Feature Stories

By Gary Larsen for the IWCOA

JEFF GARDNER MEMORIAL TOURNAMENT

The 16-team Jeff Gardner Memorial tournament at Lanphier saw the Springfield co-op team take the team title by a nose, 66-58 over second-place Urbana. Champaign Central was third with 45 points followed by Quincy (33) and Metamora (27) to round out the top five finishes.

Girls from host Lanphier, Springfield, and Southeast high schools make up the Springfield team for coach Cody Watts. Phoenix Criss (105) won an individual title for Watts, which saw nine girls place in the top six of their weight classes.

“The girls battled hard in their respective weight classes despite a lot of their team currently nursing injuries to get our first official trophy of the season,” coach Cody Watts said.

1st- Springfield co-op (66)
In addition to Criss’ title, the girls from Springfield co-op got second-place finishes from Alliyah Powell (130) and Arryia Foster (135), thirds from Katie Beall (120) and Kimoreyee Ballard (140), fourths from Alina Edwards (105), Lily Walden (125), and Abigail Kinison (170), and a fifth from Tala Asad (135).

2nd- Urbana (58)
The Lady Tigers entered seven wrestlers and four of them won individual titles in Tamya Terry (135), Rickasia Ivy (140), Madelyn Franklin (190) and returning 4th-in-state Lillian Disanto (235). Urbana also got a pair of runner-up finishes from Jocelyn Arreola (190) and Violet Porter (235).

3rd- Champaign Central (45)
The Maroons got a pair of titles from Christy Murphy (155) and ly’Jah Grant (170), a second from Paola Oviedo (120), a third from Rita Grant (125), a fourth from Ashley Alquicira (135), a fifth from Londyn Grant (130) and a sixth from Zaiyrah Bailey (140).

Team scores
Springfield co-op 66, Urbana 58, Champaign Central 45, Quincy 33, Metamora 27, Hillsboro 21, Eisenhower 18, Mt. Zion 16, PORTA 14, Rantoul 8, North Mac 8, Normal University 7, Abindon-Avon 5, Camp Point Central 5, Rochester 5, Taylorville 2

Additional champions
100 Jasmine Johnson (Rantoul), 115 Asher Ronan (North Mac), 120) Lucie Eisenbarth (Rochester), 125 Calliope Willman (Metamora), 130 Sydney Cannon (Mt. Zion)

Additional runners-up
100 Jaylynn Devore (Taylorville), 105 Karsynn Vogel (Quincy), 115 Kaydence Klein (Metamora), 125 Maryn Tarver (Hillsboro), 140 Zoe Bloyd (Quincy), 155 Tyonna Patterson (Eisenhower)

Still unbeaten (10-match minimum)
130 Mt. Zion’s returning state runner-up Sydney Cannon (15-0)

15-plus match winners
Springfield Co-op’s Phoenix Criss (18-5), 125 Metamora’s Calliope Willman (22-3)

Statistics
Urbana led all teams with 11 pins, followed by Champaign Central with seven and Quincy with six. Springfield Co-op had the most tech falls with four, and Camp Point Central and Champaign Central followed with two techs apiece. Urbana scored the most match points with 123 followed by Springfield Co-op with 108 and Champaign Central with 101.

Individually, Urbana’s Lillian Disanto had the most pins in the least time, with three falls in 3:44, while Champaign Central’s ly’Jah Grant posted the fastest pin at 21 seconds. Camp Point Central’s Amber Louderback had the most tech falls in the least time, with two at 5:50, and Champaign Central’s Zaiyrah Bailey had the fastest tech fall at 1:50.

Springfield Co-op’s Makenna Smith scored the most single-match points with 23, while teammate Phoenix Criss scored the most total match points with 43, followed by Urbana’s Rickasia Ivy with 38 and Camp Point Central’s Amber Louderback with 33.

Urbana’s Tamya Terry and Rickasia Ivy tied for the largest seed-place difference as No. 8 seeds who won individual titles.

Championship match results
100 Jasmine Johnson (Rantoul) F 2:17 Jaylynn Devore (Taylorville)

105 Phoenix Criss (Springfield) D 6-3 Karsynn Vogel (Quincy)

110 BYE

115 Asher Ronan (North Mac) F 1:59 Kaydence Klein (Metamora)

120 Lucie Eisenbarth (Rochester) F 2:53 Paola Oviedo (Champaign C)

125 Calliope Willman (Metamora) F 0:44 Maryn Tarver (Hillsboro)

130 Sydney Cannon (Mt. Zion) F 1:38 Alliyah Powell (Springfield)

135 Tamya Terry (Urbana) F 1:56 Arryia Foster (Springfield)

140 Rickasia Ivy (Urbana) F 0:42 Zoe Bloyd (Quincy)

145 BYE

155 Onisty Murphy (Champaign C) TF 4:10 Tyonna Patterson (Eisenhower)

170 ly’Jah Grant (Champaign C) F 0:21 Makenna Smith (Springfield)
190 Madelyn Franklin (Urbana) F 4:22 Joceline Arreola (Urbana)

235 Lillian Disanto (Urbana) F 0:59 Violet Porter (Urbana)

Third-place match results
100 Neveah King (North Mac) BYE

105 Grace Aeschliman (Metamora) F 1:06 Alina Edwards (Springfield)

110 BYE

115 Mackenzie Gound (Rantoul) BYE

120 Katie Beall (Springfield) BYE

125 Rita Grant (Champaign C) F 0:36 Lily Walden (Springfield)

130 Aubree Murphy (Quincy) F 0:25 Ryleigh Schoonover (PORTA)

135 Aubree Rogers (Hillsboro) D 17-11 Ashley Alquicira (Champaign C)

140 Kimoreyee Ballard (Springfield) F 2:11 Hailey Watson (Normal University)

145 BYE

155 Libby Scheland (PORTA) BYE

170 Tiara Dyer (Eisenhower) F 0:22 Abigail Kinison (Springfield)
190 BYE

235 Jessalin Kukert (PORTA) F 1:37 Kamryn Body (Eisenhower)


MURDALE GIRLS TOURNAMENT

Talk about a battle.

When Carbondale’s 27-team Murdale tournament ended Saturday, only a half-point separated Cahokia (105), Granite City (105), and Marion (104.5) at the top of the team standings, and Freeburg (99.5) finished a mere 5.5 points behind the leaders.

Team scores
Cahokia 105, Granite City 105, Marion 104.5, Freeburg 99.5, Murphysboro 78.5, West Frankfort 75, McCracken County, KY 74.5, Mascoutah 70, Benton 69, Johnston City 67, Althoff Catholic 61, Anna-Jonesboro 59, Carterville 55, Carbondale 52, Unity 45.5, Vandalia 43, Mt. Vernon 26, Pinckneyville 22, Paducah Tilghman, KY 21.5, Herrin 20, Fairfield 19, Salem 18, Effingham 16, Red Bud 15, Breese Central 6, Mt. Carmel 6, Richland County 2

Cahokia (105)
The Lady Comanches got individual titles from Dakota Bell (125) and Te’Aja Young (130), seconds from Janylah Holman (170) and Kamryn Brown (190), and a third from Gabrielle Conner (190).

Granite City (105)
Coach Matt Warfield got titles from Audrey Barnes (140) and Demi Barnes (170) and a third from Ma’Kayla Bonner (115).

Marion (104.5)
Coach Lukas Cullum’s Wildcats got a title from Alauni Muex (120), a second from Joelene Nappier-Feth (130), and thirds from Addison Arnold (135), Daisjha Cooper (145) and Sofia Hernandez (190), tying Cahokia for the most top-four finishes with five.

Additional champions
100 Dalis Johnston (Tilghman, KY), 105 Brielle Becker (Freeburg), 110 Jillian Conn (McCracken County, KY), 115 Baileigh Self (Althoff Catholic), 135 Jacee Mardirosian (Carterville), 145 Kyla Ford (Carbondale), 155 Grace Stratton (Freeburg), 190 Lillian Browning (West Frankfort), 235 returning state third-place Phoenix Molina (Unity)

Additional runners-up

100 Charlee Emmerich (Effingham), 105 Shayla Garner (Mascoutah), 110 Tatym Cruz (Johnston City), 115 Eelynn Hayden (McCracken County, KY), 120 Kathleen Loyola (Carbondale), 125 Catelynn Reese (West Frankfort), 135 Alana Finney (Salem), 140 Daniya Musgrave (Mt. Vernon), 145 Josselin Mateo (Murphysboro), 155 Nahima Mateo (Murphysboro), 235 Maihaleigh Browning (Benton)

Close calls
One of the biggest matches in the tournament to decide the team title came at 130, when Cahokia’s Te’Aja Young (16-1) won an 11-7 decision at 130 over Marion’s Joelene Nappier-Feth (24-2).
The field at 130 was loaded and included third-place Ava Beldo (23-5) of Unity. Eventual champion Young won by fall over Beldo in their semifinal match.

Still unbeaten (10-match minimum)
135 Granite City’s Audrey Barnes (19-0), 155 Freeburg’s Grace Stratton (23-0), Unity’s returning state medal-winner Phoenix Molina (22-0)

Once-beaten (10-match minimum)
130 Cahokia’s Te’Aja Young (16-1), 135 Carterville’s Macee Mardirosian (22-1), 235 Benton’s Maihaleigh Browning (10-1), 235 Johnston City’s Kiowa Quillen (10-1)

20-plus match winners
115 Althoff Catholic’s Baileigh Self (22-2), 120 Marion’s Alauni Muex (24-2), 130 Marion’s Joelene Nappier-Feth (24-2), 130 Unity’s Ava Beldo (23-5), 155 Carterville’s Everleigh Orendoff (23-9), West Frankfort’s Lillian Browning (23-2)

Statistics
Granite City finished with the most pins in the tournament with 20, followed by Marion with 17 and Benton with 15. Six teams had one tech fall apiece in Marion, Unity, Paducah Tilghman, Murphysboro, Freeburg and McCracken County. Granite City also led the way in total match points with 143, followed by Marion with 128 and Freeburg with 126.

Individually, Mascoutah’s Gabriela Richards posted the most pins in the least time, with five falls recorded in 1:57; Benton’s Addison Mabry had the fastest fall in just six seconds. Marion’s Alauni Muex posted the fastest tech fall, in 57 seconds.

Althoff Catholic’s Baileigh Self scored the most team points with 28, while Unity’s Ava Beldo, Freeburg’s Grace Stratton, and McCracken County’s Hermayoni Gembe tied for the most single-match points with 18. Gembe led all wrestlers in total match points with 39, followed by Beldo and Johnston City’s Kenni Lafollete with 38 apiece.

The largest seed-place difference went to Cahokia’s Gabrielle Conner, as the No. 8 seed placed third at 190 pounds.

Championship match results
100 Dalis Johnston (Tilghman KY) TF 2:54 Charlee Emmerich (Effingham)

105 Brielle Becker (Freeburg) F 2:13 Shayla Garner (Mascoutah)

110 Jillian Conn (McCracken Co KY) F 3:35 Tatym Cruz (Johnston City)

115 Baileigh Self (Althoff) F 1:43 Eelynn Hayden (McCracken Co KY)

120 Alauni Muex (Marion) F 1:34 Kathleen Loyola (Carbondale)

125 Dakota Bell (Cahokia) F 1:10 Catelynn Reese (W Frankfort)

130 Te’Aja Young (Cahokia) D 11-7 Joelene Nappier-Feth (Marion)

135 Jacee Mardirosian (Carterville) F 5:12 Alana Finney (Salem)

140 Audrey Barnes (Granite City) F 1:14 Daniya Musgrave (Mt. Vernon)

145 Kyla Ford (Carbondale) F 3:27 Josselin Mateo (Murphysboro)

155 Grace Stratton (Freeburg) F 1:27 Nahima Mateo (Murphysboro)

170 Demi Barnes (Granite City) F 5:39 Janylah Holman (Cahokia)
190 Lillian Browning (W Frankfort) F 1:42 Kamryn Brown (Cahokia)

235 Phoenix Molina (Unity) F 0:13 Maihaleigh Browning (Benton)

Third-place match results
100 Faith Husky (Johnston City) F 1:53 Allyah Lopez (Mascoutah)

105 Prudence Snider (Althoff) F 2:49 Remi Taylor (Fairfield)

110 Aubrey Rutmanis (Freeburg) F 1:30 Zaniyla Cooper (Althoff)

115 Ma’Kayla Bonner (Granite City) F 3:58 Haydyn Williamson (Anna-J)

120 Emmery Evans (McCracken Co KY) F 1:50 Emma Smith (Red Bud)

125 Zoey Nelson (Mascoutah) F 2:37 Juana Hernandez (Murphysboro)

130 Ava Beldo (Unity) F 1:47 Makayla Bush (Herrin)

135 Roxie Royster (Murphysboro) F 1:44 Addison Arnold (Marion)

140 Eloise Hester-Kelly (Pinckneyville) F 1:01 Gabriela Richards (Mascoutah)

145 Elise Byman (Freeburg) TF 3:40 Daisjha Cooper (Marion)

155 Violet Gray (Vandalia) F 4:40 Everleigh Orendoff (Carterville)

170 Brynn Swyers (Vandalia) F 1:20 Biannca Timmons (Anna-J)
190 Gabrielle Conner (Cahokia) F 3:05 Sofia Hernandez (Marion)

235 Kiowa Quillen (Johnston City) F 0:30 Lexi Karnes (Benton)

2026 SWC GIRLS TOURNAMENT

Edwardsville, Collinsville and Belleville West have seen their programs explode in numbers relative to the other teams in the conference, so Friday’s Southwestern Conference tournament figured to be a three horse-race.

After all, Edwardsville entered 25 girls in the tournament, Belleville West entered 17, and Collinsville brought 14 girls to host Edwardsville’s gym. O’Fallon entered six girls, East St. Louis brought three, and Alton entered two. Belleville East did not participate.

The top three teams accounted for 13 of the 14 individual conference champions, with East St. Louis champion Jariya Powell (140) accounting for the other title spot.

When the dust settled, it was Edwardsville who took home the team title for coach Jon Wagner, 206-170.5 over second-place Collinsville. Belleville West finished third with 126 points, followed by O’Fallon (29), East St. Louis (19), and Alton (0).

“There were a lot of great matches, and we had a strong showing coming off a great dual meet victory over Seckman of Missouri,” Wagner said.

1st- Edwardsville (206)
Wagner sent seven girls to the top of the awards stand in Maddy Allen (100), returning state medal-winner Emma Rogers (105), Genevieve Dykstra (120), Brooklyn Alldredge (130), Gretchen Taylor (135), Victoria White (190) and Angie Nunez (235). The Tigers also got seconds from Jayla Taylor (105), Adleigh Dewerff (110) Hailey Buckingham (115), Olive Linhorst (125), Jaylynn Bierbrauer (145), Geetanjali Janardhan (170) and Kennedy Downs (235).
Coming in third for the Tigers were Samantha Suhre (120) and Laura Gonzalez-Salinas (135), and they got fourths from Ava Thomas (120), Kendal Ironwing (145), Abigail Hayes (155) and Izzy Appiah (170).

2nd- Collinsville (170.5)
Individual titles for coach Adam Gillespie came from Ivana Torres (110), Jazelle Young (115), Londyn Long (125) and Leann Cory (145). Four Kahoks took second in Harlee Hart (100), Emma Ford (120), Jaylah Harris (130) and Addyson Bailey (140), while Samantha Varela (100), LeDominique Maston (105) and Neveah Hamer-Burries (235) brought home third-place finishes, and Rylee McCullough (135), placed fourth.

3rd- Belleville West (126)
The Maroons got individual titles from Moriah Lampley (155) and Ju’Bri Edwards (170) for coach Mech Spraggins, plus seconds from Ja’yla Hurst (135) and Amaziah Kemp (190), thirds from Riley Weems (110), Haylee Hooks (115), Alyssa Hardt (140) and Akiya Jett (145) and fourths from Kendyll Otten (125), Michaela Wentz (130), and Andre’a Kirkpatrick (235).

Additional champions
140 Jariyah Powell (East St. Louis)

Additional runners-up
155 Addison Last (O’Fallon)

Close calls
The title match at 235 saw Edwardsville’s Angie Nunez win a 2-1 decision over Edwardsville’s Kennedy Downs.
In the third-place match at 120, Edwardsville’s Samantha Suhre won a 3-0 decision over teammate Ava Thomas.

Statistics
Edwardsville led all teams with 33 pins in the tournament, followed by Collinsville with 18 and Belleville West with 16. East St. Louis had the most tech falls in the least time with two in 7:48, followed by Edwardsville with two techs in 10:02. Edwardsville’s 237 total match points led the field, followed by Collinsville with 144 and Belleville West with 94.

Individually, Edwardsville’s Brooklyn Alldredge had the most pins in the least time, with three in 3:56. East St. Louis’ Jariyah Powell had the most tech falls in the least time with two in 7:48. Belleville West’s Ja’yla Hurst posted the fastest fall in 18 seconds, and Collinsville’s Londyn Long had the fastest tech fall in 2:00.
Long and Edwardsville’s Genevieve Dykstra tied for the most team points with 23.5, Edwardsville’s Adleigh Dewerff had the most single-match points with 20, and East St. Louis’ Powell posted the most total match points with 44, followed by Alton’s Aryanna Jones with 40 and Collinsville’s Harlee Hart with 29.

Championship match results
100 Maddy Allen (Edwardsville) F 1:55 Harlee Hart (Collinsville)

105 Emma Rogers (Edwardsville) F 0:21 Jayla Taylor (Edwardsville)

110 Ivana Torres (Collinsville) D 9-5 Adleigh Dewerff (Edwardsville)

115 Jazelle Young (Collinsville) F 3:02 Hailey Buckingham (Edwardsville)

120 Genevieve Dykstra (Edwardsville) TF Emma Ford (Collinsville)

125 Londyn Long (Collinsville) F 0:36 Olive Linhorst (Edwardsville)

130 Brooklyn Alldredge (Edwardsville) F 0:53 Jaylah Harris (Collinsville) 

135 Gretchen Taylor (Edwardsville) D 9-2 Ja’yla Hurst (Belleville W)

140 Jariyah Powell (E St. Louis) TF Addyson Bailey (Collinsville)

145 Leann Cory (Collinsville) F 0:52 Jaylynn Bierbauer (Edwardsville)

155 Moriah Lampley (Belleville W) F 3:29 Addison Last (O’Fallon)

170 Ju’Bri Edwards (Belleville W) F 2:22 Geetanjali Janardhan (Edwardsville)

190 Victoria White (Edwardsville) F 1:05 Amaziah Kemp (Belleville W)
235 Angie Nunez (Edwardsville) D 2-1 Kennedy Downs (Edwardsville)

Third-place match results
100 Samantha Varela (Collinsville) F 3:11 Carmen Courmier-Russell (O’Fallon)

105 LeDominique Maston (Collinsville) BYE

110 Riley Weems (Belleville W) BYE

115 Haylee Hooks (Belleville W) BYE

120 Samantha Suhre (Edwardsville) D 3-0 Ava Thomas (Edwardsville)

125 Aryanna Jones (Alton) MD 8-0 Kendyll Otten (Belleville W)

130 Dayza Phillips (Alton) fft. Michaela Wentz (Belleville W)

135 Laura Gonzalez-Salinas (Edwardsville) F 1:28 Rylee McCullough (Collinsville)

140 Alyssa Hardt (Belleville W) F 1:08 Scarlett Gentille (O’Fallon)

145 Akiya Jett (Belleville W) F 4:57 Kendal Ironwing (Edwardsville)

155 Ineta Grubbs (Belleville W) F 1:14 Abigail Hayes (Edwardsville)

170 Dasonni Green (Belleville W) F 1:28 Izzy Appiah (Edwardsville)

190 BYE
235 Neveah harner-Burries (Collinsville) F 0:24 Andre’a Kirkpatrick (Bellville W)

By Chris Walker for the IWCOA

Lincoln-Way co-op District 210 sent nine wrestlers to the finals and had five champions to win the inaugural Break the Silence tournament at Oswego East on Jan. 3, 2026, which raised awareness for mental health and suicide prevention with proceeds benefitting the Kendall County Healthy Department.

The team was coming off a championship effort in DeKalb the previous Saturday at IWCOA Girls Dual Team State, which was the second straight year that Lincoln-Way won that title.

“We had an amazing showing at Oswego East and I think we did some of the best wrestling we have all year,” Lincoln-Way co-op coach Josh Napier said. “Coming off the Dual Team State Championship, right now the girls are feeling unstoppable and are really competing hard. We are still such a young team and program, but they put in the work each day at practice and it is on full display right now. Getting nine wrestlers into the finals was a best for us and with five champions, we couldn’t be more proud of their effort in this one!”

The co-op finished well ahead of runner-up Homewood-Flossmoor, 278 to 192.5. East Aurora was third with 176.5, Lockport placed fourth with 146 and Metea Valley rounded out the top five with 118.5.

D210’s McKenzie Steinke (100) pinned her three opponents and Emmy Hoselton (105) and Riley Depolo (170) pinned the four girls they each faced. Zoe Dempsey (120) had a tech fall and two pins and Liv Clumpner had a pair of tech falls and won her other matches by fall, including in her title match as all five Lincoln-Way co-op champs finished with a flourish by pinning their title bout opponent.

Zoe Zerial (110), Abby Lizak (120), Abby Kunz (140) and Ella Giertuga (145) also advanced to the finals but dropped championship matches. 

“I think we’ve all come a long way and we’ve gotten so much better in the time of our practicing,” Steinke said. ”And everybody has just grown in the way they wrestle.”

Altogether, Lincoln-Way co-op had a dozen placers after Caleigh Nicholson (130) came back to win third place and Gracie Hansen (125) and Jalyssa Venegas (235) both took fourth.

“We also want to thank Oswego East for promoting suicide awareness,” Napier said. “This is such an important cause that hits home for many people within the Lincoln-Way community. We try to not only promote good wrestling and mental toughness in our program but also strive to make sure that our wrestlers mental health is a top priority. Wrestling is the hardest thing most people will ever do and this time of the year is grueling for these young ladies. They are each other’s biggest fans and show one another support on and off the mat. We have built a culture of honesty; everyone feels comfortable to share how they are feeling with their coaches and teammates. So, once again thank you Oswego East for bringing light to this important cause and we will continue to break the silence here at Lincoln-Way as well.”

Runner-up Homewood-Flossmoor had 10 placers, but Amara Nwoye’s championship win at 130 was the lone title winner for the Vikings. London Gandy (125) also got to the finals, but lost.

Kennedy Dade (140) and  Denise Brown (145) finished with wins to take third place while Amirat Toheeb-Lawal (115), Madelynn McClements (135), Rachel Nugin (170) and Kendra Hayden (190) took fourth. Dilailah Lopez (110) placed fifth and Olivia Haywood (155) was sixth.

The Tomcats matched the with 10 placers, led by Jaylene Dealba (190) and Lilli Ortiz (235) who took second. Joselyn Llanos (110) and Valentina Barboza (125) took third and Ayelen Higuera (130) and Ivy Ruiz (140) placed fourth. Jelena Coyomani (120), Lupita Garcia (140) and Guadalupe Casiano (145) were fifth and Carolina Ascencio (145) took sixth after losing 6-1 to Casiano.

Oswego (93.5) was sixth, getting just past its local rivals, the host Wolves (84), who finished in seventh, barely ahead of York (83.5).

Oak Lawn (73.5) and St. Charles East (72.5) followed in front of Plainfield East (62), Romeoville (53), Bloomington (51.5), Lake Park (42), Wheaton North (42), Rich Township (39), Waubonsie Valley (27), Neuqua Valley (18), Plainfield Central (15) and Plainfield North (0). 

Aurora Central, Barrington, Downers Grove South and Morton did not compete as scheduled.

100 – McKenzie Steinke, D210

Steinke won by fall over Rich Township’s Sariya Maddox at 1:33 to capture the title match.

“I think it’s the composure and the hard work and great coaching,” Steinke said. “You just got to keep with it even though you don’t get the best outcome in every match. It’s just practice and you can come back.”

St. Charles East’s Sophia Espinoza pinned Lockport’s Julia Hernandez at 2:55 for third place, and Oak Lawn’s Elizabeth Bisonaya scored an 11-2 major decision over Lockport’s Gianna Bogdan for fifth.

105 – Emmy Hoselton, D210

Hoselton won by fall over Oak Lawn’s Felix Morales at 1:20 to win the title at 105.

“I think that we kept composed,” Hoselton said. “And like Liv (Clumpner) said about all the hard work, it paid off today.”

York’s Andie Brown won by fall over Oswego’s Savannah Martell-Quinones at 1:14 to take third place, and Lockport’s Alaina Churnovic pinned Romeoville’s Jordyn Williams in 27 seconds.

110 – Sydney Stieb, St. Charles East

Stieb won by tech fall, 17-1, over Zoe Zerial to give the Saints a title to celebrate.

