Downstate conference tournament roundup

By Curt Herron – for the IWCOA

Washington Community continues Mid-Illini Conference title streak

The beat goes on for Washington Community as the defending IHSA Class 2A state champions won its 15th-straight Mid-Illini Conference title by scoring 218.5 points, which was 35.5 points better than runner-up Morton (183) in the eight-team competition that took place in Dunlap.

Canton (169) placed third while Metamora (98) finished fourth and Dunlap (74) took fifth.

Coach Nick Miller’s first-place Panthers had six champions, eight finalists and 12 who placed fourth or better.  Leading the way were title winners Noah Woods (120), Eli Gonzalez (126), Wyatt Medlin (138), Cael Miller (165), Zane Hulet (175) and Josh Hoffer (215) while JJ Rokey (144) and Cruise Brolley (157) placed second. Zed Hulet (106), Logan Makiney (113) and Tyler Brown (150) took third place while Luke Hoffman (285) finished fourth.

Washington Community, which is ranked third in Class 2A by Illinois Matmen, hopes to contend for another state championship. Since 2014 under Bryan Medlin and Nick Miller, the Panthers have won five IHSA  Class 2A titles, including four in a row from 2016-2019, placed second twice and qualified for the IHSA Class 2A Dual Team Finals each season but one, in 2022.

Coach Edward Henderson’s runner-up Morton Potters had four champions, eight finalists and 10 finishers in the top three. Top performers were title winners Harrison Dea (113), Caiden Robison (132), Steven Marvin (150) and Clayton McKee (157) while Noah Harris (106), Caleb Lenning (120), Lincoln Yerby (126) and Tyus Almasy (175) placed second and Colton McKee (165) and Benjamin Chaffer (215) finished third.

Coach Zach Crawford’s third-place Canton Little Giants had three champions, six finalists and 11 individuals placed fourth or better. Dyllan Steele (106), Danny Murphy (190) and Connor Williams (285) won titles while Maddux Steele (113), Jack Jochums (132) and Grant Kessler (215) took second place. Mason Bilbrey (126), Aden Greene (157) and Gus Lidwell (175) placed third and Alex Carrier (138) and Grady Smith (144) finished fourth.

Metamora, which is coached by Noah Trollope, had the other champion, Grady Neil (144), and one of the other second-place finishers, Conner Graham (138). Other top placewinners for the Redbirds were third-place finishers Zach Bumeter (120), Adam Sloan (190) and Ty Dykes (285) as well as Paul Reason (132), Karson Hale (150) and Seth Shaw (165) who finished fourth.

Also finishing in second place were Pekin’s RaMez Watson (150), Dunlap’s Nick Mueller (165), Limestone’s Ethan Dixon (190) and East Peoria’s Jose Del Toro (285).

There was a four-way tie for the most team points with 24 between Eli Gonzalez, Josh Hoffer, Cael Miller and Caiden Robison while Zane Hulet and Dyllan Steele both had 23 points. Harrison Dea, Clayton McKee, Wyatt Medlin, Grady Neil and Connor Williams tied for seventh with 22 team points and Noah Woods had 21.5 points and Steven Marvin had 21 team points.

Mason Bilbrey had the most total match points with 40 while Gus Lidwell was second with 38 points and Noah Woods ranked third with 37 match points. Bilbrey was also the lone competitor to record three falls. Colton McKee had the best seed to place differential, being seeded eighth at 165 and then finishing in third place.

Top records of medal winners from the Mid-Illini Conference Tournament include Danny Murphy at 190 (37-1, .974), Connor Williams at 285 (35-1, .972), Steven Marvin at 150 (35-2, .946), Nick Mueller at 165 (32-2, .941), RaMez Watson at 150 (29-2, .935), Wyatt Medlin at 138 (36-4, .900), Grant Kessler at 215 (34-5, .872), Harrison Dea at 113 (27-4, .871) and Dyllan Steele at 106 (29-5, .853).

Canton had the most total match points with 220 while Washington Community was second with 181 and Morton ranked third with 178. The champion Panthers recorded the most falls with 15 while the third-place Little Giants had 11 pins and the runner-up Potters collected 10 falls.

