Class A sectionals are in the books. Some brackets played out exactly how you'd expect. Others got completely rearranged.
Note: This recap only covers weights 95lb and up.
Let's get into it.
The Big Stories
112lb Might Be the Best Bracket in the State
We said it in our notes and we'll say it again here: 112lb is shaping up to be the most competitive bracket of the entire Class A state tournament. And sectionals only confirmed it.
Start with Sectional B. Five of our previous top 10 ranked wrestlers were in the same bracket: #2 Owen Sowards, #3 Collin Haake, #4 Uryah Wright, #5 Brantley Brooks, and #6 Tatum Smight. That's absurd. And the results proved why matches need to be wrestled. Brantley Brooks won the sectional, defeating Owen Sowards in sudden victory 3-0. But Sowards had beaten Haake by fall earlier in the bracket, and Haake had beaten Brooks by major at regionals. The circle of competition is real, and any one of the four qualifiers from this sectional can win it all at state.
Over in Sectional C, top-ranked Kellan Spisok had to work for his wins. He squeaked out a 5-3 decision over Ben Hadsall in the quarters, then closed with a 9-0 major over Colton Nickles in the finals. He held the #1 spot, but it wasn't a walk.
Then there's Sectional D, where Legend Watson won in a close 12-9 decision over Noah Komnick. And in Sectional A, two unranked wrestlers took the top two spots with Gio Rico (Fox Lake Stanton) winning it.
Top to bottom, this will be a fun bracket to watch this weekend.
Sectional B at 95lb Was Loaded
Sectional B (Riverdale) at 95lb was stacked in a way you rarely see. All four qualifiers, Jaxon Brunoehler (Sandwich), Briar Spooner (Fulton River Bend), Carson Overacker (Herscher Limestone), and Deklyn Thompson (Seneca), qualified for state last year as well. Brunoehler placed 4th, Thompson placed 2nd, Spooner placed 2nd, and Overacker qualified. There were even wrestlers in this sectional who qualified last year but couldn't escape this bracket. This group is battle-tested and very strong. We can see a path for all four to medal at state.
Brunoehler dominated his sectional with a 14-0 major, a 15-0 tech fall, and a fall over Spooner in the finals to keep his #1 spot. The 3rd place match went to sudden victory, with Overacker edging Thompson 13-10 in a great back and forth match.
Luke McClaine's 59-Second Sectional
The most dominant individual performance of the weekend belongs to Luke McClaine (Port Byron Riverdale) at 215lb. Three matches. Three pins. Total time on the mat: 59 seconds. That's a 6-second pin, a 20-second pin, and a 33-second pin. McClaine took 2nd at state last year and is wrestling like a kid who remembers exactly what that runner-up finish felt like. He's the clear man to beat at 215.
119lb Had a Little Bit of Everything
What can we say about 119? It had upsets, redemption, deep brackets, and a worthy wrestler sent home early.
First, Kade Brown, who was ranked #7 coming into sectionals, did not compete, opening the door for an alternate. Then we got one of the bigger upsets of the weekend: Kenny Gersch pinned Jude Egshig in the quarterfinals. Gersch later avenged his regional loss to Adric Becker to win Sectional A with a 7-2 decision in the finals.
Sectional C was brutal. Our #1, #2, #4, and #5 ranked wrestlers were all there, so there was no room for mistakes. Nick Trotter took a sudden victory win over Judah Hedges in the semifinals, and Hedges then drew #5 Jake Webb in the consolation semi and lost 9-3. A very talented wrestler, but sometimes you land in a sectional so deep that good kids don't make it out.
Brady Lowe looked strong throughout, winning the sectional with a 13-2 major over Trotter. But Webb showed he could stay within reach of Lowe earlier in the bracket, keeping it a competitive 8-4 decision.
126lb Turned Upside Down
For the second consecutive weight class, the #2 ranked wrestler didn't survive a stacked sectional. Lucas Wicklatz drew Hawk Amy in the semifinal and Brady Wills in the consolation semi, our #1 and #3 ranked wrestlers at 126. That's as tough a draw as it gets.
Hawk Amy showed exactly why he's top of class. He tech'd Wicklatz 16-0 in the semi, then rolled through the finals with a 16-1 tech over Jax Alderin. After Amy, this bracket was really tough to rank. You could argue just about any order for 2 through 10.
