CHAMPAIGN • The time has come and the IHSA State Championship wait is over. Beginning Thursday, there will be a variety of special moments for the wrestlers, the coaches, the families, and the communities. In 2A, the talent is widespread and no one person is dominating the spotlight. If anything, this year’s 2A has been more about the team than it has been about the individual.
In looking at this weekend’s field, four returning state champions will take to the mat, two seniors, one junior, and one sophomore. Additionally, there are several returning medalists from last season; in this, the competition should be fierce, and the right to stand on the podium will have to truly be earned.
Two returning state champions at 132 pounds
The two returning senior state champions are Deven Casey of Elmhurst (IC Catholic Prep) and Bobby Conway of Chicago (Brother Rice). However, where Casey has been a steady force down in Champaign, Conway has only placed one time in his past three years, and that was his title back in 2023.
For Casey, after finishing third as both a freshman and a sophomore, last year’s title run was nothing less than spectacular. In the finals, Casey defeated and dethroned two-time state champion Drew Davis from Chatham (Glenwood).
This season, Casey currently holds a 43-6 record, and several wins over ranked opponents, and his 132-pound bracket houses some strong opponents.
One of those opponents, and on the bottom half of the upper bracket where Casey has earned the one seed, is returning state champ from two seasons ago, Bobby Conway.
Currently, Conway enters the tournament with a 17-5 record, and aside from 2023, he has been away from the competition mat. Now, Conway, who was 23-1 when he won his title, is still very good, very dangerous, and very much aware of what is on the line for this his senior season.
And before Conway can have visions of meeting Casey in the semifinals, he will first need to wrestle past his opening round opponent and then deal with another senior in the form of senior Zyon Westbrook. Westbrook, who attends Sterling, is 35-2 on the season and is making his first trip downstate. Now, even though this is his first state championship, Westbrook is a wrestler who has been to all the larger offseason tournaments, has wrestled freestyle and Greco, and has simply missed the qualifier each time. He is not one to be overlooked.
On the other side of the 132-pound bracket is sophomore Tommy Banas out of New Lenox (Providence Catholic) and seniors Bradley Ruckman, Bethalto (Civic Memorial), and Jackson Palzet, Deerfield. There is also junior Nate Randle, currently 41-1, lurking.
Last season Banas was one of the best freshmen in 2A; he would place sixth at 126 pounds as well as be a force throughout a season that saw him win 43 matches. Banas may be the early favorite for the bottom half of the bracket, but his health and conditioning will play a role as his 28-12 record this season is a far cry from the wrestling he was able to put in last season.
In fact, as far as being tested, Banas will most likely have Randle in the quarterfinals. Randle, whose only loss during the season came at the hands of Deven Casey in the semifinals of the sectional, has been steady and focused all season. This matchup will be big for each wrestler.
Ruckman, the number three seed and in the upper half of the bottom bracket, has two state medals to his name, placing fifth and fourth in the freshman and sophomore seasons at 106 pounds, was kept from the podium last season at 120 pounds. Moving up again in weight to 132, it will be interesting to see how the 40-3 Ruckman responds to his bracket. He opens with Lombard (Montini Catholic) sophomore Isaac Mayora, so he will be tested early.
As for Palzet, the senior with a 45-2 record, the first-time qualifier, who has pieced together a great season, it will now come down to how he performs on the floor in Champaign. In the sectional finals, we battled Casey tough. This is a more than competitive weight all around.
Woo and Wyatt prepare for title number two
Last season Allen Woo of Lombard (Montini Catholic) had an exceptional freshman campaign that ended his winning the 106-pound 2A state championship. Exiting Champaign, Woo had compiled a 21-3 record and proved to be the most dominant wrestler at the weight. This year, Woo has moved up to 113 pounds, but not much else has changed for the sophomore as he has been the class of the weight all season long.
Coming in as the number one seed in the bracket, it will be Woo’s weight to win. His greatest obstacles may be maintaining his focus or continuing to dominate his matches without letting up; however, as seasoned and as tough as Woo is, it will be more a matter of how he goes about winning the weight as opposed to who stands in his way.
