Athlete of the Month: Joliet Central's Zabala Doesn't Know Meaning of Word Quit

Joliet Central wrestling standout Trayvon Zabala picked himself up after a tough setback and showed what he is made of in a drive to a third-place finish in the 120-pound weight class at the IHSA state tournament.

A judgment call went against him. His dreams of winning the 120-pound championship at the IHSA state wrestling tournament were dashed. And Joliet Central’s Trayvon Zabala could have quit on the spot. Instead, he drew inspiration from a conversation he had with his mother. He battled back to place third in Class 3A. And he is recognized today as Joliet Patch’s Athlete of the Month for February. Zabala, a senior who finished with a career record of 155-11, twice was penalized for stalling in a 6-3 overtime loss to Sandburg’s Sebastian Pique in a quarterfinal match in the state tournament at Assembly Hall in Champaign. He also was penalized for an illegal body slam. “Yeah, it was pretty hard,” Zabala said of bouncing back, reeling off four …

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Update: Joliet Central's Trayvon Zabala Patch's MVP

He finished third in the 120-pound weight class at the IHSA Class 3A state wrestling tournament.

Your Joliet Patch is a place to celebrate local high school athletes. Show your support for these prep sports MVPs—each of whom is Athlete of the Week at his or her school—by cheering them on in the comments thread, sharing your own photos with the Patch community and voting in the poll. Do you think we're missing someone? Tell us in the comments and share his or her photo to the gallery above. (It's easy. Just click the Upload Photos and Videos link — learn more here.) Read more about this week's MVPs in the photo gallery, and show your support for them by: There is one more way for you to become a more interactive fan: Sign up to become a Patch sports blogger. (Learn more about blogging on Patch here). DON'T MISS THE LATEST JOLIET NEWS. …

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The Sports Report

Kremer: Joliet Central Wrestling Standout Zabala Will Trade Orange for Gold

Watch: Joliet Central senior Trayvon Zabala drills with Drake DeBenedetti during a workout earlier this week as the two prepare for the Southwest Suburban Conference wrestling tournament.

His orange hair experiment raised a few eyebrows, drew a bit of extra attention. Joliet Central’s Trayvon Zabala didn’t need a bottle of hair color dye to set himself apart from the high school wrestling crowd, though. He is a three-time state qualifier and two-time state medal winner. And, even as his hair fades back to black, he is burning a path toward a big finish to his career with the Steelmen. Zabala is a senior with a 31-0 record. He is ranked No. 3 in the 120-pound weight class by Rob Sherrill, author and publisher of Illinois Best Weekly, heading into the Southwest Suburban Conference tournament this weekend. Zabala already has won tournaments at Conant, Pontiac and Lincoln. He boasts a four-year record of 138-7 and that includes…

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