Championship matches for the Mid-Illini Conference Tournament

106 – Dyllan Steele (Canton) MD 10-2 Noah Harris (Morton)

113 – Harrison Dea (Morton) SV 10-8 Maddux Steele (Canton)

120 – Noah Woods (Washington Community) TF 4:57 Caleb Lenning (Morton)

126 – Eli Gonzalez (Washington Community) F 0:26 Lincoln Yerby (Morton)

132 – Caiden Robison (Morton) F 0:37 Jack Jochums (Canton)

138 – Wyatt Medlin (Washington Community) D 18-11 Conner Graham (Metamora)

144 – Grady Neil (Metamora) SV 4-2 JJ Rokey (Washington Community)

150 – Steven Marvin (Morton) D 7-5 RaMez Watson (Pekin)

157 – Clayton McKee (Morton) D 1-0 Cruise Brolley (Washington Community)

165 – Cael Miller (Washington Community) DQ Nick Mueller (Dunlap)

175 – Zane Hulet (Washington Community) MD 12-0 Tyus Almasy (Morton)

190 – Danny Murphy (Canton) D 9-3 Ethan Dixon (Limestone)

215 – Josh Hoffer (Washington Community) F 0:48 Grant Kessler (Canton)

285 – Connor Williams (Canton) TB 4-1 Jose Del Toro (East Peoria)

Third-place matches for the Mid-Illini Conference Tournament

106 – Zed Hulet (Washington Community) F 3:13 Tessa Donaldson (Pekin)

113 – Logan Makiney (Washington Community) F 1:07 Dakota Hentz (Limestone)

120 – Zach Bumeter (Metamora) F 4:15 Devon Swope (Dunlap)

126 – Mason Bilbrey (Canton) F 3:17 Kalan Delbridge (Dunlap)

132 – Tristan Mosack (Dunlap) F 3:53 Paul Reason (Metamora)

138 – Colton Mosack (Dunlap) D 2-1 Alex Carrier (Canton)

144 – Aydyn Artman (Pekin) F 3:42 Grady Smith (Canton)

150 – Tyler Brown (Washington Community) M For Karson Hale (Metamora)

157 – Aden Greene (Canton) F 5:37 Jayden Schmick (Dunlap)

165 – Colton McKee (Morton) F 3:11 Seth Shaw (Metamora)

175 – Gus Lidwell (Canton) D 10-3 Bruce Ryder (Limestone)

190 – Adam Sloan (Metamora) D 3-0 Joseph Weeks (Dunlap)

215 – Benjamin Chaffer (Morton) D 11-6 Alec Del Toro (East Peoria)

285 – Ty Dykes (Metamora) D 8-1 Luke Hoffman (Washington Community)

Team scores for the Mid-Illini Conference Tournament

1. Washington Community 218.5, 2. Morton 183, 3. Canton 169, 4. Metamora 98, 5. Dunlap 74, 6. Pekin 47, 7. Limestone 40, 8. East Peoria 28.Normal Community repeats as Big Twelve Conference champions

Normal Community had a big day at its own gym as it repeated as Big Twelve Conference champions for the first time in its history, thanks to 13 placewinners, including five champions and nine finalists, to give it 207 points, which was 82 points ahead of Normal West, with 125.

Bloomington took third with 106.5 points, Centennial (79) was fourth, Champaign Central (70) took fifth and Peoria Notre Dame (62) edged Danville (61) to finish sixth in the 11-team event.

Leading the way for coach Trevor Kaufman’s champion Ironmen were title winners Jackson Soney (106), Caden Correll (113), Cole Gentsch (120), Hunter Hardwick (150) and Cooper Caraway (215) while Carter Mayes (138), Jaren Frankowiak (157), Victor Reyes (165) and Mason Caraway (190) finished in second place. Taking third place was Ethan Cavallo (126) while Luke Eganhouse (132), Gavin Capodice (144) and Cole Kretsinger (175) placed fourth.

