CHAMPAIGN – On the first day of the IHSA Class 2A State Wrestling Finals, several area grapplers remain in contention for a state championship.
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In the 106-pound weight class, Cody Weidner of Civic Memorial went 1-1 on the day. He opened with a 10-0 major decision over Brayden Mateja-Bates of Evergreen Park. In the quarterfinals, Weidner fell to Dominic DeMarco of Grayslake Central, 8-1.
Jersey’s Maddox Williams also went 1-1. He earned a 12-5 decision over Alex Powers of Lemont in the first round before dropping a 16-0 technical fall to Treyden Diduch of Freeport in the quarterfinals.
At 138 pounds, Civic Memorial’s Avery Jaime went 1-1. Jaime pinned Jacob Turner of Cary-Grove in the opening round but was edged 4-2 by Nathan Randle of Crystal Lake South in the quarterfinals.
In the 144-pound bracket, CM’s Greg Harkey finished 1-1. Harkey earned a hard-fought 7-6 decision over Landon VanAcker of Belvidere in the first round before falling by technical fall to Frank Nitti of IC Catholic Prep in the quarterfinals.
Civic Memorial’s Knox Verbais stayed unbeaten at 150 pounds, going 2-0 on the day. Verbais recorded a 15-5 major decision over Cooper Chester of East Peoria in the first round and followed with a 16-10 decision over Dominic Garcia of Antioch in the quarterfinals.
At 157 pounds, Brock Ross also went 2-0. Ross pinned Jack Bernardi of Galesburg in the first round, then secured a major decision over Joey Pontrelli of IC Catholic Prep in the quarterfinals.
In the 165-pound class, James Wojcikiewicz advanced with a 2-0 mark. He earned a technical fall over Anthony Kinney of Glenbard South in the first round and followed with a 7-2 decision over Aiden Marrello of Crystal Lake South in the quarterfinals.
Mascoutah’s Jordan Sonon-Hale advanced at 175 pounds with two wins. He pinned Mason Taylor of Galesburg in the opening round and then earned a 15-2 major decision over Brody McKenna of Wauconda.
Civic Memorial’s Kevahn Flanigan and Hudson Davis each went 0-1 on the day and will compete in wrestlebacks Saturday. Granite City’s Eli Miller also went 0-1. Other area wrestlers who dropped their opening matches included Mascoutah’s Braxton McCall, Desi Wade and Sean Murphy, along with Jersey’s Nicholas Hartley.
