an early deficit for the 14-5 major decision over Fremd’s Evan Gosz, who was previously undefeated, for the 144-pound state championship.
Colon (41-5) won a state championship wrestling in Class 2A at Montini as a sophomore. He won his second state title in a row for the Saints.
For Colon, Davino is both his inspiration and standard of reference.
“Ben and I have gotten very close the two years I’ve been at East,” Colon said. ”I’ve practiced against him numerous times, and he’s taken me down and I’ve done the same to him.
“You just understand the moment. Once you get taken down, you get back up.”
Colon, who scored the final 12 points of the match, survived two takedowns in the first period.
“What went through my mind was just keep wrestling and keep moving,” he said. “Nobody’s better than me in a six-minute match.
“I just had to keep my head straight, keep on the attack and stand on my offense.”
Comeback kid
West Aurora junior Dominic Serio had no room for error after his lost his first round match at 150.
Serio (33-4) won four straight matches in the consolation round before losing 3-1 to St. Charles East senior Gavin Connolly in the third-place match.
“I don’t know what happened to me in that first match,” Serio said. “I just knew I didn’t want to be out of the tournament, and I had to do everything possible to stay in it.”
West Aurora senior Noah Quintana (31-8) also finished fourth at 157 pounds.
Bright lights
Yorkville turned six qualifiers into five all-state finishers.
Senior Ben Alvarez (47-6), the reigning state champion at 220, finished third at 215.
Jack Ferguson (44-12) took fifth at 150, while Luke Zook (48-6) was fifth at 175 and Ryder Janeczko (23-12) finished sixth at 157. All three are juniors.
Junior Luke Chrisse was the Foxes’ newcomer, finishing fifth at 190 in his first time at state.
“I never did anything like this,” he said. “It was a great atmosphere and great experience.”
Stunning victory
Yorkville Christian senior Ty Edwards shocked Galesburg’s Gauge Shipp, who was previously undefeated and a defending state champ, 11-4 in the Class 2A state championship match at 132.
Shipp had defeated Edwards (47-3) by major decision in the sectional.
“The biggest difference was just being physical,” Edwards said. “Just pushing the pace the whole time instead of letting him dictate the action.”
A two-time state runner-up in Class 1A, Edwards controlled the action with two takedowns in the first period.
“We watched the video from the sectional and thought we left some points on the table,” Yorkville Christian coach Mike Vester said. “It was a typical performance by Ty Edwards — relentless, purist, heart, and he wasn’t walking out of there without the championship board.”
Patrick Z. McGavin is a freelance reporter for The Beacon-News.