Top performers for coach Dave Lehr’s runner-up Normal West Wildcats were champions Jaxxon Long (126) and Evan Willock (157) and runners-up Abram Rader (120) and Gus Schreiber (175). Taking third were Jacob Payne (106) and Collin Lowery (150) while Dylan McGraw (113) and Matt Hanold (285) finished fourth.

Coach Savion Haywood’s third-place Bloomington Purple Raiders were led by first-place finishers Maddox Kirts (165) and Kenner Bye (190) while Jaylen Sandy (106) and Javier Enriquez-Lynd (126) placed second and Chet Swank (215) and Stephen Carr (285) took third.

The Centennial Chargers, who are coached by Andrew Nyland, also had two champions, Trevor Schoonover (138) and Jack Barnhart (285) while Nehemie Mbangi (144) took second place and Ettavias Holmen-Anderson (215) finished in fourth place.

The Danville Vikings, who are coached by Marcus Forrest, also had two title winners, Ty Rangel (132) and Phillip Shaw IV (175) while Josiah Williams (138) placed third and Sir Timothy White (126) placed fourth.

Champaign Central’s Ronald Baker III (144) was the other champion. Coach Merle Ingersoll’s Maroons also received third-place finishes from Talin Baker (113), Elliott Tanner (120), John Jones (157) and Aidan Walker (165) while Rowan King (138) finished fourth.

Others who claimed second-place finishes were Peoria Notre Dame’s Ian Akers (113) and Michael McLaughlin (285), Richwoods’ Rikyis Doss (132) and Anthony Marziani (150) and Manual’s Anijas King (215).

Phillip Shaw IV led all competitors with 24 team points while Hunter Hardwick ranked second with 23 points. There was a seven-way tie for third place with 22 team points between Ronald Baker III, Jack Barnhart, Cooper Caraway, Cole Gentsch, Trevor Schoonover, Jackson Soney and Evan Willock while Maddox Kirts was tenth with 21.5 points.

The best records among top finishers in the Big Twelve Tournament included Jack Barnhart at 285 (30-0, 1.000), Ronald Baker III at 144 (6-0, 1.000), Jackson Soney at 106 (37-1, .974), Evan Willock at 157 (.968), Phillip Shaw IV at 175 (28-1, .966), Cooper Caraway at 215 (37-2, .949), Cole Gentsch at 120 (32-3, .914), Caden Correll at 113 (29-3, .906), Trevor Schoonover at 138 (31-5, .861) and Ian Akers at 113 (29-5, .852).

Hunter Hardwick had the most total match points with 40 while Caden Correll ranked second with 37 points. Stephen Carr was the only individual to record three falls and he did so in 6:44. John Jones was seeded seventh at 157 and finished third to lead in seed to place difference. The champion Ironmen easily had the most total match points with 212 while Normal West was next-best with 140. And Normal Community edged Normal West in falls by a 13-12 margin.

Championship matches for the Big Twelve Conference Tournament

106 – Jackson Soney (Normal Community) F 0:09 Jaylen Sandy (Bloomington)

113 – Caden Correll (Normal Community) D 10-5 Ian Akers (Peoria Notre Dame)

120 – Cole Gentsch (Normal Community) F 0:32 Abram Rader (Normal West)

126 – Jaxxon Long (Normal West) D 5-3 Javier Enriquez-Lynd (Bloomington)

132 – Ty Rangel (Danville) D 5-3 Rikyis Doss (Richwoods)

138 – Trevor Schoonover (Centennial) MD 9-1 Carter Mayes (Normal Community)

144 – Ronald Baker III (Champaign Central) D 8-6 Nehemie Mbangi (Centennial)

150 – Hunter Hardwick (Normal Community) F 1:34 Anthony Marziani (Richwoods)

157 – Evan Willock (Normal West) F 1:31 Jaren Frankowiak (Normal Community)

165 – Maddox Kirts (Bloomington) TF 3:40 Victor Reyes (Normal Community)

175 – Phillip Shaw IV (Danville) D 6-0 Gus Schreiber (Normal West)

190 – Kenner Bye (Bloomington) D 6-1 Mason Caraway (Normal Community)

215 – Cooper Caraway (Normal Community) F 0:33 Anijas King (Manual)