“I was happy with the way I wrestled,” Stieb said. “There are things I can still improve on, but so far I think my season has been pretty good and I’m liking the way I’m wrestling and I keep improving. I just keep attacking. I kept scoring points and shooting.”

Now in her fourth year wrestling, Stieb is crushing the butterflies that once upon a time fluttered in her belly. 

“I’ve learned that I don’t have to be nervous, I can go out and wrestle,” she said. “I feel stronger mentally like I’m more in it. The nervousness has died down. I think about what I can do in my matches now instead of worrying about losing.”

After receiving a bye to bypass a championship round one match, Stieb pinned Oswego’s Kendra Padilla at 1:22 in the quarterfinal before scoring a 16-3 major decision over East Aurora’s Joselyn Llanos in the semis.

Llanos scored a 14-1 major decision victory against Oak Lawn’s Allison Nava for third place, and Homewood-Flossmoor’s Dilailah Lopez got a pin at 2:44 to get past Lockport’s Camila Mendoza for fifth.

115 – Janiya Moore, Metea Valley

Moore earned a 11-5 decision over Bloomington’s Autumn Starr to win the 115-pound title.

Lockport’s Bella Romando won by a 4-3 decision over Homewood-Flossmoor’s Amirat Toheeb-Lawal for third place, and Plainfield East’s Ximena Valenzuela Hernandez pinned St. Charles East’s Sophia Rivas in 3:24 for fifth.

120 – Zoe Dempsey, D210

Dempsey, who placed third in the state at 110 last year, pinned teammate Abby Lizak in 1:12 in the 120 finals as Lincoln-Way co-op was blessed to have a pair of wrestlers advance to the championship bout at 120.

“I think the key to winning these tournaments is just wrestle through the adversity and every single match is data,” Dempsey said. “You’re just collecting data. It doesn’t matter if you win or lose, every point scored, every point they scored on you, it’s just data and you’re just collecting that.”

All while training to maintain your mental edge.

“I struggled a bit in the offseason with winning,” Dempsey said. “I’d lose a couple matches at Fargo. I went 4-2 and had a rough go, didn’t quite meet the goals I had for myself. So a lot of my club coaches at Izzy Style they are very helpful. They’ve been just telling me it’s just data, just use it to get better and it’s just really helped me I think.”

Lockport’s Veronica Skibicki won by tech fall over Neuqua Valley’s Aleta Weigandt to take home third place, and East Aurora’s Jelena Coyomani won by fall over York’s Evangline Lopez at 1:44 to take fifth.

125 – Charlie Dolan, York

Dolan kept accumulating points with her offense, ultimately building an 18-1 advantage in a tech fall championship victory over Homewood-Flossmoor’s London Gandy.

“I’ll be honest, I came here last year and placed third in my first year wrestling, this is only my second year,” she said. “I started out my sophomore year and after that I’ve been working my butt off. I go to my school practices, I go to the girls practices, the guys practices, I go to my the club practices and even outside of that I run on my own and I work out on my own, so it’s not just a coincidence that I’m here, it’s because of all the hard work I’m putting in, even in off-season training as hard as in-season.”

Gandy was the fourth straight competitor that Dolan defeated via tech fall, outscoring them collectively, 75-8.

“I tech-falled everyone in this tournament and I tech-falled the girl in the finals,” she said. “So I guess that’s why I’m here.”

Although none it would’ve happened if she had never been bitten by the training and wrestling bug.

“I just love training and just kind of pushing myself to be the best version I can be,” she said. “I just like wrestling. When I first stepped on the mat I just loved it. I have an older brother who I used to wrestle with, but never that serious, but I enjoyed being able to just wrestle. Basically, I just like training. I just like wrestling.”

East Aurora’s Valentina Barboza won by fall over Lincoln-Way co-op’s Gracie Hansen in 1:02 for third place and Oswego’s Nina Witkowski won by a 9-5 decision over Oswego East’s Ella Worlds to take fifth.

130 – Amara Nwoye, Homewood-Flossmoor

Nwoye won by fall, her third pin in four matches on the day, over Wheaton North’s Estrella Bautista in 2:38 to capture the title at 130.

In her third year wrestling, Nwoye does not shy away from the strength of her religious beliefs.

“I can truly give all the praise to the Lord,” she said. “I really truly believe in His power and I was really nervous coming into this tournament. My morale was a little bit low so I really focus on my prayer every match, you know what I mean? Thinking about the Lord and his strength and how He loves me and putting that all in the match and realizing whatever happens it doesn’t define me and I can only do my best.”

After pinning Lincoln-Way Central’s Caleigh Nicholson (3:05) to begin, Nwoye earned a 13-4 major over East Aurora’s Ayelen Higuera in the quarterfinals and a fall (5:10) over Metea Valley’s Hala Elhelou in the semis.

“It’s also great to have my coaches at my side letting me know what I need to do,” Nwoye said. “Like my first match, I won but it didn’t go the way I wanted it to so I was a little down on it, but my coach was like you need to take your doubles, because I kind of stayed away from doubles.”

Those doubles can be daunting.

“I don’t know if it’s just me, but sometimes you get some trauma from doing a move and then you’re used to this move and somebody just comes and completely wrecks it for you,” she said. “So I got scared of doubles where so many matches where it ‘stopped’ working for me when it was me, and my setups, but I never lost it, so I decided, you know, that my next goal was to take my doubles and today was the first double I’ve taken all season. I’ve been a single girl all season and took them every single match and I’m very grateful it went out that way and can only thank the Lord, I’m very grateful.”

The road to a tourney title isn’t without its share of speed bumps, traffic and reroutes.

“It gets a little rough, being tired, waking up early and I couldn’t eat,” she said. “Like I couldn’t eat yesterday, and then I woke up today and ate too much so my stomach was hurting all the time. It was a lot, but I got through it and can only thank the Lord once again for his strength.”

She’d really like to see her peers find the Lord’s strength to get off of social media, something Nwoye said is destructive to mental health. She certainly broke the silence there.

“If I were being quite honest, I would recommend everybody to get rid of social media,” she said. “I’ve done it and been clean from social media, and I did it from TikTok and Instagram. I still have YouTube and am now kind of working on that. I’m kind of addicted to watching my little videos. The way I see it with my teammates and people around the school is every fight, every drama that is circulating is about having social media and to me that shows that there is a problem with that. It makes people insecure. It makes people very depressed and lonely to see other people’s stories. Oh, they’re having fun. You hear someone’s doing this and it makes you feel like you’re being left out when in reality you’re just a normal kid. You’re not doing that stuff and that’s ok.”

She’s found a great support group – the Homewood-Flossmoor girls wrestling team.

“Find recreational things outside of school and during school and find a program that supports you and loves you,” she said. “I cannot really explain how great my team is. I love my team, I love them so much. They’re such amazing girls. They’re at every match cheering us on. We truly have the best camaraderie. I’m grateful to have a team like the wrestling team I’m on.”

In the third-place match, Lincoln-Way co-op’s Caleigh Nicholson won by a 14-0 major decision over East Aurora’s Aileen Higuera, while on the fifth-place mat, Metea Valley’s Hala Elhelou won by fall over York’s Claire Kelton in 52 seconds. 

135 – Liv Clumpner, Lincoln-Way co-op

Clumpner pinned Oswego’s Joslynn Sheets in 1:59 to win the title at 135 and help guide Lincoln-Way co-op to the team title.

It was the second straight pin by Clumpner who took down Homewood-Flossmoor’s Madelynn McClements at 5:52 in the semifinal. 

Tech fall wins over East Aurora’s Isabel Velasco and Rich Township’s Brhyana Moreno preceded the aforementioned wins by fall.

“I think the key was consistency and hard work,” Clumpner said. “That’s about it.”

Metea Valley’s Emily Sugano won by fall over Homewood-Flossmoor’s Madelynn McClements in 1:55 to take third place and Oswego East’s Emily House finished with a win at home, pinning Waubonsie Valley’s Sophia Contreras at 1:02 to take fifth.

140 – Alketa Picari, Metea Valley

Picari pinned Lincoln-Way co-op’s Abby Kunz at 5:56 in the title match at 140.

After compiling 21 points in back-to-back tech fall wins over Oswego’s Angeles Ponce and Lockport’s Riley Morrow, Picaro scored a 14-3 major against Homewood-Flossmoor’s Kennedy Dade to earn a berth in the title match.

Over on the third-place mat, Kennedy Dade scored a 14-4 major decision to defeat East Aurora’s Ivy Ruiz, while for fifth place it was Ruiz’s teammate, Lupita Garcia, who prevailed over Picari’s teammate, Dariia Dzhumbaev, with a 7-1 decision.

145 – Ella Cooper, Oswego East

Cooper defeated Ella Giertuga in her championship match at 145 by a 9-6 decision. Giertuga was one of nine Lincoln-Way co-op wrestlers to advance into the finals.

Cooper had to go the distance to get past Giertuga, but she didn’t in her prior three matches, winning by fall against Metea Valley’s Jordyn Slager (2:46), Rich Township’s Cheyenne Haire (2:52) and East Aurora’s Guadalupe Casiano (1:35).

“It was just having the right mindset and making sure I was happy,” Cooper said. “And healthy eating. Of course, I had to eat, and just keeping my energy up. It was awesome. Last year I was almost in first place at regionals but dislocated my elbow so it’s awesome to get back into the sport and be fully recovered and everything.”

The opportunity to raise awareness for a challenging subject while wrestling was an added bonus to a wonderful day for Cooper. She was the lone Oswego East wrestler to win a title at its home tourney.

“This tournament speaks out against suicide and mental health awareness and we are taking all the money and donating it to a charity that helps people deal with mental health,” she said. “This will help a lot of people who struggle with that stuff.”

Funds were generated through t-shirt sales and will be donated to the Kendall County Health Department.

Homewood-Flossmoor’s Denise Brown won by fall over Metea Valley’s Jordyn Slager at the 45-second mark of the match to take third place, and East Aurora’s Guadalupe Casiano and Carolina Ascencio faced off in a battle of Tomcats for fifth place with Casiano taking bragging rights back into the practice room after winning 6-1.

155 – Alicia Swank, Bloomington

Swank didn’t know Demetrius Turrentine personally, but she saw the late Normal West Girls Wrestling Coach supporting his wrestlers at The Munch Pontiac Invitational on Dec. 12-13.

Just a couple days later word spread throughout Bloomington-Normal with the tragic news of Turrentine’s sudden death at the age of 23 on Dec. 15, 2025.

“Rest in peace Normal West Girls Coach and wrestling alumni Demetrius Turrentine,” Swank said. “I remember seeing you at ‘The Munch’ in Pontiac supporting your girls then hearing the news three days later. You will always be remembered even if I didn’t know you personally.”

Not even three weeks later, Oswego East raised mental health and suicide prevention awareness by having it intertwined with an inaugural girls wrestling tournament to Break The Silence.

“Mental health itself is huge to take into consideration when joining a sport like wrestling,” Swank said. “There is the pressure of being the sole competitor in a match when a lot of kids at this age are used to being on teams: basketball, baseball, softball, volleyball. They are used to having the back up of someone else to cover them, while in wrestling you have to be able to stay focused the entire time and rely on yourself. The anxiety of having to trust your body’s muscle memory and that you are good enough to be doing what you’re doing, it will take a lot out of a person to realize that and deal with the failures and successes in a healthy way.”

While Swank isn’t Bloomington’s lone wrestler, she only had Autumn Starr competing along with her at Oswego East. Starr placed second at 115. Regardless, the small team size is something she’s gotten used to during her time at Bloomington where this has been the norm.

“While I think it is great to have the big teams – we need more girls in the sport anyway,” she said. “I like being able to prove myself the way I can as a small team. Going to tournaments with all these huge or well known teams and showing off by being on the podium and having a team of two place in the top 15 with team points is an amazing feeling. Knowing that you have the skill to do that but also having the chance to continue to get better by seeing different styles and skills with girls in matches or practicing with our boys because you only have one other girl on the team is an opportunity in itself.”

Getting back to mental health, Swank knows some kids are struggling because she’s witnessed it.

“Junior high and high schoolers are dealing with a lot of changes at this time,” she said. “I have seen people close to me and my circle of people lose themselves in the emotional turmoil that comes with this sport. Whether it be in anger and accidentally harming themselves in outrage or quitting because they don’t think they are good enough.”

There is also the physical aspect of deteriorating mental health. 

“How easy it is to fall into something like an eating disorder by trying to stay at one weight because of many reasons; a coach needs you there to fill a spot on the team, you were doing really well there previously, a parent wants you there, or you just feel better about yourself at that weight,” Swank explained. “Especially in women’s wrestling where girls at the high school age are usually experiencing bullying or self hatred about weight and not being socially seen as ‘pretty’ because they are gaining weight and muscle mass.”

Now a senior, Swank is eyeing a state appearance after getting close in past years, including a loss in the blood round at sectionals last year. 

“”My goals for this season are to get to state,” she said. “It’s my goal because I started the girls team at Bloomington and would love to get there to finish before going off to wrestling (at Cornell College).”

Swank won by fall over Oswego East’s Gianna Edwards (3:46) and earned a tech fall win over Homewood-Flossmoor’s Olivia Haywood before surviving Plainfield East’s Kaitlyn Bucholz in a tiebreaker (TB-1 3-1) in the semifinal.

That earned her a spot in the finals where another Wolves’ home wrestler awaited, Julia Robb. Swank was able to get to the freshman at the 4:31 mark of the match, securing the pin to earn the title.

“I won my finals match by being aggressive on my feet and hand fighting, but also by staying calm throughout the match,” Swank said. “Being at her home tournament I think it actually tends to make them more nervous because there are the expectations of winning on home turf. Being able to ignore the background of a person’s team, record or other type of qualifications and keeping your wits is what helps win a match. Your focus will be on doing what needs to be done and doing the best you can.”

It’s been quite an experience on the mats for Swank who watched her older brother wrestle for a couple years before she joined in seventh grade after some friends on the boys teams told her she’d be good at it and convinced her to join.

Sometimes peer pressure can be life-changing for the better.

Plainfield East’s Julia Romero won by fall at 3:27 over Edwards for third, and Bucholz won by a 14-2 major decision over Haywood for fifth.

170 – Riley Depolo, Lincoln-Way co-op

Depolo was the fifth Lincoln-Way co-op champion to also pin her opponent in the final, defeating Oswego’s Ashlynn Roberts by fall at 1:43 for the 170-pound title. 

“I just think it was discipline today,” Depolo said. “We worked really hard and like Zoe (Dempsey) said, each match is just like collecting stuff and trying different things so in the off-season we can work toward our goals.”

Depolo was part of a dominant performance from her team which sent wrestlers to the finals in all but five matches, going 5-4 in the finals.

“I’m just challenging myself through the match and just keeping up knowing that if I put in the hard work it’ll pay off,” she said. “I just try to continue doing different things.”

Lockport’s Myra Vicencio scored a 4-0 decision to defeat Homewood-Flossmoor’s Rachel Nugin for third, and Oak Lawn’s Nataly Romero earned a 9-2 decision over teammate Morgan Jacques, for fifth.

190 – Sophie Kelner, Lockport 

Kelner was able to pin East Aurora’s Jaylene Dealba at 5:29 to take home the 190 title.

It was Kelner’s fourth pin in the tournament as she also took down York’s Tiana Fraser (1:35), Lake Park’s Paige Washburn (3:16) and Waubonsie Valley’s Catherine Schultz (1:42). 

Plainfield East’s Jen Serna earned a 6-0 decision to defeat Homewood-Flossmoor’s Kendra Hayden to take third. Serna joined select company at her school, matching Julia Romero, who also placed third at 155 for the Bengals. Washburn took fifth, earning a 6-0 victory over Schultz.

235 – Henessis Villagrana, Romeoville

It took under three minutes for Villagrana to pin her first three opponents. That gave her plenty of time away from the mat to soak in the awareness aspect of the tournament.

“I learned that it is important to be self aware of the symptoms of mental health as well as being aware of the methods that help prevent further harm to oneself,” she said. “I really liked the hard work all my teammates put in for this tournament, everyone fought till the end and never gave up in their matches. All my teammates were very supportive to one another and showed great sportsmanship.”

Villagrana was one of 13 wrestlers from Romeoville to compete, but just one of two to place and its lone champion.

While Jordyn Williams placed sixth at 105 for the Spartans, Villagrana brought home the title at 235, pinning East Aurora’s Lilli Ortiz at 2:38.

“I was happy with how I wrestled, I believe like I controlled the mat well,” Villagrana said.  “Although I wish I did better with my finals match, I could’ve performed better and stayed more in neutral, but I felt good about my wrestling during the tournament.”

In the third-place match, Lake Park’s Ameinah Hill made quick work of Lincoln-Way co-op’s Alyssa Venegas, getting the pin in 23 seconds, and her teammate was ever faster in the fifth-place match, prevailing by forfeit over Rich Township’s Island Ross.

By Curt Herron – for the IWCOA

DEKALB – There was an interesting similarity between the first two Illinois Wrestling Coaches and Officials Association Girls State Dual Team Championship and several key differences.

The common theme between last year’s debut of the event and the second edition was that the Lincoln-Way District 210 co-op, featuring athletes from Lincoln-Way Central, Lincoln-Way East and Lincoln-Way West, once again beat Schaumburg for top honors in the 16-team tournament.

Nine other teams that were in the 2024 tournament also were back this year, Batavia, DeKalb, Edwardsville, Geneseo, Huntley, J. Sterling Morton, Lockport Township, Minooka and the District 230 co-op team, featuring individuals from Andrew, Carl Sandburg and Stagg.

This year’s newcomers were Glenbard East, Marist, Warren Township, Wheeling and the Springfield District 186 co-op, which features athletes from Springfield High, Lanphier and Southeast. The other five schools at the 2024 debut tournament were Hoffman Estates, Homewood-Flossmoor, Phoenix Military Academy, Rickover Naval Academy and West Aurora.

The tournament also had a new home after being at Hoffman Estates last year as DeKalb played host to the event in its fieldhouse which later in the week hosted one of the state’s top boys dual team competitions, the Flavin.

Edwardsville improved from fifth to third and Wheeling was able to finish fourth in its first appearance. Lockport Township was 14th last year and took fifth place while Minooka improved one spot from seventh to sixth. District 230 dropped from third place to seventh and J. Sterling Morton went from being 12th in 2024 to taking eighth place this season.

The consolation bracket, in order, included Geneseo, DeKalb, Batavia, Warren Township, Marist, Huntley, Glenbard East and Springfield co-op.

Coach Josh Napier’s Lincoln-Way team came into this matchup with coach Matt Gruszka’s Schaumburg squad with less experience since they had five individuals who competed in the finals dual meet last season compared to seven who had participated for the Saxons.

And while last season’s championship dual meet went right down to the wire with Lincoln-Way trailing 38-18 with four matches left and then rallying with a forfeit win, a major decision and pins in the last two matches to claim a 40-38 victory, there was no real drama this time around.

The teams exchanged pins before Lincoln-Way recorded five-straight pins to grab a 36-6 advantage and Schaumburg ended the run of falls with a pin to close to with 24 points but it would get no closer after that as Lincoln-Way went on to capture a 54-21 win over the Saxons to clinch its second-straight IWCOA Girls State Dual Team Championship.

  Posting perfect records for the Lincoln-Way Central/ East/ West (District 210) co-op team were Liv Clumpner (6-0 at 135), Zoe Dempsey (6-0 at 115/120), Riley DePolo (5-0 at 170/190), Abby Kunz (5-0 at 140), Emmy Hoselton (4-0 at 100/105), Grace Spangler (3-0 at 110/115), McKenzie Steinke (3-0 at 100) and Jalyssa Venegas (3-0 at 235).

Three others who were in five or more matches lost once, Kate Bohms (5-1 at 145/155), Aubrey Barnes (4-1 at 120/125) and Ella Giertuga (4-1 at 145/155) while Zoe Zerial (3-2 at 110/115) and Caleigh Nicholson (3-3 at 130) both had three wins. Others who helped the cause were Natalia Calleros (2-2 at 190), Dani Schedin (1-0 at 125), Paige Cronin (1-0 at 155), Georgia Erhardt (105), Abby Lizak (120), Gracie Hansen (125), Kaitlyn Erdakos (140) and Avery Holeman (170).

“Yeah, it felt pretty good to get ahead like that,” Napier said.”I think we were nervous about all of them, like always, naturally. In our pool play, we knew Wheeling was good. That was our closest dual of the day and they gave Schaumburg a good look in the semifinals. Lockport we have seen this year, so we kind of knew how we’d match up against them. I think the last two years we were worried about Edwardsville more than anybody and you know that was another tight one and then the Schaumburg rematch from last year, what else could you want, an opportunity to do it one more time. In the dual before that, we were on the fence about if we wanted to have Zoey to go 15 or 20, but we knew that we might not get back to her if we saved her for the end. And that’s how it kind of went in the last two duals. We were like, if we can start rolling with pins, the momentum shift is going to be there, and I don’t think they’re going to recover. 

“I think that a lot of people feel like we’re some kind of super team, right? We’re a co-op, we know that. But the reality is 90 percent of these girls started wrestling in high school, two or three years ago. There’s only two seniors and two juniors on this roster right now, and as starters, there’s only three upperclassmen. There are freshmen and sophomores, and most of them with not a lot of experience. We lost a lot of girls last year. We had a state qualifier not come back and lost a couple other girls. If you look at last year’s dual team, there’s eight of those girls walking around the Lincoln Way halls, not on this team. So people stepped up and got the job done and we’re really proud of it because we didn’t know how we were going to do this year watching this team fall apart in a way. We spent a lot of time in the summer and were in a hard preseason. We kind of knew where we’re going to be going into it because the girls that don’t really want to put in the work figure it out before we start on day one, and we keep the numbers manageable because of that. We don’t want 80-90 girls. We want a solid 30 girls.”

Leaders for the Saxons were Nadia Razzak (6-0 at 190), Isabella Rivas (6-0 at 125/130), Anna Villarreal (5-1 at 115), Lauren Brehmer (4-1 at 135), Makenzi Aguilar (4-2 at 100), Maja Brzosko (4-2 at 170), Olivia Furlan (4-2 at 235), Layla McHenry (4-2 at 155), Sharon Olorunfemi (4-2 at 135/140), Justice Girod (3-3 at 110) and Reagan Paulson (3-3 at 120). Catherine Franco (105), Elena Nikolova (125/130) and Emily Fowler (145) also each had two wins for Schaumburg.

“The IWCOA does such a good job in promoting all wrestling but especially the girls because I think this is a much better format for the girls right now than to let the IHSA take it because we have such a great representation of teams from across the state and it’s still based on success factor from the year before,” Gruszka said. “It’s just the coaches in the state, too. The coaches in the state have done such a good job with the girls wrestling. With the IKWF going now, a lot of these girls are coming in and they’re battle ready. It’s the evolution of the sport and it’s going to be like the boys eventually where it’s going to have that type of feel. 

“When you wrestle as a dual team, it’s so much different than a tournament, obviously. And I try to stress to the girls that you’re wrestling for each other. You’ve got to keep it close when you can and you’ve got to get pins when you can, and it’s fun to see that happen a little bit. I think we’ve lost some talent from last year, but it’s watching the newer girls step into a different role. And each week it’s like someone different doing it, so now I’m just hoping that I keep on seeing that all the way to the end. And at the end, hopefully we’ll be going full steam ahead.”

In the championship dual, Barnes (125) got a pin in 2:25 over Nikolova in the opener at 125 and Rivas (130) followed with a fall in 1:00 over Nicholson to create an early 6-6 tie. 

But that’s when Lincoln-Way took over for good as Clumpner won by fall in 3:53 over Brehmer at 135, Kunz followed with a pin in 1:25 over Olorunfemi at 140 and Bohms extended the lead to 24-6 when she won by fall in 0:53 over Fowler at 145. 

Giertuga continued the run with a pin in 2:55 over McHenry at 155 and DePolo concluded the stretch of five-straight falls with a pin in 1:33 over Brzosko at 170 to give the defending champions a 36-6 advantage midway through the meet.

“It definitely gave us confidence for the rest of the dual,” DePolo said of the five-straight pins. “We definitely just put a lot of work in, and we just had confidence throughout the whole day, and I think that was huge. Everyone’s just super nice. We work together super well. We’re very fluid. And we just work hard together. We bleed and we sweat together. And it just bonds us, we’re just super bonded. Everyone’s super nice and just can flow together good. We’re just super confident in ourselves and in our wrestling.”

Razzak was a winner by fall in 0:27 over Calleros at 190 to give the Saxons their second win but Venegas captured a 1-0 decision over Furlan at 235, Steinke followed with an 8-2 decision over Aguilar at 100 and Hoselton won by fall in 1:09 over Franco at 105 to boost the lead to 48-12 with three matches remaining.

