Vandalia, Marian Central Catholic, Riverdale have two champions at IHSA 1A Finals
By Curt Herron – for the IWCOA
Following a stunning quarterfinals round on the opening day at the IHSA Class 1A Individual State Tournament where four defending state champions saw their hopes to repeat get dashed, including three between 175 and 285, it was anyones’ guess as to how things would play out over the next two days of competition at the State Farm Center in Champaign.
But as is often the case, a sense of normalcy returned to the tournament as seven of the top-ranked individuals at their weight classes won titles as did several others who were highly-ranked and have been in the title mix during the past few years.
A senior who had already made IHSA history captured his third title in four finals appearances, a senior who won a clash of returning state champions, another senior and a sophomore who repeated as champions and a junior captured his second title after falling short a year ago.
Another senior made sure that the third time would be the charm in his third trip to the state title mat, two seniors, a junior and a sophomore all moved up one spot after being a runner-up a year ago, two other seniors closed out their careers as title winners and a junior and a sophomore both earned all-state honors for the first time as state champions.
Vandalia senior Tyson Waughtel, the all-time IHSA wins leader who was unbeaten and finished his career with a 210-2 record, won his third title after taking second last year by getting four wins by technical fall, with the last one in 4:35 over Coal City sophomore Cooper Morris at 126.
Marian Central Catholic senior Brayden Teunissen, competing in his third-straight state finals, won a clash of returning IHSA champions at 120 when he prevailed over Vandalia sophomore Preston Waughtel with a 2-1 decision.
Illini Bluffs senior Jackson Carroll completed a perfect season and he repeated as a champion after capturing a 16-7 major decision at 150 over Marian Central Catholic senior Vance Williams, who took second place for the third-straight year.
Marian Central Catholic sophomore Jimmy Mastny won his second-straight title with all four wins by fall, claiming the 190 championship in 1:45 over Orion senior Maddux Anderson.
Riverdale junior Dean Wainwright captured his second state title in three years with a 10-5 decision in the 132 championship match over Unity Christian junior Garrett VerHeecke.
Richmond-Burton senior Emmett Nelson won his first title after taking second place in 2022 and 2023 by posting a 15-3 major decision in the 144 finals over Unity senior Kaden Inman, who took second place for the second year in a row.
Tremont senior Bowden Delaney won the 165 championship with a 7-4 decision over Roxana junior Lyndon Thies after finishing second last season.
East Alton-Wood River senior Drake Champlin bounced back from taking second place last year to win the title at 215 with a 7-3 decision over Lena-Winslow/ Stockton junior Jeremiah Luke.
Lena-Winslow/ Stockton junior Eli Larson won a 14-7 decision over Richmond-Burton sophomore Blake Livdahl in the 175 title match to win his first championship after placing second last season.
Vandalia sophomore Max Philpot continued along his path to an eventual unbeaten season by winning a 10-3 decision at 113 over Marian Central Catholic junior Austin Hagevold after taking second place in 2024.
Riverdale senior Blake Smith claimed his first title after edging Newman Central Catholic senior Briar Ivey 10-9 in the 157 finals as the pair met for the third-straight week in title matches.
De La Salle Institute senior David McCarthy captured a 7-1 decision over Chicago Hope Academy senior Roy Phelps in an all-Chicago schools clash in the 285 title match.
Unity sophomore Taylor Finley won the title at 138 and claimed his first medal with an 8-4 decision over Coal City junior Brody Widlowski, who took second for the second year in a row.
And Hoopeston Area / Milford junior Charlie Flores captured the title at 106 in his first state appearance with a 4-0 decision over Oakwood/ Salt Fork sophomore Steven Uden.
Marian Central Catholic, Riverdale and Vandalia led the way in Class 1A with two champions.
Coal City had a program-best seven medalists while Vandalia had six all-staters and Marian Central Catholic and Unity both had five individuals who won medals.
Returning state champions who were all seniors that saw their hopes of repeating end in the quarterfinals were Rockridge’s Jude Finch, who took third at 138, Coal City’s Landin Benson, who finished fifth at 175, Unity’s Hunter Eastin, who placed sixth at 190, and Althoff Catholic’s Jason Dowell, who fell short of a medal at 285.
Other second-place finishers from 2024 who settled for third-place finishes were Peoria Notre Dame senior Ian Akers at 126, Vandalia junior Dillon Hinton at 150 and St. Francis junior Jaylen Torres at 285.
Mastny was the only individual in the Finals to record four falls while Tyson Waughtel was one of seven with four wins by technical fall and the lone competitor to do that in Class 1A.
Tyson Waughtel, Nelson and Williams placed in the Class 1A Finals for four-straight years while Yorkville Christian’s Aiden Larsen and Hononegah/Dakota’s TJ Silva also were four-time medal winners who placed their first two years in Class 1A.
Here are stories of the 2025 IHSA Class 1A champions as well as others in their weight class, in the order that they won their titles:
175 – Eli Larson, Lena-Winslow/ Stockton
Eli Larson was disappointed when he lost 7-2 to Manteno’s Carter Watkins in the IHSA Class 1A title match at 175 last season to finish with a 44-6 record. So when the Lena-Winslow/ Stockton junior got his second chance to compete in a state championship match, he was much more prepared for the task at hand and he responded to the challenge in a good fashion by capturing a 14-7 decision over Richmond-Burton sophomore Blake Livdahl in the 175 title match, which was the opener for the 2025 IHSA Class 1A Finals at the State Farm Center in Champaign.
Larson improved to 49-2 and was the lone champion and joined Jeremiah Luke (215) as one of two finalists and four medal winners for coach Kevin Milder’s PantherHawks. He becomes the 11th individual from his program to win a state championship and the sixth to appear in two title matches under Milder, a 2020 IWCOA Hall of Fame inductee who finished the season with 599 dual meet wins. He opened with a win by technical fall in 4:20 over Canton’s Gus Lidwell (15-13), got a pin in 1:45 in the quarterfinals over Mt. Zion’s Carson Thornton (32-10) and won a 9-4 decision in the semifinals over Hoopeston Area/ Milford’s Angel Zamora (52-2).
“I haven’t really stopped thinking about how last year went,” Larson said. “Just the entire feeling of coming up short and getting runner-up, hasn’t left my mind at all and I’ve just been thinking about it every day, using it as motivation. I wasn’t timid, I came into the match and I had a better game plan and I knew I was there for a reason and I just wasn’t timid this year. Last year, I was scared to be out there but this year was a whole lot different. It was pure joy. I’m grateful for everything that’s gotten me to this point, it’s just everything, it’s awesome. I felt like I was peaking right at the end of the year, right at the time you want to peak and I just felt like nothing could get in my way or stop me. To have all my teammates here and have everybody placing with me, just going to the entire tournament with me, it’s just an amazing environment that we built up at my school, which is awesome.”
Livdahl (44-6) was also one of two finalists and four medalists for coach Tony Nelson’s Rockets with 144 champion Emmett Nelson the other finalist. Livdahl, who was making his first state appearance, won an 8-1 decision over Unity’s Ryan Rink in his opener and then stunned the 2024 champion at 165, Coal City’s Landin Benson, 2-1 on a tiebreaker to advance to the semifinals, where he won another tight match, this one 6-5 over Vandalia’s Ross Miller.
“I knew that I was up here with these guys,” Livdahl said. “I knew that I could do it, I just had to do it. Beating Benson earlier in the tournament was a big step. This was my first year down here and next year will be a lot different.”
Hoopeston Area/ Milford senior Angel Zamora (52-2), a three-time qualifier who took fourth at 175 last season, claimed third place by recording a fall in 2:58 over Unity senior Ryan Rink (47-12), who also was a three-time qualifier who placed fifth at 165 in 2024. Coal City senior Landin Benson (46-4), another three-time qualifier, settled for fifth place after capturing a 9-4 decision over Vandalia junior Ross Miller (45-14), who was making his debut at state. Losing in consolation round three and falling one victory shy of a state medal were Trico/ Elverado senior Colin Hughey (39-7) and Johnsburg sophomore Duke Mays (29-11).
“Last year I came here and I wrestled for third and I got fourth,” Zamora said. “So I came out here and made a statement and it felt really good because this is what I should have done last year. It’s the last match of the season, so it counts the most. We had four sectional qualifiers and got three state qualifiers. We hadn’t had three qualifiers in maybe 13 years, something like that, so we thank all of our coaches.”
190 – Jimmy Mastny, Marian Central Catholic
Jimmy Mastny turned in one of the most dominant performances of any competitor in the IHSA Individual Finals when the Marian Central Catholic sophomore became the only individual in the tournament to collect a fourth fall, which he used to wrap up the Class 1A title at 190 in 1:45 over Orion senior Maddux Anderson, adding to the the 157 state championship that he won last season when he recorded a fall in 3:23 over Oakwood/ Salt Fork’s Bryson Capansky. He improved to 53-1 and eventually finished with a 57-1 record after helping the Hurricanes to their second-straight state trophy when they claimed third place at the IHSA Dual Team Finals.
