Stevenson senior Eric Carter was nowhere to be found late Saturday afternoon at the 40th annual Leyden Invitational.
Carter had a good reason for not showing up promptly to the award stand for the 145-pound weight class: He was not accustomed to the procedure.
“I haven’t won a tournament since my sophomore year,” Carter said. “I always had someone on top or better than me. It happens. I worked on my conditioning and got better on my feet. I’ve always been a solid mat wrestler.”
Led by individual titles from Carter and 160-pounder Dylan Geick, the Patriots edged Jacobs 186-184.5 for the team championship in Franklin Park.
“It came right down to the wire,” Stevenson coach Shane Cook said. “It took everybody we had to be a contributor to make it happen. Eric and Dylan were terrific.”
After a grueling 7-5 win in double overtime over Highland Park’s Alex Rosenbloom in the final, Carter (24-4) confirmed his three wins Saturday were a good stepping stone to a strong push for the postseason.
Carter qualified for the Class 3A state meet as a sophomore, but fell short last season. He said he questioned whether he wanted to continue wrestling “for a week” after not making state.
“I took a step back from my normal routine, but was still lifting and wrestling with my partner,” Carter said. “It definitely made me refocused because I wanted to get downstate.
“I had to work harder in the offseason. In the (title) match (Saturday), it showed. I was trying to match his intensity and when he would take it up a notch, I went higher.”
Carter, who plans to wrestle at Duke next fall, is a four-year varsity wrestler. He has won over 100 matches in his career. Cook said Carter is laser-focused on ending his final season at state.
“Eric is a guy who makes the program so special,” Cook said. “His work ethic and commitment and leadership in the room is special.
“He came up short last year and didn’t let that disappointment weigh him down. He fully committed himself, and has some high expectations. He beat a tough kid in the finals. That was a huge step forward for him.”
Geick (24-1), who finished fourth last year in 3A at 160, was named the tourney MVP following a dominant performance. He defeated Jacobs’ Jacob Sabella 11-5 in the title match.
“I’m gunning for No. 1 this year,” Geick said of his state goals. “I feel good and don’t have any injuries. I felt slow at first (Saturday), but got better in the finals match.”
Highland Park, which finished in 10th place in the invite with 80.5 points, was paced by individual titles from Steven Weathers (152) and DJ Penick (182).
Penick (20-0) is juggling his football future with his daily wrestling duties. Penick, a standout running back, does not plan to miss any wrestling meets, and will make his official visits during the week.
He plans to make an official visit on Jan. 19 to Murray State.
“I’m happy with how I did,” Penick said. “I still feel there’s room for improvement.”
Bob Narang is a freelance writer for the News-Sun.