“My sister (Alya) was actually in the first year of girls wrestling, and she’s the one who got me into this, and just seeing it grow so much and the opportunities grow so much to be able to compete at a team dual state, something like this, is really cool,” Razzak said. “I’m very grateful to be able to come out here and be on one of the best teams in the state and we’re able to see so many different types of competition at tournaments like this. Every year I say I’m so grateful for my team, but this year is one of my favorite teams. I’m a senior and I’m team captain, and I just know it’s just something so special. My best friends are on this team, and we are so close, and everybody is just so welcoming. We’re all there for each other and we all support each other, and we can tell each other when things are tough and what to do and things like that. I’m so grateful for my team.”

The Saxons won two of the last three matches as Girod got a pin in 0:19 over Zerial at 110, Lincoln-Way picked up its final win at 115 when Dempsey won by fall in 1:34 over Villarreal at 115 and Paulson captured a 5-0 decision over Lizak at 120 to conclude the meet. 

“They definitely had a big thing to do with it,” Steinke said of the run of pins. “It definitely helped in the last few matches, like my match, and the other matches were not as stressful. Yes, they are very tough teams, and we did very well, so it was very exciting. I’m so glad we were able to all come together and really put in the work just to secure the two-time state championships. That’s a great deal. (What she likes about her team) The friendship and the supportiveness. We’re all one big family. We all support each other.” 

The two-time tournament champions also had a much easier time of it in both the quarterfinals and semifinals after winning eight of 14 matches in both rounds a year ago. 

This time, they only lost one contested match to Lockport Township’s two-time defending IHSA champion and three-time finalist Claudia Heeney in a 63-18 win in the quarterfinals and then got victories in seven of the first 10 matches against Edwardsville in the semifinals to build a 42-15 lead with the final of 42-39 being the result of forfeits in the last four matches. 

Lincoln-Way also only lost seven contested matches in its three pool B dual meets, including one in a 60-24 win over DeKalb, only a 5-4 decision in a 71-9 triumph over Geneseo and the other five contested matches came in its 48-31 victory over Wheeling.

“I like a lot about how my teammates like to hype me up and they give me the confidence that I have and their confidence in them cheering me on on the sidelines definitely helps me a lot,” Venegas said. “Just get through my match. Even if I lose a match, I still have a lot of confidence. That I get from the team and they help me out. I love these girls.”

In the quarterfinals, Schaumburg lost five matches against Minooka in a 54-30 victory and then had a fight on its hands against Wheeling in the semifinals. The teams each had seven victories but the Saxons recorded six falls and a forfeit win while the Wildcats collected five pins and two decisions to advance to the dual team championship meet for the second-straight year. 

The Saxons easily won pool C with a 60-20 victory over Glenbard East, a 77-6 win over Springfield co-op and a 58-16 triumph over District 230 co-op. They only lost eight matches in their pool, with four of those coming against Glenbard East and three others to District 230.

“It’s absolutely so fun, I love our team,” Aguilar said. “Everyone’s so close with each other, and we’re all so good with each other and we push each other. So everybody has their matches, and  everybody’s watching. Nobody’s just randomly somewhere, we’re all paying attention to our teammates. It’s definitely so different than any other sport. It’s definitely challenging, but it’s so refreshing to actually get something. I think since we’re just so supportive of each other and loving. It just really helps and gets us together.”

The Illinois Wrestling Coaches and Officials Girls Dual Team Championships is just the latest exciting chapter in the forward-looking vision that the association has demonstrated ever since it was founded in 1971. Although officials have been an integral part of all sports that have taken place in Illinois at the high school and collegiate levels, only the IWCOA made the decision at its inception to join coaches and officials together as co-equals in their association.

Unlike many coaches associations who only honor coaches in their hall of fame, since its first hall of fame induction in 1972, the IWCOA has recognized not only coaches, but also athletes, officials, administrators, tournament workers and media members and a total of 673 men and women have been recognized for their contributions to the sport since that time.

The IWCOA will be hosting its 30th annual Freshman/Sophomore and Girls Championships on March 14-15 at Bank of Springfield Center. The Frosh/Soph Tournament has allowed young competitors the opportunity to gain valuable postseason experience and has also let many finish on a better note after seeing successful seasons conclude a bit short of the IHSA Finals.

In 2017, the association held its first Girls Championships that is run at the same time as the Freshman/Sophomore Championships and that tournament helped to lay the groundwork for an official Girls State Finals, which the Illinois High School Association conducted for the first time in 2022 on the same weekend as the Dual Team Finals in Bloomington.

And in 2021, the IWCOA held a three-day Boys Open Championship that gave individuals a chance to compete in a state finals competition in Springfield since they didn’t have the opportunity to take part in a regular season or IHSA state series in the 2020-2021 school year. 

Another key innovation by the IWCOA also happened in 2021, the introduction of reporting on different levels of the IWCOA’s tournament, which took place during June. In the following season, 2021-2022, weekly individual tournament coverage became a regular feature of the IWCOA website, as did the addition of roundups of other tournaments throughout Illinois. The website, iwcoa.net, is unique among Illinois coaching associations for its reporting on the sport.

Some of the other IWCOA highlights each year have been the Illinois vs. Indiana Classic Duals, the Midwest Nationals and Midwest National Preseason Opens, the annual coaching convention and the Ken Gerdes III Memorial Foundation golf tournament. 

And on April 19, a class of 15 will be inducted at this year’s Hall of Fame Banquet, which will be held at Double Tree by Hilton in Alsip. The IWCOA will also present Lifetime Service Awards, as well as association honors for Person, Board Member, Head Coach, Assistant Coach, Official, Administrator, Outstanding Wrestler, Scholastic Wrestler and Newsman of the Year awards. 

This year’s inductees will also be honored prior to that on Friday, February 20 at State Farm Center in Champaign before the start of the semifinals at the IHSA Individual Finals.  

Here’s a look at the other teams in the second IWCOA Girls State Dual Team Championship:

Championship bracket third place – Edwardsville 54, Wheeling 30

In the third-place dual meet that featured 13 pins and one forfeit, Edwardsville used two runs that each featured four-straight pins to claim a 54-30 victory over Wheeling. 

The Wildcats grabbed a 6-0 lead before the Tigers took control with four-consecutive falls to go up 24-6. Wheeling got pins in the next two matches to close to within 24-18, and after the sides traded pins, the Tigers collected four more pins in a row to finally wrap things up.

Top performers for the third-place Tigers, who went 5-1 and are coached by 2019 IWCOA Hall of Fame inductee Jon Wagner, were Maddy Allen (6-0 at 100), Victoria White (6-0 at 190), Adleigh Dewerff (5-0 at 110), Brooklyn Alldredge (5-1 at 125), Lydia Blind (5-1 at 140), Genevieve Dykstra (5-1 at 115), Olive Linhorst (5-1 at 130/135), Allie Chong (4-1 at 120),

Jaylynn Bierbrauer (4-2 at 145) and Emma Rogers (4-2 at 105). Also, Abigail Hayes (155), Geetanjali Janardhan (170), Angie Nunez (235) and Kennedy Downs (235) all had two wins.

“The top six teams were real real close,” Wagner said. “We’ve been talking about dealing with setbacks, and when something bad happened, they came back just as hard the next match and that’s hard to do in six matches in six hours. Not one of them blinked and they came back strong. “It’s just a credit to the IWCOA to put this together. It’s an-end of December tournament and there are 16 teams with like 20 girls apiece just out here getting after it and enjoying the sport. It’s maybe not all the pressure with the one-on-one, like in a tournament. They’re cheering on their teammates and really doing a little bit about what wrestling should be like. So it’s good to have both. We like the individual part, but it’s not like being here and them supporting you. 

“(Edwardsville’s success in the sport) There’s a lot that goes into it. You’ve got to find your magic potion. And a lot of it’s these girls feeling good about what they’re doing, stepping out of their box, being in a sport that’s very physical, very aggressive, but yet, you know, technical, and having them believe in themselves. So everyone’s magic potion is different, but right now we’ve got a bunch of girls that are believing in their teammates, and it’s really special.”

Leading the way for coach Tony Piltaver’s fourth-place Wildcats, who went 3-3, were Elise Burkut (6-0 at 125), Nikol Orendarchuk (6-0 at 155), Jasmine Rene (6-0 at 235), Haydee Cruz (5-1 at 105), Madeline Chicas (4-2 at 170), Mirna Rahmani (4-2 at 130), Mayali Suarez (4-2 at 120), Layah Woods (3-3 at 140/145) and Julitta Stolarczyk (3-3 at 190).

“We have a nice mix of experienced people and some young people, and it’s nice to see some of our experienced girls kind of pulling those girls along,” Piltaver said. “Kind of getting them ready for something like this, because, like, you look around, holy smokes, there are some good teams there. So just be in the top four, it’s pretty cool. It’s a cool experience for them to kind of keep in the program. Some of the girls that are newer haven’t gotten the results, maybe individually. But to see them just battle on the mat, save points, get points, with bonus points, just depends on what the roles and responsibilities are. And that’s what we talked about. Just like if you do your job, you know, you contribute to the team. And the camaraderie’s great. They hang out with each other. There’s little pockets here and there that have different interests that bring other kids in. So it’s always nice to see when you’ve got a team that gels well together.” 

In the third-place dual meet, Burkut (125) opened with a pin over Alldredge to give the Wildcats their lone lead before the Tigers received falls from Linhorst over Rahmani (130), Gretchen Taylor over Nicole Barahona (135) and Blind over Woods (140) and a forfeit win from Bierbrauer (145) to go up by 18 points.

The Wildcats answered with pins from Orendarchuk over Hayes (155) and Chicas over Janardhan (170) to close to within 24-18 and then it remained close as White pinned Stolarczyk (190) and Rene responded with a fall over Downs (235),

“I’m really proud of everybody,” White said. “The improvement from fifth place last year to third place this year is really incredible. Everybody, everybody works really, really hard. Everybody picks each other up. Just like a great environment. I just love seeing everybody get better and better because it just shows how girls wrestling is progressing. I love the competitiveness of it. Just going out there and knowing that it’s you and that other girl on the mat, and it’s whoever wants it more. Everybody’s really nice to each other. Everybody congratulates each other after their match.”

That’s when the Tigers had their second run of fourth-straight wins by fall with Allen over Victoria Pina Rodriguez (100), Rogers over Cruz (105), Dewerff over Ashley Rendon Montesinos (110) and Dykstra over Jocelyn Juarez Cruz (115) before Suarez (120) closed the meet with a pin over Samantha Suhre.

“I would say that it feels nice seeing a mixture of new girls and veterans from both last year and this year because you can see where we need to improve on and where we’re already good.” Burkut said. “And I think it’s just really nice how we all still support each other no matter where we are progress-wise. I mean, I’m out on the sides, I’m cheering for my teammates and I’m screaming myself hoarse. And I think the same could definitely be said for some of the other girls and I think it’s just cool how we have that sense of camaraderie. I mean, it’s interesting. If you really think about it and you wrestle long enough, you can see that the wrestling world is absolutely tiny compared to certain other sports. I’ve seen girls that I was on other teams with and I see coaches that I was on other teams with. 

“(Likes about her team) I think it’s definitely the spirit and just the support that we have for each other. I mean, we break it down on family because we’re basically like a second family thrown together. But we all get to know each other. We know how we function. We know where we need to improve. I tend to help my girls improve, too. So that definitely helps because I’m kind of more of a mentor at this point. On a good day, we have 22 girls, and we have two coaches, so it means that less people are left behind.” 

Edwardsville advanced to the semifinals with a 63-15 victory over the District 230 co-op in which it lost only two contested matches and Wheeling reached the semifinals with a 45-33 triumph over J. Sterling Morton.

The Tigers took first place in pool A after claiming wins of 61-15 over Huntley, 60-18 over Batavia and 57-21 over Minooka, who finished second while Huntley was third and Batavia took fourth place. 

Wheeling was the lone team that didn’t win its pool that advanced to the championship bracket semifinals. The Wildcats took second to Lincoln-Way co-op in pool B after edging Geneseo 42-41 on criteria and beating DeKalb 54-30 before falling 48-31 to Lincoln-Way co-op.

Championship bracket fifth place – Lockport Township 42, Minooka 40

The fifth-place dual meet score was somewhat misleading since Lockport Township took advantage of Minooka having to forfeit at five weights and that allowed it to claim a 42-40 victory. The Indians actually won more matches on the mat, recording six falls and winning a major decision while the Porters, who finished in 14th place last year in the competition, only had two victories that were pins.  

Top performers throughout the day for coach Amier Khamis’ fifth-place Porters, who went 4-2, were Claudia Heeney (6-0 at 140/145), Rebekah Ramirez (6-0 at 235), Sophie Kelner (5-0 at 190), Veronica Skibicki (4-1 at 120), Gianna Bogdan (4-2 at 100) and Alaina Churnovic (3-3 at 105) while Camila Mendoza (110), Bella Romando (115), Chloe Scalf (125), Kyleigh Green (130), Alexandra Hardesty (155) and Myra Vicencio (170) all had two victories.

“I think the best part about dual team state is that those girls that don’t get a chance to compete at the individual state tournament, they get to come out here and they get to fight for their team,” Khamis said. “So learning from my experiences and trying to just help these girls out, navigate through the dual team format and prepare for their own individual goals. It’s really all exciting, but I’m really happy that these girls got a chance to support one another and fight for one another today. It really was a team effort. If you look at the last two wins that we had, they were really close dual meets, and a lot of fighting off our back and a lot of putting people to their back and finishing the job, So I’m really happy that all these girls put all their effort in and I’m really excited looking forward to what we can build on in the second half of the season. I know these kids have been believing it the entire year that they are a top team and now I think that they’ve got some hardware to back it up and that confidence is going to skyrocket. 

“This is my first year as a head coach, and in boys wrestling and girls wrestling, Lockport High School is just good at wrestling all around, and I’m super excited to help build a program and help steer a program in the right direction. I feel like there’s been a lot of firsts for me and I’ve learned a lot of lessons so far. I’ve just got to give it up to the kids that I have that I’m able to coach and they provide me with a great opportunity. As much as I try to teach them, they teach me a lot every single day, and I learn more and more about the sport of wrestling every single day, and it’s a very exciting journey. We all grow together as a team, and I try to get them to know that every dual meet and tournament is a learning experience, and they’re taking that in full stride. So I’m really looking forward to what they can build on after this weekend.”

Leading the way for coach Paige Schoolman’s sixth-place Indians, who went 3-3, were Ezra Rodriguez (6-0 at 145), Sabina Charlebois (5-1 at 130), Addison Davis (5-1 at 170/190), Abigail Underhill (5-1 at 155/170), Marian Nordsell (4-1 at 110), Aubry Smith (4-2 at 115/120), Lexie Lakota (3-2 at 135), Anastasia Dewey (3-3 at 125) and Melody Williams (3-3 at 140).

“It’s great having all the best dual teams here in the state of Illinois and it’s great to see girls wrestling grow,” Schoolman said. “From the vision we kind of had, people have told us that there’s not enough girls to have a dual team state tournament. Coach (Matt) Gruszka and I said, ‘no, that’s not true, we can have this’. And it’s awesome for the IWCOA to step up and host this. And great big props to DeKalb for setting up a few days early for their Flavin and giving us a great environment to all be in the same room. It was awesome today. Great officials were here today and it was a good competition. We were down four girls today, so we were giving up 24 points at each dual. It makes it really tough to be competitive. I’m really happy with how the girls battle to get out of our pool against some good programs, like Huntley and Batavia.

“To come in and beat Morton to get into the trophy area. That’s good. I’m happy with it. Even this last match with Lockport, we won seven of the three matches that we wrestled and you can’t be upset with that. It was a nice day for the girls. I’ve got nine seniors on this team and some have been with us for two years and some have been with us for four years. It’s nice for them to have this, you know, to be able to have this experience. My big group of seniors that graduated two years ago, that was a really good group. We went out to Clash, and we wrestled really well there. They didn’t have this opportunity. We felt like we were one of the best teams in the state that year, and we never got the chance to show it. So it’s nice to be able to come here, put your toes on the mat, and see where you’re at against some of the best.”

After Lockport Township lost to Lincoln-Way co-op 63-18 and Minooka fell to Schaumburg 54-30  in opening meets in the championship bracket, the Porters responded with a 42-38 victory over District 230 co-op and the Indians won 48-33 over J. Sterling Morton.

The Porters were second in their pool but finished ahead of the team that won Pool D, J. Sterling Morton, which took eighth place. Lockport Township beat Warren Township 64-18 and Marist 54-30 after falling in its opener 47-30 to the Mustangs. 

The Indians were second to Edwardsville in pool A, winning 42-36 over Batavia and 42-27 over Huntley before falling to the Tigers 57-21.

Championship bracket seventh place – District 230 co-op 70, J. Morton Sterling 12

In the seventh-place match, District 230 co-op, the defending IHSA champions who have athletes representing Andrew, Carl Sandburg and Stagg, recorded nine pins and added a major decision as it rolled to a 70-12 victory over J. Sterling Morton.

Leading the way for coach Liz Short’s seventh-place District 230 team, which went 3-3, were Piper Booe (5-1 at 115), Isabella De La Vega (5-1 at 135), Tatum De La Vega (5-1 at 105), Jade Hardee (5-1 at 110), Talah Hamed (4-2 at 135/140), Brynnley Krauchun (4-2 at 120), Meghan Carabes (3-2 at 235) and Makayla Miller (3-3 at 125). Reese Kruen (100), Hala Salem (130), Anastacia Dvorak (130), Busola Dinan (155), Gabbi Vasquez (170) and Aliyah Mendoza (190) all added two wins.

Top performers for coach Fernando Arratia’s eighth-place Mustangs, who went 2-4, were Anali Wilson (5-0 at 170), Andaira Marron (4-0 at 100), Victoria Vargas (4-1 at 115/120), Karla Munoz (3-1 at 110/115), Rhysel Anum (4-2 at 145) and Jordan Rodriguez (4-2 at 105/110). Collecting two victories were Sophia Almaraz (105), Fatima Martinez (125/130), Liliana Ionescu (135) and Genessi Ceballos (155).

District 230 defeated Springfield co-op 75-6 and Glenbard East 60-21 before losing to Schaumburg 58-16 to go 2-1 in pool C. After falling to Edwardsville 63-15 in the opening round of the championship bracket, it fell 42-38 to Lockport Township before ending with a win.

J. Sterling Morton won pool D with a 2-1 record but got first since it beat the other 2-1 team, Lockport Township, by a 47-30 score. It later defeated Marist 48-34 but then fell 45-33 to Warren Township.  After losing 45-33 to Wheeling in the championship bracket quarterfinals, it fell 48-33 to Minooka to send it into the seventh-place meet.

Consolation bracket first place – Geneseo 54, DeKalb 29

Geneseo defeated DeKalb 48-36 when the two teams met to determine which one would place third and which would claim fourth in pool B. They met again in the first-place match of the consolation bracket and the Maple Leafs once again prevailed, this time by a 54-29 margin. 

Top performers on the day for the Maple Leafs, who went 4-2, were Lauren Piquard (6-0 at 155/170), Addison Hadsall (5-1 at 100/105), Lydia King (5-1 at 120), Annibelle Juarez (4-2 at 140), Anabella Kelley (4-2 at 145), Ayla Schultz (4-2 at 125), Tylaiha Medina (3-2 at 100/105), Anna Davis (3-3 at 130), Brenna Dykstra (3-3 at 155/170) and Giana Wurslin (3-3 at 105/110).

Leading the way for the Barbs, who went 2-4, were Alex Gregorio-Perez (6-0 at 105/110), Larisza Gomez Guevara (6-0 at 110/115), Aarianna Bloyd (5-1 at 235), Kara Zimmerman (5-1 at 135), Fatima Ezzaitouni (3-3 at 190), Genna Vargas-Tavera (3-3 at 140/145) and Jade Weiss (3-3 at 100).

Consolation bracket third place – Batavia 43, Warren Township 42 (criteria)

In a very peculiar twist, Warren Township lost consecutive dual meets by 43-42 scores that were both determined by criteria with the tiebreakers being least forfeits allowed and each time it lost on that count by a 4-2 margin. After falling in that fashion to Geneseo in the consolation semifinals, Batavia defeated the Blue Devils in the exact same way for third place.

The Bulldogs took fourth place in pool A and the Blue Devils were fourth in pool D but they beat third-place teams from their pools in the consolation round quarterfinals as Batavia won 48-32 over Glenbard East and Warren Township claimed a 48-30 victory over Huntley. Batavia fell 45-36 to DeKalb in the other consolation semifinal before winning its final dual meet.

Top performers for Batavia, who went 2-4, were Audrey Sheldon (5-0 at 155/170), Natalie Lenart (5-1 at 125/130), Lily Enos (3-1 at 100/105), Jamie Gabriel (4-2 at 190), Norah Stoodley (4-2 at 135/140), Kinzer Mikesell (3-2 at 170), Rhyan Marcellis (3-3 at 100/105) and Sarah Zuziak (3-3 at 125/130).

Leading the way for Warren Township, who also went 2-4, were Tyanna Jackson (6-0 at 140), Aaliyah Vazquez (6-0 at 115), Ellery Brown (5-1 at 145), Jane Kelly (4-2 at 135), Madison Kozlowski (4-2 at 190), Kylie Motley (4-2 at 235), Hanna Bairstow (3-3 at 170) and Naleah Parham (3-3 at 120).

Consolation bracket fifth place – Marist 39, Huntley 36

Marist bounced back from going 1-2 in pool D to finish 3-3 after capturing a 39-36 victory in the consolation bracket fifth-place match over Huntley, denying it from turning in a 3-3 showing after also going 1-2 in pool A. Marist prevailed 7-6 in matches and there also was a double forfeit.

Top performers for the Redhawks were Ava Enright (6-0 at 120/125), Samantha Fontaine (6-0 at 155), Izzy Locascio (6-0 at 135/140), Sarah Parker (5-1 at 170/190), Samantha Durbin (4-2 at 125/130), Stella Harris (4-2 at 130/135), Abby Parker (4-2 at 235) and Shae Halleran (3-3 at 100).

Leading the way for the Hawks were Grecia Garcia (6-0 at 135), Aubrie Rohrbacher (6-0 at 130), Janiah Slaughter (5-0 at 105), Haelynn Lettieri (4-2 at 110), Isabelle Singer (4-2 at 120), Lilliana Castanon (3-3 at 145) and Donna Garcia (3-3 at 115).

Consolation bracket seventh place – Glenbard East 37, Springfield (District 186) co-op 36

Glenbard East and the Springfield District 186 co-op of athletes from Springfield High, Lanphier and Southeast, met twice in the first time that both took part in the dual team championships, and on each occasion, not only did the teams tie at 36-36, but also the Rams were awarded with an extra point due to criteria to claim their two victories.

Leading the way for the Rams, who went 2-4, were Camila Gonzalez (6-0 at 145/155), Nadiia Shymkiv (6-0 at 110), Karla Sarabia (4-1 at 100/105), Mylee Janisch (3-1 at 100), Elizabeth Moreno (4-2 at 125) and Marianna Mendoza (3-2 at 235). 

Top performers for Springfield co-op were Vanessa Kelley (5-1 at 190), Phoenix Criss (4-2 at 105), Kimoreyee Ballard (3-3 at 140), Alliyah Powell (3-3 at 130), Taylor Rossi-Laws (3-3 at 115) and Makenna Smith (3-3 at 170).

Statistics of interest

Fourteen individuals led the way in collecting the most team points with 36. They were Lincoln-Way co-op’s Liv Clumpner and Zoe Dempsey, Edwardsville’s Maddy Allen and Victoria White, Lockport Township’s Claudia Heeney and Rebekah Ramirez, Warren Township’s Tyanna Jackson and Aaliyah Vazquez, Marist’s Ava Enright and Izzy Locascio, DeKalb’s Larisza Gomez Guevara, Glenbard East’s Camila Gonzalez, Schaumburg’s Nadia Razzak and Minooka’s Ezra Rodriguez.

Glenbard East’s Karla Sarabia was the lone competitor to claim two wins by technical fall while four individuals recorded six falls, Lincoln-Way co-op’s Liv Clumpner and Zoe Dempsey, DeKalb’s Larisza Gomez Guevara and Warren Township’s Aaliyah Vazquez. Huntley’s Isabelle Singer had the most total match points with 60, while Wheeling’s Elise Burkut was second with 56 and Glenbard East’s Nadiia Shymkiv ranked third with 52 points.

Lincoln-Way co-op edged Edwardsville for the most team points by a 338-334 margin while Schaumburg ranked third with 312 team points. The champion team also easily had the most total match points with 313 while Edwardsville was second with 266 and Minooka third with 242.

Lincoln-Way co-op also recorded the most pins with 47 while Edwardsville was second with 39 and Schaumburg ranked third with 37. And Glenbard East was the only team that had three wins by technical fall while no other team had more than one. 