285 – Jack Barnhart (Centennial) F 1:27 Michael McLaughlin (Peoria Notre Dame)

Third-place matches for the Big Twelve Conference Tournament

106 – Jacob Payne (Normal West) F 1:47 Freddie Couri (Peoria Notre Dame)

113 – Talin Baker (Champaign Central) D 4-2 Dylan McGrew (Normal West)

120 – Elliott Tanner (Champaign Central) D 4-0 Remi Joesting (Peoria Notre Dame)

126 – Ethan Cavallo (Normal Community) F 1:32 Sir Timothy White (Danville)

132 – Andrew Elward (Peoria Notre Dame) D 8-3 Luke Eganhouse (Normal Community)

138 – Josiah Williams (Danville) D 10-3 Rowan King (Champaign Central)

144 – Emiliano Bedello (Urbana) D 10-6 Gavin Capodice (Normal Community)

150 – Collin Lowery (Normal West) D 8-7 Jonnah Fonner (Urbana)

157 – John Jones (Champaign Central) F 3:37 Alex Martinez (Richwoods)

165 – Aidan Walker (Champaign Central) D 9-3 Edwin Villagomez (Urbana)

175 – Gabe Martinez (Richwoods) Md 10-2 Cole Kretsinger (Normal Community)

190 – Sargent Maubach (Peoria High) F 3:22 Joe Culp (Peoria Notre Dame)

215 – Chet Swank (Bloomington) MD 14-6 Ettavias Holmen-Anderson (Centennial)

285 – Stephen Carr (Bloomington) F 2:30 Matt Hanold (Normal West)

Team scores for the Big Twelve Conference Tournament

1. Normal Community 207, 2. Normal West 125, 3. Bloomington 106.5, 4. Centennial 79, 5. Champaign Central 70,  6. Peoria Notre Dame 62, 7. Danville 61, 8. Richwoods 55, 9. Urbana 31, 10. Manual 25, 11. Peoria High 24.

Morris wins Interstate Eight Women’s Championship

Morris scored 94.5 points to capture top honors in the six-team Interstate Eight Conference Women’s Championship which was held in Rochelle. Ottawa Township took second place with 81 points while Kaneland (60), LaSalle-Peru (38), Rochelle (33) and Sycamore (20) were next.

Leading the way for coach Lenny Tryner’s Morris team were champions Ella McDonnell (110), Destiny Garcia (135) and Morgan Congo (190) while Maggie Gordon (105), Danica Martin (110), Mackensi Martin (115), Tessa Neikirk (130) and Jordan Wilson (135) took second place. Finishing third were Ellie Evans (120) and Nicolette Boelman (130).

Top performers for coach Peter Marx’s runner-up Ottawa Township Lady Pirates were title winners Val Munoz (115), Ava Weatherford (130) and Juliana Thrush (235) while Emma Yawn (120) and Chloe Carmona (125) placed second and Brie Grady (105) took third place.

Turning in the best finishes for coach Josh West’s third-place Kaneland Knights were first-place finishers Dyani Torres (125) and Chloe Cervantes (140) while Sadie Kinsella (190) placed second and Natalie Naab (135), Falyn Soto (140) and Carly Duffing (190) finished third.

Coach Matthew Rebholz’s LaSalle-Peru Lady Cavaliers only had three competitors and they each placed third or better. Kiely Domyancich (105) won a title, Dania Scoma (140) placed second and Sarah Lowery (110) took third place.

Coach Alphonso Vruno’s host Rochelle Lady Hubs had two entrants, Cammyla Macias (120) and Dempsey Atkinson (155), and they both won championships.

And coach Randy Culton’s Sycamore Spartans received second-place finishes from both of their entrants, Ema Durst (155) and Jasmine Enriquez (235).

Ella McDonnell led all competitors with 19.5 team points while Chloe Cervantes, Morgan Congo and Ava Weatherford all scored 18 points. Kiely Domyancich beat out McDonnell 37-34 for the most total match points. Morris had the most total match points with 120 while LaSalle-Peru ranked second with 57 points. And Morris recorded nine falls to lead in that category.

