Eight area wrestlers survive first round at state

Eight of 16 area wrestlers won today during the preliminary round of the IHSA state wrestling finals.

All eight are from Coal City with five taking their opponents out by pin. Advancing to Friday's quarterfinal round will be Coalers Owen Peterson (106) who won by 4-0 decision, Cooper Morris (113) who won by 6:00 fall, Culan Lindemuth (120) by 6-0 decision, Brody Widlowski (126) fall in 3:40, Mason Garner (138) by major dec. 13-0, Brant Widlowski (150) 1:00 fall, Landin Benson (165) with 3:39 pin and Cade Poyner (190) with a 3:26 fall.

Three Coalers will enter the wrestlebacks on Friday with a chance at third place. Noah Houston (132) lost his prelim 10-0, Brock Finch (144) fell 10-3 while James Keigher (175) who went down as an alternate and made it in, lost by tech fall, 20-2. 

The four Wilmington qualifiers lost their matches in the preliminary round. At 120, Landon Dooley was pinned in 2:43. At 126, Oakley Rivera was pinned in 1:03. Parker Adams (157) lost by 1:52 fall while Logan VanDuyne (190) put up a good fight before losing 8-2.

Reed-Custer's Dominic Alaimo (215), the sole Comet state qualifier, lost 8-1.

The quarterfinal and first and second wrestlebacks will take place on Friday. On Saturday the quarterfinals and semifinals will be completed to determine placements for the championship round. The Grand March for the championship wrestlers will be at 6 p.m. inside Assembly Hall at UofI in Champaign.