Championship meet at the IWCOA Girls State Dual Team Championship

Lincoln-Way co-op 54, Schaumburg 21 

125 – Aubrey Barnes (L) over Elena Nikolova (S), F 2:25

130 – Isabella Rivas (S) over Caleigh Nicholson (L), F 1:00

135 – Liv Clumpner (L) over Lauren Brehmer (S), F 3:53

140 – Abby Kunz (L) over Sharon Olorunfemi (S), F 1:25

145 – Kate Bohms (L) over Emily Fowler (S), F 0:53

155 – Ella Giertuga (L) over Layla McHenry (S), F 2:55

170 – Riley DePolo (L) over Maja Brzosko (S), F 1:33

190 – Nadia Razzak (S) over Natalia Calleros (L), F 0:27

235 – Jalyssa Venegas (L) over Olivia Furlan (S), D 1-0

100 – McKenzie Steinke (L) over Makenzi Aguilar (S), D 8-2

105 – Emmy Hoselton (L) over Catherine Franco (S), F 1:09

110 – Justice Girod (S) over Zoe Zerial (L), F 0:19

115 – Zoe Dempsey (L) over Anna Villarreal (S), F 1:34

120 – Reagan Paulson (S) over Abby Lizak (L), D 5-0

Third-place meet at the IWCOA Girls State Dual Team Championship 

Edwardsville 54, Wheeling 30

125 – Elise Burkut (W) over Brooklyn Alldredge (E), F 1:36

130 – Olive Linhorst (E) over Mirna Rahmani (W), F 1:03

135 – Gretchen Taylor (E) over Nicole Barahona (W), F 2:47

140 – Lydia Blind (E) over Layah Woods (W), F 1:22

145 – Jaylynn Bierbrauer (E) received forfeit, FFT

155 – Nikol Orendarchuk (W) over Abigail Hayes (E), F 0:36

170 – Madeline Chicas (W) over Geetanjali Janardhan (E), F 3:13

190 – Victoria White (E) over Julitta Stolarczyk (W), 0:44

235 – Jasmine Rene (W) over Kennedy Downs (E), F 0:16

100 – Maddy Allen (E) over Victoria Pina Rodriguez (W), F 4:37

105 – Emma Rogers (E) over Haydee Cruz (W), F 1:31

110 – Adleigh Dewerff (E) over Ashley Rendon Montesinos (W), F 0:28

115 – Genevieve Dykstra (E) over Jocelyn Juarez Cruz (W), F 0:51

120 – Mayali Suarez (W) over Samantha Suhre (E), F 0:32

By Mike Garofola for the IWCOA

When piecing together the first-ever Libertyville Invite, the Hall-of-Fame head coach of the Wildcats wanted to make sure he put together a diverse field that would furnish those on hand quality all throughout the weight divisions, while giving wrestling fans plenty of state-ranked men to have a good look at.

Libertyville coach Dale Eggert would achieve his goal – in fact, inviting three top 15 class 2A clubs would prove to be exactly what he had hoped for, with No. 5 Mahomet-Seymour, No. 7 Deerfield and No. 14 Wheeling relentless in their quest to lift the championship trophy at day’s end.

When it was all over, it would be Rob Ledin’s men from Mahomet-Seymour who took home the silverware over Deerfield and Wheeling.

“I obviously was very happy with the performance of our team,” Ledin said. “We’ve had a grueling stretch in our schedule, so to put eight into the finals with a field like this one was very special.”

That stretch Ledin spoke of would begin with a two-day tournament at Mascoutah on December 19, followed by the Bulldogs Christmas Multi-Quad duals at home, before heading north to the Mid-States in Whitewater, Wisconsin on the 23rd of December.

The Bulldogs, who were involved in a see-saw affair with Deerfield and Wheeling for most of the day, would weather an early storm from Deerfield, which was off to a blistering start in the final session of this tournament, capturing four of the first five individual titles.

However, from there the tide would slowly turn in favor of the eventual champs, who at one time were even with the Warriors at 180 points apiece, with Wheeling within striking distance at 170.5 points.

Championship efforts from two of its upper weight stars, Talon Decker (165) and Marco Casillas (190), would ultimately allow Mahomet-Seymour to hold off Deerfield. The Bulldogs finished with 194.0 overall points, 14 more than the Warriors and 23.5 better than Wheeling.

Naperville North (158.0), which matched Mahomet-Seymour with 13 pins on the day, finished fourth, with Maine South fifth with 124.0 points.

Wheeling had a tourney-best seven tech-falls, and the most total match points (387) with Austin Brown recording the most total match points with 88.

“We are a very young team with just one senior, with 29 freshmen and sophomores, so we’ll have some decisions to make at a couple of the weight classes,” began Ledin.

“We’ve been getting the feet wet of our younger guys, but now we will make some moves to put those kids into our starting lineup as the postseason is approaching.”

FINAL TEAM STANDINGS:

Mahomet-Seymour 194.0, Deerfield 180.0, Wheeling 170.5, Naperville North 158.0, Maine South 124.0, Libertyville 123.5, Johnsburg 120.5, Schaumburg 112.0, DePaul College Prep 89.0, Lake Park 86.5, Vernon Hills 76.0, Cary-Grove 73.0, Round Lake 30.0

Individual champions

106- Jake Pechter (Deerfield)

In this, his rookie season, Jake Pechter has quickly become a key figure for Deerfield, and the perfect ‘lead-off’ man in a young Warriors lineup that would feature two freshmen and three sophomores.

Pechter would win his second straight major following his well played 8-2 decision over Myles Hartzler (16-14) from Mahomet-Seymour in a contest that saw Pechter (25-2) take an early lead with a take-down en route to an 8-2 victory.

“An early take-down really helps set the tone for any match, and it really helps the  confidence against your opponents,” opined Pechter, after earning his second tournament trophy of the season thus far.

“I felt pretty confident I could turn him as the match went on, but in the end, it was being strong when I was on bottom to start the third period,” added Pechter, No. 5 in the state, whose reversal improved his advantage to 8-2 late in this contest.

Tommy Katz (Wheeling) was third, Anand Verma (Libertyville) fourth, and Naperville North sophomore Quinn Karstens fifth.

113- Jayme Cohen (Deerfield)

It would be another talented freshman from Deerfield who would come through with a second straight title run when Jayme Cohen overcame a fast start from Charles Dominguez (Vernon Hills, 16-7) to garner a hard fought 6-4 decision.

“It was important for me to stay composed after that takedown I gave up. It’s all about the progress and process in order to win matches like these,” said Cohen, now 19-5 on the season.

Cohen would get himself back within one at 3-2 with a late first-period reversal, then draw back level at 3-3 with an easy escape to begin the second period.

No. 7-rated Cohen took the lead for good at 6-3 three minutes with a nicely-executed takedown, but after Dominguez escaped near the edge, the Cougars sophomore required medical attention that led to a long delay.

Dominguez, who recently finished second at Harvard, and would defeat top seed Frankie Katz (Wheeling) in his semifinal, began the third period down and Cohen rode him out for the title.

“My defense in this match was good, and I knew I could ride him hard for most of the third period,” said Cohen.

No. 10 Frankie Katz claimed third place over Adam Beedon (Naperville North) after his 8-4 decision, and Kai Surdick (Johnsburg) was fifth.

120- Chase Vogel (Johnsburg)

No. 6 in 1A Chase Vogel continued his terrific sophomore campaign with his first major title, following his 4-0 defensive masterpiece victory over Jorey Becker (21-7) from Deerfield.

The 2025 state qualifier rode Becker out for the entire two minutes in the second period, before an escape to begin the third period preceded a take-down near the edge with one minute remaining that ensured his title.

“When I look back to last year, I knew I could be a lot better in many parts of my game, and this year my confidence on my feet and with fakes is so much better than last year,” admitted Vogel, who was the No. 1 seed here.

Vogel, 35-9 a year ago, finished second at regionals and sectionals to eventual state runner-up Austin Hagevold (Marian Central Catholic) who is a two-time state medal winner, and currently No. 2 (class 2A) in the most recent state poll.

“After getting downstate last year, my expectations for this year are to get on the podium in Champaign,” added Vogel.

Lake Park sophomore Liam Lovelace (16-5) used a tech-fall victory over Connor Marschek (DePaul College Prep) to earn third place honors, while Christian Giron from Wheeling claimed fifth place overall.

126- Danny Martinez (Deerfield)

Danny Martinez made his way to the top of the podium by defeating DePaul’s second-seeded Colin Bosak in his semifinal, then No. 3 seed Tyler Wuh (Libertyville, 18-8) to grab his first major title of the season.

Bosak (18-4) came back from a 6-0 defeat to Martinez to defeat David Perez (Wheeling) for third place, while Archer Biag (Naperville North) earned a fifth place medal.

“My defense is way better than last year, and so is my shot selection. With better defense and more in my attack, I feel like I can trust those two parts of my game much more than I did last year,” said Martinez.

The Warriors’ junior took the lead with a first-period takedown 90 seconds into this contest, conceded an escape to Wuh, then regained his three-point advantage a 4-1 with an escape of his own at the very beginning of the second period.

“I know we both wanted that first takedown, so I knew how important it would be for me to get it first,” admitted Martinez.

Wuh would defend an ankle pick near the edge later on in the second period, but the Libertyville junior was unable to defend another attempt from Martinez (24-7) on the other side of the mat to push the lead to 7-1.

A late take-down from Wuh would make it a 7-4 final result.

132- Adrian Cohen (Deerfield)

No. 3 Deerfield junior Adrian Cohen would win his fourth major title of the season following his pin of Gideon Hayter (22-8) in a top-heavy 132-pound weight division.

Cohen, now 26-1, would earn serious consideration for outstanding wrestler honors at tourney’s end.

A state qualifier with 42 victories last year, Cohen was part of a terrific 132-pound weight class with four state-ranked men as part of the top four seeds, including his opponent in the final, No. 7 Hayter from Mahomet-Seymour.

Before these two would meet, Cohen had to get past the veteran from Maine South, Brett Harman (20-4) who will be one of the top seeds at the Conant sectional come February.

In a wide-open affair, Cohen would catch and pass Harman with a late takedown near the edge in the second period on his way to a 14-9 triumph.

Hayter would have his hands full with Naperville North’s Michael Arredondo, who was 2-6 a year ago, and has come back with a superb senior year thus far, now 20-4 after this weekend.

In another thrilling semifinal bout, Hayter would hold off Arredondo in a wild back-and-forth third period to advance with an 11-10 victory.

The final would provide little drama as it would be all Adrian Cohen, who would score at will, including a near-fall at the whistle to end the second period in the lead at 10-1.

“I felt good all day here in all of my matches – maybe just a little panic along the way but always composed,” said Cohen.

Harman would earn a third place medal with his pin of Arredondo with Chase Davis (Johnsburg) fifth overall.

138- Aiden Quevedo (Schaumburg)

After missing some time due to illness, and being away with his family, Aiden Quevado has returned with the wind fully in his sails, sending the Schaumburg junior to a well-deserved 138-pound title, his first of the year.

“I began at the Conant sectional last year with a fall, then lost my next match, before being eliminated in a sudden death blood-round loss, so during the offseason I worked so hard at Team Elite, and in the room with coach Mike Levanti because I don’t want my season to end like it did last year,” said Quevedo.

Quevado and his older brother AJ were key figures in the Saxons third consecutive regional title last year, and eventual first=ever 3A dual-team state appearance.

The Quevedo brothers were two of five champions at the Lake Park regional.

Quevedo (8-4) who began the tournament as the No. 4 seed, opened with a tech-fall, followed by a pin, and another tech-fall to send him into the final where he recorded a 14-2 major decision victory over Emmett Mazukelli (17-7) from Maine South.

Anthony Vargas (Lake Park) was third, Jack Jansen (Deerfield) fourth, and Jacob Turner (26-4) from Cary-Grove fifth.

144- Nicholas Merola (Lake Park)

If you talk to Nicholas Merola (17-1) after one of his three tournament championships earned, the Lake Park senior is rarely satisfied with the trophies he has claimed.

“I can always be better. There are parts of my game that just need to be better if I hope to get onto the podium and challenge for a state title,” admitted Merola just moments after his pin of Justus Vrona (Mahomet-Seymour, 21-7) at 2:43.

“It is important that I set the bar high for myself in order to challenge myself, and to attack, continue to score points throughout my matches, and always wrestle above my opponent, regardless of their ability and talent,” opined Merola, now with with silverware obtained at the Rex Lewis, and most recently the Erb tournament.

Deerfield sophomore Ben Howard was third, Ignacio Santander (Cary-Grove) fourth, and Schaumburg junior Brody Hinkle fifth.

150- Garrett Waisath (Mahomet-Seymour)

Garrett Waisath (23-7) would jump-start a strong Mahomet-Seymour upper-weight group to help the Bulldogs finally put both Deerfield and Wheeling in its rear view mirror, and on its way to the team title.

The Bulldogs junior would be the first of three individual champions for coach Rob Ledin’s club, and one of five who would earn second-place medals to give the eventual champions all they would need before lifting the big trophy.

“Waisath, along with Myles Hartzler, Weston Neutz, and Chris Dill broke the seal of previous placing finishes to make it to their first final of the season,” said Ledin.

“We are very lucky to be in a great room, and for those of us at the upper weighs, the hard work, focus and intensity between all of us when we are training is what helps all of us when we go out and compete,” said Waisath, now 23-7 after his tense 2-1 decision over Kai Balice (18-6) from Naperville North.

“That was not an easy match at all, I felt my defense had to be at its best because it was that type of match,” admitted Waisath.

Prior to this final, the Bulldogs were even with Deerfield, with each having 180.0 points, followed close by Wheeling at 170.5.

Tanner Jansen (Johnsburg) was third after his tech-fall victory over Levi Ardente (Cary-Grove) while Austin Berger from Wheeling was fifth.

157- Caden Ljubenko (Maine South)

Caden Ljubenko is taking all of his success during the first half of the season in stride – flying under the radar is exactly how the affable Maine South senior wants it to be from here on out.

“That’s how I want it to be for me, just lying in the weeds, barely inside the Top 10 – kind of an unknown guy until the post season begins,” said Ljubenko with a wry smile after his day of dominating the 157-pound weight class came to an end.

The No. 9-rated man in the state roared into the final after a quick 22-second pin to open his day, followed by a major decision victory to set up a match against top seed Weston Neutz from Mahomet-Seymour.

“I spend a lot of extra time working during the offseason on improving on my feet, my quickness, pace, neutral – so I feel like I’ll be ready to put together a strong late-season run,” continued Ljubenko, who would like nothing more to match the post-season heroics of former Hawks star, and 2024 state champion Teddy Flores.

Ljubenko (17-3) who plans on pursuing a degree in exercise science, and later a career in kinesiology, used a late near-fall in the second period to open up an insurmountable 10-0 advantage.

Narciso Gonzalez (Round Lake) was third, Leonardo Zavala (Cary-Grove) was fourth, and Johnsburg senior Kainoa Ancog fifth.

165- Talon Decker (Mahomet-Seymour)

No. 9 (class 2A) Talon Decker claimed his team-high fourth major title of the season with his hard fought, well deserved 10-5 decision over Vernon Hills junior Jacob Becker, who was in search of his third championship trophy of the season.

“I watched a little bit of his (Becker) semifinal that he won with a tech-fall, and he looked long and strong – so I knew I had to be smart, defend well, finish my shots, and score when I had the opportunity to do so,” said Decker, now 18-2.

After a scoreless first period, Decker took a 4-3 lead into the third period where he would start down.

An easy out for an escape would eventually become an 8-3 advantage, then 8-5 when Becker executed a reversal.

The Bulldogs junior, who was the top seed in this weight class, doubled his advantage to 10-5 where it would end.

“I’ve got two great partners in the room: Weston Neutz our 57-pounder, and Justus Vrona, who was our 44-pounder offers the perfect guy to train with because he is so quick,” said Decker, who was a state qualifier last season with a record of 38-15.

Wheeling senior Nicholas Montesinos won by decision over MSL rival Daniel Duran from Schaumburg in the third place match, with Jonathan Weissmueller from Deerfield fifth.

175- Ethan Trowbridge (Libertyville)

Ethan Trowbridge gave the home side fans plenty to celebrate when the Libertyville senior claimed the 175-pound title before an appreciative audience that watched him climb atop the podium to accept his first championship trophy of the season.

“It feels great to win here at home, and for it to be my first ever varsity title of my career,” said Trowbridge, whose remarkable 180 from a year ago has not gone unnoticed by head coach Dale Eggert.

“(Ethan) has been really solid this season, but I am not surprised because his work ethic has been terrific, as has the extra work he’s put in since the end of last season,” says Eggert.

Trowbridge, now 16-7 after his 4-0 victory over Christopher Dill (Mahomet-Seymour) was 24-20 a year ago – prompting the affable two-year starter to fine tune several parts of his game.

“Improving my fitness was important, being able to go hard for six minutes was something that I worked a lot on, plus I focused a lot on improving my fireman’s carry, Russian, tilts and fakes in order to make my attack more dangerous,” said Trowbridge.

It would be a reversal off the whistle to begin the second period that would be enough for Trowbridge to go on to victory – adding another two-point reversal 90 seconds from time to close out Dill for good.

Marty Greif from Maine South was third, Drew Sendre (DePaul College Prep) fourth, and David Hurrie (Naperville North) fifth overall.

190- Marco Casillas (Mahomet-Seymour)

Another brilliant effort from Mahomet-Seymour sophomore Marco Casillas (23-2) would send the Bulldogs star atop the podium for the third time this season, and net the No. 4 man at 190 his second outstanding wrestler award of the campaign as well.

“It all starts in the room where we have a great coaching staff, and, for me, great partners to train with – and this year, compared to last season, I feel more positive about the direction I am headed, knowing each day I go into the room, I will be better coming out,” said Casillas, who won at Mascoutah, and won the OWA at the E-Rab Giardini in Rockford in early December.

Casillas pinned his way to his 190-pound crown, needing just under 5 1/2 minutes to do so in his three matches, including his final contest against James Scanio (Libertyville, 18-5) who beat the No. 2 seed, Duke Mays (Johnsburg, 20-4) with a pin in his semifinal.

Casillas, third a year ago at state, set a program record 54 wins a year ago, dropping his lone match of the year against eventual state champion Brody Kelly (8-2) in his state semifinal.

A pair of major decision consolation victories would give him his well deserved top three state finish.

No. 7 (class 1A) Duke Mays (Johnsburg) pinned Astan Lokhov (Wheeling) for third place, while JT Hill from Naperville North did the same to earn fifth place.

215- Tavfik Ibragimov (Naperville North) 

A superb three-match performance from Tarvik Ibragimov would send the Naperville North senior on his way to claim his second major title of the season and help solidify his spot at the No. 4 spot in his weight class.

“I know I have some very good guys in front of me in the state polls, but it’s not something that I give much thought to, because, if you remember, Charles Walker went into the state tournament, was No. 3 or 4 and went on to win a state title,” said Ibragimov.

Ibragimov was referencing the stunning three-day tournament that the aforementioned Walker put together as he went through the 215-pound favorites, including No. 1 Kai Calcutt to it all.

“I put a lot of extra time in during the summer, and I’ve continued to work hard – just going out and putting together a solid effort, being smart, and trying to stay healthy for the postseason,” continued Ibragimov, who will do a pre-dental course in college with an eye on becoming an oral surgeon.

After opening his tournament with a pin, Ibragimov (24-0) bagged back-to-back tech-falls, including his 15-0 (3:44) effort over Eddie Juarez (19-4) from Wheeling.

Jackson Hjorth (Johnsburg) was third, Antonin Svaboda (Lake Park) fourth, and Aaron Alvarez from Johnsburg fifth.

285- Hunter Wahtola (DePaul College Prep)

The target of being the No. 2 man in the class 2A heavyweight division bestowed upon Hunter Wahtola does not faze the DePaul College Prep senior, who is looking to stay sharp and ready for what lies ahead come February.

The two-sport star (football) won his fourth tournament title of the season following his hard fought 8-4 victory over No. 8 Pablo Morales (15-3) from Wheeling.

“I like that as a class 2A team that we come to tournaments that offer big-school opponents and competition for all of us. It’s a great chance for all of us to see where we are at as we head into the second half of the season,” said Wahtola, now 22-1, with his lone defeat of the year coming at the hands of Loyola Academy star Kai Calcutt, who is No. 1 in the state at 215-pounds.

The Rams junior, who stands 6-3, 235 pounds, was named the Chicago Catholic League Purple Division defensive player of the year for his work along the defensive line, while also adding quality play at the fullback position.

On his way to his second straight state appearance downstate last season, Wahtola would defeat current No. 3 heavyweight, Anthony Sebastian (IC-Catholic) at regionals, sectionals, and later for third place to end his sophomore campaign with a 36-11 overall record.

Christofer Arciniega-Sanchez (Schaumburg) was third, Jake Johnson (Naperville North) fourth, and Aleks Nikolich from Libertyville fifth.

By Gary Larsen

WWS ED EWOLDT WRESTLING TOURNAMENT

Lyons Township brought home the crown in the 17-team Ewoldt tournament, edging host Wheaton Warrenville South 213.5-202 for the top honors. Oswego placed third with 131 points, while United Township’s 108 points were fourth followed by fifth-place York’s 107.5. 

Griff Powell earned the Lions’ lone first place medal, winning at the 138 weight class. The Lions had top-four finishes in seven other weight classes to pull away for the team title. 

“The team wrestled well on Saturday,” Lyons coach Griff Powell said. “It was a true team effort to win the tournament. With only 3 finalists, and 1 champion, we scored a lot of points on the backside of the bracket. We placed 13 wrestlers in the top 5, and got a lot of bonus points.”

1st: Lyons Township 213.5

In addition to Powell’s top finish, the Lions captured second-place finishes from Luca Ligammari (106) and Luke Wilhelm (190). Third-place results came from Ignacio Rodriguez (113), Joey Rossi (120) and Daniel Koziol (150), while Louie King (144) brought in a fourth-place finish for the Lions. 

“Griff Powell led the charge with a tournament championship at 138 lbs, and was voted the Outstanding Wrestler of the Tournament,” the elder Powell said. “We are looking forward to the next phase of the season, and getting ready for the state series.”

2nd: Wheaton Warrenville South 202

The Tigers got individual titles from Rocco Valvano (106) and Noah Nau (157), seconds from Jack Bashore (113), Michael Riggs (132), and Joey Sirmon (144), a third from Foster Yarbrough (215) and fourths from Troy Lomeli (120) and Daithan Narayanan (150).

3rd: Oswego 131

Dillon Griffin paced the Panthers with a win at the 144 weight class, while Nolan O’Grady (120) and Aiden Ortiz (138) both placed second in their classes. 

Final team scores: 

Lyons Township 213.5, Wheaton Warrenville South 202, Oswego 131, United Township 108, York 107.5, Evanston 102, Willowbrook 92, Prairie Ridge 87.5, Glenbard South 86, Ottawa  71, Plainfield East 69.5, West Chicago  67.5, Waubonsie Valley 64.5, Thornton Fractional South 45, Larkin 39, Harvest Christian 35.5, Hoffman Estates  12

Additional champions:
113 Mayson Munson (Ottawa); 120 Aris Neal (Willowbrook); 126 Emanuel Rangel (West Chicago); 132 Brennan O’Donnell (Harvest Christian); 150 Camden McCloskey (Plainfield East); 165 Jackson Hanselman (York); 175 Aiden Rodriguez (Prairie Ridge); 190 Wes Weatherford (Ottawa); 215 Brooks Tyler (Evanston); 285 Jeremy Marshall (Evanston)

Statistics: 

Lyons Township posted the most pins in the least time with 20 in 59:01, while Wheaton Warrenville South had the most tech falls in the least time with six in 19:48. In addition, the Lions scored the most total match points with 412.  

Individually, Lyons’ Will Anderson had the most pins in the least time with four in 12:14. Anderson was also part of a four-way tie for fastest fall of 0 seconds along with Dillon Griffin (Oswego), Christos Danigeles (York) and Mike McNamara (York).

Oswego’s Griffin also had a tournament-high 30 team points, while Cornell Fennessee (Lyons) led with 64 total match points. Korvyn Nieves (Willowbrook) and Nico Castillo (Larkin) provided the largest seed-place differences. Nieves placed sixth at 175 after starting as a 12-seed, while Castillo was a 13-seed and placed seventh at 144.