Mastny, who joined 120 title winner Brayden Teunissen as one of two champions, four finalists and five medal winners for the Hurricanes, who are co-coached by Jordan Blanton and Ryan Prater, opened with a fall in 1:30 over Pittsfield’s Tucker Cook (40-12), followed with a pin in 3:19 over Horizon Science Academy Southwest Chicago’s Sami Marrero (32-2) and had his longest match in the semifinals where he won by fall in 5:10 over Red Bud/ Valmeyer’s Danny Jackson. Mastny was unbeaten against Illinois competitors with his lone loss coming against Ponderosa, Colorado’s De’Alcapon Veazy, who was the CHSAA Class 5 state champion, in the quarterfinals of the Ironman in Cuyahoga Falls, Ohio in early December.
“I’m real happy with how my season is going,” Mastny said. “For sure, It’s just fun competing. Our momentum is a hard thing to beat and I’m glad that I got to start us off.”
Anderson (51-4), a three time qualifier who finished third at 190 last season, is the ninth individual from his program to be a two-time medalist. The lone state qualifier for coach Zach Nelson’s Chargers, he followed a 10-6 decision over Sacred Heart-Griffin’s Casen Lyons (38-13) in his opener with an upset victory in the quarterfinals, when he captured a 16-2 major decision over Unity’s Hunter Eastin, who was last year’s champion at 190. Anderson became the first Charger to advance to the title mat since Logan Lee took first place at 285 in 2019 when he claimed a win by technical fall in 4:42 over Lena-Winslow/ Stockton’s Oliver McPeek.
“I knew what he was going to do and we prepared for it all week and I knew I would see him in the second round and just came out and got the job done,” Anderson said of his win over Eastin. “I’ve got nothing to lose since I have at least a place and it puts all my hard work to use.”
Freshman Danny Jackson (45-6) took third place to conclude a great debut season to become the best finisher for Red Bud/ Valmeyer, improving on the program’s first medalist last season, Ty Carter, who took fifth at 175. Jackson captured a 14-1 major decision in the third-place match over Lena-Winslow/ Stockton junior Oliver McPeek (45-7), who was making his first trip to state.
“Ty Carter gave me a lot of confidence, telling me how it was up here and how well I could do,” Jackson said. “He gave me a lot of motivation to come here and work hard to run through all of my opponents. It feels great. (Winning state) That’s my goal after today, I’m going to start working on it and trying to become a three-timer. (Wrestlers in southern Illinois) They’re really showing everybody up north what the south is all about. During the summer I went to Black Ops (Wrestling Club) and Southern Illinois Bulldogs and I had a good partner, (Waterloo’s) Jaxson Mathenia, who’s in the finals.”
Coal City junior Cade Poyner (41-9) was one of seven medalists for Class 1A champion Coal City, who’s coached by 2022 IWCOA Hall of Fame inductee Mark Masters. Poyner, who was making his second state appearance, took fifth place with a fall in 1:24 over Unity senior Hunter Eastin (55-5), a three-time qualifier and two-time medalist whose Rockets claimed fourth place at the IHSA Dual Team Finals. Falling one win shy of earning all-state honors were De La Salle Institute senior Terrelle Jackson (26-12) and Wilmington junior Logan Van Duyne (40-8).
215 – Drake Champlin, East Alton-Wood River
Drake Champlin became the third state champion at East Alton-Wood River and its first since Zac Blasioli took top honors at 132 in 2017 when the senior claimed a 7-3 decision over Lena-Winslow/ Stockton junior Jeremiah Luke in the IHSA 1A 215 championship. Champlin, who lost 7-4 to Dakota’s Noah Wenzel in last year’s 1A 215 title match to conclude a 51-4 campaign, was the lone state qualifier for coach Tim Donohoo’s Oilers. He was also the third individual from his program to capture more than one medal and he advanced to state for the fourth time.
Champlin (43-1) opened his title run with a victory by technical fall in 3:34 over Clifton Central’s Brody O’Connor (32-17), followed that with a win by fall in 4:52 over Quincy Notre Dame’s Ryan Darnell (44-9) and then earned his spot in the IHSA 215 title match for the second year in a row after claiming an 8-1 decision over Coal City’s John Keigher in the semifinals.
“I’ve worked my butt off this year and I knew what I had to do to be on top, and that’s what I did,” Champlin said. “Last year, it was tough, I had nerves and everything else. This year, I had the feeling, I knew. I was definitely more focused this year, I didn’t have the nerves in me and I felt comfortable. It feels awesome, there’s only been three people that were a state champion and it makes the little kids come out and actually do wrestling, and that’s what looks good for our school. I have fine practice partners and busted my butt to just keep practicing and the cardio, too. And I have the best coaches, I love my coaches. Not very many people get to have this feeling, so it feels awesome.”
Luke (45-6), one of two finalists and four medal winners for coach Kevin Milder’s PantherHawks, earned his first medal in his second state appearance. He was a winner by technical fall in 2:15 over Monmouth-Roseville’s Alex Gandarilla (33-12) in his opener and then claimed a 2-1 victory on a tiebreaker over Vandalia’s Kaden Tidwell in the quarterfinals and advanced to the 215 title match with a 16-6 major decision over Mt. Zion’s Keller Stocks in the semifinals.
Vandalia senior Kaden Tidwell (53-7), one of six medalists for the Vandals, who are coached by 2025 IWCOA Hall of Fame inductee Jason Clay and were the runners-up in Class 1A to Coal City, won the third-place match with a 3-2 decision over Mt. Zion junior Keller Stocks (45-9) to give him his second medal in two state trips while Stocks won his first medal in his second trip.
“I took a tough loss Thursday night, so to come all the way back and make third, I’ll take that as an accomplishment,” Tidwell said. “Last year we did pretty good and we were pretty tough, but there’s always room for improvement, we didn’t win some matches and we didn’t win dual team so we knew that we just had to keep working harder and harder.”
In the fifth-place match, Coal City senior John Keigher (39-3) claimed a 9-5 decision over Reed-Custer junior Dominic Alaimo (45-9) as both won their first medals. Losing in consolation round three and missing out on all-state honors by one victory were Sandwich senior Devon Blanchard (44-13) and Marquette Academy sophomore Alex Schaefer (36-11).
285 – David McCarthy, De La Salle Institute
David McCarthy wanted to have a better finish at state than the fifth-place showing at 285 that he turned in at last year’s IHSA Class 1A Finals and the De La Salle Institute senior certainly far exceeded his 2024 finish by by becoming the fourth Meteor to capture a state title and the first since James Buss in 2012 to pull off that feat when he claimed a 7-1 decision over Chicago Hope Academy senior Roy Phelps in an all-Chicago school showdown for the 1A 285 title.
McCarthy (32-2), a three-time state qualifier, is also one of seven individuals from his school to win two or more medals in Champaign. For the second year in a row, coach Jason Davidson’s Meteors had two medalists as junior Jeremiah Lawrence took third at 120 after placing third at 106 last season. McCarthy began his run to the title with an 11-6 decision over Princeton’s Cade Odell, who took fourth at 285 in 2024, and then won by fall in 1:13 over Beardstown’s Chunk Dailey (49-8) in the quarterfinals. Then in the semifinals, he captured a 10-0 major decision over Canton junior Connor Williams to become the eighth individual from his school to advance to an IHSA title match and the first since 2017, when Solomon Smith competed in the 285 finals.
“It’s an amazing feeling, a feeling I’ve been waiting for since my coaches picked me up freshman year and I started wrestling sophomore year,” McCarthy said. “I didn’t make weight freshman year and I never wrestled before that. I grew mentally and definitely physically, I went from 350-something pounds to 259 this morning. It’s been a big journey, but it’s been a mental journey that my coaches kept putting me on all of the time, it was just amazing. It was frustrating, I quit my freshman year, I couldn’t do it. (His motivation to continue) My coaches and my dad, but definitely my coaches. (Finishing fifth last year) It showed me how good of a wrestler I am and how good I could be and where I should be as a person and as a wrestler and it fueled me to go further.”
Phelps (49-6), who took sixth at 285 last season, became the first Eagle to compete on the state title mat and joined Oliver Willis (2017, 2019) as their only two-time medalist. He joined Josiah Willis (fourth at 132) and Arkail Griffin (fifth at 165) as one of three medal winners out of nine at state for coach Dan Willis’ team that qualified for the IHSA Dual Team Finals. Their three all-staters is a new record for the program. Phelps opened with a 15-5 major decision over Dakota’s Randy McPeek (36-9), followed with a fall in 4:56 over Shelbyville’s Andre Townsend (41-10) and reached the title mat with a pin in 5:58 over Seneca’s Jeremy Gagnon.
St. Francis junior Jaylen Torres (33-3), who was second at 285 last season, took third following five wins in the wrestlebacks after seeing his hopes of getting back to finals doomed by a disqualification in his opener. Torres’ opponent in the 2024 285 title match, Althoff Catholic senior Jason Dowell (32-2), saw his hopes of repeating as a state champion dashed in the semifinals when Gagnon beat him 10-7 by sudden victory and then Torres pinned Dowell in 2:00 in his next match to suffer his only losses in his final two matches and miss out on a third state medal, with the other a third at 285 in 2023. After that pin, Torres needed a 2-1 win by ultimate tiebreaker over Odell and a 4-1 win by sudden victory over Williams before pinning Gagnon in 4:59 for third. Torres became St. Francis’ first two-time medalist while Gagnon (49-4) and teammate sophomore Raiden Terry (third at 106) won their first medals, marking the second time that coach Todd Yegge’s Fighting Irish had two all-staters, with the first being in 1999.
