By Gary Larsen, Illinois Matmen

Glenbard North's Mark Hahn and Minooka's Bernie Ruettiger were quick to point out that Wednesday's dual between Ruettiger's top-ranked Indians and Hahn's second-ranked Panthers meant very little, as only the first step in a long journey towards the postseason.

But did Glenbard North ever look good on opening night. North's 55-13 win over Minooka was sandwiched between a 57-12 win over Lincoln-Way Central and a 74-6 rout of Batavia. Not counting five forfeit wins, the Panthers went 30-7 in three duals and posted 21 falls on the night.

It's one of those things. You get on a roll and start pinning people. I'll take that every day, Hahn said. We know we've got a good group and they've been working hard in the room. It showed tonight, but we know Minooka is down because of football, and they'll be fine by the end of the season. But I saw some nice things. I saw some kids go out there and wrestle, and be tough, and be athletic, and not give up.

Defending state champion Joe Gosinski knew Minooka didn't have its entire team on the mat, but the senior never suspected that his Panthers would win the first nine matches against the defending Class 3A state champs. I thought it would be a lot closer dual," Gosinski said. "We started at a good weight at heavyweight, and we got three pins in a row. That motivates you and it demoralizes the other side."

No team in Illinois is about to shed any tears for Minooka, which has reached the state title mat in each of the last two seasons, winning last year's crown in a 26-20 win over Carl Sandburg.

The target will remain on the backs of the Indians singlets, and they'll work to get their lineup back in form to meet the challenge. "No excuses. (Glenbard North) is a very good team, and our goal is to be better by the end of the year," Ruettiger said. "From heavyweight to 140 we had pretty much a week's worth of practice, and we have a couple injuries to kids that weren't playing football and are key kids for us. But it's also good for some of these other kids to get some experience.

Minooka sent five sophomores and a freshman out in the loss to the Panthers, which followed the Indians 42-21 win over Batavia in Carol Stream. Starters Kalvin Hill, Leo Ruettiger, and Bobby Zabel all sat out due to injury or illness.

"No matter who we put out on the mat, we expect to win," Indians senior Blake Montella said. "We've got guys coming in off of football and we're trying to get into shape, but we still have to do the same things we've been doing the last couple of years."

The dual began with North heavyweight Dan Buyle pinning Minooka's Matt Layfield, before freshman Jon Marmolejo did the same at 103 to fellow freshman KJ Minor. John Gosinski pinned Dan Ruettiger at 112, and Brayan Gonzalez won an 11-3 major over Minooka's Corbett Oughton at 119.

The freshman Marmolejo lived up to his pedigree as a multiple IKWF state champion, adding a pin of Lincoln-Way's Tyler Price on the day to go with his pin against Minor.

"He works his butt off," Hahn said of Marmolejo. "He's been wrestling all spring and into the fall and he does everything he's supposed to do."Marmoloejo's transition from winning multiple IKWF state titles to high school wrestling has gone well. "He's a tough kid and he has adapted well in the room. He got rid of his IKWF style, where it's one move and that's it" Gosinski said. "In high school it's more chain wrestling and he has adapted well to it."

North's Wade Hazard won a 6-4 decision over Mike McNalty at 125, Gosinski pinned Jake DeKlerk at 130, and a pin from Tom Collum at 135 gave the Panthers a 37-0 lead and set up a match at 140 between Minooka's Blake Montella and Glenbard North's Brian Murphy. Murphy placed third in state at 130 last season as a freshman, and Montella was one win away from placing at 130 in Champaign. The two scrambled near the edge a few times before Murphy took Montella down off the whistle and pinned him.

Murphy's pin gave the Panthers a 43-0 lead and clinched the team win with six matches left to wrestle. Panthers sophomore Mario Rodriguez ended the nine-match winning streak with a 5-2 decision win at 145 over Minooka's Joe Govednik, before Minooka's Jake Residori stopped the bleeding with an 11-0 major decision over Tyler Langlois at 152 pounds.

The Indian's Kevin Akers trailed 4-1 to the Panthers; Brandon Heyduk at 160 before winning by fall. Mitch Morris earned Minooka's final win in overtime at 189 against Danny Eldridge, sandwiched by wins from Glenbard North's Paul Freeman at 171 and Dan Buyle at heavyweight.

"We're a different team this year," Ruettiger said. "I figured we'd be ranked up there (at No. 1) considering the number of starters we've got coming back. Being state champs, we've got a target on our backs."

"And after you win a state title, the problem with kids can be; 'look at me. Look at who I am'. We've got to tone that down a little bit. Minooka hopes to get Hill and Leo Ruettiger back soon, but Zabel might be a week away from returning.

Glenbard North's upper weights have lived in the shadow of the program's lower-weight wrestlers for a few years now, but Freeman, Eldridge, Zach Durkee (215), and Buyle are working to step out of that shadow. If they can provide consistency in the upper weights, it could be a special year in Carol Stream.

"That's been our weak spot the last couple years. At the lower weights we knew we'd get our points," Gosinski said. "But Buyle, Durkee, all those guys have worked hard in the offseason and they got a lot tougher."