Batavia makes it out as lead dog

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SYCAMORE -- It's hard to imagine a wrestling conference more tightly bunched at the top than the Western Sun heading into Saturday's WSC meet.

Batavia, DeKalb and Sycamore each went 6-1 in conference dual meets, with Yorkville right behind them at 5-2. And the three top teams battled until the final match of the day on Saturday to determine the winner.

When the dust settled, Batavia edged host Sycamore 177.5-174.5 to unofficially break the WSC tie and gain momentum heading into regionals in two weeks. Yorkville was right behind them in third place at 167.5. The WSC uses dual-meet record alone to determine its champion.

"What a great victory for the program," Batavia coach Tom Arlis said. "To come and win this, it's not official, but it's bragging rights. To win it in such a dramatic way was really exciting."

One four-match stretch wound up sealing the victory for the Bulldogs. At 160 pounds, Andrew Rudd jumped out to a 14-3 lead and was in control before Rochelle's C.J. Navarro suddenly had Rudd on his back. But Rudd escaped to earn a 22-12 major decision to start Batavia's late charge.

"I was definitely surprised to get thrown on my back there," Rudd said. "You can't let yourself get pinned. I knew I was controlling the match until then and if I could get out of it, I would win."

At 171, Danny Watson improved to 34-1 on the season by pinning Russ Diedrich of DeKalb in 1:13.

"Before the match, Arlis talked about how close the team score was and how much we needed a pin," said Watson, who was named the meet's most outstanding wrestler. "They wanted me to secure the win first and pin him if I could get it."

The next two matches proved crucial to Batavia's cause. Luis Campos earned a 4-2 decision at 189 pounds over Geneva's Ryan Ward for the Bulldogs. Then at 215 pounds, DeKalb's Jacob Bannister fell behind 6-0 to Christian Copple of Sycamore, nearly getting pinned. But he battled back in dramatic fashion to pin Copple in 5:12 and secure the meet title for Batavia.

"Luis has turned it around big time this season," Arlis said. "He was a .500 wrestler last year, but all of a sudden, he started to figure it out (27-9 this season). Coming here, making the finals and winning it, that kid is on cloud nine."

Batavia went 5-1 in title matches Saturday, with Logan Arlis winning by injury default at 112 to remain undefeated on the season at 32-0 and Charlie Ryan avenging an earlier loss to DeKalb's Tyler Walt with a 14-8 decision.

Yorkville's run to third was highlighted by a pair of conference champions, Chris Watts (119) and Nathan Messenger (135). For the first time all season, Messenger was able to win a tournament match in the medal round, which was his goal coming in. He topped Batavia's Tyler Patton 4-0.

"It feels good to get an odd number up there in a place match," Messenger said. "It will help me get ready for regionals."

Watts has only been back since Tuesday after missing seven weeks with a broken thumb, but he recovered to win a WSC title. But the Foxes were still without three starters, Jed Lightfoot, A.J. Messenger and Ryan Perina, on Saturday. All are expected to be back in the lineup in time for regionals.

Geneva finished sixth at the meet with 84 points and Kaneland was eighth with 65. The Knights earned second-place finishes from Jay Levita (145 pounds) and Jimmy Boyle (285). Wrestling: Western Sun Conference Tournament