Wrestling: Stevenson’s Jolcover is the comeback kid

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Stevenson's Mark Jolcover (top) controls Lake Zurich's Jerry Nigro at 106 pounds at Saturday's NSC Tournament. He beat Nigro 2-0 and went on take second place. | Buzz Orr~Sun-Times Media

Updated: March 3, 2012 8:12AM

Lying in a hospital bed, in October 2010, Stevenson wrestler Mark Jolcover received a text message that changed his life.

He had just come out of neck surgery, told by doctors he would never wrestle again. He glanced at his phone to read what was on the screen: “Our greatest glory is not in never falling but rising every time we fall.”

Who would have thought Jolcover would take the message so much to heart.

“When you fall to that bottom, it’s more about what you do afterwards and what you do to get over it,” said Jolcover, a senior. 

He missed his entire junior season of wrestling after the injury, suffered during horseplay in his basement. Forced to wear a brace for three months, the physical pain was, at times, excruciating. But what Jolcover gained mentally during that time provided fuel for his ambition, which never wavered.

“I learned how much I missed it,” said Jolcover, who was appointed an honorary coach last year by Stevenson head coach Shane Cook. “I helped out making practice schedules, watching film. Once I got the brace off, nothing was going to stop me.”

Added Cook: “He eats and breathes (wrestling). He lives it.”

Once cleared to wrestle, Jolcover spent three weeks reacquainting himself with the sport. He was back training with his Patriots teammates in November, relentless in his drive to get back to competition.

And after defeating Round Lake’s Tyler Johnson and Lake Zurich’s Jerry Nigro during the NSC league tournament on Saturday, Jolcover (26-8) found himself wrestling for a conference championship. 

Although he dropped the title bout to Grant’s Nick Kramer, the fact that he was competing again was as much a testament to the human spirit as it was to the sport of wrestling. But if you think Jolcover was happy to just show up, think again.

“It’s upsetting to finish runner-up. I haven’t been able to seal the deal on a championship yet,” Jolcover said. “They will remember who finished in first place in the state tournament, and that’s the ultimate goal for me.” 

No matter what he does the rest of this season, considering where he was just one year ago, Jolcover is a young man who has already achieved glory. 

Recap: Stevenson ended the conference tournament in sixth place (111 points).

“We have a very young team with some inexperienced kids in our lineup,” Cook said. “(There were) some kids who didn’t come through and win a match, and that’s going to hurt you. For our guys that ended up on the podium, they came through and wrestled well.”

One of those who ‘wrestled well’ was 152-pound champion Justin Weber. The junior defeated Antioch’s George Gonzalez 3-1 in overtime. It was a distinguishing victory, considering Gonzalez finished fourth at 145 in last year’s IHSA Class 2A state tournament. 

“He’s risen to another level,” Cook said. “Justin’s wrestling among the elite in the state.”

Stevenson had two second-place winners in Jolcover and Ned Valchev (28-9) at 182; one third-place finisher in Mikey Kuhn (5-1) at 220; one fourth-place winner in Alec Berger (20-8) at 126: one fifth-place finisher in Brad Meyer (14-10) at 285; and one sixth-place winner in Ian Burns (19-14) at 170.

“We tell our kids, time and time again, there are some teams that tire and get burned out,” Cook said. “Not us. Everything we’ve done up to this point is preparation.”

On the schedule: The Patriots host a regional on Saturday.

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CONFERENCE STANDINGS: Grant (224.50), Libertyville (213), Antioch (166.50), Lake Zurich (147), Zion-Benton (134), Stevenson (111), Warren (102.50), Wauconda (91.50), Mundelein (76.50), Vernon Hills (67), Round Lake (62), Lakes (43), Lake Forest (22), North Chicago (16).

FIRST-PLACE FINISHERS: Nick Kramer, Grant (106); Steve Polakowski, Libertyville (113); Ben Soumar, Grant (120); Mike Gussarson, Antioch (126); Abel Rios, Zion-Benton (132); Matt Ornoff, Mundelein (138); Austin Pettinato, Libertyville (145); Justin Weber, Stevenson (152); Scott Hoff, Lake Zurich (160); Tony Cashmore, Grant (170); Zach Freundt, Antioch (182); Shakhiem Chapman, Warren (195); Quinton Quarles, Grant (195); Jeremy Brazil, Vernon Hills (285).