The winter sports seasons are wrapping up at Saint Patrick High School, and the Shamrocks have several outstanding teams and individual athletes that will be challenging for Illinois High School Association Regional, Sectional and State championships. Fans of Saint Patrick are especially excited this year, because three of the Shamrocks’ top athletes: wrestler Joe Fagiano, swimmer James Ridgeway, and basketball player Sam Maniscalco are only juniors.

Fagiano has posted a record of 41-2 in the 215 pound weight class, winning the East Suburban Catholic Conference Championship, the Illinois High School Association’s Oak Park (Fenwick) Regional Championship, and the IHSA’s Franklin Park/Northlake (Leyden) Sectional Championship. Fagiano is currently ranked second in the state, and he has earned a berth in the IHSA’s Individual State Wrestling Finals, to be held this weekend at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign. Fagiano has been dominant, defeating five of the top seven wrestlers in the state. The only blemishes on Fagiano’s record are a disqualification early in the season and a 7-5 loss in overtime to the third ranked wrestler in the state. Fagiano could become only the seventh state place winner in Saint Patrick history, and he is looking to become only the second Shamrock to win a state title, joining Mike Mroczek who won the unlimited weight class in 1985.

Ridgeway is poised to become the first Shamrock swimmer to claim a state title. He is looking to establish himself as one of the top swimmers in the state. Heading into this weekend’s IHSA Sectional meet, Ridgeway has already posted times that qualify him as an individual for the IHSA State Finals in the 200-yard Individual Medley, 100-yard Backstroke, and 100-yard Breaststroke. Two weeks ago he took home the Metro Catholic Aquatic Conference championships in the 200-yard Individual Medley and 100-yard Backstroke. Ridgeway earned his first IHSA State Finals medal when he reached the IHSA State Finals of the 100-yard Breaststroke as a freshman and placed fifth. James’ older brother Paul is the most decorated swimmer in Saint Patrick history, having won five IHSA State Finals medals in his career.

Maniscalco has been the go-to guy for the Shamrock basketball team all season, leading them to a record of 17-5. Maniscalco opened the season by earning Most Valuable Player honors as the Shamrocks won the annual Max Kurland Thanksgiving Tournament, and he hasn’t slowed down all year, averaging 22.4 points per game while shooting over 54% from the floor. Two weeks ago Maniscalco scored 31 points as the Shamrocks rolled into Niles and destroyed the Dons of Notre Dame for the 15th time in the last 16 meetings. The next night Maniscalco poured in a career-high 39 points at Elk Grove, including 20 points in the fourth quarter en route to a 72-63 Shamrock victory.