Wrestling: Messenger, Yorkville Enjoy Three-For-All

CHAMPAIGN--A.J. Messenger and his Yorkville teammates delivered a message in the Class 2A state wrestling tournament. The Foxes won three medals on Saturday at Assembly Hall--one gold, one silver and one bronze.

“Connor (Bass) and AJ (Messenger) both making the finals--we haven’t done that since I’ve been here and that’s a proud thing for the program and all our coaches,” Yorkville coach Shane Darnell said.

Messenger walked away with the Class 2A 171-pound state title. He defeated fourth-ranked Jake Tindle from Troy Triad 9-3 in the semifinals and went on to beat top-ranked Jack Dechow of Richmond Burton 6-5.

In a close match with Dechow, who came in to the tournament with a record of 28-0,  Messenger broke his headgear and had to find another one in  hurry. Wrestlers from in the stands tossed down a half-dozen replacements until one finally fit.

Messenger took the lead o Dechow with 30 seconds left. As time ran out, Messenger immediately began tapping his chest and jumped up to point toward the Yorkville fans in the stadium.

“I feel awesome,” Messenger said. “This is unbelievable. This was my best season ever. This is my biggest accomplishment of my life.”

Connor Bass, who was ranked fourth at 135 pounds, defeated third-rated Lucas Volpe from Mt. Zion and seventh-ranked Drew Vrbenec of Montini on his way to the championship match. Bass placed second after dropping a 14-5 decision to Bryce Brill of Marmion.

The two met for the third time in three weeks. Bass lost to Brill  in both the regional and sectional tournaments.

“Last week I wrestled him and it was 4-1,” Bass said. “I thought I would have done better this week, but I just kind of shut down. There was a lot of pressure going out there in a big match, especially since he beat me four times already. It’s hard to handle that.”

Yorkville's Adam Wyeth placed third at 119 pounds. In a difficult bracket, he beat the seventh- and 12-ranked wresters. In the third-place match, Wyeth defeated ninth-ranked Ignace Hakizimana of Rock Island with a major decision 11-2.

Yorkville also sent Clayton Bass (140) and Brant Corwin (189) to the state tournament. Bass lost his first match to Trevor Jauch of Crystal Lake Central and was eliminated from the tournament after losing to ninth-ranked Lavion Mayes of Mascouta.

Corwin, ranked third in the state, lost his first match in the quarterfinals to second-ranked Jared Koch of Woodstock Marian. Corwin later lost again to sixth-ranked Joey Valdivia of Grayslake North.