Championship match results:

106: Rocco Valvano (WW South) TF 1:00 Luca Ligammari (Lyons) 

113: Mayson Munson (Ottawa) F 0:38 Jack Bashore (WW South) 

120: Aris Neal ((Willowbrook) MD 9-1 Nolan O’Grady (Oswego)

126: Emanuel Rangel (West Chicago) TF 5:02 Sal Garcia (Larkin)

132: Brennan O’Donnell (Harvest Christian) MD 12-2 Michael Riggs (WW South)

138: Griff Powell (Lyons) MD 20-7 Aiden Ortiz (Oswego) 

144: Dillon Griffin (Oswego) F 2:26 Joey Sirmon (WW South) 

150: Camden McCloskey (Plainfield East) F 5:13 Jin Tai (Glenbard South) 

157: Noah Nau (WW South) D 8-3 Cesar Munoz (West Chicago) 

165: Jackson Hanselman (York) MD 9-1 Rodrigo Salinas (Evanston) 

175: Aiden Rodriguez (Prairie Ridge) D 8-5 Titus Woodring (TF South)

190: Wes Weatherford (Ottawa) D 4-2 Luke Wilhelm (Lyons) 

215: Brooks Tyler (Evanston) SV-1 3-0 Josias Dokambire (United)

285: Jeremy Marshall (Evanston) F 4:24 Leonidaas Berrios (Waubonsie Valley)

Third-place match results: 

106: Logan Henson (United) D 4-2 Julian De La Torre Nigro ((Willowbrook) 

113: Ignacio Rodriguez (Lyons) MD 18-7 Leo Kingji ((Willowbrook) 

120: Joey Rossi (Lyons) F 1:51 Troy Lomeli (WW South) 

126: Tommy Conners (York) F 3:35 Rocco Marcantonio (Glenbard South) 

132: Brian Correa (West Chicago) MD 9-1 Nate Duffield (Waubonsie Valley) 

138: Caleb Flint (United) MD 15-3 Griffin Pawelski (Glenbard South)

144: Xavier Marolf (United) D 9-3 Louie King (Lyons)

150: Daniel Koziol (Lyons) F 4:57 Daithan Narayanan (WW South) 

157: Matt Moritz (Prairie Ridge) For. Ruben Kasman (Glenbard South) 

165: Robert Vogel (Plainfield East) MD 13-3 Travis Jones ((Willowbrook)

175: Diego Lopez (Evanston) D 6-5 Lucas Pretkelis (Waubonsie Valley) 

190: Art Bytyqi (Evanston) D 1-0 Frank Matviychuk (Prairie Ridge) 

215: Foster Yarbrough (WW South) F 0:46 Vaughn Anderson (Ottawa)

285: Jimmy Hillmann (Lyons) TF 4:08 Ambrose Davis (Glenbard South) 

ENGLEWOOD STEM VARSITY TOURNAMENT 2026

Corliss High School powered its way to a team victory in the Englewood STEM event. The Trojans scored 130 points to outpace the field, including Intrinsic Charter-Downtown Campus High School, which finished second with 93.5 points. Perspectives Leadership Academy was third with 91.5 points, while Kennedy High School came in fourth with 58 points and King College Prep High School placed fifth with 41 points. 

The Trojans were led by first-place showings from Amar’e Williams at 132, Amaje Long (150), Christian Laws (157), Grant Smith (165) and Christopher Russel (175). Four others placed in the top three for Corliss. 

“The Englewood STEM tournament was a good stepping stone for most of our wrestlers,” Corliss coach Stacy Douglas said. “We’re a young team with only two seniors, the rest underclassmen with limited experience. We were a little shorthanded coming in but the young Trojans fought hard to bring home the trophy.”

1st: Corliss 130

In addition to the first-place finishers Williams, Long, Laws, Smith and Russel, the Trojans had second-place finishes from Ja’karyon Williams (106), Moses Garcia (126), Echols Jeremiah (157). A third-place result from Maari Roberson (138) rounded out the Trojans’ top performers. 

2nd: Intrinsic Charter-Downtown 93.5

The Ravens placed six wrestlers in the top three of their weight classes, including individual titles from Jonathan Nelson (120) and Esteban Resendez (138). They also had second-place finishes from Chavez Victor (145) and Kingston Upshaw (175), while Jacob Swiontek (215) and Jonathan Wilson (285) grabbed third-place honors. 

3rd: Perspectives Leadership Academy 91.5

The Warriors hauled in first-place crowns from Donald Bunton (126), Dontrell Anderson (215) and Kaleb Williams (285). They also nabbed a pair of second-place finishes from  Davarion Trotter (132) and Mason Parks (150).

Final team scores: 

Corliss High School 130, Intrinsic Charter-Downtown Campus High School 93.5, Perspectives Leadership Academy 91.5, Kennedy High School 58, King College Prep High School 41, Bowen High School 29.0, Englewood STEM High School 21.

Additional champions: 

106 Alpha Kamate (King College Prep); 113 Josue Tankson (Kennedy); 145 Justin Soto (Englewood STEM); 190 Nicholas Jungman (Kennedy).

Statistics: 

Perspectives Leadership Academy posted the most pins in the least time with five in 8:44, while champion Corliss had the most tech falls in the least time with two in 3:50. In addition, Corliss scored the most total match points with 83. 

Individually, Jacob Swiontek of Intrinsic Charter had the most pins in the least time with two in 1:27, while Jaylin Casey of Bowen earned the fastest fall at 20 seconds. Dontrell Anderson of Perspectives led the way with 24 team points, while Estban Resendez of Intrinsic Charter earned the most total match points with 41. Amaje Long (Corliss) started as a fourth-seed and won the 150 class to earn the tournament’s largest seed-place difference.

Championship match results:

106: Alpha Kamate (King College Prep) F 3:48 Ja’karyon Williams (Corliss)

113: Josue Tankson (Kennedy) F 1:18 Micheal Hernandez (Kennedy) 

120: Jonathan Nelson (Intrinsic Charter) Bye

126: Donald Bunton (Perspectives) TF 4:00 Moses Garcia (Corliss) 

132: Amar’e Williams (Corliss) F 3:00 Davarion Trotter (Perspectives) 

138: Estban Resendez (Intrinsic) TF 6:00 Deontae Anderson (King College Prep) 

144: Justin Soto (Englewood STEM) F 0:58 Chavez Victor (Intrinsic) 

150: Amaje Long (Corliss) F 1:07 Mason Parks (Perspectives)

157: Christian Laws (Corliss) TF 2:00 Echols Jeremiah (Corliss)

165: Grant Smith (Corliss) F 5:29 Christian Vega (Kennedy) 

175: Christopher Russel (Corliss) F 0:29 Kingston Upshaw (Intrinsic)

190: Nicholas Jungman (Kennedy) Bye

215: Dontrell Anderson (Perspectives) F 1:55 Jaylin Casey (Bowen)

285: Kaleb Williams (Perspectives) F 1:20 Nathan Brewer (Kennedy)  

Third-place match results: 

138: Maari Roberson (Corliss) Bye 

150: Malachi Hairston (King College Prep) F 2:23 Haoyuan Gan (Intrinsic)

165: Jamion Simons (Bowen) Bye

215: Jacob Swiontek (Intrinsic) F 0:55 DaJuan Werren (Englewood STEM)

285: Jonathan Wilson (Intrinsic) Bye

KNIGHT INVITATIONAL AT SARAH GOODE

Powered by seven individual crowns, Naperville Central bullied its way to the 14-team Knight Invitational title, besting second-place Buffalo Grove 311.5-243. Zion Benton placed third with 161 points, while Chicago Ag Science and host Sarah Goode STEM tied for fourth with 110 points. 

Jacob Cochran (132), Vince Bern (138), CJ Bierman (150), Justin Skryd (157), Henry Rydwelski (175), Paul Peradotti (190) and William Erbeck (285) all finished first for the Redhawks. Six others placed in the top three for Naperville Central. 

1st: Naperville Central 311.5

Three Redhawks placed second and three others finished third in the tournament. Second-place finishers included Dalton Meluch (106), Jake Moore (120) and Nicolas Olvera (165). Naperville Central third-place finishers were Jack Schwartz (113), James Ball (126) and Stavros Gerousis (144). 

2nd: Buffalo Grove 243

Oleksandr Havrylkiv (113), Mykola Shamray (120), Bohdan Malaksianov (144) took home first-place finishes for the Bison, while Anthony Laguna (132), Khurshedov Jahongir (157), Sonny Tugs (175) and Christiano Marogy (215) each placed third. Brayden Sroka (106), Anthoni Valladares (126) and Chris Chi (165) added fourth-place finishes for the Bison. 

3rd: Zion Benton 161

The Fighting Zee-Bees had second-place finishes from five wrestlers, including Luis Medina (138), Demar Dixon (157), Francisco Yilmaz (175), Tyson Poyer (190) and Isaiah Tellado (285). In addition, Brayden Sroka (106) placed fourth.

Final team scores: 

Naperville Central 311.5, Buffalo Grove 243, Zion Benton 161, Chicago Ag Science 110, Sarah Goode STEM 110, Northridge Prep 100, Crete Monee 98, Little Village 76, Kelly 72.5, Chicago Military Academy 61.5, Eisenhower 51, Lindblom 46.5, Westinghouse 44, Ridgewood 23.5.

Additional champions: 106 Jeremy Powell (Chicago Ag Science); 126 Joe Kopecky (Northridge Prep); 165 Adam Haddad (Northridge Prep); 215 Malakai Scott (Crete Monee).

Statistics: 

Buffalo Grove posted the most pins in the least time with 28 in 71:10, and also had the most tech falls in the least time with 10 in 16:35. In addition, the Bison scored the most total match points with 494.  

Individually, Kingston Sawyers of Chicago Ag Science had the most pins in the least time with five in 7:48. Sawyers also tied with Anthony Laguna of Buffalo Grove for the fastest falls at 0 seconds.

Justin Skryd (Naperville Central) earned a tournament-high 29.5 team points, while Sonny Tugs (Buffalo Grove) led with 77 total match points. Fellow Bison Khurshedov Jahongir provided the largest seed-place difference, placing third at 157 after starting as an 11-seed.

Championship match results:

106: Jeremy Powell (Chicago Ag Science) D 10-7 Dalton Meluch (Naperville Central) 

113: Oleksandr Havrylkiv (Buffalo Grove) F 3:49 Elijah Sawyers (Chicago Ag Science) 

120: Mykola Shamray (Buffalo Grove) F 5:32 Jake Moore (Naperville Central) 

126: Joe Kopecky (Northridge Prep) F 3:56 Jovanni Harris (Little Village) 

132: Jacob Cochran (Naperville Central) F 1:17 Mohamad Khater (Ridgewood)

138: Vince Bern (Naperville Central) F 5:59 Luis Medina (Zion Benton)

144: Bohdan Malaksianov (Buffalo Grove) F 1:11 Maurice Bush (Chicago Ag Science) 

150: CJ Bierman (Naperville Central) F 1:30 Leovardo Juarez (Kelly)

157: Justin Skryd (Naperville Central) F 3:28 Demar Dixon (Zion Benton)

165: Adam Haddad (Northridge Prep) TF 5:25 Nicolas Olvera (Naperville Central) 

175: Henry Rydwelski (Naperville Central) MD 15-5 Francisco Yilmaz (Zion Benton)

190: Paul Peradotti (Naperville Central) D 7-2 Tyson Poyer (Zion Benton)

215: Malakai Scott (Crete Monee) F 2:44 Rayshawn Doles (Eisenhower) 

285: William Erbeck (Naperville Central) F 1:50 Isaiah Tellado (Zion Benton) 

Third-place match results: 

106: Stone Mckone (Buffalo Grove) MD 13-5 Brayden Sroka (Zion Benton) 

113: Jack Schwartz (Naperville Central) F 1:24 Jamari Starr (Westinghouse)

120: Kingston Sawyers (Chicago Ag Science) F 2:31 Benito Chavez (Little Village) 

126: James Ball (Naperville Central) F 3:47 Anthoni Valladares (Buffalo Grove) 

132: Anthony Laguna (Buffalo Grove) F 0:00 Isaiah Poole (Sarah Goode STEM) 

138: Cliffon Johnson (Kelly) TF 2:55 Anthony Suarez (Little Village) 

144: Stavros Gerousis (Naperville Central) F 3:07 Awwal Ogunsolu (Kelly) 

150: George McShane (Northridge Prep) D 9-6 Xavier Woods (Sarah Goode STEM) 

157: Khurshedov Jahongir (Buffalo Grove) F 4:42 Felipe Juan Aguilar Urbina (Little Village) 

165: Jaylene Johnson (Crete Monee) D 11-4 Chris Chi (Buffalo Grove) 

175: Sonny Tugs (Buffalo Grove) TF 4:16 Caleb Gordon (Chicago Military Academy) 

190: Kijuan Springfield (Crete Monee) (F 3:45 Dylan Wilborn (Sarah Goode STEM) 

215: Christiano Marogy (Buffalo Grove) TF 4:00 Eric Magana (Westinghouse) 

285: Josue Olivo (Lindblom) F 3:37 Tyler Brooks (Westinghouse)

By Gary Larsen

Rickover Rumble

One year after placing second, Kelly snared the team title at this year’s 25-team Rickover Rumble on Jan. 3, out-pointing second-place Taft 133.5-118.5. Maine East (112.5) finished third, followed by Westinghouse (106.5) and host Rickover Naval Academy (104) to round out the top five team finishes.
Kelly coach Jazzmine Seely sent three individual champions to the top of the awards stand in Yazmine Garcia (115), Liana Andrade (155) and Sara Martinez (170).

“We brought eight total wrestlers to the tournament, and seven of the eight scored points for us,” Kelly coach Jazzmine Seely said. “Despite competing with only half of our lineup, the team came in with a strong mindset and determination to place higher than last year’s finish.

“Just days before the Rickover Tournament, we competed at one of the toughest two-day national tournaments in the country during the high school season, Wonder Women in Columbia, Missouri. That experience had our girls more than prepared to compete, stay focused, and handle adversity. Although they were tired from travel and constant wrestling, they never gave up.”

1st- Kelly (133.5)

In addition to titles from Garcia, Andrade, and Martinez, Kelly got a third-place finish from Liliana Monserrat Dimas (135), and a fourth from Destiny Hills (110). Jazmin Andrade also placed fifth in the 155 Beginner competition.

“Overall, their performance was outstanding,” Seely said. “We have several first-year wrestlers in our starting lineup who are already making a huge impact, along with returners who have been looking phenomenal all season.

“At the beginning of the season, we were missing some key returners, which affected the team early on. However, many first-year wrestlers stepped up, made major strides, and filled those roles, while our returners stayed committed from the end of last season through the entire offseason. All the offseason work, early morning practices, and two-a-days are starting to pay off.

“We’re confident, motivated, and ready for anyone and anything moving forward.”

2nd- Taft (118.5)

The Eagles got a runner-up finish from Layla Zbiewc (130), thirds from Alyssa Martel (115) and Evelyn Rodriguez (145), fourths from Jennifer Arenas (125) and Kylie Kowalisyn (135), and a fifth from Kameron Harvey (105).

3rd- Maine East (112.5)

Coach Lizeth Torres got an individual title from Alena Oshana (130), seconds from Evelyn Torres (100) and Eliana Badeen (110), a third from Angie Wszolek (190), and a fourth from Kee’Mora Arterberry (155).

Additional champions

100 Dakota Perez (Rickover) 

105 Litzy Estrada-Aguado (Rickover)  

110 Ariel Woodfin (Thornton)

120 Demetria Griffin (Hope)

125 Kendra Chatman (Goode)

135 Avery Crouch (Dwight)  

140 Adilynn Avilez (Dwight)

145 Neriah Treadway (Hancock)

190 Valerie Franco (Fenwick)

235 Miniyai Adams (Thornton)

Additional runners-up

105 Elizabeth Amaya-Avila (St. Francis De Sales)

115 Emily Mastropaolo (Fremd)

120 Gianna Araujo-Dominguez (Argo)

125 Elena Raymond (Argo)

135 Riley Moore (Highland Park)

140 Lexie Hoobler (Highland Park)

145 Jordan Scroggins (Durand)

155 Talifa Khamreava (Niles W)

170 Midna Lozoya (Rickover)

190 Vargas Belen (Fenwick)

235 Sky Vazquez (Elmwood Park)

Team scores
Kelly 133.5, Taft 118.5, Maine East 112.5, Westinghouse 106.5, Rickover Naval Academy 104, Thornton 98, Lockport 77, Dwight 69, Highland Park 65.5, Mundelein 62, Chicago Hope Academy 60.5, Niles North 60, Niles West 55, Argo 44, Fenwick 41, Fremd 39.5, Durand 37, Elmwood Park 34, Sarah Goode 27.5, Hancock 25.5, St. Francis De Sales 21, Chicago Academy 20, Proviso East 16, Mansueto 9, Hubbard 4, Stillman Valley 4

With 10-match minimums:
Unbeaten
135 Dwight’s Avery Crouch (16-0)

Once-Beaten
110 Thornton’s Ariel Woodfin (10-1), 140 Dwight’s Adilynn Avilez (13-1)

15-plus match winners
100 Rickover’s Dakota Perez (15-3), 100 Maine East’s Evelyn Torres (15-4), 105 Rickover’s Litzy Estrada-Aguado (18-5), 110 Maine East’s Eliana Badeen (16-8), 125 Sarah Goode’s Kendra Chatman (11-2), 170 Rickover’s Midna Lozoya (17-3)

20-plus match winners
130 Maine East’s Alena Oshana (26-3)

Championship match results
100 Dakota Perez (Rickover) F 3:07 Evelyn Torres (Maine E)

105 Litzy Estrada-Aguado (Rickover) F 1:33 Elizabeth Amaya-Avila (SFDSales)

110 Ariel Woodfin (Thornton) D 19-14 Eliana Badeen (Maine E)

115 Yazmine Garcia (Kelly) F 2:20 Emily Mastropaolo (Fremd)

120 Demetria Griffin (Hope) TF 3:54 Gianna Araujo-Dominguez (Argo)

125 Kendra Chatman (Goode) F 0:35 Elena Raymond (Argo)

130 Alena Oshana (Maine E) F 3:42 Layla Zbiec (Taft)

135 Avery Crouch (Dwight) F 3:35 Riley Moore (Highland Park)

140 Adilynn Avilez (Dwight) F 0:41 Lexie Hoobler (Highland Park)

145 Neriah Treadway (Hancock) F 0:33 Jordan Scroggins (Durand)

155 Liana Andrade (Kelly) F 1:16 Talifa Khamreava (Niles W)

170 Sara Martinez Lopera (Kelly) F 0:31 Midna Lozoya (Rickover)

190 Valerie Franco (Fenwick) F 3:31 Vargas Belen (Fenwick)

235 Miniyai Adams (Thornton) F 0:29 Sky Vazquez (Elmwood Park)

Third-place results

100 Karyme Estrada (Maine E) TF 5:06 Mia Castillo (Rickover)

105 Jaden Concepcion (Chicago Ac) F 4:27 Brooklin Scott (Westinghouse)

110 Italia Cernas (Mundelein) F 2:38 Destiny Hills (Kelly)

115 Alyssa Martel (Taft) F 1:37 Nour Al Radi (Niles W)

120 Paige Finnegan (Rickover) F 3:15 Isabella Rojas (Lockport)

125 Grace Eiland (Hope) F 2:49 Jennifer Arenas (Taft)

130 Kamara Hill (Thornton) F 2:51 Aubrey Walton (Westinghouse)

135 Liliana Monserrat Dimas (Kelly) F 1:45 Kylie Kowalisyn (Taft)

140 Khloe Heerdegen (Mundelein) F 1:08 Heaven Rodriguez (Hancock)

145 Evelyn Rodriguez (Taft) F 1:45 Kimberlyn Diaz (Mundelein)

155 Liya Sandor (Niles N) F 1:00 Kee’Mora Arterberry (Maine E)

170 Lexi Rosenthal (Highland Park) D 5-3 Nii’Lah Wilson-Smith (Westinghouse)

190 Angie Wszolek (Maine E) F 0:30 Emma Wilson (Niles W)

235 Jessica Ahn (Niles N) F 3:20 Nia Smith (Thornton)

Eisenhower duals

Plainfield South coach Tom Redmond’s girls snatched the title at this year’s 11-team Eisenhower Girls Mega Dual tournament, going 5-0 in duals capped by a 47-29 win over Marist in the championship round.

Plainfield South won 53-21 over host Eisenhower, 54-24 over Fenton, 47-36 over Oak Forest, and 66-18 over Prospect to reach the title dual against Marist.

“Overall, I was thrilled with a strong day of wrestling against quality competition across the entire lineup,” Redmond said. “We saw standout individual performances from Amie Fuentes (100), Kayla Ochotorena (115), Lexi Kachiroubas (120), Zola Estes (140), Layla Spann (170), and Myra Patrick (190).

“Just as importantly, there were noticeable improvements throughout the lineup in technique, confidence, and aggression. The performance provides a strong platform to build from in the final stretch of the season as we prepare for the Conference Tournament and the State Series.”

Marist went 5-1 in duals and reached the championship dual with wins over Richards (78-6), Hoffman Estates (51-30), Shepard (54-30), Lemont (72-12) and De La Salle (36-35).
Hoffman Estates placed third and Fenton took fourth at Eisenhower.

Unbeaten in matches wrestled (4-match minimum)
100 Oak Forest’s Alexandra Sebek (5-0), Plainfield South’s Amie Fuentes (4-0)
110 Fenton’s Kai Zamora (4-0)
115 Shepard’s Alyshae Martinez (4-0)
120 Plainfield South’s Alexia Kachiroubas (4-0)
130 Fenton’s Giselle Castillo (4-0)
135 De La Salle’s Mercedes Carrasco (4-0)
155 Hoffman Estates’ Sydnee Allen (5-0)
170 Plainfield South’s Layla Spann (5-0)

Final results
1st- Plainfield South 47, Marist 29
3rd- Hoffman Estates 47, Fenton 30
5th- Shepard 42, Oak Forest 35
7th- De La Salle 33, Eisenhower 18
9th- Prospect 24, Lemont 18

Championship dual

Plainfield South 47, Marist 29

125 – Ava Enright ((Marist) over Yuliana Manrique (Plainfield S) TF 17-0

130 – Samantha Durbin ((Marist) over Unknown (Unattached) Forf

135 – Talea Ferguson (Marist) over Unknown (Unattached) Forf

140 – Zola Estes (Plainfield S) over Elora Hiatt ((Marist) Fall 0:28

145 – Jordan Hozzian ((Marist) over Liliana Kenost (Plainfield S) Fall 5:28

155 – Samantha Fontaine ((Marist) over Unknown (Unattached) Forf

170 – Layla Spann (Plainfield S) over Sarah Parker ((Marist) TF 18-3

190 – Kimyra Patrick (Plainfield S) over Unknown (Unattached) Forf

235 – Tashi Wilson (Plainfield S) over Unknown (Unattached) Forf

100 – Amie Fuentes (Plainfield S) over Shae Halleran ((Marist) Fall 1:00

105 – Sophia Zuno (Plainfield S) over Carmella Ramirez ((Marist) Dec 11-6

110 – Na`Ryah Figueroa (Plainfield S) over Katelyn Drzayich ((Marist) Dec 12-11

115 – Kayla Ochotorena (Plainfield S) over Meghan Ciukaj ((Marist) Fall 1:40

120 – Alexia Kachiroubas (Plainfield S) over Abby Woods ((Marist) Fall 1:11

Statistics
Hoffman Estates finished with the most pins in the tournament with 23, followed by Plainfield South with 22 and Shepard with 19. De La Salle had the most tech falls in the least time, with four in 15:51. Plainfield South had three tech falls in 12:53.

Marist scored the most team points with 320; Plainfield South had 267; and Hoffman Estates had 253.
Individually, Marist’s Sarah Parker posted with the most pins in the least time, with five in 3:07, while Eisenhower’s Isabella Haro and Plainfield South’s Layla Spann tied for the fastest fall, in 15 seconds.
De La Salle’s Mercedes Carrasco had the most tech falls in the least time with three in 10:06, followed by Plainfield South’s Spann with three techs in 12:53. Oak Forest’s Iyobosa Odiase had the fastest tech fall in 1:06.
Fenton’s Giselle Castillo scored the most team points with 42, and De La Salle’s Carrasco had the most single-match points with 24 and the most total match points with 79.

2026 Kaneland Knights Girls’ Invite

Host Kaneland stretched the field at this year’s 12-team Invite, winning 166-98 over second-place Belvidere North thanks to 11 girls placing in the top six of their weight classes, led by returning state champion Angelina Gochis (120).

Sycamore (95) finished a close third followed by Newman Central Catholic (54) and Morris (53) among the top five teams.

“The team wrestled well today and I believe are finally starting to round into form,” Kaneland coach Josh West said. “We have been battling some injuries and sickness like most teams, but the team battled today — fought in and out of positions and overall wrestled a great tournament.”

1st- Kaneland (166)

Knights coach Josh West sent six girls to the title mat, with Gochis dominating the field at 120. Kaneland also got second-place finishes from Amadahy Torres (100), Giselle Havron (105), Chloe Cervantes (130), Madison Manier (135), Alexis Zahlit (170) and Sadie Kinsella (190), thirds from Thalia Paton (110), Alena Padavana (125) and Caitlyn Manier (145), and fourths from Bella Gruber (130) and Kara Colles (235).

