STILLMAN VALLEY — Byron wrestler Jared Claunch earned perhaps the biggest victory of his season during the final moments of the IHSA 1A Stillman Valley Regional on Saturday.
Claunch took the mat for the championship bout of the 285-pound bracket with Byron trailing Lena-Winslow by only a few points in the team standings. Not only did Claunch need a win to claim his individual regional crown, but the Byron junior needed a pin to score enough points for the Tigers to upend Lena-Winslow and bring home the regional championship as a team.
The first period of the 285-pound title match was a defensive battle, with Claunch and Galena’s William Anderson taking a 0-0 score into the second period. Anderson deferred the choice to Claunch, who opted to take the down position to begin the second period in hopes of taking a lead in the match. It was a wise choice for Claunch (26-6), who not only scored a two-point reversal to take a 2-0 lead, but turned the maneuver into perhaps Byron’s biggest pin of the day.
“Our team put in a tremendous effort throughout the whole tournament and I knew we were close,” Claunch said. “I knew I had to get a pin and I did what I was coached to do. It felt amazing and it felt like all of the work I put in during practice paid off for me… I was trying to stay focused and not get nervous before my matches. I was trying to stay in the zone.”
Claunch’s win by fall led to one of five individual regional championships for the Tigers, who finished first with 196 points and edged out runner-up Lena-Winslow, who totaled 195 points in the tournament. Claunch went 3-0 over three bouts in the tournament, scoring a first-round fall over Winnebago’s Josh Cowman before outlasting Lena-Winslow’s Gannon Dunker for a 3-2 decision in the semifinals. The Tigers qualified eight athletes for the IHSA 1A Byron Sectional.
Jackson Norris (34-7) cruised through the bracket in the 120-pound division, going 2-0 with a first-round bye to lock up his regional championship. Norris recorded a fall over Oregon’s Jackson Messenger in the semifinal round before controlling his championship bout against Durand’s Ethan Foster, notching two takedowns and two near falls in an 11-0 major decision.
“It felt great and it was nice that we were able to get the title because it was a hard effort as a team and we put in the best work that we could,” Norris said. “I got a really good warm-up in so I could start the day off right and I was getting mentally prepared for each of my matches so I could feel my best and wrestle my best… I think we’ll be more comfortable wrestling here for the sectional and my goals for the rest of the season are to finish the season the best way I can.”
Will Julian (35-9) followed with a regional championship in the 132-pound division, going 2-0 over two bouts and showing minimal difficulties. Julian sealed his regional crown with two straight falls, defeating Durand’s Mark Nevdal and Lena-Winslow’s Mauricio Glass. The IHSA 1A Byron Sectional will begin on Friday, Feb. 9 and run through Saturday, Feb. 10.
“It felt really good and we couldn’t have done it without everybody working together,” Julian said. “Our coaching definitely helped and I thought I prepared myself really well. I stayed focused and I was able to stay calm and not be too overhyped. I’m excited to be in a good spot in my sectional bracket and my goals are to hopefully go to the state meet and place there.”
Brody Stien (30-12) ran through the bracket in the 150-pound division, finishing 2-0 with a first-period fall over Galena’s Josue Arcos-Andrade in the semifinals and a 7-0 decision over Lena-Winslow’s John Mensendike in the finals. Byron’s team victory means that the Tigers will compete in the IHSA 1A Dual Team Sectional at Newman Central Catholic later this month.
“I feel like I’m going to have a lot of success later in the season,” Stien said. “Our team has put a lot of work in and I thought we deserved to win. Our coaching helped us a lot this year and my teammates have helped bring me up. I’m excited that we’ll have a lot of fans from Byron who will be coming to support us and my goal is to make the state meet and try to place there.”
Kyle Jones (33-4) earned a hard-fought regional title in the 190-pound division, going 3-0 over three bouts with two wins coming by fewer than two points. After a quarterfinal-round fall against Galena’s Lucas Duggan, Jones battled Oregon’s Quentin Berry in the semifinals, holding on for an 11-10 decision that included five lead chances. Jones outlasted Lena-Winslow’s Jeremiah Luke in the final round, scoring an overtime takedown and near fall for a 7-2 sudden victory.
“When Jared won his match, it brought the whole team together and we were really excited to see him get it done for the whole team,” Jones said. “I didn’t think I wrestled my best, but I got the job done and I was able to score points for my team. It’s going to be fun wrestling here because even though it’s a tournament, we feel like we’ll have a home advantage.”
In addition to the five regional winners, Byron will advance second-place finisher Carsen Behn (32-8) as well as third-place finishers Damien Palacios (27-13) and Jacob Ross (15-8) to the sectional meet. Behn took second in the 165-pound division, winning two matches including a fall over Galena’s Gus Nack and a 1-0 decision over Lena-Winslow’s Brady Haas.
Palacios finished third in the 113-pound division, recording three victories in the tournament including a 14-6 major decision over Lena-Winslow’s David Prater as well as a fall over Galena’s Alfonso Grajalas and a 7-4 decision over Prater in the third-place bout. Ross finished third in the 157-pound division, notching three wins by fall over Genoa-Kingston’s Chris Rodas, West Carroll’s Cole Herrell and Dakota’s Connor Panoske in the third-place bout.
The Tigers landed four fourth-place finishers who will be alternates for the sectional meet. Hunter King (17-20) took fourth in the 126-pound division, while Cael O’Horo (14-18) took fourth in the 138-pound bracket and Nick Ingram (11-7) took fourth in the 175-pound division. Jarett Ross (21-15) finished fourth in the 215-pound division.