As for the 157-pound bracket, Wyatt Medlin of Washington looks to defend what he was finally able to collect last year. As a freshman, Medlin placed third; last year, he would exit Champaign with an individual record of 45-4 and his first Illinois title.
With a now 44-3 mark on this season, Medlin will have to contend with a bracket that houses 10 wrestlers with seven or fewer losses on the season. In this, Medlin will have to maintain what he has always had, poise and incredibly solid technique.
The Justus League
Providence Catholic has a new crop of freshmen Celtic superheroes that they hope begin the restoration of a once great program, and they are led out front by phenom Justus Heeg.
Heeg, who has just simply won time and time again, has shown that his style of wrestling in not only one of domination, but of solid technique, strength, and there is yet to be a steady kryptonite discovered to slow him down.
Currently, Heeg is 41-3 and resides as the three seed in the 150-pound bracket.
Joining Heeg in Champaign will be 106 pounder Christian Corcoran (35-15), Nathan Ortiz at 113 (27-12), Lucas Forsythe at 126 (26-16), Luke Banas at 138 (17-17), and 157 pounder Jasper Harper (36-15).
In this mix of young blood is Providence’s returning state medalist, Tommy Banas. After a strong freshman campaign that saw Banas push Providence back into some smaller conversations, the bigger picture will focus on how this group can grow. So, with this new generation of Celtics, this state tournament may be the first step in a three-year process that sees Providence resurrect itself and force the program into a formidable team that is back in the mix and competing for state trophies.
Peyton’s place
If there is anyone worth rooting for this weekend, consider Peyton Cox of Washington. For the past three years, Cox has made the Grand March and the 2A championship mat a mainstay in his high school wrestling life; however, his overall place by the end of each of those championship bouts has been less than his desired goals.
Cox has been the state runner-up for three years running, and with his talent and ability to adjust, is this the year where he finally moves up one step on the podium as the best in bis weight?
As a freshman at 120 pounds, Cox lost a 5-4 decision to undefeated state champion Colby Crouch of Troy (Triad); as a sophomore, he would be downed in the first tiebreaker, 4-2, to undefeated 132-pound state champion Santino Robinson of Mascoutah; and last season, it was senior Sean Larkin of Chicago (St. Rita) at 144 pounds who would score a come from behind victory in the final thirty seconds, being awarded a stalling point to tie the match, and then scoring the winning takedown with about ten seconds remining in regulation to keep Cox positioned at number two with a 9-7 decision win.
This season, Cox has been granted the number two seed to Dillon White, the 40-0 senior one seed from Mt. Vernon. White, like Cox, was a state runner-up last season. In fact, White’s loss came to Cox’s teammate Wyatt Medlin in the championship at 138 pounds.
In addition to Cox at the bottom of the bracket, Oak Forest junior Austin Perez (25-1) will be a force to contend with. Also in Perez’s quad is Ben Capitosti, the senior from Mattoon. Most likely, it will be Cox facing one of these two young men for the right to possible square off against White in the finals. But that is why they wrestle they matches.
Is this the year for Cox, or will he be added to a list of Illinois’ best wrestlers to never win a title?
The Rockey-ness of 120
Senior Gavin Rockey of Wauconda returns to Champaign with a 41-9 record and two runner-up finishes under his belt—he finished second twice at 106 pounds: once to Anthony Alanis of Grayslake (Central) as a sophomore; and last season as a junior, he was defeated by Allen Woo of Lombard (Montini Catholic). This season, Rockey has moved up two more weight classes to 120 pounds, and his fourth-place finish at the Crystal Lake (Central) Sectional has the 120-pound state bracket in a bit of a crisis.
In the opening championship bout at 120, Rockey will face the number one seeded Mikey Malizzio of Lombard (Montini Catholic). Malizzio, who is a solid wrestler and who comes in with a 37-8 record will now not receive the courtesy of having a typical number one seed draw against a typical fourth-place sectional finisher. He gets Rockey, and Rockey gets Malizzio.
Arguably, the winner of this first round match could be the upper half of the bracket’s state championship representative. But wait, there’s more. Also in that upper half, the lower half of the upper bracket, is Yorkville Christian’s Aiden Larsen.