“It was the biggest match that I ever wrestled and it was the biggest match that I ever won,” Gagnon said after handing defending champion Dowell his initial defeat of the season.
“Jeremy had a tremendous season and really a great state finals tournament,” Yegge said. “He wrestled the defending state champion and took him to overtime, securing a very exciting victory with a takedown. He showed determination and a never quit attitude that he could compete with the best and took out an undefeated wrestler that many thought was going to repeat as the state champion. Jeremy kept fighting all tournament long and lost two very close matches in the closing seconds both in the semifinals against Roy Phelps of Hope and in the third place match he was leading in the last period and got thrown to his back against last year’s runner-up. Jeremy had a tremendous senior year and his only losses on the season came to the wrestlers that ended up 1st, 2nd and 3rd in the state as Jeremy took home fourth place all-state honors.”
In the fifth-place match, Canton junior Connor Williams (38-2) won by fall in 3:45 over Byron senior Jared Claunch (41-11), who wrestled back all the way from a preliminary round loss to Gagnon. It was the first state medal for both Williams and Claunch, a three-time qualifier who was the final all-stater for retiring coach Mike Elsbury. LeRoy/ Tri-Valley senior Tate Sigler (46-7) and Princeton senior Cade Odell (33-5) both fell one victory shy of receiving a state medal.
106 – Charlie Flores, Hoopeston Area/ Milford
Charlie Flores made his debut in the IHSA Finals and things couldn’t have gone much better for the Hoopeston Area/ Milford junior as he recorded two falls and won two close decisions to help him win the Class 1A championship at 106 when he captured a 4-0 decision over Oakwood/ Salt Fork sophomore Steven Uden in the title match. As a result, he is the third Cornjerker to win an IHSA championship after becoming just the eighth individual from Hoopeston Area, or its earlier names of Hoopeston High and Hoopeston-East Lynn, to advance to the state title mat.
Flores (51-3) opened with a fall in 0:52 over Benton/ Sesser-Valier’s Braxton Tittle (47-9) and then claimed a 3-1 decision over Newman Central Catholic’s Landon Near. He earned his spot on the title mat with a pin in 5:11 over Richmond-Burton’s Lelan Nelson. This was the second year in a row that coach Chris Kelnhofer’s Cornjerkers had two all-staters, with senior Angel Zamora winning his second medal after taking third place at 175. The team’s other all-stater from 2024, senior Ayden Larkin, returned to state but was unable to claim a medal at 165.
“I sealed the deal and it felt amazing,” Flores said. “It’s definitely everything that I’ve dreamed of. I’ve always wanted to do this since I was young and I finally did it. I’m going to stay humble, I’m just a humble guy. I put in a lot of work and always sweated in the room. I’m a little exhausted, but I still have a lot of energy, it’s great. (His goal) Two-peat, for sure. I just want to thank all of my coaches and thank Aiden Bell, Ayden Larkin, Angel and all of my teammates. It’s amazing.”
Uden (43-7) was the top-finisher of the record four all-staters out of the six qualifiers that coach Mike Glosser’s Comets brought to the State Farm Center, with Mason Swartz (fourth at 120), Devin Ehler (fourth at 126) and Pedro Rangel (sixth at 138) the others. Uden, a two-time qualifier and first-time medal winner got a pin in 4:53 over Canton’s Jaxsun Owens (29-13) and then captured a pair of decisions, winning 11-5 over Morrison’s Cael Wright and then claiming a 7-3 victory over Olympia’s Brandon Gaither. The four medalists broke the old record of three, which was set last season and featured a second-place finisher, Bryson Capansky at 157.
“All four of us went to the semifinals, and I was the first match,” Uden said of his teammates who made history for Oakwood/ Salt Fork. “So it just motivates me more to get back and win in the semifinals and make it to the finals. All of our guys train pretty hard in the room every day, so I knew that it could happen. I’m just glad that we all did well.”
Seneca sophomore Raiden Terry (52-3) won the third-place match over Newman Central Catholic freshman Landon Near (44-6) with a 2-1 decision, avenging a loss in the preliminary round where Near won 9-5. Terry, who qualified for state but didn’t place last year, won five in a row in the consolation bracket and joined senior Jeremy Gagnon (fourth at 285) as medalists for the Fighting Irish, the first time that they had two all-staters since 1999. Near, one of two medalists for his team, won three matches in the wrestlebacks.
“I’ve been working all year for it and definitely could have had a better outcome,” Terry said. “You make a couple mistakes and it can send you back but you have to have short term memory to battle your way all the way back. I could have maybe had a little bit of a better tournament, cutting weight was a little hard, but the loss is not going to define me especially down here, I have two more years to improve.”
“Raiden ended up losing his first round match to Near and had to fight all the way back and he did it,” Seneca coach Todd Yegge said, “The grit it took to win five matches in a row after going through a first-round loss was amazing. He outscored five state qualifiers 50-7 in those five matches to get third place in the wrestlebacks. He really showed determination and I couldn’t be more proud of how he represented himself, this program and our school.”
For fifth place, Richmond-Burton freshman Lelan Nelson (44-6) captured a 10-0 major decision over Olympia freshman Brandon Gaither (44-12). Nelson joined his brother Emmett (first at 144), Blake Livdahl (second at 175) and Adam Glauser (sixth at 120) as medal winners for the Rockets while Gaither was one of two medalists for Olympia. Two freshmen fell one win shy of earning all-state honors, Vandalia’s Aiden Evans (45-11) and Morrison’s Cael Wright (43-4).
113 – Max Philpot, Vandalia
Max Philpot made an impressive debut in 2023-2024 when he fell 3-1 to Johnsburg’s Eric Bush in the 1A championship match at 106 and then helped Vandalia to finish in fourth place at the IHSA Dual Team Finals to finish with a 52-3 record. In his second trip to the IHSA Finals, the sophomore improved to 47-0 after capturing the 113 championship by claiming a 10-3 decision over Marian Central Catholic junior Austin Hagevold. When senior teammate Tyson Waughtel beat Coal City’s Cooper Morris to win his third 1A title a bit later at 126, it marked the first time in the Vandals’ history that they had two champions at one tournament. They just missed winning another title in between as Marian Central Catholic’s Brayden Teunissen repeated as a 1A champ and denied sophomore Preston Waughtel of a second title with a 2-1 decision at 120. The program had only had four individuals who won state championships prior to that day.
Philpot finished with a perfect 51-0 record but his Vandals saw their memorable season finish in disappointing fashion as they fell just short of their first title since 1996 when they lost 32-25 to Coal City in the title meet of the IHSA 1A Dual Team Finals. It was the final dual meet for their coach since 2006-2007, Jason Clay, who was honored at the individual finals with his induction into the IWCOA Hall of Fame. Philpot opened with a pin in 1:12 over PORTA’s Kainin Fillbright (40-14) and followed that with a fall in 2:58 over Dakota’s Brandon White, who was also making his second trip to state. He earned his spot as the first of three Vandals to reach the title mat when he won a 7-0 decision over Olympia’s Dylan Eimer. Vandalia had three other medalists with Dillon Hinton (150) and Kaden Tidwell (215) placing third and Ross Miller (175) taking sixth.
”I’m just happy to be here with my teammates and it’s been a fun ride,” Philpot said. “I actually didn’t plan on doing a backflip, and kind of failed at it a little bit, but I was in the moment and I just let it go. As they say, iron sharpens iron, it’s a true saying, you know. We’re all really good in that room and it’s going to show at dual team state. I’m going to push it even harder next year, I want another one, I’m not done. I want to be the school’s first two-time champ and even more. I promise you one thing, if you work hard and you stay consistent at it, then everything is going to fall together at the end. It’s all worth it.”
Hagevold (45-8), who took fourth place at 106 a year ago and was one four finalists and five medal winners for the Hurricanes, who took third place in Class 1A and are co-coached by Ryan Prater and Jordan Blanton, had a pin in his opener in 1:17 over Reed-Custer’s Cole Harris (34-16), followed with a win by technical fall in 2:23 over Murphysboro’s Paxton Pyatt (50-8) and earned his spot in the 113 finals with a fall in 3:44 over Benton/ Sesser-Valier’s Cohen Sweely.
Olympia senior Dylan Eimer (46-5) completed his career with a third state medal and his best finish when he took third place with a win by technical fall in 5:09 over Benton/ Sesser-Valier sophomore Cohen Sweely (45-6). Eimer, who took fourth at 113 last year and fourth at 106 in 2022, was one of two all-staters for the Spartans. He joins his coach, Josh Collins (1999-2001) and Keaton Fogler (2016-2018) as Olympia’s only three-time medalists. Sweely won his second medal in two tries, improving on a sixth at 113 last year to be the lone all-stater for the Rangers.
“I set my goals at the beginning of this season and I wanted that state title really bad and worked my butt off all summer for it,” Eimer said. “But sometimes, things just happen and unfortunately it didn’t happen. The past few years I’d get to the third place match and I could just never get it done, I was always losing and getting fourth. So this time was awesome, finally getting it done with the next best thing. It’s been a great honor to wrestle for them (Olympia).”
