Meet the 4 grade-school wrestlers from around Peoria to win 2023 IESA state championships

The Illinois Elementary School Association held the 2023 wrestling state finals March 10-11 at the Convocation Center in DeKalb.

In all, four wrestlers from Peoria-area schools won individual state championships, while Mackinaw Dee-Mack (fourth in Class 1A) and Morton Junior High (10th in Class AA) were our highest team finishers. Vandalia won the Class 1A state championship and Minooka won the Class AA crown.

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Here are the four individual champs, listed with their path to a title:

Isaac Showalter, Farmington Central

• Weight class: 70 pounds

• Grade: 6th

• Defeated: Declan Grimaldi of Springfield St. Agnes (1:33 fall), Brantley Brooks of Coal City (12-2 maj. dec), Connor Collins of Olympia (7-0 dec.) and Briar Spooner of Fulton River Bend (9-0 maj. dec.).

Barret Speck, Glasford Illini Bluffs

• Weight class: 90 pounds

• Grade: 7th

• Defeated: Trey Boston of Auburn (2:29 fall), Boone Alderks of Oregon (2:47 fall), Ezekiel Young of Monticello (14-3 maj. dec.) and Jack Ragan of Dixon Reagan (5-0 dec.).

Ben Buis, El Paso-Gridley

• Weight class: 167 pounds

• Grade: 8th

• Defeated: Noah Langston of Vandalia (:48 fall), Brody Simons of Polo Aplington (3:29 fall), Brody D'Orazio of Coal City (12-3 maj. dec.) and John Holland of Erie (4-0 dec.).

IHSA boys wrestling state finals 2023: Peoria-area matches, schedules and complete results

Joey Humphries, Mackinaw Dee-Mack

• Weight class: 275 pounds

• Grade: 8th

• Defeated: Nate Zeffield of Plano (:27 fall), Xavier Moore of Gibson City-Melvin-Sibley (:46 fall), Cristian Medina of Forrest Prairie Central (:39 fall) and Brock Walton of Taylorville (3-2 dec.).

Illinois Girls Folkstyle State Championships

Two grade-school girls wrestlers from the area won state championships at the Illinois Girls Folkstyle State Championships, which were held March 12 in Byron.

Brynli Peterson of Peoria Wizards Wrestling Club won the Schoolgirls 56 bracket with a 48-second pin over Caoimhe Mitchell of St. Charles Wrestling Club.

Elionna Flanigan of Blue Crew Wrestling Club in Bartonville won the Elementary 14 bracket with a 2:32 pin over Hadley Aeschliman of Metamora Kids WC.

This article originally appeared on Journal Star: Grade school wrestling: IESA state champions from around Peoria