Nine wrestlers compete in regional tournament at Illinois Wesleyan University

BLOOMINGTON — The Rochelle Wrestling Club sent nine athletes to the 2023 Midwest Nationals Preseason Open at Illinois Wesleyan University over the weekend. Five athletes earned top-3 finishes in the tournament, which featured wrestlers from all around the midwest.

Nehemiah Andronic finished first in the Boys 1st & 2nd 68-74 Division with a 5-0 record. Andronic opened the tournament with back-to-back falls over Region Wrestling Academy’s Anthony Quiroz and Team Mascoutah WC’s Chase Stroot. Andronic then scored an 11-0 major decision over Wilmington WC’s Declan Wilking before clinching the title with consecutive falls over Lawrence County Knights wrestler Garrett Dennison and RWC’s Aryana Resendez.

Elias Andronic took second in the Boys 1st & 2nd 53-58 Division with a 2-1 record, securing a 7-0 decision over Wilmington Wrestling Club’s Deacon Deninger and a fall over Built by Brunson’s Brody Cohen. Wells Millard finished third in the Boys 1st & 2nd 51-55 Division with a 3-1 record, recovering from a first-round loss and notching three straight wins over Meridian Hawks Youth Wrestling’s Waylon Creamer (fall) as well as Wilmington Wrestling Club’s Kyler Murphy (6-0 decision) and Martin Mean Machine’s Leeson Belka (fall) in the third-place match.

Jacksyn Windham took second in the Boys 7th & 8th Grade 190-211 Division with a 1-1 record, beating Toss Em Up’s Travis Hinton (fall). Cammyla Macias finished third in the Girls 9th & 10th 113-121 Division with a 1-2 record, topping Sterling Elite’s Maddison Wickham (7-1 decision). Teddy Millard took sixth in the Boys 5th & 6th 67-70 Division.

Dempsey Atkinson finished fifth in the Girls 11th & 12th 135-148 Division with a 3-2 record. Atkinson’s three victories included falls over Metamora’s Liv Prunty as well as Yorkville’s Brooke Coy and Suplex Wrestling Club’s Viola Pianetto. Other RWC athletes who participated include Hadley Losoya (2-2 in the Boys 9th & 10th 120-128 Division) and Josh Lassiter (0-2 in the Boys 9th & 10th 140-147 Division).