Coal City sophomore Owen Petersen (44-4) took fifth with a fall in 3:08 over Oregon junior Josiah Perez (44-10) in a rematch of a preliminary round match which Perez won 8-5 in sudden victory. Peterson, one of a record seven medalists for coach Mark Masters’ Coalers, who went on to capture their second Class 1A title in the last three seasons, took sixth at 106 last season while Perez won his first medal in his second trip to state. Dakota junior Brandon White (35-12) and Murphysboro sophomore Paxton Pyatt (49-7) both fell one win shy of getting medals.
120 – Brayden Teunissen, Marian Central Catholic
Brayden Teunissen has met up with some of the best of the best in championship matches during the last three years at the IHSA Finals and after losing in his first appearance on the 3A title mat in 2023, it’s been a different story the last two years as he’s prevailed in close matches over defending Class 1A state champions who also happen to be brothers. The Marian Central Catholic senior won his second-straight 1A title when he edged Vandalia sophomore Preston Waughtel 2-1 to capture the 120 championship one year after denying his brother Tyson of a third-straight championship when he captured a 7-5 win by sudden victory in the 120 finals.
Teunissen (39-5) completed his historical career in which he qualified for state four times and also competed in the 2023 Class 3A title match at 106 while at Belvidere North and settled for second place against St. Charles East’s Dom Munaretto. He also has the distinction of being one of the two individuals who were able to beat three-time champion Tyson Waughtel, who recently set the IHSA standard for most victories and finished with a 210-2 career record. He also helped Marian Central Catholic win its first Class 1A championship last season and finish third at this year’s IHSA 1A Dual Team Finals. He opened with a fall in 1:29 over Leadership Academy’s Donald Bunton, Jr. (29-9) before winning major decisions in his next two matches, 19-6 over Warrensburg-Latham/ Maroa-Forsyth’s Logan Roberts (40-5), a three-time qualifier who took sixth at 120 last year, and 11-1 over Oakwood/ Salt Fork freshman Mason Swartz to become one of four finalists for the Hurricanes and joined Jimmy Mastny (190) as a champion.
“It’s super exciting, it’s a really good feeling,” said Teunissen of being a two-time champion and three-time finalist. “When you’re walking onto the mat and you look up in the crowd and see everybody and see the atmosphere. That was really exciting (beating Tyson Waughtel in last year’s finals). It was definitely hard (this season), I had surgery on my hand so I was out for a while and I couldn’t wrestle. When I came back, wrestling wasn’t the hard part, it was just kind of getting back into things. And getting over the fear of hurting my hand again and just kind of getting my weight back in control. (After going up 2-1 on a penalty with 1:23 left in the title match) I was just kind of like standing there and fighting hard and knew that he needed to be scoring and I could still score if I needed to and the opportunity came, but I was just trying to hold a good position. I knew if I was down in the match, I knew I would be able to come back. I believe that if I just fight the whole match that I can come back, no matter what the score is.”
Waughtel (55-2), who’s only other defeat in two seasons also came against Teunissen by an 8-3 score at ABE’s Rumble, went 50-0 last season at Carlyle and won the 113 championship 7-0 over Peoria Notre Dame’s Ian Akers. He was one of three finalists for the Vandals, with his brother Tyson (126) and Max Philpot (113) both winning titles while three others also earned all-state honors for coach Jason Clay, a 2025 IWCOA Hall of Fame inductee who is retiring as the program’s head coach, where he went 504-110 in 19 seasons. He did his part to try to help Vandalia capture its first IHSA championship since 1996 but it lost 32-25 to Coal City in the title meet at the 1A Dual Team Finals. Waughtel won his first two matches by technical fall, needing 2:14 against Canton’s Jacob Hardesty (35-10) and then 2:26 against Princeton’s Augustus Swanson before getting a pin in 1:40 over Richmond-Burton’s Adam Glauser in the semifinals.
“Obviously this gives me something to train on,” Preston Waughtel said. “I’ve accomplished a lot and it’s still a great feeling to be in the finals. Our practice room is a great room, one of the best rooms in the state, we’re always pushing each other. The coaches are just great people and we’re all like brothers and sisters pushing each other to our best limits.”
De La Salle Institute junior Jeremiah Lawrence (20-2), a three-time qualifier, took third place with a 1-0 decision over Oakwood/ Salt Fork freshman Mason Swartz (44-8). It was the second-straight year that Lawrence took third place after doing so at 106 in 2024. He joins 285 champion David McCarthy as one of the seven Meteors who have won two or more medals. Swartz capped a memorable debut season by being one of the Comet’s four all-staters.
Illini Bluffs freshman Barret Speck (47-8) lost his opener to Swartz but then won five matches in the wrestlebacks to place fifth after getting a win by medical forfeit over Richmond-Burton freshman Adam Glauser (43-10), who was one of four all-staters for the Rockets. Princeton junior Augustus Swanson (30-10), a three-time qualifier who was fifth at 106 in 2024 and Canton sophomore Jacob Hardesty (35-10) both came up one victory shy of state medals. Two four-time state qualifiers, Coal City’s Culan Lindemuth (35-13) and LeRoy/ Tri-Valley’s Brady Mouser (40-5), both fell a bit short in their quest to claim their first state medals.
126 – Tyson Waughtel, Vandalia
Tyson Waughtel was as close as you can get to being a four-time IHSA champion without being one. And while his 7-5 loss in sudden victory to Marian Central Catholic’s Brayden Teunissen in the 2024 1A 120 championship match to finish with a 50-1 record while competing for Carlyle last year prevents him from being ranked in that elite class, the Vandalia senior owns a distinction that none of those 16 individuals have, and that’s being the winningest individual in IHSA history. He improved to 206-2 after recording his fourth win by technical fall in 4:35 over Coal City sophomore Cooper Morris in the Class 1A 126 finals to give him his third championship and fourth appearance on the title mat. He also took first place at 113 in 2023 with a 12-1 major decision over Farmington’s Keygan Jennings to finish 50-1 and he won the title at 106 in 2022 with a 9-4 decision over Illini Bluffs’ Hunter Robbins to cap his debut season with a 52-0 record. He was one of the 11 individuals who were in the IHSA Finals who was a four-time medalist. Richmond-Burton’s Emmett Nelson and Marian Central Catholic’s Vance Williams were the only others who achieved that accomplishment only in Class 1A, although Yorkville Christian’s Aiden Larsen was in 1A for two years and Hononehah’s TJ Silva was in 1A at Dakota for two years. He finished with a 210-2 record after helping Vandalia take second in the 1A Dual Team Finals.
Waughtel (58-0) joined 113 champion Max Philpot as one of two title winners and his brother Preston, who took second at 120, as three finalists to go along with three other medal winners for the Vandals, who are coached by Jason Clay, who was inducted into the IWCOA Hall of Fame before the semifinals. Vandalia had only had four state champions heading into the competition with Jerek Wehrle taking first in the IWCOA Open in 2021 and Jo-E Smith the last one to capture an IHSA title in 2007. Waughtel opened with a win in 5:32 over Marian Central Catholic’s Nick Marchese (28-17), followed that with a victory in 2:49 over Gibson City-Melvin-Sibley/ Fisher’s Landen Lage and then had a triumph in 2:53 over Althoff Catholic sophomore Dawson Hawthorne to earn his spot on the championship mat. He was one of seven individuals who had four wins by technical fall and the lone one to pull that off in Class 1A. And he was one of four unbeaten champions, with teammate Max Philpot (113) and Illini Bluffs’ Jackson Carroll (150) being the others in Class 1A and Belleville East’s Jonathan Rulo (285) was the only one in Class 3A and there were no title winners with perfect records in Class 2A.
“This is what I’ve been training for almost my whole life, since I was five years old,” Tyson Waughtel said. “I’m just really excited and happy for this opportunity to show people what I can do. It’s a huge difference. At Carlyle, it was just me and my brother, but now that I’m here, it shoots my game up a lot with new coaches and new opportunities. It’s just exciting to be here and winning another state championship with them. We have a tough room, one of the hardest in southern Illinois. (Being the state’s all-time winner) It feels amazing. My goals since I was a freshman was to be top of the list. I have really lofty goals and I just want to prove to everyone that I can achieve those goals.”
Morris (42-7), was one of two finalists and one of a school-record seven medalists for the Coalers, who are coached by 2022 IWCOA Hall of Fame inductee Mark Masters. Morris, who took fifth at 113 last year, was one of two finalists for his team with Brody Widlowski also taking second at 138. He recorded a fall in 3:52 over Canton’s Dyllan Steele (32-6) in his opener and then won a 4-3 decision over Lisle’s Alexander Ferari (36-8). His semifinals match was also a close one with him capturing a 4-1 decision over Oakwood/ Salt Fork’s Devin Ehler (13-3).
Ian Akers (50-4) concluded an historic career at Peoria Notre Dame by claiming third place with a 13-8 decision over Ehler, avenging a fall in 5:54 in the quarterfinals that dashed his hopes of reaching the title match for the second year in a row. He lost 7-0 to Caryle’s Preston Waughtel in the 113 title match last season. The four-time qualifier also took fourth place at 106 in 2023, allowing him to join Tristan Daugherty and Leo Mushinsky as the only Irish to place three or more times at state. After falling in the quarterfinals, he won his last four matches to finish third. Ehler (13-3) was one of a school-best four medal winners for Oakwood/ Salt Fork, including being one of the two freshmen to earn all-state honors.