James Mullens (Peoria St. Philomena) was one of the biggest surprises of the tournament. He came in completely unranked and beat our #5 and #7 ranked wrestlers, winning the sectional with an 8-0 major and 10-0 major before pinning Braxton Acklin in the finals.
Grady Gallagher pinned his way through his entire sectional. Three matches, three falls.
Doni Zulku's Improbable Run to State
At 135lb, the bracket felt evenly matched going in, and it played out that way. But the best story belongs to Doni Zulku (Taylor Ridge Rockridge).
Zulku lost his very first match to unranked Kiiryn Shull by a 17-0 tech fall. In a bracket loaded with four previously ranked wrestlers (Rogers, Babcock, Cortez, and Boswell), recovering from that kind of opening has extremely low probability. But Zulku put together a gutty consolation run: a close 5-2 decision, a tech fall, and then a sudden victory win over #10 Jeremiah Boswell. That improbable win punched his ticket to state, and he earned every bit of it.
Noble Steen: The Biggest Miss in Our Rankings
At 185lb, Noble Steen (Rock Island Jordan Catholic) came in completely unranked. That was a big miss on our part. He pushed Jeffery Ferkel to a close 3-0 decision at regionals, and at sectionals he went up 3-0 on Ferkel in the first period before Ferkel finally broke through late in the second period. Ferkel got the eventual pin at 3:27 to hold the #1 spot, but Steen proved he's a legitimate contender for the title. He's now ranked #6 and should be heading to state with confidence.
In Sectional C, Bentley Gibson got a fall over Zane Krehbiel at 2:00 in the finals, repeating the outcome from regionals. Krehbiel scored first going up 3-0, but Gibson found the pin at the end of the first period. That's two straight falls for Gibson over Zane, a tough opponent.
Emil Williams' a 12 point comeback at 155lb
In the Sectional A finals at 155, Kayden Hudgins was cruising. Up 13-1 after the first period, it looked like a done deal. Then Emil Williams (Deerfield Shepard) scored 10 points in the second period to close the gap to 13-11. With the score 16-12 in favor of Hudgins and time ticking away, Williams hit a reversal and found the pin at 2:55. A clutch comeback that earned Williams the sectional title and a much more favorable seed heading into state.
Weight-by-Weight Recap
95lb: Top-ranked Jaxon Brunoehler (Sandwich) dominated his sectional to hold #1. Joe Stevens (Island Lake Matthews) was equally impressive, needing just 0:19 to pin Westmont's Brandon Borucki in the finals. We believe Borucki is much better than those 19 seconds suggest, and he'll be one to watch at state with a chip on his shoulder. Sectional B was the deepest bracket of the weekend at this weight, with all four qualifiers being state qualifiers from last year.
100lb: Luke Ross (Monticello), Roosevelt Jackson (East Peoria Central), and Gavin Crowley (Westmont JHS) looked dominant, winning all their matches by bonus points. Hudson King (Sherrard JHS) had to go the distance, winning on two majors including a 10-4 decision in the semis and an 8-0 major in the finals. Elijah Collins had a great performance, going from unranked to placing 2nd at his sectional with wins by fall, major, and tech fall before running into Jackson in the finals.
105lb: This weight got scrambled, and we expected it. Sectional B had five of our top 10 going in, so at least one deserving wrestler wasn't making it out. Even 4th place from Sectional B is heading to state with a real chance to medal. Three wrestlers stood out: Johnny Welninski jumped from honorable mention to sectional champion with a dominant run including a 16-0 tech in the finals. Dawt Thang went from unranked to placing 2nd with several dominant wins before being brought back to earth by our #2 Evan Conn. And Dominick Rio went from unranked to #8 with a solid tournament.
112lb: Covered in detail above. The most competitive bracket in Class A. Five of the top 10 in one sectional, an SV finals, unranked wrestlers making noise in Sectional A, and Legend Watson tested in Sectional D. This one is anyone's to win at state.
119lb: Covered above. Gersch's upset of Egshig, Lowe's strong run, Trotter's SV win, and a brutal Sectional C where worthy wrestlers got sent home. Kade Brown's absence from the tournament was also notable.
126lb: Covered above. Amy dominates, Mullens comes from nowhere to win his sectional, Gallagher pins everyone in sight, and Wicklatz gets an impossibly tough draw. This bracket got completely rearranged behind Amy.