2nd- Belvidere North (98)

The Blue Thunder got an individual title from Addison Ramirez (115) for coach Justin Barber, plus runner-up finishes from Lillian Davis (110) and Emily Taylor (145), a third from Jillian Moore (155), and fourths from Edith Stark (105), Kaylee Snow (120) and Samantha Garnhart (135).

3rd- Sycamore (95)
Spartans coach Randy Culton entered five girls in the tournament and four of them won individual titles in Winter Beard (135), Ema Durst (145), Frankie McMurtry (170) and Jasmine Enriquez (235). Ella West (105) added a third-place medal for Sycamore.

Team scores
Kaneland 166, Belvidere North 98, Sycamore 95, Newman Central Catholc 54, Morris 53, Princeton 46.5, Olympia 45, Crete-Monee 44, Guilford 34, Coal City 30.5, St. Charles North 26, Taylorville 7

Close calls
The finals match at 190 between Guilford’s returning state qualifier Anjanne Haywood (16-4) and another returning state qualifier in Kaneland’s Sadie Kinsella (10-5) was a doozy, with Haywood winning a sudden victory decision 6-3.

With a 10-match minimum:
Unbeaten
110 Newman Central Catholic’s returning state qualifier Blair Grennan (11-0), 145 Sycamore’s returning state medal-winner Ema Durst (18-0)

Once-beaten
235 Sycamore’s Jasmine Enriquez (19-1)

15-plus match winners
120 Kaneland’s returning state champion Angelina Gochis (16-2), 170 Sycamore’s Frankie McMurtry (18-5), 190 Guilford’s Anjanne Haywood (16-4)

Statistics
Kaneland led all teams present with 16 pins in the tournament, followed by Sycamore with 11 and Belvidere North with 10. Kaneland also scored the most total match points with 162, followed by Belvidere North with 84 and Sycamore with 72.

Individually, Crete-Monee’s Dimond Calvin-Bowsky had the most pins in the least time, with five falls posted in 7:59, while Sycamore’s Ella West had the fastest pin in 0:21. Princeton’s Rylee Backes posted the fastest tech fall in 3:31.

Kaneland’s returning state champion Angelina Gochis scored the most team points with 24, followed by Coal City’s Riley Kuder with 23.5, whose 22 single-match points also led the field. Kaneland’s Thalia Paton scored the most total match points with 40, followed by Kuder with 35.

Crete-Monee’s Calvin-Bowsky also provided the largest seed-place difference, as the No. 8 seed placed third at 120 pounds.

Championship match results
100 Chloe Collins (Olympia) d. Amadahy Torres (Kaneland) (F 1:15)

105 Rylee Backes (Princeton) d. Giselle Havron (Kaneland)  (F 2:34)

110 Blair Grennan (Newman CC) d. Lillian Davis (Belvidere N)  (F 1:14)

115 Addison Ramirez (Belvidere N) d. Natalie Petri (Olympia)  (F 2:25)

120 Angelina Gochis (Kaneland) d. Kaylee Benyo (Newman CC)  (F 1:43)

125 Zara Lugo (Morris) d. Jadeyn Klingenberg (Princeton)  (MD 14-4)

130 Riley Kuder (Coal City) d. Chloe Cervantes (Kaneland)  (TF 4:24)

135 Winter Beard (Sycamore) d. Madison Manier (Kaneland)  (F 1:04)

140 BYE

145 Ema Durst (Sycamore) d. Emily Taylor (Belvidere N)  (F 4:36)

155 Nicolette Boelman (Morris) d. Evalyn Sheahan (Morris)  (F 2:32)

170 Frankie McMurtry (Sycamore) d. Alexis Zahlit (Kaneland) (F 3:12)

190 Anjanne Haywood (Guilford) d. Sadie Kinsella (Kaneland) SV-1 6-3

235 Jasmine Enriquez (Sycamore)d. Savanna Trevino (Belvidere N) (F 1:56)

Third-place match results

100 Lynorah Hansen(Newman CC) d. Jaylynn Devore (Taylorville)  F 1:06)

105 Ella West (Sycamore) d. Edith Stark (Belvidere N)  (MD 9-1)

110 Thalia Paton (Kaneland) d. Norah Minuth (Coal City)  (MD 11-0)

115 lily Robinson (Olympia) d. Arianna Farb (Guilford)  (F 3:18)

120 Dimond Calvin-Bowsky (C.-Monee) d. Kaylee Snow (Belvidere N)  (F 1:08)

125 Alena Padavana (Kaneland) d. Salam Al Bathmah (Guilford)  (F 5:36)

130 Tiara Ching (St. Charles N) d. Bella Gruber (Kaneland)  F 1:08)

135 Brynn Dergo (Morris) d. Samantha Garnhart (Belvidere N)  (F 2:54)

140 BYE

145 Caitlyn Manier (Kaneland) d. Leah Brammeier (Olympia)   (MD 12-4)

155 Jillian Moore (Belvidere N)  d. Dailyn Pruitt (C.-Monee)   (F 5:18)

170 Avalena Wunderlich (Princeton)d. Sydney Beard (C.-Monee) (F 1:18)

190 Julissa Rendon (St. Charles N)d. Kaylee Slattery (C.-Monee) (F 4:58)

235 Jaelin Brown (C.-Monee)d. kara colles (Kaneland) (F 1:19)

Naperville Central Girls Invitational
No team scoring took place at the Naperville Central Girls Invitational on Jan. 2, but more than 110 girls from 20 teams put in a solid day’s work in Naperville.
When it was over, Lane Tech and Maine South each had three champions and Leyden had two

Lane had nine girls who finished in the top four of their weight classes, followed by Willowbrook with seven, Downers Grove North with six, and Addison Trail and Wheaton Warrenville South with five apiece.
Maine South, Lyons Township and host Naperville Central each had four wrestlers finish in the top four, while Leyden and Naperville North had three apiece.
A pair of champions in Naperville were returning state medal-winners. Leyden’s Zoey Dodgers won the title at 110, after going 26-3 and placing fifth in Illinois at 105 last season. Crystal Lake South’s Annalee Aarseth won the title at 115, after going 17-3 and placing second at 110 last season.

Statistics
Lane led all teams with 21 pins, followed by Maine South and Leyden with 19 apiece. Lane also had the most tech falls with three, followed by Addison Trail with two. Lane scored the most team points with 201, followed by Willowbrook with 178 and Leyden with 152 points.
Individually, Newman Central Catholic’s Kaylee Benyo had the most pins in the least time with four in 1:57. Addison Trail’s Madeline Beltran posted the fastest fall in 10 seconds, and Montini’s Sarah Bell had the fastest tech fall in 0:47.
Willowbrook’s Kaya Lindegren finished with the most single-match points with 19, while Crystal Lake South’s Annalee Aarseth scored the most total match points with 52.
Lane’s Eila Barbour provided the largest seed-place difference, as the No. 13 seed won the title at 155 pounds.

With a 10-match minimum:
Unbeaten

135 Lane’s Zabby Badru (15-0)

Once-beaten
100 Lane’s Sofia Guerrero (13-1)
105 Maine South’s Katelin Gallegos (9-1)
110 Newman Central Catholic’s Blair Grennan (11-1)
135 Lyons’ Sofia Turek (12-1)
235 Maine South’s Sophia Fortis (12-1)

15-plus wins
110 Willowbrook’s Nayeli Salgado (16-4)
120 Naperville Central’s Gracie Meluch (26-8), WW South’s Sommer Kibbe (16-3)
130 DG North’s Jahdi’yah Hibbler (18-4)
135 WW South’s Heidi Bourne (15-5)
140 DG North’s Valentina Gonzalez (16-6)
170 Addison Trail’s Sylvia Lupa (15-2)

Championship match results
100 Sofia Guerrero (Lane) F 0:16 Kendall Niday (Naperville N)
105 Katelyn Gallegos (Maine S) F 1:03 Valeria Hernandez (Lane)
110 Zoey Dodgers (Leyden) F 1:56 Blair Grennan (Newman CC)
115 Annalee Aarseth (Crystal Lake S) F 6:00 Annika Lee (Maine S)
120 Sarah Bell (Montini) F 1:23 Angelina Manlapaz (Willowbrook)
125 Sabrina Bono (Leyden) F 2:33 Zoe Connelly (Lyons)
130 Jahdi’yah Hibbler (DG North) F 3:04 Drea Lazzara (Addison Trail)
135 Zabby Badru (Lane) F 3:04 Sofia Turek (Lyons)
140 Addison Barnes (Maine S) F 5:10 Valentina Gonzalez (DG North)
145 Louisa Enslen (WW South) F 2:33 August Pulli (Lyons)
155 Eila Barbour (Lane) F 4:00 Samantha Stillo (DG North)
170 Sylvia Lupa (Addison Trail) F 1:57 Kenaiece Barrett (Lane)
190 Jimena Saenz (Willowbrook) F 5:11 Hannah Long (DG North)
235 Sophia Fortis (Maine S) F 3:30 Mayes Jynelle (WW South)

Third-place match results
100 Melina Valdez (Addison Trail) F 1:47 Lynorah Hansen (Newman CC)
105 Jocelyn Seludo (Naperville C) F 1:11 Lena Vigue (Naperville N)
110 Nayeli Salgado (Willowbrook) F 3:55 Estrella Jaimes (WW South)
115 Lauren Guerrero (Lane) F 0:30 Maria Villegas De Avila (Willowbrook)
120 Gracie Meluch (Naperville C) D 13-11 Sommer Kibbe (WW South)
125 Evolet Mata (Addison Trail) F 2:25 Avery Kinley (Naperville N)
130 Imyah Jackson (Lane) TF 4:41 Melva Gallego-Sugar (Naperville C)
135 Brithany Mondragon (Addison Trail) TF 3:29 Natalia Cordova (Lane)
140 Caroline Ratliff (WW South) inj.dft. Katilyn Kapral (DG North)
145 Ashlyn Fargher (Rock Falls) F 2:53 Rose Zimmer (Lyons)
155 Layla Moreland (Lane) F 0:58 Arianna Rico (Naperville C)
170 Jazilah Gatlin (Willowbrook) F 2:57 Anne Desruisseaux (DG North)
190 Minallely Medina (Leyden) F 5:40 Ema Hulin (Willowbrook)
235 Maryorith Huertas (Willowbrook) inj.dft. Olivia Ramirez (Proviso E)

By Mike Garofola for the IWCOA

Grant’s Loffredo Duals

The names of the participants here at the Loffredo Duals have changed during its short history – but no doubt, this year’s version inside Benedetti Fieldhouse at Grant drew its best field yet.

Class 3A super-powers Marmion Academy (10-1-0) and Joliet Catholic Academy (11-1-0) were on hand, as were the host No. 7 Grant Bulldogs, as well as No. 13 Oak Park and River Forest.

Warren Township with its returning state champions, the No. 1 duo of Caleb Noble and Aaron Stewart, along with teammates Ilya Dvoryannikov and Royce Lopez, both No. 2 in the state polls, along with Crystal Lake South, Glenbrook South and South Elgin made for an impressive lineup of star power.

True to form, reigning dual-team state champion No. 1 Marmion Academy, and No. 2 Joliet Catholic Academy, as well as Grant and OPRF, easily advanced into the semifinals.

Once there, Marmion sent off Grant, 39-27, using four tech-falls and a pair of pins to safely go through, while the Joliet Catholic claimed a 47-3 victory over OPRF with five pins and a tech fall.

The highly-anticipated final between the top two teams in class 3A remained close after major decision victories from Nicholas Garcia and Demetrios Carrera drew the Cadets within three (14-11) of Ryan Cumbee’s men.

However, it would be a 25-point unanswered explosion by Joliet Catholic that blew open this contest to an eventual 39-17 triumph.

A couple of days later, the Hilltoppers would supplant the Cadets atop the Rob Sherrill / IWCOA state polls.

“We have continued to improve as a team since the Dvorak, then The Flavin,” said Cumbee, whose club would finish eighth and fifth overall at those two high profile two-day tournaments.

“We have a very good team from top-to-bottom, but it is important that we continue to go into the room and work hard each and every day,” said Cadets senior Joey Favia, No. 2 in the state at 285-pounds, who lists the Air Force, Indiana, and Gardner-Webb among his top three college destinations next fall.

“Our four seniors, Garcia, Carrera, Zach Stewart, and myself have to provide strong leadership for the younger guys, and we have some really good ones, but it’s all about our work ethic, and being strong mentally,” continued Favia.

Zach Stewart was unavailable for the weekend.

Grant (14-4-0) would bounce back from its loss to Marmion to defeat OPRF, 38-31 to earn third place.

The Bulldogs big three of Vince Jasinski (144), Erik Rodriguez (150) and Casey Gipson (215) would collect 15 points to help the cause.

“We knew we would take some losses along the way with the upgrade in our non-conference and tournament schedule,” began Jasinski, now 21-2 on the season.

“All of our four losses are to teams in the top 10 in the state, and the competition we’ve had thus far will help better prepare all of us for what is ahead in the postseason,” added Jasinski, who threw high praise towards his teammate Rodriguez, who recently would commit to Central Michigan University.

Aforementioned Caleb Noble, champion at Barrington, Neuqua Valley and Hinsdale Central, and third at the Ironman, has made his college commitment one year prior to his senior year at Warren Township.

The two-time state champion has signed on to wrestle at Arizona State University during the fall of 2027.

“I am really excited about my decision to attend ASU – the vibe there was great, the staff, my future teammates, and the campus made me feel right at home, so I know I made the right choice for myself,” said Noble, whose only loss on the season came at the Ironman to No. 2 Justin Farnsworth (Pennsylvania) who is a Rutgers-commit.

Noble is currently No. 6 in the most current national poll.

Granite City’s Red Schmitt Holiday tournament

This long-running two-day tournament in Granite City would see yet another team from Missouri lift the championship trophy.

One year after Hickman out of Columbia, Missouri rolled to a 120-point victory, it would be Jackson High School taking home the silverware.

The Indians amassed 314.5 overall points, 69.5 more than second place Joliet West (245.0) whose tourney high 32 pins helped the Tigers outscore third-place Christian Brothers College, also from Missouri.

Illinois clubs Mascoutah, Quincy and Yorkville Christian would finish in the top ten of the leader board at six, seven and eight.

This tournament has not been kind to those from Illinois when it comes to individual championships claimed of late, however this season the state would fare better.

Wheaton-Warrenville South sophomore Rocco Valvano kept his record without a blemish when his tech-fall victory in the 106-pound moved his record to 26-0 after earning his third major of the season.

With his high-profile teammates Niko Odiotti and Kai Calcutt away for the weekend, Loyola Academy senior Gavin Pardilla (26-5) impressed all throughout to win the 126-pound crown.

Mascoutah senior Brock Ross (19-0) grabbed his third major of the season, and second straight here following his major decision victory at 157 pounds.

Ross is currently the No. 5 man in the most recent state poll.

Alton senior Brayden Drew (18-2) won his first title of the campaign after his major decision victory over Colin Peyton (Batavia, 14-3) in the 165-pound final.

And last but certainly not least, No. 1 Jonathan Rulo (17-0) continues on his quest for a second consecutive state title at 285 pounds.

The Belleville East senior now has three major titles on the season: Barrington, Dvorak and now Granite City.

1st: Jackson, MO (314.5)

The Jackson Indians were one of three clubs from Missouri who were chasing eventual team champion Hickman a year ago, but this year would be different. Their tourney-best 564 total match points were enough to give them the big trophy after two days of action.

The Indians were unable to send any of their men to the top of the podium, however Kade King (138, 16-3), Jayden Eddy (144, 21-4), Joah Moore (190, 20-3) and Brysen Wessell (285, 17-4) all claimed second-place medals.

Wessell won here last season at 285.

Mitchel Baker (132), and Gannon West (150) added points to the cause with their third-place medals, with teammates Grady Rice (126) and Sawyer Goodwin (165) both fourth overall.

The tourney champs were tops in combined pins and near falls with 38.

2nd: Joliet West (245.5)

The Tigers traveled downstate hoping to add a second team title to their trophy case after a win at Richmond-Burton a couple of weeks ago, but despite its 32 pins, and seven top-five medal winners, it wasn’t enough to topple the eventual champion from Jackson.

No. 6 Coehn Weber (24-5) finished best among his teammates with his second place medal at 150, while teammates Casey Koerner (106), Jakob Crandall (126, 23-8) and Aiden Brown (165) were all third respectively.

The trio of Nick Murdock-Schey (113), Tristan Radeke (175) and Andrew Klobnak (285) all would earn fifth-place medals.

Next up for the Tigers is a SW Prairie Conference match at Plainfield Central on Friday evening, before taking part in the Morris Quad one day later.

3rd: Christian Brothers College, MO (203.5)

The Cadets received a trio of individual championships Kosta Hatzigeorgiou (120, 12-3), Tanner Faulkner (175, 16-3) and another from Trey Craig (190, 12-1), who was third a year ago at the Missouri state tournament, and runner-up in 2024.

Craig, a two-time champion here, claimed the three fastest tech-fall times for the tournament. He finished with a sparkling 43-6 record last season.

Waylon Burress was second at 126, while teammate and heavyweight Joe Kopp was third.

Additional individual champions:

Rocco Valvano (106, Wheaton-Warrenville South, 26-0), Jameson Young (113, North Point, MO., 23-5), Gavin Pardilla (126, Loyola Academy, 26-5), Riley Summer (132, Lafayette, MO., 20-3), Caleb Frankenberger (138, Lafayette, MO., 12-1), Brody Kell (144, North Point, 23-1), Jayson Bellamy (150, Paducah Tilghman, KY., 17-1), Brock Ross (157, Mascoutah, 19-0), 165- Brayden Drew (165, Alton, 18-2), Carter Brown (215, Lafayette, MO., 22-2), Jonathan Rulo (285, Belleville East, 17-0).

Addition runners-up:

Braxton McCall (106, Mascoutah), Matthew Deutch (113, Waterloo), Daniel Myint (120, Loyola Academy), Will Kelly (132, Triad), Grady Neal (157, Metamora), Colin Peyton (165, Batavia), Ben Hall (Paducah Tilghman, KY.), Rage Henderson (215, Paducah Tilghman).

Final Team Scores

Jackson, MO. 314.5, Joliet West 245.5, CBC, MO. 203.5, Paducah Tilghman, KY. 199.0, Lafayette, MO. 196.0, Mascoutah 194.5, Quincy, 193.5, Yorkville Christian 183.5, North Point, MO. 183.0, Batavia 180.5, Waterloo 177.0, Wheaton-Warrenville South 170.5, Belleville East 151.5, Triad 133.0, Metamora123.0, Granite City 116.0, Andrew 111.5, Loyola Academy 108.0, Alton 104.5, Joliet Central 101.5, Collinsville 93.5, Whitfield, MO. 73.5, Normal Community West 66.5, Holt Wentzville, MO. 63.0, Hazelwood West, 57.5, Mt. Vernon 50.0, O’Fallon 34.5.

Championship match results

106- Rocco Valvano (WW South) d. Braxton McCall (Mascoutah) (TF 17-1)

113- Jameson Young (North Point) d. Matthew Deutch (Waterloo) (F 0:49)

120- Kosta Hatzigeorgiou (CBC) d. Daniel Myint (Loyola Academy) (D 3-2)

126- Gavin Pardilla (Loyola Academy) d. Waylon Burress (CBC) (TF 15-0)

132- Riley Sumner (Lafayette) d. Will Kelly (Triad) (D 1-0)

138- Caleb Frankenberger (Lafayette) d. Kade King (Jackson) (F 3:59)

144- Brody Kell (North Point) d Jayden Eddy (Jackson) (MD 15-3)

150- Jaylin Bellamy (Paducah Tilghman) d. Coehn Weber (Joliet W) (D 4-2)

157- Brock Ross (Mascoutah) d. Grady Neal (Metamora) (MD 17-3)

165- Brayden Drew (Alton) d. Colin Peyton (Batavia) (MD 12-1)

175- Tanner Faulkner (CBC ) d. Ben Hall (Paducah Tilghman) (D 4-2)

190- Trey Craig (CBC) d. Joah Moore (Jackson) (MD 10-2)

215- Carter Brown (Lafayette) d. Rage Henderson (Paducah Tilghman) (TF 15-0)

285- Jonathan Rulo (Belleville West) d. Brysen Wessell (Jackson) (D 4-0)

Third-place match results

106- Casey Koerner (Joliet W) d. Christian Prietto-Bottoms (Paducah Tilghman) (D 5-0)

113- Clayton McClelland (Quincy) d. Phoenix Senodenos (Yorkville Christian) (M.FFT)

120- Nolan Winde (Whitfield) d. Colin Crouch (Triad) (D 6-0)

126- Jakob Crandall (Joliet West) d. Grady Rice (Jackson) (D 8-6)

132- Mitchel Baker (Jackson) d. Derik Lohmeyer (Quincy) (MD 12-4)

138- Mason Wood (Normal Community West) d. Jacob Sutphin (Alton) (D 5-3)

144- Connor Graham (Metamora) d. Adrian Wadas-Luis (Yorkville Christian) ( MD 21-9)

150- Gannon Rice (Jackson) d. Brody Baker (Quincy) (SV 4-1)

157- Tyson Forbes (Hazelwood West) d. Carter Stritzel (Lafayette) (SV 9-6)

165- Aiden Brown (Joliet West) d. Sawyer Goodwin (Jackson) (F 1:35)

175- Jordan Sonon-Hale (Mascoutah) d. Tyler Gleason (Yorkville Christian) (F 1:38)

190- Killian Rauch (Belleville East) d. Eli Miller (Granite City) (F 1:30)

215- Jackson Allen (Yorkville Christian) d. Jayden Lambert (Metamora) (SV 9-6)

285- Joe Kopp (BBC) d. Andrew Klobnak (Joliet West) (D 1-0)

By Gary Larsen for the IWCOA

Morton New Year Invite

Homewood-Flossmoor won its second team title in the span of a week for coach Scott Aronson, taking the crown at this year’s 11-team JS Morton New Year Invite on Dec. 30. The Vikings also won the title at Palatine’s 23-team Sally Berman tournament on Dec. 23.

H-F won 181-170 over second-place host Morton, followed by St. Laurence (165.5), Metea Valley (104) and Lake Park (101) to round out the top five. The Vikings won a tight race among the top three teams of the tournament.

“We are very excited about our prospects this season,” Aronson said. “We have a very solid lineup with every girl at every weight being a very strong wrestler.  It leaves us with few weaknesses right now.”
The Vikings sent eight girls to the finals, getting individual titles from returning state medal-winner London Gandy (125), Madelynn McClements (130), Denise Brown (145) and Olivia Haywood (155). 

1st – Homewood-Flossmoor (181)

In addition to titles from Gandy, McClements, Brown and Haywood, Aronson got seconds from Amirat Toheeb-Lawal (115), Amara Nwoye (135), Kennedy Dade (140) and Kendra Hayden (190), thirds from Taniyah Bradley (120) and Rachel Nugin (170), and a fifth from Na’imah Lamon (155)

“They’re a young team, most being juniors or sophomores, and most of them wrestled club all off season,” Aronson said. “Our tournament and dual record are beginning to reflect this. I can’t speak to state qualifiers but I am hoping these successes speak well of the upcoming post-season.”

2nd – Morton (170)

Coach Fernando Arratia sent four champions to the top of the awards stand, in Andaira Marron (100), Jordan Rodriguez (105), Karla Munoz (110) and Anali Wilson (170), plus seconds from Isis Marcano (120) and Genessi Ceballos (155), a third from Victoria Vargas (115), a fourth from Luissiana Guerrero (120), and fifths from Daniela Orozco (125), Liliana Ionescu (135) and Dionna Burks (140).

3rd – St. Laurence (165.5)

Coach Arturo Nesci got an individual title from Nina Nesci (120), seconds from Cecelia Riccordino (100) and Jenayah Velazquez (125), thirds from Claire McKeon (130), Hannah Marusarz (140) and Delia Humphrey (155), a fourth from Amelia Pazmino (105), a fifth from Evalin Campos-Cuellar (115), and a sixth from Magdalena Roa (135).

Additional champions

115 Janiya Moore (Metea Valley), 135 Ava Burns (Lake Park), 140 Alketa Picari (Metea Valley), 190 Valerie Franco (Fenwick), 235 Jessica Ahn (Niles North)

Additional runners-up
105 Sophia Almaraz (Morton Grey), 130 Hala Elhelou (Metea Valley), 145 Neriah Treadway (Hancock), 170 Leilani Brindis (Rolling Meadows), 235 Monserrath Romero-Manon (Noble/Mansueto)

Team scores
Homewood-Flossmoor 181, Morton 170, St. Laurence 165.5, Metea Valley 104, Lake Park 101, Morton Grey 59, Rolling Meadows 58, Fenwick 43, Niles North 32.5, Hancock 25, Noble/Mansueto 7

The unbeatens (10-match minimum)
120 St. Laurence’s Nina Nesci (14-0), 170 Morton’s Anali Wilson (20-0)

The once-beatens (10-match minimum)
100 Morton’s Andaira Marron (13-1)

20-plus match winners
105 Morton’s Jordan Rodriguez (20-3), 115 Metea Valley’s Janiya Moore (24-3), 135 Lake Park’s Ava Burns (23-4), 140 Alketa Picari (24-3), 170 Leilani Brindis (22-4)

Statistics
St. Laurence led all teams with 24 pins, followed by Homewood-Flossmoor with 21 and Morton with 19. Metea Valley led the tournament with six tech falls, followed by Morton with four. St. Laurence also led the way with 246 total match points, ahead of Morton’s 234.