“It was awesome,” Akers said. “It was my last-ever match and I think it pretty much sums up how I want to feel about myself and I want people to view me, it’s just fighting, and if things don’t go well, so what, just go get it. I take a lot of pride in being a leader on the team. Being a leader for Notre Dame wrestling means a ton for me. It meant that I got to be Danny Burk’s right-hand man. Danny Burk has been more than a coach since I was in fifth grade. He’s really been my best friend. He’s always been there for me, it’s awesome.”
“Ian is one of the most special athletes we have had at Peoria Notre Dame,” coach Danny Burk said. “Losing in the quarterfinals was a tough pill to swallow, and winning four-straight matches to finish third at the IHSA state tournament is a very tall task, but no one is as built to do hard things as much as Ian, and he came back like a champion, and avenged his earlier loss with a really exciting comeback in the third-place match. It was a really fitting way for him to go out.”
There was no fifth-place match since Gibson City-Melvin-Sibley/ Fisher freshman Landen Lage (43-6) won by medical forfeit over Althoff Catholic sophomore Dawson Hawthorne (30-4), who earned his first state medal. Richmond-Burton senior Clayton Madula (44-12) and Anna-Jonesboro senior Drew Sadler (45-10) both fell one win shy of getting a state medal. Sadler, a four-time qualifier, took third in both 2023 and 2022 while Madula, who last qualified in 2022, missed out on a first medal and joined four of his teammates as all-staters.
132 – Dean Wainwright, Riverdale
Dean Wainwright didn’t like falling in the quarterfinals to Carlyle’s Tyson Waughtel and settling for third place last season at 120 after winning a state championship at 106 as a freshman in 2023. So the Riverdale junior was focused on getting back on top of the awards stand at the State Farm Center, and that’s just what he did as he captured a 10-5 decision over Unity Christian junior Garrett VerHeecke in the Class 1A 132 title match. He was one of two champions for coach Aron Kindelsperger’s Rams, with senior Blake Smith winning at 157 for his first state title after also finishing in third place last year at 150.
Wainwright (47-2) joins Tyler Hurry, who claimed three first-place finishes in Class A from 1993-1995, as the only Rams who have won multiple state titles. Riverdale also got two titles in 2022 from Blake’s brother Brock and Collin Altensey and they were seniors in 2023 when Wainwright won by fall in 3:40 over Illini Bluffs’ Hunter Robbins in the 106 title match to highlight a 50-1 season. He went 47-3 in 2023-2024 so through three seasons he now owns a 144-6 record. He won a 9-4 decision over Oakwood/ Salt Fork’s Tyler Huchel (41-11) in his opener and followed that with a 15-4 major decision over PORTA’s Zach Bryant before earning his spot on the 132 title mat by capturing an 8-4 decision over Roxana’s Brandon Green, Jr., who pinned him in the 132 championship match at the Lyle King Princeton Invitational Tournament.
“I’ve been working for this all year and it’s finally paid off, and I love it,” Wainwright said. “This was a big mental jump for me this year. Last year, I got third place, so I used that as a little motivation and now I’m back. I had a lot of fakes and a lot of movement and I think that I was finally getting some flow going. I love wrestling, it’s my favorite thing in the whole world. I love coming out here and competing. And I think that all the work in the room and all the work in my club and thanks to my Big Game coaches, my friends and family and my high school coaches, I think it’s finally paid off. I’m very thankful. Riverdale is a small school, so it’s like one big family in that wrestling room, and I think that’s really helped.”
VerHeecke (44-2) turned in his best state showing and placed for the third time after taking third at 126 last season and sixth at 120 in 2023. He opened with two falls, winning in 0:48 in the quarterfinals over Princeton’s Dauber before earning his first trip to an IHSA title match with an 8-0 major decision over Chicago Hope Academy’s Josiah Willis. VerHeecke and his brother Clinton, who also is a three-time medalist, were the only qualifiers for coach Zach Whitsel’s Lions and their school is in Decatur and co-ops with Argenta-Oreana. His only other loss came against Morton’s Harrison Dea in the 132 finals at Pontiac’s Munch Invite on December 14.
“Being a three-time state placer means a lot to me, it’s a rare feat that only so many kids are able to achieve through their career,” Garrett VerHeecke said. “It’s extremely difficult and pays testament to all the work I have put in. Obviously I want more than to just place but it is very surreal to reflect on how far I have come. Next year my goal is to be a state champion and that’s what I’m gonna spend the next 11 months preparing for. I’m excited for what I have achieved so far, but also can’t wait to see what the future holds.”
“Being a three-time state placer for these two is amazing,” Unity Christian coach Zach Whitsel said. “Some kids are lucky to be a one-time qualifier and to even get on the podium. Clinton and Garrett have been consistent and been on the podium three times. Being able to coach these two so far has been great but they are not done. They are hungry for more and want to be at the top of the podium. They both agree that the work does not stop and they will continue to prepare and be state champions next season. I am proud of them and their work ethic. They push the whole team to be better. They lead from the front and are some of the best kids to coach.”
Roxana junior Brandon Green, Jr. (41-1) suffered his first loss of the season to Wainwright and settled for third place after finishing in fifth at 132 last year and he also qualified for state in 2023. He opened with two wins by technical fall before losing to Wainwright. One of three medalists for the Shells, he closed with a fall in 0:39 in the third-place match over Chicago Hope Academy sophomore Josiah Willis (45-11), who was one of three all-staters for the Eagles. He made his second state trip and he and his team got to compete in the IHSA Dual Team Finals.
Princeton freshman Kane Dauber (50-5) took fifth place by claiming a 14-3 major decision over PORTA junior Zach Bryant (45-14). Dauber was one of two medalists for Princeton and Bryant was one of two medalists for PORTA and this was his first medal in his second state trip. Coming up one victory shy of earning all-state honors were two juniors, Shelbyville’s Bodee Fathauer (33-10) and Wheaton Academy’s Lincoln Hoger (45-9), with Fathauer making his second state trip and Hoger in his third state appearance after placing fifth last year at 126.
138 – Taylor Finley, Unity
Taylor Finley went 1-2 at last year’s IHSA Class 1A Finals as a freshman and qualified again to be in this year’s field that included three four-time state qualifiers, with two of those winning state medals, including one that was a champion in 2024, and there were also two individuals who were making their third state trip and they had placed twice. But when the 138 title match had concluded at this year’s Finals in Champaign, Unity sophomore Finley had his hand raised after winning an 8-4 decision over Coal City junior Brody Widlowski, who took second place at 126 a year ago after finishing fourth at 113 in 2023. He was the lone champion, was joined in the finals by 144 runner-up Kaden Inman and was one of five medal winners for coach Logan Patton’s Rockets. Finley was also one of three sophomores who won state championships with Vandalia’s Max Philpot (113) and Marian Central Catholic’s Jimmy Mastny (190) the others.
Finley (55-5) had the most victories of anyone in the weight class but his most notable win prior to the title match came in his second match in Champaign after he opened with a 10-2 major decision over Reed-Custer’s Jeremy Eggleston (45-5), who also qualified in 2023. In the quarterfinals, he handed last year’s 132 champion, Rockridge senior Jude Finch (43-1), his first and only defeat of the season when he captured a 9-7 decision over Finch, who also had finished in third place at 126 in 2023 and qualified in 2022. Finley earned his spot on the 138 title mat with a 10-1 major decision over Oakwood/ Salt Fork’s Pedro Rangel, who was finally assured of a first medal in his fourth state trip. Finley is the seventh title winner at the Tolono school and Patton’s Rockets have now had a state champion in each of the last three years, with Nick Nosler winning at 195 in 2023 and Hunter Eastin taking first at 190 last season.
“It felt great until I saw my teammate Kaden Inman get beat,” Finley said. “It felt amazing. It’s been a great season, other than ABE’s Rumble. That was kind of a point that showed us that we have to keep grinding and we have to go take this from everybody else. I was just a little, scared kid that didn’t know where I was going with my life until I went to Tolono Unity, of course, that’s not true all the way, because I believed in myself. With the coaches behind me in my corner and the mentorships that my coaches gave me, it’s unmatched from anybody else. My coaches, they do it all behind the scenes and they get everything done that I need to have a path for success.”
Widlowski (31-1) also suffered his only loss of the season to Finley, who he defeated 2-0 in the third-place meet at ABE’s Rumble. The junior was one of a school-record seven medal winners for the Coalers, who followed up on that strong performance by winning their second Class 1A title in three years for coach Mark Masters, a 2022 IWCOA Hall of Fame inductee. Widlowski was one of their two finalists, along with 126 runner-up Cooper Morris. Widlowski, who missed part of the season due to injury, got a quick pin in his first match and then avoided being one of the many upset victims in the quarterfinals by capturing a 5-4 decision over Johnsburg’s Landon Johnson (36-7). He advanced to a state title match for the second year in a row after winning another close decision, by a 3-2 score, over Unity Christian junior Clinton VerHeecke.
Finch responded to his disappointing setback to Finley by winning all four of his matches in the wrestlebacks, with the first being a quick pin and the other three victories by technical fall. Finch, a four-time qualifier, became the fourth individual from Rockridge to collect three or more state medals and was the first to do that since 2020, when Dallas Krueger and Nolan Thone both achieved that. Finch’s last victory was by technical fall over Marian Central Catholic senior Andrew Alvarado in the third-place match. Alvarado (26-12), a four-time qualifier who took fifth at 113 in 2023, was one of five all-staters for the defending Class 1A champion Hurricanes, who lost to eventual champion Coal City in the semifinals and took third in the 1A Dual Team Finals.
