DIXON — Roman Villalobos failed to qualify for sectionals during his freshman season two years ago. Now a junior, Villalobos stood atop the podium as a regional champion after helping the Rochelle Hub varsity wrestling team take second place in the IHSA 2A Dixon Regional.

Villalobos was one of three Hubs to earn regional titles and one of six to qualify for the IHSA 2A Washington Sectional next Friday and Saturday. Villalobos (35-8), who entered the regional as the top seed in the 190-pound weight class, cruised through the first two rounds after recording back-to-back, sub-minute falls over Sterling’s Colt Buntjer and Geneseo’s Aaron Betcher.

Villalobos faced Rock Island’s Rowan Stockwell, the No. 3 seed, for the regional championship. Despite entering the ring as a 26-match winner, Stockwell stood no chance against Villalobos, who turned a first-period takedown into two four-point near falls to enter the second period with an 11-0 lead. Another takedown in the second period led to a two-point near fall that enabled Villalobos, who didn’t give up a point all day, to win the regional title with a 16-0 technical fall.

“It’s always been a goal of time to win a regional,” said Villalobos, who finished third last season as a sophomore. “It’s a big improvement. I’ve grown a lot over the offseason and I’ve added more to my arsenal. There’s going to be a lot of good competition at the sectional and I wrestled against a lot of seniors last year. Being an upperclassman now, it gives me a lot of confidence.”

Senior Xavier Villalobos (36-5) locked up Rochelle’s first regional title of the tournament, taking first as the top seed in the 126-pound weight class. Now a four-time sectional qualifier, Xavier made quick work of Freeport’s Thomas Olson in the semifinals, pinning the 34-match winner in only 36 seconds. Villalobos squared off with Geneseo’s Tim Sebastian in the championship bout, scoring four takedowns over three periods to seal the title with a 14-4 major decision.

“My keys to success were going out there on offense and getting to my shots,” said Villalobos, who became a two-time regional champion and a four-time sectional qualifier with Saturday’s victory. “I was confident in my ability to score. I know I’ll be comfortable in the sectional atmosphere since I’ve been there a couple of times. There will be a lot of people watching and there will be a lot of decent opponents. It would mean the world to be a state qualifier again.”

Senior Kaiden Morris (43-2) brought home Rochelle’s final regional championship of the day, wrestling his way atop the podium as the No. 2 seed in the 215-pound weight class. Morris ran through the regional bracket, stringing together three consecutive pins against Rock Island’s Coco Htoo, Sterling’s Charlie Reyes and Geneseo’s Colten Mooney, a 30-match winner. Morris became a three-time regional champion and a four-time sectional qualifier on Saturday.

“My goal coming in was to win and qualify for sectionals,” Morris said. “I didn’t feel any stress wrestling in the finals because I knew I had already qualified for sectionals, but it felt good to go out there and win the regional. I’m used to wrestling in sectionals and hopefully I’ll be able to come out on top again. Being a state qualifier again would mean a lot because it would bring me one step closer to being a state champion and that’s been the clear goal for me this season.”

Rochelle landed three second-place finishers on Saturday. Junior Freddie Hernandez (31-12) took second at 113 pounds and became a three-time sectional qualifier, while freshman Aidan Lopez (32-11) finished second at 120 pounds to clinch his first ticket to sectionals. Senior Grant Gensler (42-4) took second at 165 pounds to earn his fourth consecutive trip to sectionals.

Sophomore Josh Lassiter (26-17) will be a sectional alternate after finishing fourth at 144 pounds during the regional tournament. Rochelle (21-7, 5-0 Interstate 8) scored 138.5 points to earn runner-up honors as a team, taking second to regional champion Geneseo. Lassiter earned two victories including a 15-0 technical fall over Polo’s Christian Ryia and a fall over Dixon’s James Simpson to reach the third-place bout.

Freshman AJ Milan (12-8) won one match at 106 pounds, securing a first-round fall over Sterling’s Chad Bennett. Junior Deegan Schabacker (25-19) won one match at 132 pounds, pinning Freeport’s Jaylen Lowe on the consolation side of the bracket. Junior Keagan Albers (17-17) took one match at 138 pounds, recording an 18-8 major decision over Sterling’s Adrian Pineda in the consolation wrestlebacks.

Junior Frank Nasca (20-20) won one match at 150 pounds, scoring a 14-1 major decision over Rock Island’s George Tate in the wrestlebacks. Sophomore Brandin Kirk (3-4) and senior Matthew Lynn (11-24) each went 0-2 in their respective weight classes. Kirk competed at 157 pounds and Lynn wrestled at 175 pounds.