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Athlete of the Week

MIKE CULLEN

Cary-Grove, fr.

Cullen won the Rus Erb Tournament at Glenbrook South on Saturday at 106 pounds. His toughest match was in the first round, where he won by major decision against Grant’s Nick Kramer, 12-1, before pinning his next three opponents. Cullen is 17-1 on the season with his only loss coming against Barrington’s Adrian Gonzalez, the top-ranked 106-pounder in Class 3A by illinoismatmen.com. Cullen is ranked fourth and is the highest ranked freshman in any weight class and IHSA classification. He lost to Gonzalez by a 1-0 decision in the semifinals of the Moore/Prettyman Memorial Wrestling Invitational at Barrington.

Noteworthy

Rockets roll to titles: Harvard won its Sciacca/Holtfreter tournament Saturday, but Richmond-Burton walked away with the most individual championships. Jack Dechow, in his season debut, won the 182-pound weight class after sitting out the first part of the season because of a collarbone injury.

Dechow didn’t look like he lost anything from his absence, winning his three matches in convincing fashion against tough opponents. In the semifinals, Dechow defeated Huntley’s Josh Symbal by technical fall. Symbal is ranked No. 6 in Class 3A at 182. Dechow defeated the Hornets’ Nathan Cowan by major decision, 18-8, in the championship match. Cowan is ranked second in Class 1A.

Also winning for the Rockets were Grant Sutton at 106, Cameron Kennedy (120) and Garrett Sutton (138). Kennedy and Garrett Sutton improved to 15-0 on the year.

Synon on tear: Prairie Ridge’s Zach Synon continues to dominate this season and won Saturday at Glenbrook South on 126. Synon’s first match was a quick technical fall at 2:45 followed by two first-period pins. Synon improved to 16-0.

This week’s top meets

Al Dvorak Memorial Tournament at Harlem, 9:30 am. today and Friday

Crystal Lake Central and Crystal Lake South compete at the prestigious regular-season tournament.

– Rob Smith
rsmith@shawmedia.com