“I just say I thank God, first of all,” Finch said, “It was tough when I lost that quarterfinals match, but I knew that that wasn’t it, we had to go out with a bang and keep wrestling and get third place. (Rockridge) It’s my school and I’ve been there from day one. I want to give our school a good name and show that we have some good athletes.”
Unity Christian junior Clinton VerHeecke (43-2) took fifth place with a fall in 3:32 over Oakwood/ Salt Fork senior Pedro Rangel (44-10). VerHeecke earned all-state honors for the third year in a row, as did his brother Garrett, who was the runner-up to Riverdale’s Dean Wainwright at 132. The junior took fifth last year at 120 after placing third at 113 in 2023. Rangel claimed his first medal in his fourth state appearance and was one of four all-staters for Oakwood/ Salt Fork. Missing out on medals by one victory were Lena-Winslow/ Stockton junior Mauricio Glass (43-13) and Gibson City-Melvin-Sibley/ Fisher freshman Hunter Brandon (16-8).
“I mean it is just an incredible feeling so few people get three state medals here in Illinois and knowing I am one of those people that has earned that means the world,” Clinton VerHeecke said “It is also an awesome opportunity looking forward to next year hopefully winning a fourth medal which is an even more incredible feat that is very rare to see. The Illinois state tournament is unlike anything else and as we saw this past week anything can happen in these tournaments so having that consistency of making it on the podium every year is definitely something special.”
144 – Emmett Nelson, Richmond-Burton
Emmett Nelson competed in state title matches in both 2022 and 2023 and then almost didn’t medal last season and settled for a sixth-place finish. But those past state showings were a distant memory for the Richmond-Burton senior as he closed out his career on a high note, capping a 45-1 season by capturing a 15-3 major decision over Unity senior Kaden Inman in the Class 1A 144 championship match. His only defeat of the season happened on December 21 when he lost to Antioch’s Chase Nobiling in the 144 title match at Glenbrook South’s Rus Erb Tournament. In 2022, he fell 8-2 to Auburn’s Joey Ruzic in the 113 title match to conclude a 41-4 debut season. In 2023, he fell 6-1 to Dakota’s TJ Silva in the 126 finals to finish 46-3 and he took sixth place at 144 last season and had a 48-3 record. His career record was 182-11.
Nelson was one of two finalists and four medal winners for the Rockets, who are coached by his father, Tony. He also was joined as an all-stater by his freshman brother, Lelan, who took fifth at 106 to cap a 44-6 season. He joins Jordan Blanton (2005-2008) and Grant Sutton (2012-2015) as four-time medalists and Jack Dechow (2010-2012) and Blanton as individuals who competed in three or more state title matches. He’s also one of nine individuals from Richmond-Burton that have won state championships and the first to win a title since 2021 when Brock Wood took first in 1A at 220 in the IWCOA Open and the first IHSA title winner since 2017 when Gavin Sutton was the 2A champion at 145. He opened his run to the championship by recording a fall in 2:34 over Oakwood/ Salt Fork’s Carter Chambliss (28-23) and then captured a victory by technical fall in 3:04 over Warrensburg-Latham/ Maroa-Forsyth’s Charlie Wittmer (44-10). He advanced to his third state title match by getting a pin in 5:51 over Sandwich’s Cooper Corder.
“It’s going to be a lot different on my ride home on a win, and it was a good win,,” Nelson said. “I have a yell out for my teammate Blake (Livdahl), he ended up finishing second and I want to help him out because I know how it feels and it sucks, but as a sophomore, it’s a great accomplishment, so I have to have him realize that. This was one of the first years I’ve had where we had other medalists and the first that I had where we had another finalist. It’s fun winning, but it’s even more fun winning when your teammates are winning, too. I’m just happy that we got to spend so much time together. I just tried to get his mind (his brother Lelan) since he didn’t expect to win as a freshman, but I believed he had the skill and maybe next year it will be easier. We have such a great history. When you go into our room, there’s names all over the wall. It’s just cool to look at the wall and see how many other people did what I wanted to do.”
“Emmett’s final record was 182-11, which puts him in the top 20 all-time in IHSA for wins,” said his coach and father, Tony Nelson. “He only had two matches all season that did not end in bonus and had a combined 41 wins end in pin or tech fall. Blake (second at 175) is on a mission to be the next state champ. He is a monster and has everything it takes to be a champion, tough as they come and not under the radar anymore. Lelan (fifth at 106) is off to make his own history at R-B and Adam Glauser (sixth at 120) forfeited to sixth after the semis and unfortunately wrestled sick the whole tournament. This kid will be looking to dominate next season.”
Inman (52-6), who was a four-time qualifier and two-time medalist, settled for second place for the second year in a row. He lost 8-7 to Illini Bluffs’ Jackson Carroll in the 144 title match in 2024. One of two finalists and five medalists for coach Logan Patton’s Rockets, he helped his team get back to the IHSA Dual Team Finals and they earned their first trophy since 2022 and settled for third place after giving Vandalia a battle in the semifinals. After winning his opener by technical fall, Inman won a 10-3 decision over Princeton’s Ace Christiansen and then reached the 144 title mat once again after claiming a 7-2 decision over Coal City’s Aidan Kenney.
Lena-Winslow/ Stockton junior Arrison Bauer (47-7) claimed third place and won his first medal in his second trip to state with an 8-0 major decision over Coal City junior Aidan Kenney (43-12), who beat him 9-6 by sudden victory in the quarterfinals. Bauer got four wins in the wrestlebacks, including 4-1 by sudden victory over Christiansen (45-7), a three-time qualifier who took third at 138 last season, and 6-5 in a tiebreaker over Corder (37-7), who placed fourth at 138 in his state debut in 2024. Kenney won his first medal after making his only other state trip in 2023.
Sandwich sophomore Cooper Corder (37-7) took fifth place with a 15-5 major decision over Roxana junior Logan Riggs. Corder placed for the second-straight year while Riggs (38-15) won his first medal in his third appearance. Lawrence County sophomore Hudson Meek (38-12) and Princeton senior Ace Christiansen (45-7) both fell one victory shy of receiving all-state honors.
“Cooper had a tremendous year,” Sandwich coach Derek Jones said. “He was dealing with a few health issues late in the season, but was able to gut it out to get on the podium. We are immensely proud of his accomplishments and excited to see how he does in his next two years. I know he has the determination to reach the top of the podium.”
150 – Jackson Carroll, Illini Bluffs
Jackson Carroll got the opportunity during his first two seasons at Illini Bluffs to be on teams with individuals who enjoyed success in state competition, Paul Ishikawa and Hunter Robbins. Ishikawa won an IHSA title at 145 in 2023, took fourth at 138 in 2022 and claimed first at 126 in the IWCOA Open Championship in 2021 while Robbins finished in second place at state at 106 in both 2023 and 2022. Carroll was able to duplicate Ishikawa’s two title wins as well as his and Robbins’ two finals appearances during his junior and senior seasons after falling short of medals in his first two trips to Champaign. Carroll completed a perfect 53-0 season, making him one of four individuals who posted unbeaten records, with the others being Vandalia’s Tyson Waughtel (1A-126) and Max Philpot (1A-113) and Belleville East’s Jonathan Rulo (3A-285). He captured the Class 1A 150 championship by winning a 16-7 major decision over Marian Central Catholic senior Vance Williams, who finished his career as a four-time medalist and three-time finalist but settled for second-place finishes in each of the last three seasons.
Carroll became the program’s first two-time IHSA champion, joined Ishikawa as a two-time state title winner, was one of five that appeared in two title matches and was the sixth individual from his program to win two or more state medals. He was joined in Champaign by freshman Barret Speck (120) as all-staters for coach Shawn O’Connor’s Tigers, who only had the two qualifiers. He captured victories by technical fall in his first two matches, winning in 5:12 over Chicago Hope Academy’s Santori Knight (35-19) in his opener and then in 5:52 in the quarterfinals over Stillman Valley’s Henry Hildreth. Carroll earned his spot in the 150 championship match by claiming a 10-3 decision over Dwight/ Gardner-South Wilmington’s Dylan Crouch..
“This is what you dream of at the beginning of the season,” Carroll said. “It feels like it takes forever and then it’s gone in the blink of an eye. A really cool fun fact is that the kid that I just wrestled in the state finals was my first match at state my freshman year. The first-ever match at state and the last-ever match at state, and he beat me up pretty good. We’ve had so many incredible champions who’ve come out of this school. Paul Ishikawa was one of them, he was another two-time at our school, and they were all here supporting me. The whole idea was that I tried to not look at this so much as I have to win this tournament because it’s state, I looked at it as another event, I’m going to wrestle in college and I’m going to have plenty more, so it’s just another chance to improve and see where I’m at with the best guys in the state.”
Williams (44-6) was one of 11 seniors in the tournament and three who competed in Class 1A who were four-time medalists. He also was the runner-up at 132 to Rockridge’s Jude Finch in 2024, at 132 to Dakota’s Phoenix Blakely in 2023 and he also took fourth place at that weight in 2022. He’s the first person in his program’s history to win a state medal in each of his four seasons. And Dylan Connell was the only other individual from the school who appeared in title matches for three-straight years. Williams was one of four finalists and five all-staters for the Hurricanes, who won the IHSA Class 1A championship last season but fell to eventual champion Coal City in the semifinals and took third place at the IHSA 1A Dual Team Finals. He won his first two matches by technical fall, needing 2:49 to beat LeRoy/ Tri-Valley’s Kobe Brent in the quarterfinals before winning 12-6 over Vandalia’s Dillon Hinton in the semifinals.
