Athletics 2023-2024 Winter Wrap-Up

By: Randy Whalen 

When discussing winter sports at Joliet Catholic Academy, boys wrestling has taken over at the top of the list.

The Hilltoppers had another great season in 2023-24. But they didn’t wrestle for a state championship for the first time in three seasons. They lost to the eventual Class 3A State Champion. Mount Carmel by a score of 33-26 in a quarterfinal matchup.

The matchup should have been a State Title one, as the two teams were probably the best in the state. But the brackets didn’t line up that way so JCA didn’t get a trophy. In the meantime, the Caravan toppled St. Charles East 35-30 in the semifinals and then dominated Yorkville 59-6 in the title match.

Individually Dillan Johnson became a four-time state champion by winning another heavyweight title. As a freshman, he won one in the Illinois Wrestling Coaches And Officials Association Tournament, which is considered by the teams and coaches to be the official one since the Illinois High School Association didn’t hold one with COVID. 

Johnson, who is playing both football and wrestling at the University of Wisconsin, won a Class 2A individual title in 2022 and 2023 before capping his amazing high school career with four pins at state and a 3A heavyweight title this past season. He had a high school career record of 145-1.

Also placing at state in the Class 3A individual tournament for JCA was sophomore Jason Hampton, who was second at 120 pounds, freshman Max Cumbee, who was fifth at 113, sophomore Luke Hamiti, who placed fifth at 157, senior Max Corral took sixth at 165 pounds, and junior Nico Ronchetti placed sixth at 190 pounds. 

In girls’ wrestling, the Angels qualified two people for the State Finals: senior Cheya Bishop, who went 1-2 at 170 pounds, and junior Grace Laird, who went 2-2 at 120 pounds. 

Wrestling wasn’t the only sport with state success. The JCA Competitive Dance team was outstanding once again, taking fourth in the state in Class 1A with a score of 89.01.

It’s the seventh straight season that the Angels have been at state. They were first in Class 1A in 201-2019 and placed third in 1A the next two seasons before moving up to Class 2A in 2-21-22 and again taking third. They were fourth in Class 2A last season before moving back to Class 1A and finishing in the Top 4 once more.

But this was under the guidance of first-year head coach Maddy Smietanski, who is also simultaneously the head coach of competitive dance at the University of St. Francis.

The Angels made the largest point increase from sectionals to IHSA State Day 1 in history. That was 82.73 at sectionals and 90.40 in the Preliminary Round at State, which put them in first at that time. The finals are a whole separate score and JCA finished fourth. 

Following the season, one of the captains, senior Tess Bebar, signed a National Letter of Intent to continue her competitive dance career at Miami of Ohio

The competitive cheer team made it back to state this past winter. Under the coaching of Kristen Stuckwisch, it was the third straight season JCA made it to state. Advancing in the Small Team Division out of the Hinsdale South Sectional. the Angels placed 22nd at the State Finals with a score of 81.04. They had a third-place finish in the sectional (86.43).  

In boys swimming, junior Adam Kafka won the 200-yard freestyle race with a time of 1 minute:52.01 seconds at the Sandburg Sectional and qualified for state. At the State Finals, he improved his time by nearly two seconds to 1:50.27.

After being around the .500 mark the previous two seasons, the JCA boys basketball team fell to a 10-20 record over the winter. The tough East Suburban Catholic Conference schedule was the culprit. 

But the Hilltoppers won their first games at the Class 2A Westmont Regional and gave an undefeated Beecher team all it could handle in the regional title game, before losing 64-55. Senior Drew Wills (18 points) and junior JJ Sterrett (15 points) led the way. Beecher (34-1) ended up losing 73-58 to Phillips in the Joliet Central Supersectional. Phillips went on to win the state. 

In girls basketball, the Angels had a season of transition and finished 5-27. But they didn’t go down in the postseason without a battle, losing 48-40 to Seneca (17-15) in the semifinals of the Class 2A Chicago Christian Regional.