Individually, Lake Park’s Ameinah Hill had the most pins in the least time with three in 1:09, while Homewood-Flossmoor’s Kennedy Dade posted the fastest fall in 0:09. Metea Valley’s Alketa Picari had the most tech falls in the least time with three in 11:06, and scored the most total match points in the tournament with 61. Metea Valley’s Janiya Moore had the fastest tech fall in 1:48.

Lake Park’s Ava Burns and St. Laurence’s Nina Nesci tied for the most team points scored with 26, and Morton’s Genessi Ceballos scored the most single-match points with 24. St. Laurence’s Evalin Campos-Cuellar provided the largest seed-place difference as the No. 10 seed placed fifth at 115 pounds.

Championship match results
100 Andaira Marron (Morton) F 3:51 Cecelia Riccordino (St. Laurence)

105 Jordan Rodriguez (Morton) F 5:36 Sophia Almaraz (Morton Grey)

110 Karla Munoz (Morton) F 3:05 Stephanie Rosado (St. Laurence)

115 Janiya Moore (Metea) MD 16-5 Amirat Toheeb-Lawal (H-F)

120 Nina Nesci (St. Laurence) F 1:08 Isis Marcano (Morton)

125 London Gandy (H-F) TF 3:07 Jenayah Velazquez (St. Laurence)

130 Madelynn McClements (H-F) F 1:28 Hala Elhelou (Metea)

135 Ava Burns (Lake Park) F 2:15 Amara Nwoye (H-F)

140 Alketa Picari (Metea) D 4-2 Kennedy Dade (H-F)

145 Denise Brown (H-F) F 1:52 Neriah Treadway (Hancock)

155 Olivia Haywood (H-F) F 3:55 Genessi Ceballos (Morton)

170 Anali Wilson (Morton) F 3:38 Leilani Brindis (Rolling M)

190 Valerie Franco (Fenwick) F 4:59 Kendra Hayden (H-F)

235 Jessica Ahn (Niles N) fft. Monserrath Romero-Manon (Noble/Mansueto)

Third-place match results

100 Sonya Amin (Metea) F 3:27 Arantza Garcia (Morton)

105 Guadalupe Nava Perez (Rolling M) F 2:31 Amelia Pazmino (St. Laurence)

110 Olivia DiCosola-Hernandez (Lake Park) D 8-4 Amaia Lepe (Morton Grey)

115 Victoria Vargas (Morton) F 4:45 Dasia Dantzler (Rolling Meadows)

120 Taniyah Bradley (H-F) D 9-3 Luissiana Guerrero (Morton)

125 Elida Garcia Torres (Lake Park) F 3:04 Zoe McLaughlin (Morton Grey)

130 Claire McKeon (St. Laurence) F 4:50 Silvia Sayadian (Lake Park)

135 Cecilia Andino (Fenwick) SV-1 13-10 Emily Sugano (Metea)

140 Hannah Marusarz (St. Laurence) MD 11-0 Heaven Rodriguez (Hancock)

145 Janet Brindis (Rolling M) F 3:33 Dariia Dzhumasheva (Metea)

155 Delia Humphrey (St. Laurence) F 1:24 Liya Sandor (Niles N)

170 Rachel Nugin (H-F) F 0:36 Sophia Castillo (Rolling M)

190 Aimee Escalante-Papp (Lake Park) F 0:59 Daisy Fitzgerald (Lake Park)

235 Ameinah Hill (Lake Park) F 0:39 Elise Brown (St. Laurence)

Mather Lady Ranger 2026 Tournament

St. Laurence snared the team title at Mather’s 21-team Lady Ranger Tournament, edging Warren 212-202 in a heated battle for the crown. Lincoln-Way’s District 210 girls (132) placed third followed by Buffalo Grove (95) and Noble/ITW Speer (89) to round out the top five team finishes.

St. Laurence coach Arturo Nesci’s girls placed third less than a week earlier at Morton’s New Year Invite.
The Vikings’ Nina Nesci (120) won her second individual title in a week and St. Laurence got individual titles from Delia Humphrey (155) and Elise Brown (235) in the win at Mather.

1st- St. Laurence (212)
In addition to titles from Nesci, Humphrey and Brown, the Vikings got seconds from Amelia Pazmino (105) and Stephanie Rosado (110), thirds from Cecelia Riccordino (100), Evalin Campos-Cuellar (115), Magdalena Roa (135) and Hannah Marusarz (140), and sixths from Jenayah Velazquez (125), Jocelyn Gonzalez-Ruiz (145), Avery Evans (170), and Natalie Davalos (190).

2nd- Warren (202)
Coach Nick Grujanac got individual titles from Aaliyah Vazquez (115), Jane Kelly (135), Tyanna Jackson (140) and Ellery Brown (145), a second from Haley Fugelseth (155), thirds from Emma Silvetti (120) and Makaylee Welch (155), and a fourth from Mya Castillo (125).

3rd- District 210 (132)
Second-place finishes came from Aubrey Barnes (120) and Kate Bohms (145) for District 210, which also got thirds from Georgia Erhardt (110) and Page Cronin (170), fourths from Genesis Guerrero (110) and Brianna Palomares (190), fifths from Amelia Galarza (105) and Dani Schedin (125), and a sixth from Leeya Kruizenga (100).

Additional champions
100 Harlem’s Mya Olejiniczak, 105 Lake View’s J Colbert, 110 Glenbard South’s Lashuna York, 125 Evanston’s Samantha Gipson, 130 Madison Heneks, 190 Mather’s Julissa Az

Additional runners-up
100 Speer’s Adali Cruz, 115 Buffalo Grove’s Aaliyah Sullivan, 125 Buffalo Grove’s Caroline Marogy, 130 Evanston’s Aileen Trejo, 135 Deerfield’s Jenny Garcia, 140 Barrington’s Nicole Dziura, 170 Speer’s Oliyah McKay, 190 Back of the Yards’ Nyomi Ascencio, 235 Mother McAuley’s Madilyn Gonzalez

Team scores
St. Laurence 212, Warren 202, District 210 132, Buffalo Grove 95, Noble/ITW Speer 89, Harlem 85, Evanston 82.5, Deerfield 80.5, Mather 76, Mother McAuley 74.5, Back of the Yards 49, Glenbard South 38, Lake View 33.5, Barrington 24, Little Village 16, Lake Forest 16, Horizon/Southwest Chicago 13, Lindblom 10, Elk Grove 10, Amundsen 3, Rockford East 0

Close calls
In the closest finals match of the day, Warren’s Ellery Brown won a 5-4 decision over District 210’s Kate Bohms at 145 pounds. Also at 145 on the third-place mat, Evanston’s Isabella Vernon won a 3-0 decision against Lindblom’s Laila Yunusa.

Statistics
Warren led all teams present with 33 pins, followed by St. Laurence with 26 and St. Laurence with 21. Warren also had the most tech falls in the least time with two in 6:55, followed by Harlem with two techs in 7:23. Warren also led the field with 259 total match points, followed by St. Laurence with 217 and Glenbard South with 188.

Individually, Warren’s Hanna Bairstow had the most pins in the least time with four in 5:10, and District 210’s Sydney Kettering posted the fastest pin at 11 seconds. Warren’s Aaliyah Vazquez had the fastest tech fall in 2:00. Warren’s Bairstow and teammate Tyanna Jackson tied for the most team points scored with 30, Glenbard South’s Isabel Carrera scored the most single-match points with 22, and Warren’s Vazquez also finished with the most total match points with 39.

Championship match results
100 Mya Olejiniczak (Harlem) MD 17-4 Adali Cruz (Speer)

105 J Colbert (Lake View) F 0:47 Amelia Pazmino (St. Laurence)

110 Lashuna York (Glenbard S) F 3:59 Stephanie Rosado (St. Laurence)

115 Aaliyah Vazquez (Warren) TF Aaliyah Sullivan (Buffalo Grove)

120 Nina Nesci (St. Laurence) F 2:32 Aubrey Barnes (D 210)

125 Samantha Gipson (Evanston) F 0:040 Caroline Marogy (Buffalo Grove)

130 Madison Heneks (Harlem) TF Aileen Trejo (Evanston)

135 Jane Kelly (Warren) F 0:18 Jenny Garcia (Deerfield)

140 Tyanna Jackson (Warren) F 4:57 Nicole Dziura (Barrington)

145 Ellery Brown (Warren) D 5-4 Kate Bohms (D 210)

155 Delia Humphrey (St. Laurence) F 0:22 Haley Fugelseth (Warren)

170 Hanna Bairstow (Warren) F 2:28 Oliyah McKay (Speer)

190 Julissa Az (Mather) F 1:39 Nyomi Ascencio (BOTY)

235 Elise Brown (St. Laurence) F 2:12 Madilyn Gonzalez (Mother Mc)

Third-place match results
100 Cecelia Riccordino (St. Laurence) F 0:41 Ashley Lopez (BOTY)

105 Bella Garcia (Speer) F 1:23 Camila Ramirez (Little Village)

110 Georgia Erhardt (D 210) F 1:43 Genesis Guerrero (D 210)

115 Evalin Campos-Cuellar (St. Laurence) F 4:33 Mylee Turnmire (Harlem)

120 Emma Silvetti (Warren) F 0:49 Marianna Perez (Mother Mc)

125 Holly Rowan (Mother Mc) F 2:56 Mya Castillo (Warren)

130 Bree Hirsch (Lake Forest) F 1:58 Uliana Persky (Deerfield)

135 Magdalena Roa (St. Laurence) F 1:09 Erza Kelani (Mather)

140 Hannah Marusarz (St. Laurence) F 3:59 Kerr Serrette (Buffalo Grove)

145 Isabella Vernon (Evanston) D 3-0 Laila Yunusa (Lindblom)

155 Makaylee Welch (Warren) F 1:57 Esther Kim (Deerfield)

170 Paige Cronin (D 210) F 1:43 Krishna Garfias (Mather)

190 Phoenix Boyson (Mother Mc) F 1:39 Brianna Palomares (D 210)

235 Esmerelda Bustamante (Speer) F 1:04 Leilany Ramirez-Chavez (Buffalo Grove)

Bolingbrook’s Donna Jahn Invitational

There was no team scoring at Bolingbrook’s Donna Jahn Invitational, but plenty of stars were present among the 16 teams present.

Glenbard West sophomore Khloe Perez placed fourth in state at 110, District 230’s Jade Hardee was third at 100, and the two squared off in the finals at 155 in Bolingbrook, with Perez winning a 7-0 decision.
Winning the title at 120 was host Bolingbrook’s Alejandra Flores, who placed fourth in state at 115 last year. And a state runner-up last year at 120 pounds, Glenbrook North’s Ariella Dobin won the title at 125 in Bolingbrook.

Individual champions
100 Melissa Melgar (W Aurora)

105 Alisa Carter (Joliet Central)

110 Norah Cwik (Bartlett)

115 Khloe Perez (Glenbard West)

120 Alejandra Flores (Bolingbrook)

125 Ariella Dobin (Glenbrook North)

130 Catherine Diehl (Wheaton Academy)

135 Isabella De La Vega (D 230)

140 Batula Nasib (West Chicago)

145 Jaylin Ingram (Joliet Central)

155 Melissa Nance (Hillcrest)

170 Payton Temple (Clifton Central)

190 Irma Villa (Palatine)

235 Cynthia Rios (Bolingbrook)

Runners-up
100 Paola Patino (Bartlett)

105 Brissia Bucio (West Chicago)

110 Mikaela Najera (Bolingbrook)

115 Jade Hardee (D 230)

120 Keily Centeno (Joliet Central)

125 Sophie Crescenzo (Lisle)

130 Lilly White (Bartlett)

135 Gia Cozzani (Glenbard West)

140 Emma Guethle (Joliet Central)

145 Lilyana Barraza (Joliet Central)

155 Savannah Burns (Bolingbrook)

170 Aiva Wikar (Palatine)

190 Jordyn Coleman-Harrison (Hillcrest)

235 Aniaah Garcia (Palatine)

Statistics
Joliet Central led all teams with 29 pins at day’s end, followed by District 230 with 26, West Chicago with 23, and Bolingbrook with 21. Glenbard West and Joliet Central tied for the most tech falls with two apiece. Joliet Central also led all teams with 304 total match points, followed by Bolingbrook with 221 and West Aurora with 202.
Individually, West Aurora’s Aaliyah Walker had the most pins in the least time, with four falls in 5:56, and Glenbard West’s Khloe Perez had the fastest tech fall in 1:14. Hillcrest’s Melissa Nance posted the fastest fall in 0:12, one second faster than the 13-second fall posted by West Chicago’s Olivia Halminiak.
West Aurora’s Melissa Melgar scored the most team points in the tournament with 29, West Aurora’s Raysa Castaneda scored the most single-match points with 23, and Bartlett’s Liliana Chavez scored the most total match points with 49.

Championship match results

100 Melissa Melgar (W Aurora) F 0:59 Paola Patino (Bartlett)

105 Alisa Carter (Joliet C) D 6-2 Brissia Bucio (WEGO)

110 Norah Cwik (Bartlett) F 0:38 Mikaela Najera (Bolingbrook)

115 Khloe Perez (Glenbard W) D 7-0 Jade Hardee (D 230)

120 Alejandra Flores (Bolingbrook) F 1:37 Keily Centeno (Joliet C)

125 Ariella Dobin (Glenbrook N) F 2:13 Sophie Crescenzo (Lisle)

130 Catherine Diehl (W Academy) D 9-5 Lilly White (Bartlett)

135 Isabella De La Vega (D 230) F 1:10 Gia Cozzani (Glenbard W)

140 Batula Nasib (WEGO) F 5:53 Emma Guethle (Joliet C)

145 Jaylin Ingram (Joliet C) F 4:53 Lilyana Barraza (Joliet C)

155 Melissa Nance (Hillcrest) F 0:54 Savannah Burns (Bolingbrook)

170 Payton Temple (Clifton C) F 1:02 Aiva Wikar (Palatine)

190 Irma Villa (Palatine) F 0:26 Jordyn Coleman-Harrison (Hillcrest)

235 Cynthia Rios (Bolingbrook) F 0:20 Aniaah Garcia (Palatine)

Third-place match results
100 Lillyana Iman (Glenbard W) F 3:47 Kahlynn Spurgeon (Bartlett)

105 Taniyah Moss (Hillcrest) TF Ivette Quintana (Bolingbrook)

110 Shaila Aguirre (Joliet C) MD 9-1 Monica Sanchez (WEGO)

115 Lainey Ehler (Oakwood/Salt Fork) F 5:03 Sherylin Garcia (Palatine)

120 Yurithdzy Vilchis (Prairie C) F 0:42 Kate Wochner (Oakwood/Salt Fork)

125 Karolina Konopka (Glenbard W) MD 13-0 Anaya Campbell (Bolingbrook)

130 Izabel Barrera (Joliet C) MD 15-1 Hala Salem (D 230)

135 Talah Hamed (D 230) F 0:31 Maelyn Chromcak (Bolingbrook)

140 Rylee Hernandez (Tinley Park) F 3:29 Amanda Lezama (Bolingbrook)

145 Maren Minarcik (W Aurora) F 2:26 Diamond Schield (Bartlett)

155 Leilani Robles (Joliet C) F 3:13 Evelyn Castro (Palatine)

170 Olivia Halminiak (WEGO) F 3:07 Tiffany Manungu (W Aurora)

190 Weni Koudi (WEGO) F 2:08 Aliyah Mendoza (D 230)

235 Brianna McCormick (Lisle) D 4-0 Milan Aldana (Joliet C)

By Gary Larsen for the IWCOA

Lady Wildcat Wrestling Invite ’26

Twenty-two teams squared off at Marion’s Lady Wildcat Wrestling Invite ’26, and the team champion didn’t have to take a bus ride home.

Host Marion snared the team title, out-pointing second-place Waterloo 149-101, with Freeburg (85.5) third and two Kentucky teams placing fourth and fifth, in Paducah Tilghman (81) and McCracken County (68).

Marion coach Lukas Cullum got an individual title from Joelene Nappier-Feth (130) to lead his Wildcats, which saw nine girls place in the top six of their weight classes. Marion also tied with Waterloo for the most pins in the tournament with 16, and led all teams with four tech falls on the day, three of which came from Alauni Muex (120). Marion also led all teams with 214 total match points.

“This Lady Wildcat team is hungry. Not a single one of them will back down regardless of experience,” Cullum said. “They came out and showed what we are creating here at Marion — a high-level, competitive women’s program.

“The team is currently 10-3 in dual play, a record we are very proud of with six freshmen in our lineup. We expect this squad to continue to get better.”
 

1st-Marion (149)

The Wildcats’ Nappier-Feth improved to 16-0 on the season and pinned her way to the title at 130 pounds, as she “put on a dominant performance, securing the outstanding wrestler (award),” Cullum said. “She put the whole 130-pound weight class on notice.”

Marion also got second-place finishes from DJ Tucker-Lester (140) and Sofia Hernandez-Pina (190), thirds from Vida Follis (115) and Alauni Muex (120), and fourths from Kishelle Gray (115), Addison Arnold (135), Natalie Davis (170) and Carmen Holderfield (235).

“A big shout-out to Alauni Meux, who continues to impress at 120,” Cullum said. “And to D.J. Tucker for crushing through the 140’s and taking second. Vida Follis came out looking strong and Sophia “Mija” Hernandez put on an incredible performance at 190. I’m immensely proud and excited to coach such a hungry and driven team.”

2nd-Waterloo (101)

Coach Ryan Wiggers’ Bulldogs got an individual championship from Izabell McBride (190) to lead the way, along with a second from Niyah Stein (235), and fourths from Brooklyn Truman (130) and Neveah Gentelin (140).

3rd-Freeburg (85.5)
Coach Dan Quartz got individual titles from Brielle Becker (105) and Grace Stratton (155), a second from Elise Byman (145), and a third from Aubrey Rutmanis (110) in spearheading the Lady Midgets’ third-place finish.

Additional champions

100 Dalis Johnston (Paducah Tilghman)

110 Madison Poll (St. Thomas More)

115 Haydyn Williamson (Anna-Jonesboro)

120 Eelynn Hayden (McCracken County)

135 Jacee Mardirosian (Cartersville)
140 Kaileigh Hall (Paducah Tilgham)

145 Daniya Musgrave (Mt. Vernon)

170 Jemeriah Hopkins (Paducah Tilgham)   

235 Lillian Harned (McCracken County)

Additional runners-up
100 Charlee Emmerich (Effingham)

105 Brylee Russell (Pinckneyville/Trico)

110 Jillian Conn (McCracken County)

115 Kenni Lafollete (Johnston City)

120 Emmery Evans (McCracken County)

130 Sophia Bechelli (W Frankfort)

135 Alana Finney (Salem)

155 Nahima Mateo (Murphysboro)

170 Braeliana Gosney (Mt. Vernon)

 
Team scores
Marion 149, Waterloo 101, Freeburg 85.5, Paducah Tilgham, KY 81, McCracken  County KY 68, Murphysboro 65, Carterville 63, Mt. Vernon 58, Anna-Jonesboro 56.5, West Frankfort 56, Pinckneyville/Trico 46, Benton 39.5, Johnston City 37, St. Thomas More 35.5, Carbondale 35, Sparta/Steelville 31, Breeze Central 20, Salem 20, Fairfield 16, Effingham 14, Herrin 7, Red Bud 3

The unbeatens (10 match-minimum)
McCracken County, KY’s Eelynn Hayden (22-0 at 120), Marion’s Joelene Nappier-Feth (16-0 at 130), Freeburg’s Grace Stratton (18-0 at 155)

The once-beatens (10-match minimum)
Carterville’s Jacee Mardirosian (15-1 at 135), Salem’s Alana Finney (9-1 at 135), Murphysboro’s Nahima Mateo (10-1 at 155)

Statistics
Waterloo and Marion tied for the most pins recorded in the field with 16 apiece, followed by Murphysboro and Carterville with 11 each. Marion’s four tech falls led all teams followed by Paducah Tilgham, KY with two. Marion recorded the most total match points with 214, followed by Carterville’s 109. Murphysboro and Paducah Tilgham tied with 95 total match points each.
Individually, Freeburg’s Grace Stratton had the most pins in the least time, with four falls in 3:56, while Marion’s Alauni Muex finished with the most tech falls in the least time, with three techs in 8:55. Freeburg’s Aubrey Rutmanis had the fastest tech fall in 1:39.
Freeburg’s Stratton also scored the most team points in the tournament with 28, while Marion’s Vida Follis scored the most single-match points with 26. Marion’s Muex led all wrestlers with 71 total match points, followed by teammate Follis with 49.
The largest seed-place difference came from McCracken County, Kentucky’s Eelynn Hayden, who was seeded No. 13 but won the individual title at 120 pounds.

Championship match results
100 Dalis Johnston (Paducah Tilghman) F 1:06 Charlee Emmerich (Effingham)

105 Brielle Becker (Freeburg) F 2:30 Brylee Russell (Pinckneyville/Trico)

110 Madison Poll (St. Thomas More) MD 10-2 Jillian Conn (McCracken Co)

115 Haydyn Williamson (Anna-Jonesboro) F 4:33 Kenni Lafollete (Johnston City)

120 Eelynn Hayden (McCracken Co) MD 15-4 Emmery Evans (McCracken Co)

125 No wrestlers entered

130 Joelene Nappier-Feth (Marion) F 1:37 Sophia Bechelli (W Frankfort)

135 Jacee Mardirosian (Cartersville) F 3:24 Alana Finney (Salem)

140 Kaileigh Hall (Paducah Tilgham) F 3:25 DJ Tucker-Lester (Marion)

145 Daniya Musgrave (Mt. Vernon) F 5:22 Elise Byman (Freeburg)

155 Grace Stratton (Freeburg) F 2:41 Nahima Mateo (Murphysboro)

170 Jemeriah Hopkins (Paducah Tilgham) F 4:07 Braeliana Gosney (Mt. Vernon)

190 Izabell McBride (Waterloo) F 1:56 Sofia Hernandez-Pina (Marion)

235 Lillian Harned (McCracken Co) F 1:47 Niyah Stein (Waterloo)

Third-place match results
100 Faith Husky (Johnston City) F 1:47 Shaina Pierce (Pinckneyville/Trico)

105 Remi Taylor (Fairfield) F 2:30 Kylie Davie (Carterville)

110 Aubrey Rutmanis (Freeburg) F 1:40 Chloe Williams (West Frankfort) 

115 Vida Follis (Marion) TF 4:32 Kishelle Gray (Marion)

120 Alauni Muex (Marion) TF 3:13 Kathleen Loyola (Carbondale)

125 No wrestlers entered

130 Adin Denoon (Mt. Vernon) F 1:31 Brooklyn Truman (Waterloo)

135 Payten Hollenkamp (Breeze C) F 3:55 Addison Arnold (Marion)

140 Marriah Jackson (Carbondale) F 0:50 Nevaeh Gentelin (Waterloo)

145 Josselin Mateo (Murphysboro) F 2:00 Claire Simmons (St. Thomas More)

155 Addison Mabry (Benton) F 2:35 Everleigh Orendoff (Carterville)

170 Biannca Timmons (Anna-J) F 2:12 Natalie Davis (Morton)

190 Lillian Browning (W Frankfort) F 2:21 Madelynn Skidmore (Sparta/Steelville)

235 Payten Roseberry (Pinckneyville/Trico) F 0:45 Carmen Holderfield (Marion)

Ottawa Holiday Hootenanny

Lane Tech had five girls place in the top six of their weight classes, led by individual champions Sofia Guerrero (100) and Eila Barbour (145), to win the team title at this year’s 30-team Ottawa Holiday Hootenanny.

Coach Liam Cummins’ squad won 128.5-117 over second-place Conant, followed by Glenbard North (110.5) Ottawa (102.5) and Sycamore (92) to round out the top five finishes.
Lane’s 220 total match points were of any team in the tournament.

“Our wrestlers understand they have an obligation to one another, when the obligation is fulfilled we succeed as a team,” Cummins said. “Every match, every medal counts and they wrestle knowing that.”

1st- Lane Tech (128.5)

In addition to individual titles from Guerrero and Barbour, Lane got thirds from Zabby Badru (140) and Layla Moreland (155), and a fifth from Kenaiece Barrett (170).