Vandalia junior Dillon Hinton (52-3) took third place with an 8-3 decision over Unity senior Holden Brazelton (49-9). Hinton who was the runner-up to Benton’s Mason Tieffel at 138 last season and took fifth at 132 in 2023, was one of six medal winners for the Vandals, and was one of the five who finished third or better. He’s the fourth individual from his program to be a three-time all-stater and ended his season along with his teammates in the 1A IHSA Dual Team Finals where Vandalia fell to Coal City 32-25 for the title. Brazelton was a four-time qualifier who placed third at 132 in 2023 and sixth at 120 at 2022 while competing for St. Joseph-Ogden. He was one of five medal winners for Unity, which took fourth place in the 1A Dual Team Finals.
“Everybody wants to be a champ and this year I came up a little bit short,” Hinton said. “But I’m just chasing after it, you know, and I always have next year. (Vandalia’s season) I think it’s been great. Everybody’s banging in the practice room, as they should be and I think that this state tournament definitely shows how well we’ve been doing. You just have to keep pushing, that’s my favorite thing about the sport, is that anything can happen.”
Dwight co-op senior Dylan Crouch (48-5), who lost in the semifinals to Carroll, took fifth place with a fall in 4:24 over Stillman Valley senior Henry Hildreth (41-8). Crouch ended up as Dwight’s all-time wins leader and he was a four-time qualifier who also took fifth at 138 last season and joins Anthony Bauer as the only Trojans to win two medals at state. And Hildreth earned all-state honors in his first state appearance. Falling one victory shy of state medals were LeRoy/ Tri-Valley senior Kobe Brent (45-9) and Salem senior Keyton King (45-4).
“Dylan is up two weights from last year,” Dwight coach Jim Gussman said. “His record was 48-5 this season with two losses to the state champ and his other three losses were to state placers. He’s a four-time state qualifier with a career record of 151-29.”
157 – Blake Smith, Riverdale
Blake Smith and Briar Ivey went back-and-forth for titles during the last three weeks of the season and when all was said and done in the Class 1A 157 championship match at State Farm Center, the Riverdale senior prevailed over the Newman Central senior by a 10-9 margin to give coach Aron Kindelsperger’s Rams two champions, with junior Dean Wainwright taking first at 132 to claim his second title in three years. Smith (36-1) won the first matchup at his school’s regional with a fall in 3:05 and then at the Oregon Sectional, Ivey captured a 9-4 decision. The last time Riverdale had two champions was in 2022 when his brother Brock took first at 132 and Collin Altensey won the title at 152. Smith was a three-time qualifier who took third at 150 in 2024.
Smith, Ivey and Erie/ Prophetstown senior Wyatt Goossens placed in the top-three at the regional, sectional and state. The top-four finishers at 157 were also the four qualifiers from the Oregon Sectional. While the IHSA championship match was different from one week earlier, the same result happened in the third-place match at state where Goossens once again defeated Wheaton Academy senior Chasen Kazmierczak by fall, this time in 2:25. Smith opened his run to the 157 title with an 11-1 major decision over Litchfield/ Mt. Olive’s Braxton Kieffer (35-13). Then he recorded a fall in 1:41 over Olympia’s Kelton Graden (24-9) before earning a spot in his first state championship match with a 14-6 major decision over Goossens.
“It happened this way for a reason, I think,” Smith said. “You get overconfident a little bit and I got put in my place. I took it all last week and it was really beating on me. I made the adjustments and got it done this week and I’m just happy that it happened this way. I’m just living in the moment right now, I can’t even explain it. (When his brother Brock won his title) “That was special, but it’s nothing like winning it yourself. I did this for him because without him, none of this is possible. We qualified two and came out with two state champs, I’d say that’s a pretty darn good tournament for us.”
Ivey (47-4), who won his initial state medal in his first trip to Champaign since his freshman season, was the lone finalist and one of two all-staters for coach Brian Bahrs’ Comets, who fell 39-30 to Oregon in the Oregon Dual Team Sectional to come up a bit short of a trip to this weekend’s IHSA 1A Dual Team Finals. After winning by fall in his first match, Ivey captured a 10-0 major decision over PORTA’s Justin Zimmerman and then won 7-4 over Kazmierczak.
Like Ivey, Erie/ Prophetstown senior Wyatt Goossens (45-9) was also making his first state trip since 2022 and was able to earn all-state honors for the first time after taking third place with a fall in 2:25 over Wheaton Academy senior Chasen Kazmierczak (46-9), who also won his first medal in his second state trip, which was last season. He is only the fourth medal winner for Wheaton Academy and the Warriors have now had state medalists two years in a row.
“It feels really good,” Goosens said of finishing in third place. “I’m just super glad to be here and to be able to place third. We didn’t get a state qualifier last year and part of that was because I didn’t wrestle very well. I made it freshman year and the past two years have just been really close and this year I finally made it. And I think it’s crazy how all of our sectional placed top four. It’s been a really good experience for four years (being at Erie/ Prophetstown). It’s kind of crazy because it hasn’t really hit me yet that this was my last match, but it’s going to pretty soon.”
“Wyatt had a tremendous season and career,” Erie/ Prophetstown coach Brian Buri said. “After barely missing qualifying the last two years to finally get down to Champaign and finish third is remarkable. It shows not only his technical skill and strength, but his mental toughness. Finishing third three weeks in a row is tough. Wyatt had some tough matches throughout the state series in order to qualify and then to place. His resilience demonstrated that Wyatt is a true competitor and one of the top in the state. The top three all year finished 1,2,3 at regionals, sectionals and state. That doesn’t happen too often. I couldn’t be more proud of Wyatt and how he competed all season.”
PORTA junior Justin Zimmerman (46-11) took fifth place with an 8-2 decision over Richland County senior Carson Bissey (20-4). Zimmerman collected a medal in his first state trip while Bissey added to a fourth-place effort at 132 last season and a fourth place at 126 in 2022. He is the only medal winner the school in Olney has had. Falling one win shy of state medals were Vandalia senior Parker Ray (45-12) and Pontiac freshman Lucas Maier (36-14).
165 – Bowden Delaney, Tremont
Bowden Delaney was definitely dejected after dropping a 3-1 decision to Coal City’s Landin Benson in the Class 1A 165 championship match a year ago to conclude his junior season with a 45-2 record. Finally getting a state medal after walking away empty-handed in his first two appearances in the IHSA 1A Finals, Delaney definitely wasn’t content with being second-best and that drove the Tremont senior to become a champion throughout his final season and his determination definitely paid off as he closed out his career by capturing the 165 Class 1A championship with a 7-4 decision over Roxana junior Lyndon Thies to cap a 51-3 season.
Delaney, the only qualifier for coach TJ Williams’ Turks, was very pleased that he was able to compete for Williams, a 2006 IWCOA Hall of Fame inductee who was the fifth individual to capture four IHSA championships, pulling off that feat from 1993-1996 for Mount Carmel. He joins another IWCOA Hall of Famer, 2022 inductee Russ Witzig, as the only two-time IHSA medalists for Tremont and is one of three state champions for the program, along with Kip Crandall in 1984 and Witzig in 1985. It should also be pointed out that Cooper Wendling won the 1A title at 195 in the 2021 IWCOA Open Finals and then placed fourth in 2022 in the IHSA. Delaney kicked off his run to the 165 title at State Farm Center with a fall in 0:36 over Vandalia’s Artan Mustafa (41-17) and then won his next two matches with pins that only had him on the mat a bit longer as he went 1:02 to defeat Byron’s Brody Stien (44-7), a two-time qualifier, and in 1:12 to win in the semifinals against Mercer County’s Eli Burns to reach the title mat for the second-straight year, and as a result, he became his program’s first two-time state finalist.
“It’s amazing,” Delaney said. “I’ve been looking forward to this all season since second place sucks. It’s nice to end my high school career as a state champion. (Patton Trained) Those are my brothers and I was with them all offseason. (Logan Patton) He’s a great coach and I had great partners over there and they’re a whole other family for me. That was just amazing and they get everything done over there. I would just go where I needed to go and put in the work that I needed to put in and then once again, just wrestle my match, that’s what it came down to.”
“Bowden is the first state champ since 1985,” Turks coach TJ Williams said. “He’s broken numerous records at Tremont High School. Starting with four-time state qualifier, a two-time finalist, state champ, 176 career wins, 18 losses, 137 career pins, 11 tech falls, 146 takedowns and two-time team captain. He has a GPA of 3.8 and he’s a great kid on and off the mat.”
Thies (45-3) was one of three qualifiers who all placed and the lone finalist for coach Rob Milazzo’s Shells, who took third in the Class 1A IHSA Dual Team Finals in 2024 with Thies being one of the leaders after placing fourth at 157 in his first trip in Champaign. He had a tough opener, prevailing 9-8 over Hoopeston Area/ Milford’s Ayden Larkin (37-10), a three-time qualifier who took sixth at 157 in 2024. He followed that with an 11-3 major decision over Coal City’s Brock Finch (34-11), a three-time state qualifier, and earned his first trip to the state title mat with a victory by technical fall in 4:57 over Chicago Hope Academy’s Arkail Griffin.