Larsen, a senior with a record of 39-4, who is also a three-time state medalist, will most likely have to square off with Elmhurst (IC Catholic Prep) sophomore, Kannon Judycki in the quarterfinals for the right to wrestle in the semifinals against Rockey or Malizzio.
At the sectional, it was Judycki who defeated Rockey in the semifinals with an 8-6 decision victory in the first sudden victory. For Larsen, he was the second-place finisher at the Washington Sectional to number two seeded Noah Woods…and Woods is built in the Washington toughness that has been on display on the largest stages and during the greatest moments.
Last season, Woods would lose his opening match only to win his next four to push himself into the medal round where he would place sixth. Make no mistake about it, Woods’ 41-2 record is hard fought and well earned and he is a real threat at this weight.
Now Woods, who sits on the bottom half of the bracket, will have some formidable opponents, but it is fair to say that the bulk of the contention is going to take place early on in that upper half as they each fight it out to wrestle in the quarterfinals, semifinals, and finals—there will be no easy matches.
With this, the upper half of the 120 bracket can be wrestled out a number of ways—and do not count out those outliers who have their own tournament in mind. Be sure to mark 120 as one of those “must see” weights.
Playing the field
The 215-pound weight class has one heck of an upper bracket. The junior and number one seeded and number one ranked wrestler Josh Hoffer from Washington takes his 45-3 record to the top of the bracket, while the number eight ranked and four seeded Genesis Ward of Evergreen Park and sectional runner-up Foley Calcagno of Elmhurst (IC Catholic Prep), currently ranked number five, take to the bottom half of the upper bracket.
Last season at 190 pounds, it was Calcagno who defeated Hoffer in the third-place match; however, this season, Hoffer has been a difficult out for everyone.
On the lower half of the bracket is another log jam, this time on the upper half of the bottom. Here, Jaxson Mathenia of Waterloo (40-2), currently ranked number three, will have the probable matchup with Kaiden Morris, the number two ranked wrestler at the weight, in the quarterfinals.
Beneath them and awarded the number-two seed in the bracket is Antioch’s Owen Shea, the number four ranked wrestler at the weight. He will see either number nine ranked Xavier Bitner of St. Lawrence or number ten ranked Alec Del Toro of East Peoria in the quarterfinals.
This bracket can turn over in a number of ways. But, once again, early on, this bracket offers a great deal of excitement.
Parks and recreation
There are several other wrestlers to pay attention to throughout the tournament, and here are a few more to consider watching.
At 190 pounds, senior Cayden Parks of Crystal Lake (Central) has earned the one seed. As a 170-pound freshman, Parks placed fourth, and last season, at 190 pounds, Parks was the state runner-up. Coming in with a 41-1 record, and being extremely explosive on his feet, Parks is looking to exit the State Farm Center as a state champion.
Another undefeated wrestler who will take to the mats is Geneseo senior Zachary Montez. Montez has jumped weight greatly over the past four years. As a freshman, he placed fourth at 113 pounds. As a sophomore, he wrestled at 132 pounds and placed third. Last season, after losing to Brody Kelly for Elmhurst (IC Catholic Prep) in the quarterfinals, Montez put on his work boots and won four bouts in a row to place third for the second-straight season.
Now, as the number one seed and with an unblemished 40-0 record on the season, Montez is looking to close out his career with four medals, an undefeated senior campaign, and a state championship.
In mentioning Brody Kelly from Elmhurst (IC Catholic Prep), the now sophomore has gone from a sophomore 150-pound state runner-up to a junior 175-pound number one seed in this year’s tournament. Kelly has been fantastic all season long, and he will be another great wrestler to watch as he knows how to break open the score as well as win the close ones.
Lombard (Montini Catholic) junior Kameron Luif will be wrestling in the 138-pound weight. Last season, Luif dropped his first match, collected himself, and won the next six to place third at 132 pounds.
Looking at a few credentials
Here is a list of some of the wrestlers to keep tabs on during the tournament. They have been organized according to their weight class. The records provided are teh exiting records from the Individual Championships.
