DEKALB — Ogle County was well represented during the 2025 IESA State Championship at Northern Illinois University’s Convocation Center over the weekend, when middle-schoolers from Byron, Oregon, Stillman Valley and Polo earned medalist honors for their wrestling skills.
Oregon Junior High qualified six athletes including Carson Benesh and Jacksyn Windham, who each brought home state championships this season. Benesh took first in the A 119 Division with a 4-0 record, notching a fall over Tremont’s Rahimsheh Khaksare and a 16-0 technical fall over Vandalia’s Hunter Berning to reach the semifinals. After an 8-0 major decision against Prospect Heights MacArthur’s Ryder Peterson, Benesh clinched a state championship with a 17-1 technical fall against Herscher Limestone’s Ace Eggenberger in the final round of action.
Windham finished first in the A 215 Division with a 4-0 record. Windham pinned his way through the quarterfinals, defeating Knoxville Junior High’s Bryan Tanner and Vandalia’s Aaron Lash before scoring a 15-1 major decision over Westmont Junior High’s Camren Herron to reach the championship round. Windham pinned Herscher Limestone’s Colton Carson to seal his title.
Byron Middle School qualified four athletes including Brooks Auker, who took third in the A 155 Division with a 5-1 record over six matches. Auker’s wins included a 9-0 major decision over Clifton Nash’s Colton Vaughn in the first round as well as a fall over Fairview Heights Grant’s Antonio Hayes, which was the first of Auker’s four wins during the wrestlebacks. Auker earned a 1-0 decision over Clinton’s Kaidyn Morgan, a forfeit from Channahon’s Thayer Larson and a 9-4 decision against Stillman Valley Meridian’s Tyler Bell to end the tournament in third place.
Polo Aplington advanced two wrestlers to state including Maddox Peterson, who placed sixth in the A 275 Division with a 3-3 record. Peterson’s three victories were against Burr Ridge Gower’s Antonio Hidalgo, Rochester’s Jaeden Miller and Knoxville Junior High’s Lucas Herring.
Stillman Valley Meridian also advanced two wrestlers to state, with Tyler Bell and Bradley Bankes each medaling in fourth. Bell finished fourth in the A 155 Division with a 4-2 record, winning four matches in the blood rounds. Bell earned a fall over Farmington Central’s Paxton Jostes as well as a 16-11 decision over Knoxville’s Callum Johnston and a 12-0 major decision over Clifton Nash’s Colton Vaughn. Bell scored an 11-8 sudden victory over Crest Hill Richland’s Odin Ben to advance to the third-place consolation bout, where a loss placed him in fourth.
Bankes finished fourth in the A 167 Division with a 4-2 record, pinning Coal City’s Cody Kozlowski in the opening round before a loss in the quarterfinals led to three straight wins in the wrestlebacks. Bankes notched falls over LeRoy’s Collin St. Peters and Vandalia’s Jax Carroll, as well as a 14-3 major decision over Harvard Junior High’s Cash Stott, during the blood rounds.
Other state qualifiers who participated in the tournament included Byron’s Cohen Considine, Elijah Whitlock and Darien Whitlock as well as Oregon’s Wesley Rogers, Kayden Cover, Rico Folk and Deven Alcara. Polo’s Maddox Busker also competed in the state tournament.