Top two finishers in round robin for the Interstate Eight Women’s Championship

105 – Kiely Domyancich (LaSalle-Peru) TF Maggie Gordon (Morris)

110 – Ella McDonnell (Morris) F 0:31 Danica Martin (Morris)

115 – Val Munoz (Ottawa Township) SV 10-8 Makensi Martin (Morris)

120 – Cammyla Macias (Rochelle) F 1:52 Emma Yawn (Ottawa Township)

125 – Dyanni Torres (Kaneland) F 3:41 Chloe Carmona (Ottawa Township)

130 – Ava Weatherford (Ottawa Township) F 0:27 Tessa Neikirk (Morris)

135 – Destiny Garcia (Morris) F 5:20 Jordan Wilson (Morris)

140 – Chloe Cervantes (Kaneland) F 2:22 Danica Scoma (LaSalle-Peru)

155 – Dempsey Atkinson (Rochelle) F 0:39 Ema Durst (Sycamore)

190 – Morgan Congo (Morris) F 2:37 Sadie Kinsella (Kaneland)

235 – Juliana Thrush (Ottawa Township) F 1:58 Jasmine Enriquez (Sycamore)

Unity takes top honors at Illini Prairie Conference Duals

Unity defeated St. Joseph-Ogden 57-18 in the first-place dual meet of the Illini Prairie Conference Duals, an eight-team competition which took place at Unity in Tolono.

Pontiac beat Monticello 45-35 for third place, Prairie Central defeated Illinois Valley Central 45-36 for fifth and Rantoul won 36-18 over The High School of Saint Thomas More for seventh.

Coach Logan Patton’s Rockets defeated Pontiac 64-18 in the semifinals and The High School of Saint Thomas More 66-12 in the quarterfinals to go 3-0 during the competition.

Unity competitors who went 3-0 were Travis McCarter (113), Hunter Shike (126/132), Keegan Germano (138/144), Kaden Inman (144/150), Josh Heath (150/157), Abram Davidson (157/165) and Ryan Rink (165/175) while Thayden Root (175/190) and Hunter Eastin (190/215) went 2-1.

St. Joseph-Ogden went 2-1 after opening with a 71-9 win over Prairie Central and then claiming a 46-30 victory over Monticello in the semifinals. Individuals who went 3-0 for coach Bill Gallo’s runner-up Spartans were Emmitt Holt (106) and Holden Brazelton (132/138). Going 2-1 were Jackson Walsh (113), Camden Getty (120), Landen Butts (132/138), Coy Hayes (150), Quincy Jones (215/285) and Brodie Harms (215/285).

In the championship dual meet, the Rockets used falls from Ryan Rink (175), Thayden Root (190), Hunter Eastin (215) and Hudson DeHart (285) to grab a 24-0 advantage. And Unity closed with five wins as Josh Heath (157) recorded a fall, Austin Winters (138), Kaden Inman (150) and Abram Davidson (165) claimed major decisions and Keegan Germano (144) edged Thomas Ware. Travis McCarter (113) and Hunter Shike (126) added falls for the Rockets.

Also in the title dual meet, St. Joseph-Ogden received falls from Camden Getty (120) and Holden Brazelton (132) while Emmitt Holt (106) got a forfeit win.

Pontiac also went 2-1 after beating Illinois Valley Central 55-19 in the quarterfinals and falling to champion Unity in the semifinals. Posting 3-0 records for coach Vinnie Hobart’s Indians were Aidan Scholwin (106) and Hunter Melvin (157/215) while Noah Davis (120) went 2-0. Turning in 2-1 records were Drayden Ramsey (126/132) and Hunter Christenson (144).

Monticello opened with a 55-18 victory over Rantoul before falling to St. Joseph-Ogden. Going 3-0 for coach Andy Moore’s Sages were Will Osborne (126), Gavin Ridings (157), Russ Brown (165) and Wyatt Vaughan (175) while Hunter Romano (190) went 2-0 and Luke Andruczyk (120) had a 2-1 record.