113 / Allen Woo, So. • Lombard (Montini Catholic) • 45-5
2024 • 106, 1st (21-3)
120 / Gavin Rockey, Sr. • Wauconda • 41-9
2024 • 106, 2nd (41-10)
2023 • 106, 2nd (29-6)
120 / Noah Woods, Sr. • Washington • 41-2
2024 • 120, 6th (40-16)
2023 • 113, SQ (33-14)
120 / Aiden Larsen, Sr. • Yorkville (Christian) • 39-4
2024 • 113, 6th (38-5)
2023 • 106, 6th (18-11) • 1A
2022 • 106, 5th (42-8) • 1A
126 . Xavier Villalobos, Sr. • Rochelle • 39-5
2024 . 126, 5th (43-3)
2023 . 120, SQ (38-6)
2022 . 113, 2nd (45-6)
126 / Harrison Dea, Sr. • Morton • 33-4
2023 • 106, 5th (37-11)
132 / Deven Casey, Sr. • Elmhurst (IC Catholic Prep) • 43-6
2024 • 120, 1st (34-4)
2023 • 113, 3rd (40-8) • Aurora Christian
2022 • 106, 3rd (32-7) • Aurora Christian
132 / Bobby Conway, Sr. • Chicago (Brother Rice) • 17-5
2023 • 126, 1st (23-1)
2022 • 120, SQ (26-8)
132 / Nate Randle, Jr. • Wauconda • 41-1
2024 • 126, SQ (34-10)
2023 • 113, 2nd (31-9)
132 / Bradley Ruckman, Sr. • Bethalto (Civic Memorial) • 40-3
2024 • 120, SQ (41-10)
2023 • 106, 4th (36-10)
2022 • 106, 6th (42-9)
132 / Tommy Banas, So. • New Lenox (Providence Catholic) • 28-12
2024 • 126, 6th (43-10)
138 / Donald Cannon, Sr.• Rockford (East) • 29-4
2024 • 132, 4th (37-3)
2022 • 126, 5th (28-7)
138 / Jordan Rasof, Sr. • Deerfield • 47-2
2024 • 138, 5th (40-9)
2023 • 126, 6th (44-8)
138 / Kameron Luif, Jr. • Lombard (Montini Catholic) • 46-4
2024 • 132, 3rd (38-8)
2023 • 113, 6th (36-12)
144 / Peyton Cox, Sr. • Washington • 36-4
2024 • 144, 2nd (26-2)
2023 • 132, 2nd (44-3)
2022 • 120, 2nd (41-3)
144 / Dillon White, Sr. • Mt. Vernon • 40-0
2024 • 138, 2nd (40-4)
2023 • 120, SQ (40-6)
144 / Ben Capitosti, Sr. • Mattoon • 44-5
2024 • 138, SQ (39-9)
2023 • 138, 6th (43-10)
150 / Justus Heeg, Fr. • New Lenox (Providence Catholic) • 41-3
157 / Wyatt Medlin, Jr. • Washington • 44-3
2024 • 138, 1st (45-4)
2023 • 126, 3rd (25-5)
165 / Grant Gensler, Sr. • Rochelle • 45-5
2024 • 165, SQ (37-8)
2022 • 138, SQ (33-20)
165 / Zachary Montez, Sr. • Geneseo • 40-0
2024 • 150, 3rd (42-3)
2023 •132, 3rd (48-3)
2022 • 113, 4th (40-6)
175 / Brody Kelly, Jr. Elmhurst (IC Catholic Prep) • 42-5
2024 • 150, 2nd (33-8)
2023 • 132, SQ (24-16) • Aurora (Marmion Academy), 3A
175 / Ben Vazquez, Sr. • Antioch • 37-3
2023 • 160, T8 (34-13)
2022 • 145, SQ (35-8)
190 / Cayden Parks, Sr. • Crystal Lake (Central) • 41-1
2024 • 190, 2nd (41-7)
2023 • 170, 4th (40-8)
215 / Josh Hoffer, Jr. • Washington • 45-3
2024 • 190, 4th (35-12)
2023 • 195, 6th (32-21)
215 / Foley Calcagno, Sr. • Elmhurst (IC Catholic Prep) • 36-13
2024 • 190, 3rd (37-7)
2023 • 182, 6th (15-6) • 1A
• TC LIFONTI / LEAD WRITER FOR ILLINOIS MATMEN / tclifonti.com