Northridge Prep senior Adam Haddad (42-3) claimed third place by claiming a 13-4 major decision over Princeton junior Casey Etheridge (48-6). Haddad, who qualified for state for the first time in 2024, became his program’s first medal winner among its three qualifiers and they all helped coach Joseph Rhee’s Knights capture their first regional championship. After getting edged 5-4 in the quarterfinals by Burns, Haddad won four-straight matches to make history as Northridge Prep’s initial all-stater. Etheridge, one of the two medalists for the Tigers, also met Haddad in the preliminary round and lost a 7-3 decision, which forced him to get four victories in the wrestlebacks in order for him to claim his first state medal.
“It doesn’t feel great, to be honest, I had much bigger expectations for myself,” Haddad said. “Not everything goes perfect all of the time and the best guys don’t always win, so I just sucked it up and came back for third. (Northridge Prep) It’s honestly one of the best places to be in the state, I believe. My coaches mean everything to me, they’ve helped me grow so much and just everything that I’ve accomplished is because of them and I just can’t thank them enough.”
For fifth place, Chicago Hope Academy sophomore Arkail Griffin (49-6) captured a 19-5 major decision over Mercer County junior Eli Burns (22-7). Griffin, in his second state appearance, was one of a school-best three all-staters for the Eagles, who qualified for the IHSA Dual Team Finals. Burns advanced to the semifinals in his second state trip to help him secure his first medal. Coming up one victory shy of receiving all-state honors were Coal City junior Brock Finch (34-11) and Byron sophomore Brody Stien (44-7).
IHSA Class 1A Individual State Tournament Place Matches
1A 106
1st Place Match
Charlie Flores (Hoopeston-Area/ Milford) 51-3, Jr. over Steven Uden (Oakwood/ Salt Fork) 43-6, So. (Dec 4-0)
3rd Place Match
Raiden Terry (Seneca) 52-3, So. over Landon Near (Newman Central Catholic) 43-6, Fr. (Dec 2-1)
5th Place Match
Lelan Nelson (Richmond-Burton) 44-6, Fr. over Brandon Gaither (Olympia/ Delavan) 42-12, Fr. (MD 10-0)
1A 113
1st Place Match
Max Philpot (Vandalia) 47-0, So. over Austin Hagevold (Marian Central Catholic) 42-8, Jr. (Dec 10-3)
3rd Place Match
Dylan Eimer (Olympia/ Delavan) 44-5, Sr. over Cohen Sweely (Benton/ Sesser-Valier) 45-6, So. (TF-1.5 5:09 (17-1))
5th Place Match
Owen Petersen (Coal City) 44-4, So. over Josiah Perez (Oregon) 42-10, Jr. (Fall 3:08)
1A 120
1st Place Match
Brayden Teunissen (Marian Central Catholic) 35-5, Sr. over Preston Waughtel (Vandalia) 51-2, So. (Dec 2-1)
3rd Place Match
Jeremiah Lawrence (De La Salle Institute) 20-2, Jr. over Mason Swartz (Oakwood/ Salt Fork) 44-7, Fr. (Dec 1-0)
5th Place Match
Barret Speck (Illini Bluffs) 47-8, Fr. over Adam Glauser (Richmond-Burton) 43-10, Fr. (M. For.)
1A 126
1st Place Match
Tyson Waughtel (Vandalia) 54-0, Sr. over Cooper Morris (Coal City) 40-6, So. (TF-1.5 4:35 (18-1))
3rd Place Match
Ian Akers (Peoria Notre Dame) 50-4, Sr. over Devin Ehler (Oakwood/ Salt Fork) 12-3, Fr. (Dec 13-8)
5th Place Match
Landen Lage (Gibson City-Melvin-Sibley/ Fisher) 43-6, Fr. over Dawson Hawthorne (Althoff Catholic) 30-4, So. (M. For.)
1A 132
1st Place Match
Dean Wainwright (Riverdale) 47-2, Jr. over Garrett VerHeecke (Unity Christian/ Argenta-Oreana) 44-2, Jr. (Dec 10-5)
3rd Place Match
Brandon Green Jr. (Roxana) 41-1, Jr. over Josiah Willis (Chicago Hope Academy) 43-11, So. (Fall 0:39)
5th Place Match
Kane Dauber (Princeton) 50-5, Fr. over Zach Bryant (PORTA) 45-14, Jr. (MD 14-3)
1A 138
1st Place Match
Taylor Finley (Unity) 51-5, So. over Brody Widlowski (Coal City) 27-1, Jr. (Dec 8-4)
3rd Place Match
Jude Finch (Rockridge) 43-1, Sr. over Andrew Alvarado (Marian Central Catholic) 26-12, Sr. (TF-1.5 4:28 (18-2))
5th Place Match
Clinton VerHeecke (Unity Christian/ Argenta-Oreana) 43-2, Jr. over Pedro Rangel (Oakwood/ Salt Fork) 43-10, Sr. (Fall 3:32)
1A 144
1st Place Match
Emmett Nelson (Richmond-Burton) 45-1, Sr. over Kaden Inman (Unity) 48-6, Sr. (MD 15-3)
3rd Place Match
Arrison Bauer (Lena-Winslow/ Stockton) 47-7, Jr. over Aidan Kenney (Coal City) 39-12, Jr. (MD 8-0)
5th Place Match
Cooper Corder (Sandwich) 37-7, So. over Logan Riggs (Roxana) 38-15, Jr. (MD 15-5)
1A 150
1st Place Match
Jackson Carroll (Illini Bluffs) 53-0, Sr. over Vance Williams (Marian Central Catholic) 40-6, Sr. (MD 16-7)
3rd Place Match
Dillon Hinton (Vandalia) 52-3, Jr. over Holden Brazelton (Unity) 49-9, Sr. (Dec 8-3)
5th Place Match
Dylan Crouch (Dwight/ Gardner-South Wilmington) 48-5, Sr. over Henry Hildreth (Stillman Valley) 41-8, Sr. (Fall 4:24)
1A 157
1st Place Match
Blake Smith (Riverdale) 36-1, Sr. over Briar Ivey (Newman Central Catholic) 47-4, Sr. (Dec 10-9)
3rd Place Match
Wyatt Goossens (Erie/Prophetstown) 45-9, Sr. over Chasen Kazmierczak (Wheaton Academy) 46-9, Sr. (Fall 2:25)
5th Place Match
Justin Zimmerman (PORTA) 45-11, Jr. over Carson Bissey (Richland County) 20-4, Sr. (Dec 8-2)
1A 165
1st Place Match
Bowden Delaney (Tremont) 51-3, Sr. over Lyndon Thies (Roxana) 45-3, Jr. (Dec 7-4)
3rd Place Match
Adam Haddad (Northridge Prep) 41-3, Sr. over Casey Etheridge (Princeton) 48-6, Jr. (MD 13-4)
5th Place Match
Arkail Griffin (Chicago Hope Academy) 49-6, So. over Eli Burns (Mercer County) 22-7, Jr. (MD 19-5)
1A 175
Guaranteed Places
1st Place Match
Eli Larson (Lena-Winslow/ Stockton) 49-2, Jr. over Blake Livdahl (Richmond-Burton) 44-6, So. (Dec 14-7)
3rd Place Match
Angel Zamora (Hoopeston Area/ Milford) 52-2, Sr. over Ryan Rink (Unity) 44-11, Sr. (Fall 2:58)
5th Place Match
Landin Benson (Coal City) 42-4, Sr. over Ross Miller (Vandalia) 42-13, Jr. (Dec 9-4)
1A 190
1st Place Match
Jimmy Mastny (Marian Central Catholic) 53-1, So. over Maddux Anderson (Orion) 51-4, Sr. (Fall 1:45)
3rd Place Match
Danny Jackson (Red Bud/ Valmeyer) 45-6, Fr. over Oliver McPeek (Lena-Winslow/ Stockton) 45-7, Jr. (MD 14-1)
5th Place Match
Cade Poyner (Coal City) 37-9, Jr. over Hunter Eastin (Unity) 51-5, Sr. (Fall 1:24)
1A 215
1st Place Match
Drake Champlin (East Alton-Wood River) 43-1, Sr. over Jeremiah Luke (Lena-Winslow/ Stockton) 45-6, Jr. (Dec 7-3)
3rd Place Match
Kaden Tidwell (Vandalia) 51-5, Sr. over Keller Stocks (Mt. Zion) 45-9, Jr. (Dec 3-2)
5th Place Match
John Keigher (Coal City) 35-3, Sr. over Dominic Alaimo (Reed-Custer) 45-9, Jr. (Dec 9-5)
1A 285
1st Place Match
David McCarthy (De La Salle Institute) 32-2, Sr. over Roy Phelps (Chicago Hope Academy) 47-6, Sr. (Dec 7-1)
3rd Place Match
Jaylen Torres (St. Francis) 33-3, Jr. over Jeremy Gagnon (Seneca) 49-4, Sr. (Fall 4:59)
5th Place Match
Connor Williams (Canton) 37-2, Jr. over Jared Claunch (Byron) 41-11, Sr. (Fall 3:45)