Willowbrook Warriors enjoy a record-setting winter athletic season

Record-breaking, history-making and exciting. Those phrases describe the winter athletic season at Willowbrook High School!

Our Willowbrook Warriors continued the Pride, Tradition and Excellence that is Willowbrook and gave us so much to be proud of during the winter months. Below are highlights from the season.

Girls Bowling: During Head Coach Kevin Allen’s first season, the Girls Bowling Team became a contender not only in the West Suburban Conference, but also in the State. Along with Assistant Coach Anthony Pennella, Allen led the team to a 6-4 dual-meet record and a final record of 4-4 in the tough West Suburban Conference Gold Division. The team also won three tournament championships – the Hinsdale South Invite, the Leyden 6x6 Invite and the West Suburban Conference Head Pin Invite. The team then qualified for the Illinois High School Association (IHSA) Sectional by finishing 4th at the Regional competition. At the Sectional competition, it took an unbelievable performance by the host Oak Lawn team in the fifth and sixth games of the meet to knock the Warriors out of their 4th-place position, which caused the Warriors to fall just short of the IHSA State Tournament. Senior Jordan Tiberi qualified for the State Tournament as an individual. The team was led by All-Conference bowlers Tiberi, junior Dana Sasenick, sophomore Katherine Pettinger and freshman Makaylah Jones.

Addison Trail-Willowbrook Boys Swimming: The boys were Co-Champions of the West Suburban Conference Gold Division with Hinsdale South and Downers Grove South. The team finished with a perfect 5-0 Conference dual record! That Conference Championship marked the first title in the program’s history. The boys also fared well in team invitationals, finishing in 2nd place at the Shepard Invite and at the Little Village Invite. The boys were led by Willowbrook All-Conference swimmers sophomore Jack Burns (200-yard freestyle and 100-yard freestyle and Conference champion in the 200-yard freestyle relay and the 400-yard freestyle relay), junior Phillip Campbell (Diving), freshman Eric Hoda (200-yard freestyle and 100-yard freestyle), freshman Thomas Holmes (100-yard breaststroke), senior Jacob Roucka (200-yard medley relay, 200-yard individual medley and Conference champion in the 100-yard butterfly) and junior Jack Wentworth (Conference champion in the 400-yard freestyle relay). Senior Koji Buzuayene received Academic All-Conference honors.

Cheerleading: Under first-year Head Coach Nicki Jarzembowski, the Willowbrook Cheerleaders made great strides with their tumbling skills and overall performance. The team competed in the IHSA Sectional at Conant High School and performed an outstanding routine, but fell short of qualifying for the IHSA State Competition. The Varsity team was led by Captains senior Alitzel Gonzalez, senior Amanda Thomas, senior Aliese Psaras, senior Jessica Taylor, senior Jayme Martinez, sophomore Aidan Fecarotta, junior Lindsey Joyce and senior Katelyn Schultz.

Poms: The Willowbrook Poms Team had another outstanding season, filled with many great performances. The girls finished 7th in the IHSA Sectional and just missed qualifying for the IHSA State Competition. The team was led by four seniors, India Garner, Kiana Gleason, Margaret Sommers and Julia Holden. Garner was named as the team’s MVP.

Girls Basketball: The Varsity Girls Basketball Team finished with a record of 8-19. The girls finished in 4th place in the West Suburban Conference Gold Division, with a Conference record of 5-7. The team was led by All-Conference selection sophomore Hanna Konrath. Seniors Grace Chantos and Kelssie Kraabel (team captain) were named as Academic All-Conference players.

Girls Gymnastics: First-year Head Coach Deanna Zuchowski’s team was full of youth. The team finished the Conference season with a 3-2 dual-meet record. Many of the girls competed at the Varsity level for the first time. Four freshmen competed at the Varsity level all season: Melanie Huston, Grace Placek, Karolina Terlikowski and Karli Wilson. The leader of the team was senior Savannah Catalano. Catalano was not only the Team Captain, but also was voted as the team’s MVP. Senior Christina Green also earned Academic All-Conference honors. Conference medalists were Placek (6th place on vault) and Wilson (10th place on bars, 7th place on floor and 8th place in the all-around).

Boys Basketball: The Willowbrook Boys Basketball Team had a phenomenal season – definitely one for the record books. The boys finished the season 25-5 overall, were Co-Conference Champions and set a team record for the most wins in a season. The team won the Stagg Thanksgiving Invitational, the Glenbard West Holiday Invitational and the Sterling MLK Invitational as part of its 25-win season. The team was led by All-Conference selections junior Ethan Schuemer, senior Freddie Clay and sophomore Matas Masys. Schuemer also earned an All-Area Selection from the Daily Herald and entered the Willowbrook record books as the 2nd all-time leading scorer and also is 2nd for most points in a season, with 478 points. The team also had two Academic All-Conference team members, seniors Casey King and Andy Shreckengost.

Wrestling: Another very young team, the Willowbrook Wrestling Team had a great season. Individually, there were many honors to go around. The team finished with a 19-11 dual-meet record. The team also went 10-0 in duals to win the Vernon Hills Invite. All-Conference athletes were junior Jack Jessen, senior Oliver Elena, senior Dom Ranieri, senior Zachary Zeffiro and sophomore Richard Scheelk III. Zeffiro also earned Academic All-Conference honors. Jessen won the Regional and Sectional Championships and finished in 2nd place in the IHSA State Tournament at 182 pounds. That earned him All-State honors, and he is now a three-time State placer. Ranieri also qualified for the State Tournament at 132 pounds and made it to the Quarterfinal round. Zeffiro qualified for the IHSA Sectional with an outstanding run at the Lyons Township Regional.

We look forward to more athletic successes during the spring season. Go, Warriors!