Scouting DuPage County boys gymnastics
Top local teams: Addison Trail, Glenbard North, Glenbard West, Lake Park, Wheaton co-op, York.
Top individuals: Andrew Aguayo (Lake Park, Sr., parallel bars, pommel horse), Tyler Arl (Glenbard North, Jr., all-around), Chavo Bonilla (Addison Trail, Sr., all-around), Ralph Borromeo (Glenbard East, Sr., all-around), Nathan Bracher (Lake Park, Sr., floor, vault), Christian Carmona (York, Sr., all-around), Kyle Carmona (York, Jr., all-around), Justin Celenza (Lake Park, Sr., horizontal bar, still rings, vault), Calvin Cheney (Addison Trail, Sr., floor, still rings, vault, parallel bars), Tyler DeAnda (Glenbard North, Jr., all-around) Justin Elefano (Glenbard East, Sr., rings, pommel horse, parallel bars), Steve Haake (Downers Grove South, Sr., all-around), Dennis Hairston (Downers Grove North, So., all-around), Clark Kessery (Wheaton co-op, Sr., all-around), Roger Kopp (Fenton, So., all-around), Tim Krueger (Wheaton co-op., Jr., all-around), Zach Kumkowski (Downers Grove South, Sr., all-around), Keith Lage (Naperville Central, Sr., all-around), Greg Mladucky (Glenbard West, Sr., all-around), Nick Ostapa (Addison Trail, Sr., all-around), Alex Pajor (Glenbard West, Sr., all-around), Doug Rybar (Downers Grove North, Jr., all-around), Caleb Strejc (York, So., all-around)
Top meets: Vic Lesch Invitational at Glenbard South, Feb. 29; District 87 Invitational, Feb. 29; Red Devil Invite at Hinsdale Central, March 14; Naperville North vs. Naperville Central, March 17; Lake Park Invite, March 20; Vic Agliano Invitational at Rolling Meadows, March 22; Fred Dennis Invite at Addison Trail, April 5; Wheaton North Donaldson Invite, April 12; DuPage Valley Conference meet, April 18.
Outlook: It should be another exciting season for the area's boys gymnastics teams this spring. Leading the way is York, which finished second in state a year ago and is poised to make a run at a state title with three fantastic all-arounders returning. Christian Carmona leads the Dukes. The defending still rings, vault and all-around champion will try to finish his senior year on the ultimate high note. Junior Kyle Carmona and sophomore Caleb Strejc also return for York. The other two area teams that visited Barrington last May will have to overcome graduation losses if they hope to be as successful. Glenbard West, which finished third, lost more than a half-dozen key gymnasts, and fifth-place Downers Grove North lost three high-scoring seniors. "We've got 20 guys on the team and a lot of work to do, but we're hoping for a nice finish," Hilltoppers coach Steve Kafka said. "We have a lot of seniors and guys with experience and are hoping for the best." Lake Park returns eight individual gymnasts who qualified for state last year. That bodes well for the Lancers, who will look to celebrate the 10-year anniversary of the program's only visit to state by getting there as a team this season. "We have the potential to be one of the best teams ever (at Lake Park) and in the state this year," Lancers coach Keith Matune said. "Of our nine seniors, seven started as freshmen and really built the foundation when I first came in. They are best of friends inside and outside of the gym and their character is wonderful." Addison Trail has a new coach in Mike Galfi who looks to continue the success Tom Wirth had. Having three hardworking seniors in Ostapa, Cheney and Bonilla should allow Addison Trail to make a run toward a team appearance at state. "We've known about the potential of this group for awhile now," Galfi said. "And they seem to have a personal motivation to help them get there." A few years removed from its state championship in 2005, the Wheaton co-op squad should be a good one with Kessery and Krueger leading the way. Krueger tied for second on vault last spring. "Clark's a great leader and Tim's improved since last year," coach Chad Downie said. "Hopefully, we can fill in the gaps and we'd like to recapture the (DuPage Valley Conference) and make another trip to state, but there are some really good teams out there." The two Tylers (Arl and DeAnda) will lead a Glenbard North team that has lofty aspirations. "We should be one of the top teams in the state, maybe top 10," first-year coach Edsel Clark said. "If we can truly hit our routines, possibly higher. We are lacking some depth, but I am very hopeful as to the success of the team." As for the Naperville schools, Central senior Keith Lage will look to lead the Redhawks. He finished second on still rings and third on floor exercise last season. Naperville North finds itself in rebuilding mode once again. The Huskies only have two seniors and both are specialists. "By the end of the season, we hope to be able to put up 120 points or more," coach Brad Foerch said. "This really doesn't make us competitive now, but it builds a base that we should be able to score over 140 next year."
-- Chris Walker