2nd- Conant (117)

The Cougars and coach Brad Bessemer had a pair of runners-up in Giselle Varelas (115) and Brooklyn Jones (120), a third from Jasmine Zavaleta (135), a fourth from Susan Bilyal (155), a fifth from Ava Adomi (235), and a sixth from Claudia Weglarz (170).

3rd- Glenbard North (110.5)

The Panthers got a title from Suzanne Stalley (155), seconds from Daisy VillaGonzalez (100) and Keagan Edwards (135), and thirds from Ezri Incrocci (120) and Asreilla Wallace (235) for coach Chris Edwards.

Additional champions

110 Rozlyn Mosher (Erie)

115 Autumn Starr (Bloomington)

120 Gracie Meluch (Naperville Central)

125 Kiely Domyancich (LaSalle-Peru)

130 Catherine Diehl (Wheaton Academy)  

135 Michelle Naftzger (Erie)  

140 Ema Durst (Sycamore)

170 Frankie McMurtry (Sycamore)  

190 Anjanne Haywood (Guilford)

235 Jasmine Enriquez (Sycamore)

Additional runners-up

105 Olivia Agajanian (Sandwich)

110 Eliana Badeen (Maine East)

125 Samantha Greisen (Seneca)

130 Riley Kuder (Coal City)

140 Quinn Janssens (Oswego East)

145 Ithandehui Rosas (Harvard)

155 Alicia Swank (Bloomington)

170 Caliyah Campbell (OPRF)

190 Sadie Kinsella (Kaneland)

235 Juliana Thrush (Ottawa)

Team scores
Lane Tech 128.5, Conant 117, Glenbard North 110.5, Ottawa 102.5, Sycamore 92, Bolingbrook 88.5, LaSalle-Peru 86.5, Erie 74, Sandwich 74, Richwoods 70, Maine East 69, Harvard 60, Oak Park and River Forest 53.5, Bloomington 49, Oswego East 49, Streator/Woodland 46, Naperville Central 41.5, Lemont 41, Kaneland 39, Kankakee 35.5, Marquette 29.5, Wheaton Academy 29.5, Seneca 28.5, Larkin 28, Coal City 25.5, Guilford 25.5, Deer Creek-Mackinaw 24, Morris 23.5, Putnam County/Hall 23, Rock Falls 16

Close calls
The closest finals match of the day came when Erie’s Michelle Naftzger won a 1-0 decision against Glenbard Norths Keagan Edwards at 135 pounds.
The third-place final at 125 carried even more drama, with Richwoods’ Jaydah Green winning an 11-8 sudden victory decision over Lemont’s Molly O’Connor.

Statistics
Conant led all teams with 18 pins, Lane with 17and Bolingbrook with 14. Lane had the most tech falls in the least time, with three at 9:25 and Lane scored the most total match points with 220, followed by Ottawa with 169 and Sandwich with 150.
Individually, Deer Creek-Mackinaw’s Kaleigh Mehrkens finished with the most pins in the least time, with five at 7:50, while Zabby Badru had the most tech falls in the least time, with two in 5:03. Badru also scored the most single match points with 22. Conant’s Brooklyn Jones posted the fastest pin at 0:10 and Erie’s Ayden Grawe had the fastest tech fall at 2:22. Larkin’s Susan Cruz scored the most total match points with 61.

Championship match results

100 Sofia Guerrero (Lane) F 0:45 Daisy VillaGonzalez (Glenbard N)

105 Lily Deibel (Marquette) TF 15-0 Olivia Agajanian (Sandwich)

110 Rozlyn Mosher (Erie) F 2:33 Eliana Badeen (Maine E)

115 Autumn Starr (Bloomington) F 4:55 Giselle Varelas (Conant)

120 Gracie Meluch (Naperville C) F 1:14 Brooklyn Jones (Conant)

125 Kiely Domyancich (LaSalle-Peru) MD 11-3 Samantha Greisen (Seneca)

130 Catherine Diehl (Wheaton Ac) TF 19-3 Riley Kuder (Coal City)

135 Michelle Naftzger (Erie) D 1-0 Keagan Edwards (Glenbard N)

140 Ema Durst (Sycamore) F 4:57 Quinn Janssens (Oswego E)

145 Eila Barbour (Lane) F 4:53 Ithandehui Rosas (Harvard)

155 Suzanne Stalley (Glenbard N) D 5-0 Alicia Swank (Bloomington)

170 Frankie McMurtry (Sycamore) F 5:10 Caliyah Campbell (OPRF)

190 Anjanne Haywood (Guilford) D 5-1 Sadie Kinsella (Kaneland)

235 Jasmine Enriquez (Sycamore) D 4-2 Juliana Thrush (Ottawa)

Third-place match results

100 Evelyn Torres (Maine East) F 1:10 Sharleen Barrera (Bolingbrook)

105 Ivette Quintana (Bolingbrook) MD 16-6 Susan Cruz (Larkin)

110 Lily Gwaltney (Ottawa) F 5:53 Mikaela Najera (Bolingbrook)

115 Laila Vaughn (Streator/Woodland) F 1:59 Payton Henson (Streator/Woodland)

120 Ezri Incrocci (Glenbard N) F 1:28 Karlie Hardekopf (Sandwich)

125 Jaydah Green (Richwoods) SV 11-8 Molly O’Connor (Lemont)

130 Alena Oshana (Maine E) F 3:34 Anaya Campbell (Bolingbrook)

135 Jasmine Zavaleta (Conant) F 0:40 Jaiyden Provance (Ottawa)

140 Zabby Badru (Lane) F 2:51 Isabella Miller (OPRF)

145 Alivia Butler (Ottawa) D 12-9 Ashlyn Fargher (Rock Falls)

155 Layla Moreland (Lane) F 5:02 Susan Bilyal (Conant)

170 Ella Irwin (Putnam Co/Hall) Founder 1:46 Sydney Johnson (Richwoods)

190 Kaleigh Mehrkens (Deer Creek-Mac) F 0:41 Sofia Perez (Kankakee)

235 Asreilla Wallace (Glenbard N) F 1:47 Lily Higgins (LaSalle-Peru)

Benton’s Rangerette Rumble

Frankfort’s Lady Redbirds carried the day at this year’s 10-team Rangerette Rumble, hosted by Benton. Frankfort got individual titles from Chloe Williams (110), Catelynn Reese (125) and Lillian Browning (190) among a field of eight girls who placed in the top six of their weight classes.

Frankfort edged Anna-Jonesboro 123-111, followed by Carterville (94), Robinson (86) and host Benton (85) to round out the top five team finishes.

1st- Frankfort (123)
Nobody in the finals survived the first period against champions Williams, Reese and Browning, and Frankfort got a third-place finish from Sophia Bechelli (130), and fourths from Aleah Davidson (120), Kolbie Wortman (130), Autumn Pulliam (145) and Alexa McKeown (155).

2nd- Anna-Jonseboro (111)
Coach Chase Hargrave got individual titles from Haydyn Williamson (115) and Biannca Timmons (170), and the Lady Wildcats got seconds from Izzy Giron (120), Jozilyn Kerr (145) and June Markham (190), a fourth from Kinley Leek (125) and a sixth from Lyra Casper (155).

3rd- Carterville (94)
Lady Lions coach Daniel Alderman got a pair of individual titles from Jacee Mardirosian (140) and Everleigh Orendoff (155), thirds from Lizzy Morehead (115) and Marlie Lloyd (190), fifths from Emily Hawkins (110) and Peyton Applehans (130), and sixths from Kendyl Bilderback (110), Joplin Harrison (120), Lilah Mowrer (145) and Joanna Lee (235).

Team scores

Frankfort 123, Anna-Jonesboro 111, Carterville 94, Robinson 86, Benton 85, Belleville East 80.5, Mascoutah 65.5, Fairfield 61, Unity 52, Charleston 46

Additional champions
105 Madison Siler (Robinson), 120 Morgan Krone-Smallhorn (Charleston), 130 Ava Beldo (Unity), 145 Macee Hammond (Robinson), 235 Phoenix Molina (Unity)

Additional runners-up
105 Serenity Canady (Robinson), 110 Brooklyn Miller (Robinson), 115 Trinity Phelps (Benton), 125 Zoey Nelson (Mascoutah), 130 Camila Irby (Belleville E), 140 Caitrin Melvin (Belleville E), 155 Jauylin Robinson (Belleville E), 170 Lilianne Johnson (Benton), 235 Olivia Rosine (Charleston)

Close calls
The title match at 105 was a wild one between teammates, with Robinson’s Madison Siler winning a 14-12 decision over Serenity Canady.

Statistics
Carterville led all teams with 18 pins in the tournament, followed by Benton and Frankfort with 17 apiece. Mascoutah led in tech falls with two and scored the most total match points with 148, followed by Carterville with 137.
Individually, Frankfort’s Lillian Browning had the most pins in the least time with four in 1:44, while teammate Sophia Bechelli posted the fastest pin in 0:05. Belleville East’s Camila Irby had the fastest tech fall in 2:26.
Mascoutah’s Shayla Garner and Pakaporn Dunham tied for the most single-match points with 19, and Dunham finished with the most total match points with 51, followed by Robinson’s Madison Siler with 48.

Championship match results

105 Madison Siler (Robinson) D 14-12 Serenity Canady (Robinson)

110 Chloe Williams (Frankfort) F 0:20 Brooklyn Miller (Robinson) 

115 Haydyn Williamson (A-Jonesboro) F 1:53 Trinity Phelps (Benton)

120 Morgan Krone-Smallhorn (Charleston) F 5:39 Izzy Giron (A-Jonesboro)

125 Catelyn Reese (Frankfort) F 0:37 Zoey Nelson (Mascoutah)

130 Ava Beldo (Unity) F 5:48 Camila Irby (Belleville E)

140 Jacee Mardirosian (Carterville) F 1:48 Caitrin Melvin (Belleville E)

145 Macee Hammond (Robinson) F 1:19 Jozilyn Kerr (A-Jonesboro)

155 Everleigh Orendoff (Carterville) F 1:55 Jauylin Robinson (Belleville E)

170 Biannca Timmons (A-Jonesboro) F 0:57 Lilianne Johnson (Benton)

190 Lillian Browning (Frankfort) F 1:05 June Markham (A-Jonesboro)

235 Phoenix Molina (Unity) F 1:00 Olivia Rosine (Charleston)

Third-place match results

105 Shayla Garner (Mascoutah) TF Remi Taylor (Fairfield )

110 Klaramae Turpin (Mascoutah) F 1:24 Maliya Rush (Fairfield)

115 Lizzy Morehead (Carterville) F 0:25 Kami Sager (Fairfield)

120 Kylie Davie (Benton) F 2:13 Aleah Davidson (Frankfort)

125 Cecilia Correa (Belleville E) F 2:40 Kinley Leek (A-Jonesboro)

130 Sophia Bechelli (Frankfort) F 0:05 Kolbie Wortman (Frankfort)

140 Gabriela Richards (Mascoutah) F 1:12 Gabrielle Berry (Belleville E)

145 Madelyn Cockrum (Benton) F 1:43 Autumn Pulliam (Frankfort)

155 Addison Mabry (Benton) F 1:03 Alexa McKeown (Frankfort)

170 Destiny Cox (Fairfield) F 1:44 Carlie James (Benton) 

190 Marlie Lloyd (Carterville) F 1:43 Ashlynn Blevins (Fairfield)

235 Lexie Desett (Benton) F 0:48 Lexi Karnes (Benton)

By Chris Walker for the IWCOA

DEKALB – Marmion didn’t win the Don Flavin Invitational last season, but that didn’t stop the Cadets from later winning a state title.

The Cadets have continued to do a whole lot of winning since then as they won the Don Flavin Invitational at DeKalb, sweeping their way to a 6-0 tournament in this dual team tournament on Dec. 29-30, 2025.

Leading the way for the Cadets were Colton Wyller (106), James Morrison (113), Nicholas Garcia (132), Ashton Hobson (150/157), Vinnie Testa (190) and Joey Favia (285) who wrestled to victory in each of their half dozen matches during the team’s six dual meets over two days.

“Yeah, they wrestled tough, especially that second day, competed hard,” Marmion coach Anthony Cirrincione said. “We’re still one piece away from being at full strength, but we’re in a good spot and a lot better than last year when we weren’t healthy until regionals.”

This latest team victory follows similar success this season for Marmion with titles also at the Cadet Classic as well as the Dan Gable Donnybrook.

Marmion 

Marmion won its first Flavin title since 2022. The Cadets finished in second place last year behind Detroit Catholic Central but when all was said and done at the IHSA Class 3A state finals, the Cadets were state dual team champions for the first time in program history.

Their victory in DeKalb, after two long days of wrestling on Monday and Tuesday is another step toward the Aurora school’s hope of defending its team title.

“Well, to be honest, we thought we would be hard pressed to be in a position better than we were last year and we’re older and wiser at a lot of weights and only graduating the three contributing seniors,” Cirrincione said. “They’re getting after it and showing they are a team.”

In Marmion’s 33-28 win over IC Prep, IC Prep’s Joey Pontrelli scored a 21-7 major against Alex Korpan to get the dual started at 165 and Brody Kelly followed with a quick pin over Daniel Skura. But the Cadets would win eight of the next 11 matches, including at 132, before forfeiting at 157 with the victory already locked up, leading 33-22.

One of the premier battles was at 132, where the Class 2A top ranked wrestler (Max Cumbee) met the 3A’s best (Nicholas Garcia). Garcia scored a 2-1 tiebreaker win.

In their preceding duals, top-ranked Marmion overwhelmed no. 3 ranked Montini, 49-13, winning 11 matches, getting a pair of pins as well as a couple wins due to injuries to AJ Tack (190) and Chris Navarro (150). Marmion opened Tuesday’s action in the Champion’s Pool with a 42-24 victory over Kaukana, Wisc.

On Monday, the Cadets began their journey towards a title with a 61-13 win over Lyons. They followed that with a 56-12 win over Glenwood, ranked 3rd in Class 2A, before a 55-18 win against St. Charles East, the fourth ranked team in Class 3A.

Top performers for the Cadets included Colton Wyller (6-0 at 106), James Morrison (6-0 at 113), Nicholas Garcia (6-0 at 132), Ashton Hobson (6-0 at 150/157), Vinnie Testa (6-0 at 190) and Joey Favia (6-0 at 285) as those six wrestlers went a combined 36-0. 

Other top finishers for the Cadets were Aidan McClure (5-1, at 126), Demetrios Carrera (5-1 at 138) and Logan Conover (5-1, at 144).

“On the first day we made an assessment as the coaches that the boys hear a lot of voices at the same time and it’s not always the same thing,” Cirrincione said. “Sparty Chino, one of the assistant coaches, said we need to look at how we did today as a coaching staff and we figured we’d only wrestled one dual against Lockport the Tuesday before Thanksgiving. We need to regroup the kids so they need to hear one voice and we kind of went back to our old ways. We had a driver and passenger driving in the front seat. Day two we made an adjustment as a staff and it was good for us.”

Last season, the Cadets defeated Montini and IC Prep in the Champion’s Pool but fell to 2024 Flavin champ, Detroit Catholic Central.

IC Catholic Prep

Last year, IC Catholic earned a spot in the Champion’s Pool as well, but took fourth place. This time, the Knights were the runner-up to Marmion. Last year here, IC Prep dropped a 37-30 decision to Marmion.

The Knights beat Montini (42-24) and Kaukana, Wisc. (51-18) to set the stage for an invitational-deciding dual against Marmion.

Dominic Pasquale (3-0 at 126), Frank Nitti (6-0 at 144) and Brody Kelly (5-0 at 175) went undefeated. Also leading the Knights were Kannon Judycki (5-1 at 120), Aidan Arnett (5-1 at 157/165), Mike Bird (4-1 at 113) and Foley Calcagno (4-1 at 215).

IC Catholic rolled into the Champion’s Pool with dominating wins in the Rich Harvey Bracket, including against Moline (55-20), Washington (50-16) and Yorkville (60-15).

Montini

Ranked 2nd in Class 3A, the Broncos may be one of the most talented teams in the state, but they still had the daunting task of facing the top-ranked teams in 2A and 3A back-to-back in the Champion’s Pool.

They opened action on Tuesday afternoon with a 48-24 loss to IC Prep, the top ranked team in Class 2A,  followed by a 49-13 loss to Marmion, the top ranked team in Class 3A. They concluded their run in the tournament with a rare third-straight defeat to Kaukana (48-17).

Montini had earned its berth into the top bracket after beating Glenbard East (66-12), West Aurora (47-27) and Grant (48-24)

Allen Woo (6-0 at 120) and Bobby Ruscitti (6-0 at 126) led the Broncos while Erik Klichurov (5-1 at 113) was the only other Montini wrestler besides Ben Evenson (1-1 at 215) to not suffer more than a single defeat.

Joliet Catholic Academy

Joliet Catholic Academy won the Gold Pool with victories over St. Charles East (36-25), Yorkville (57-15) and Grant (54-12).

Leading the way for the Hilltoppers were Adante Washington (6-0 at 144/150), Nolan Vogel (6-0 at 165) and Lukas Foster (5-0 at 126/132). 

Kane Robles (5-1 at 106), Colton Schultz (5-1 at 113), Jason Hampton (5-1 at 138/132) and Daniel Dalach (5-1 at 285) also were quite successful.

“We left a better team than when we entered,” Joliet Catholic Academy coach Ryan Cumbee said. “Mission accomplished. 30 days until the state series-the only time results mean anything.”

St. Charles East

The Saints bounced back from the loss to Joliet Catholic Academy to beat Grant (34-25) and Yorkville (38-22) to take second place in the Gold Pool.

Dom Munaretto (6-0 at 120) and Cooper Murray (6-0 at 215/285) won all of their matches while Kaden Potter (126), Declan Sons (132), Jayden Hernandez (138) Isaac Lenard (157/150) and Gavin Woodmancy (157/150) each went 4-2.

Yorkville

The Foxes opened with a tight victory over Naperville Central (38-12) and got past Barrington (37-25) before being humbled by top-ranked 2A IC Prep (60-15) to conclude their first day of action.

A tough loss to Grant wasn’t how the Foxes were hoping to begin play in the Gold Cup, but that loss (36-32) was the continuation of what ultimately would turn into a four-game dual match slide.

“It was a tough second day and we knew we were going to have a tough three matches,” Foxes coach Jake Oster said. “We were missing our 215 (Avery Lane who went 2-1 on Monday) who was out for the day at a funeral. And we were planning another guy at 190 and he ended up having emergency appendix surgery so we bumped guys around. So we didn’t have that going into the dual against Grant and let some slip in some of the matches where we could’ve sealed it off with a couple of wins. Just came up short and they (Grant) had two hammers at the end so we knew that the last two weights we had to be up pretty good and lost right before that and it put a damper on our chances.”

The Foxes dropped a 57-15 decision to Joliet Catholic Academy, ranked no. 2 in Class 3A, and closed the tournament with a 38-22 loss to St. Charles East.

Donovan Rosauer (6-0 at 150/157) was unblemished to lead the Foxes.

Caleb Viscogliosi (3-1 at 175/190), Donncha Souza (3-1 at 150/157) and Xavion Ulloa (3-1 at 285) also enjoyed success in their respective matches for Yorkville.

“It’s a long two days and we had six solid duals so our guys were feeling it,” Oster said. “Some were feeling sorry for themselves, some guys went 0-6 and probably haven’t gone 0-6 before which speaks volumes about the toughness of this tournament and how mentally tough you’ve got to be in something like this. It shows where we got to be better. It’s a good thing to have in the middle of the year.”

Grant

Grant got past Yorkville (36-12) for its lone victory during Tuesday’s final day of competition. Grant could not sustain that success, dropping its final two duals to St. Charles East (34-25) and Joliet Catholic Academy (54-12).

The Bulldogs picked up wins in Monday’s Wayne Miller Bracket over Hersey (49-28) and Lincoln-Way West (39-30) before falling to Montini (48-24) in the bracket’s first-place match.

Erik Rodriguez (6-0 at 144/150) and Vince Jasinski (6-0 at 144/150) didn’t lose to lead the Bulldogs. Brady Myatt (4-2 at 113), Larry Quirk (4-2 at 113) and Casey Gipson (4-2 at 190/215) also delivered strong performances. 

Providence Catholic

Providence Catholic defeated Glenbard West (47-21) in its first dual in the Silver Pool. The Celtics followed with wins over Washington (48-26) and Lincoln-Way West (51-17) to win the pool.

Christian Corcoran (6-0 at 113), Nate Ortiz (6-0 at 120) and Justus Heeg (6-0 at 157) swept their way to victories in all of Providence’s duals while Tommy Banas (5-1 at 138), Luke Banas (5-1 at 144) and Ameer Khalil (5-1 at 175/190) also had strong tournaments.

Barrington

In the Bronze Pool, Barrington survived Sandburg (37-35) and Glenwood (37-36) back-to-back after opening with a win over West Aurora (47-30).

The Broncos crushed Pewaukee, Wisc., 62-12 to open the tournament, but dropped tighter matches to Yorkville (37-25) and Washington (38-34).

Kaleb Pratt (6-0 at 120/126), Jimmy Whitaker (6-0 at 144/150), Matthew Blanke (4-0 at 126/120) and Ryan Dorn (6-0 at 132/138) enjoyed their final tournament of 2025 with victory after victory after victory. Sam Cushman (5-1 at 175/190) also found a great deal of success in DeKalb.

Other winners included Lincoln-Way East in Pool A, Glenbard North in Pool B, Lyons in Pool C  and Prospect in Pool D.

Top performers for the Griffins were Kaidreaus Richardson (6-0 at 150), Colton Zvonar (4-0 at 190) and Gage LaDere (4-0 at 285).

Marco Rafael (4-1 at 157) paced the Panthers who received 4-2 records from Dominic Melody (106), Roman Barracca (113), Lukas Thompson (120), Vannak Khiev (126), Julian Guerra (132) Trey Thompson (138) and Tyler Hvorick (215). 

Griff Powell (6-0 at 138) led Lyons. Luca Ligammari (106), Joey Colantuono (126), Cornell Fennessee (165), Anthony Johnson (175), Luke Wilhelm (190) and Jimmy Hillmann (285) all went 4-2.

James Brouilette (6-0 at 285), Brock Wrede (5-0 at 190/215) and Gavin Payne (5-0 at 165) didn’t suffer any defeats for Prospect. Joseph Quirk (5-1 at 175/190) and Owen Dewey (4-1 at 215) also performed well.

Statistics of note

Luxemburg-Casco’s Logan Ellwanger and Providence Catholic’s Justus Heeg tied for the most team points with 36, while Minooka’s Maddux Tindal and West Aurora’s Marcus Quintana each had 35 points. Luxemburg-Casco’s Carson Neubert, St. Charles East’s Dom Munaretto, Joliet Catholic Academy’s Nolan Vogel, Barrington’s Kaleb Pratt and Prospect’s James Brouilette each had 34 points. Glenbard West’s Aidan Ortega, Washington’s Josh Hoffer, Grant’s Vince Jasinski, Marmion’s Vinnie Testa, Hersey’s Oleksandr Havrylkiv and Barrington’s Jimmy Whitaker all had 33 points.

Lincoln-Way West’s Brady Glynn recorded five technical falls, joining Naperville Central’s Paul Peradotti, for most in the tournament.

Brouilette, Tindal, Ellwanger, Hoffer and Quintana were the five wrestlers who registered five victories by fall. Whitaker accomplished the feat in the lest amount of time, besting TInfal (5:13 to 5:36). 

Luxemburg-Casco and Glenbard North had 26 pins each collectively as a team to lead the 32-team field, while Marmion had 25, Providence had 23 and Barrington, Kaukana and Lyons each had 21.

Championship meet in Champion’s Pool of Don Flavin Dual Team Invitational Tournament

Marmion 33, IC Prep 28

165 – Joey Pontrelli (ICP) over Alex Korpan (M), MD 21-7

175 – Brody Kelly (ICP) over Daniel Skura (M), F 0:41

190 – Vinnie Testa (M) over Aquilla Ekhomu (ICP), F 0:19

215 – Foley Calcagno (ICP) over Luke Boersma (M), TF 20-5

285 – Joey Favia (M) over Anthony Sebastian (ICP), D 6-3

106 – Colton Wyller (M) over Mike Bird (ICP), M 15-1

113 – James Morrison (M) over Drew Murante (ICP), M 13-4

120 – Kannon Judycki (ICP) over Brody Page (M), SV-1 4-1

126 – Aidan McClure (M) over Sam Murante (ICP), DQ

132 – Nicholas Garcia (M) over Max Cumbee (ICP), TB-1 2-1

138 – Demetrios Carrera (M) over Jack Hanrahan (ICP) MD 10-2

144 – Frank Nitti (ICP) over Logan Conover (M), MD 14-6

150 – Ashton Hobson (M) over Jacob Alvarez (ICP), D 11-4

157 – Aiden Arnett (ICP), FORF.