Illinois Valley Central got 3-0 efforts from Logan Gargiulo (138) and Owen Moser (165) while Antonio Toliver (150) and Maison Toliver (157) went 2-0 and Hunter Toliver (132) went 2-1.

The High School of Saint Thomas More received 3-0 days from August Christhilf (175) and Robbie Vavrik (285) while Brody Cuppernell (215) went 2-0.

Prairie Central’s Ayden Mackey (144/150) went 3-0 while Yurithdzy Vilchis (106), Ruby Guzman (113), Wyatt Strait (120), John Traub (132) and Antontio Vilchis (157) went 2-1 for the Hawks.

Rantoul’s Erick Almanza (190) had a 3-0 day while Cody Culbertson (132), Christian Francis (138) and Drew Owen (215) all turned in 2-1 efforts for the Eagles.

Title meet for the Illini Prairie Conference Duals – Unity 57, St. Joseph-Ogden 18

175 – Ryan Rink (Unity) F 3:59 Corbin Smith (St. Joseph-Ogden)

190 – Thayden Root (Unity) F 1:26 Khaden Hallowell (St. Joseph-Ogden)

215 – Hunter Eastin (Unity) F 0:11 Quincy Jones (St. Joseph-Ogden)

285 – Hudson DeHart (Unity) F 1:00 Brodie Harms (St. Joseph-Ogden)

106 – Emmitt Holt (St. Joseph-Ogden) FFT 

113 – Travis McCarter (Unity) F 0:15 Jackson Walsh (St. Joseph-Ogden)

120 – Camden Getty (St. Joseph-Ogden) F 5:01 Bryce Martin (Unity)

126 – Hunter Shike (Unity) F 1:42 Maddie Wells (St. Joseph-Ogden)

132 – Holden Brazelton (St. Joseph-Ogden) F 1:03 Cohl Boatright (Unity)

138 – Austin Winters (Unity) MD 9-0 Landen Butts (St. Joseph-Ogden)

144 – Keegan Germano (Unity) D 6-4 Thomas Ware (St. Joseph-Ogden)

150 – Kaden Inman (Unity) MD 19-7 Coy Hayes (St. Joseph-Ogden)

157 – Josh Heath (Unity) F 2:50 Nathan Daly (St. Joseph-Ogden)

165 – Abram Davidson (Unity) MD 11-3 Devan Swisher (St. Joseph-Ogden)

Mid-Illini Conference holds girls invite

Twenty-two girls from seven teams competed in the Mid-Illini Conference Girls Invite in East Peoria with Canton and the host Raiders experiencing the most success. Seven weight classes featured two or more competitors while at three of the weights, there was only one entrant.

Winning titles for coach Zach Crawford’s Canton Little Giants were Kinnley Smith (125), Kennedy Smith (140), Katelyn Marvel (145), Abrianna Putman (155) and Emmie Waller (170) while LT Diephuis (105) took second place.

Claiming championships for coach Chad Dunham’s East Peoria Raiders were Abella Brown (100), Bailey Lusch (105) and Kennedy McMenimen (110) while Kyah Kaonohi (125) and Dezyrae Murray (145) finished second.

Other Mid-Illini Conference champions were Morton’s Karen Canchola (130) and Metamora’s 

Abrianna Schertz (120). Also finishing second were Pekin’s Madizyn Megrant (110) and Violet Pennington (130) as well as Dunlap’s Aerith Adams (100) and Metamora’s Olivia Prunty (140).

Contested championship matches for the Mid-Illini Conference Girls Invite

100 – Abella Brown (East Peoria) F 4:00 Aerith Adams (Dunlap)

105 – Bailey Lusch (East Peoria) F 1:01 LT Diephuis (Canton)

110 – Kennedy McMenimen (East Peoria) F 0:59 Madizyn Megrant (Pekin)

125 – Kinnley Smith (Canton) F 1:26 Kyah Kaonohi (East Peoria)

130 – Karen Canchola (Morton) TF Violet Pennington (Pekin)

140 – Kennedy Smith (Canton) D 13-8 Olivia Prunty (Metamora)

145 – Katelyn Marvel (Canton) F 5:00 Dezyrae Murray (East Peoria)