135lb: A bracket with more parity than most. Alex Castillo (Johnsburg JHS) was the only top wrestler to bonus his way through, but even he was in a competitive match with Joel Lemus before finding the fall at 3:26. Branham, Mangara, and Rogers all had to go the distance at least once. Rogers needed sudden victory to beat Cruz Cortez 9-6 in the semis. Zulku's comeback run from a first-match loss is covered above and was the best story of the bracket.
145lb: The top three held firm with strong performances from Maxym Kurchanov (Prospect Heights MacArthur), Joseph Renteria (Sandwich), and Max Brown (Lawrenceville Parkview). Lane Woodrum had a noteworthy individual performance at 145, coming in unranked and dominating his first two matches before a finals matchup with #3 Camedyn Schneider. Schneider found a comeback pin at 3:24 (down 3-11) to retain his spot, but Woodrum has proven he belongs in the conversation.
155lb: Sectional B and C were loaded. Everyone previously ranked in the top 10 made it to state. Eddie Pozos showed real strength with dominant wins over our previous #4 Brantley Crumly (17-2 TF) and #2 Bo Mattox (15-4 major), vaulting to #2. Giaquinto was impressive as well but faced a tough semifinal with Bryce Lamb before finding the fall at 3:35. Lamb's strong performance vaulted him three spots to #5. The 3rd place match between Preston Long and Brantley Crumly went to a 7-6 decision. Emil Williams' comeback over Hudgins in the Sectional A finals was the match of the weekend at this weight.
167lb: Two unranked wrestlers won their sectionals, and another unranked wrestler cracked the top 5. Noah Tellor (Murphysboro MS) and Dylan Nor (Richmond Nippersink) both won as unranked wrestlers. Oliver Heist (Sherrard JHS) also came in unranked and beat our #3 Ashyr Deyo 14-2 to reach the finals before falling to top-ranked Deven Alcala. Aside from Alcala holding firm at #1, this bracket had a lot of unexpected outcomes.
185lb: Ferkel held the top spot, but Steen made him work for it (detailed above). Ian Young (Genoa Kingston) looked solid in Sectional A, pinning everyone and needing just 0:30 in the finals against Landyn Stein. Could he be peaking at the right time to make a run? Stein had big wins over Jamicich and Cristofer Rodriguez en route to the finals to make a statement. Three previously unranked wrestlers are now in our top 10, making this one of the more reshuffled brackets.
215lb: Some really strong competitors at the top. McClaine's 59-second sectional is covered above. Camren Herron placed 6th at state last year at 215, and Logan Stripens and Sebastian Perez have had strong years that are getting stronger in the state series. Perez has already beaten Herron twice, including a fall in 0:56 at sectionals. Benny Fernandez was a newcomer to the rankings with a strong run that included a pin in just 0:02 in the quarters and a competitive 8-4 finals loss to Perez.
275lb: The top six stayed mostly the same, but we lost our #2 ranked wrestler. Aaron Segura (Prospect Heights MacArthur) fell to Nathan Durano in the semifinals and then lost to Ethan Scott in the consolation semi 7-1, missing his state ticket. Kaleb Green (Westmont JHS) won the Sectional A title with a fall over Durano at 2:58.
By The Numbers
- 13/13 — #1 seeds that held their position (same as AA)
- 2 — Unranked wrestlers who won sectionals (Tellor at 167, Nor at 167)
- 29 — Previously unranked wrestlers who cracked the top 10
- 45 — Total new faces in the rankings
- 0:59 — Total mat time for Luke McClaine's three-pin sectional run at 215lb
- 0:19 — Joe Stevens' finals pin, the fastest finals match of the weekend
- 5/10 — Top 10 wrestlers crammed into Sectional B at both 105lb and 112lb
- 7-6 — The 3rd place match margin at 155 between Long and Crumly
Looking Ahead
Class A is loaded. The state tournament is going to deliver.
Keep an eye on 112. That bracket is a coin flip from top to bottom and we wouldn't be shocked by any outcome. Watch Luke McClaine try to finish what he started last year at 215. Don't sleep on Noble Steen at 185 or Lane Woodrum at 145. They've announced themselves. And watch for the wrestlers who fought through adversity this weekend, guys like Doni Zulku and Jude Egshig, who took tough losses early and still found a way to punch their ticket.
Check out the updated IESA Class A rankings to see how every bracket shook out after sectionals.
See you at state.
Don't miss the IESA AA Sectional Recap.