High School Wrestling
Dawson McConnell takes fourth in IHSA Individual Wrestler State Championships

 

[February 20, 2024] 

As the 2024 IHSA wrestling season approached the end, one Railer Wrestler made the journey to the State Farm Center in Champaign, to compete in the IHSA Individual Wrestling Championships. The Tournament ran for three days starting Thursday February 15th and ending Saturday February 17th. Sixteen wrestlers in each weight class compete for the top six spots to bring home a medal and a chance to be crowned the best in the state.

Dawson McConell, the lone Lincoln qualifier took the trip to Champaign accompanied by Head Wrestling Coach, Justin Dietrich.

Thursday morning the wrestlers enter the hall where six mats cover the basketball floor creating an arena atmosphere for the warriors. The hall is very calm this early in the morning. The wrestlers and coaches are the only people allowed to enter the arena. During this time the wrestlers will line up by their respective weight classes within feet of their opponents they are about to battle.

The wrestlers’ skin is checked to ensure all competitors are clear of anything contagious prior to stepping on a scale and making weight. After McConnell and the other wrestlers made weight, they went their separate ways to get something to eat and fluids while the clock ticks until they step back in the arena and on the mats.

During this time, Coach Dietrich took McConell to Huff Hall where the University of Illinois houses a historical matroom that is up what feels like 30 flights of stairs. When you reach the top, the legs are burning from the climb. Upon entering the Orange and Blue room with decorated Wrestlers aligned on the walls, Dawson sits to change into his wrestling shoes while wearing pajama pants which is a signature of Dawsons on and off the matt and sometimes even when he steps on the podium. Approaching the biggest six-minute match of his life, McConnell is calm as a pickle in a dusty jar on the back shelf in an untouched cabinet. After warming up and getting a good workout in, McConnell was sweating with drips of sweat coming off his long hair. Changing shoes, he makes his way back to the hall where he will soon brawl with #7 ranked Grant Gensleer.

An experience like this can only be experienced to truly understand but this writer will make an attempt to take you there and through the experience. Hidden inside the stadium is a walkway where the competitors and coaches go prior to a match. Underneath there are hallways, some bathrooms, a trainer’s room and a single mat section for athlete warm up. It is a very quiet environment down there. The sounds you hear are whispers between coaches and kids, pacing, a whistle from the distance coming from the arena, a cheer and the occasional crowd uproar that sends chills down your spine wondering what just happened. Dawson appears as if he just rolled out of bed pacing back and forth, rolling out his neck, shaking his legs out. Coach Dietrich approaches him and informs him he is coming up soon as they are on 150 pounds (Dawson is 165 pounds so he is pretty much in the hole which means a match is going, another one will go and then he is up). The environment can be very overwhelming as Coach Colton Davis can contest to as this was his first trip to the State Tournament where he stood looking like a deer in the headlights. Lincoln Assistant Coaches Sam McShane and Jason Lawrence are not rookies at this tournament. Deitrich, Lawrence and McShane have been coaching together for 10 plus years and have brought numerous kids to the state tournament. It was good to see Coach Davis (who recently represented the United States All-Navy team in the Greco National Tournament) receive the unanimous nod from the seasoned coaches to embrace his nerves and sit in the corner with Coach Dietrich where only two coaches are allowed on the floor and in that corner for coaching.

Walking out of the tunnel and on the way to the main floor is an experience within itself. The lights are timed walking up, on one side the competitors are lined up waiting to walk out on the floor. The closer you get, the louder it gets. As you get to the front of the line, bringing your eyes up, you see the jumbotron. Here is when McConnell saw his name up there for the first time. This must be the feeling that Marcus Aurelius had when walking into the Colosseum to face the lions and spears to survive and make it to the next battle. Ok, maybe not life and death but if you knew how hard these kids trained and their dreams, it feels like life and death to them. As the old saying goes, Wrestling is life.

Approaching the end of the current match, Dawson sheds his signature pj’s, pulls his straps up and locks his headgear into place. He approaches the table and checks in. McConnell rolls his head to one side and then the other while a different look comes over his face which all of a sudden, a flip switched and he displayed the eye of the tiger, I kid you not, he was a different person once he entered that circle.

That calm demeanor was gone, he steps on the line gets in his stance and the person across from him is standing in his way of his goals. Its time for battle!!!! The competitors shake hands, the ref blows the whistle and in 20 seconds, Dawson scores a takedown and rides his opponent almost turning him multiple times to end the first period up 2-0.

McConnell wins the coin toss against #7 ranked Gensler and Gensler chooses bottom at the start of the 3rd period. McConnell rides him like a boss for 2 minutes continuously almost turning him and finishing the period on top. Third period, McConnell chooses bottom. He gets a switch reversal and rides his opponent out to a 4-0 win to stay alive on the Championship side to make the quarter finals. With quarter finals not until later on that evening, McConnell chooses to go back and chill in the hotel where he continues to rock his pj pants and is back to being the laid-back guy who is calm and relaxed. Coach Davis at this time is still trying to decompress and ramped from the adrenaline that he probably won’t come down from for 2 more days from the surreal experience.

After relaxing in the hotel and getting a little more to eat and drink, McConnell heads back to huff for another workout and warm-up prior to facing Sectional Champion Junior Mike Taheny from Richards who beat his first opponent by technical fall 18-2 in the third period.

The match began with McConnell scoring a takedown. After multiple scrambles, Taheny scored an escape making the score 2-1. McConnell would then get another takedown making the score 4-1 to end the first period.

In the second period, Taheny took down and got a reversal making the score 4-3 rode McConnell for over a minute. McConnell then hit a Peterson roll where the referee awarded McConnell the 2 reversal and had 5 count that he was going to award McConnell 3 back points, Taheney ends up on top through a confusing scramble where Logan County seasoned official Terry Morgan from Mt. Pulaski awards Taheney 3 back points. McConnell did not get the 3 back points though Taheney got the 3 back points and was never awarded a reversal.

Coach Deitrich was furious at the mistake. He took the referees to the table to ensure the score was correct. After 3 minutes of the 2 referees conferring with each other they came to the conclusion that Taheny was winning by a margin of 1 point making a huge mistake that favored Taheney 3 points that McConnell was not awarded.

So with McConnell having the choice in the 3rd period, he chose down in a situation where if it was scored correct, he would be up by 2 but McConnell never looked deterred. He had that calm demeanor on his face and was ready to go. McConnell chooses down, he gets a reversal to go up by 1, followed by his opponent getting a reversal and the referee counting a quick 2 count to award 4 points for Taheney.

McConnell, not being deterred continues to fight and gets a reversal and after the referee giving 2 takedown points to McConnell starts his count and awards McConnell 3 back points. Taheny gets off his back and McConnell continues to fight turning him again, a 90-degree angle was broke after 3 seconds the referee starts counting back points to a 2 count giving McConnell the win and punching a guaranteed medal to place overcoming the adversity that stood in his way, a true champions mentality. McConell would not wrestle again until the semi-finals which happen Friday night when he would face known nemesis and foe #1 ranked and returning state finalist Nick Mueller.

Mueller and McConnell know each other very well facing over the past 2 years multiple times with every match coming down to the wire and just a takedown separating the 2 between each other. Both wrestlers came at each other hard. Mueller got deep on a single and McConnell did a phenomenal job fighting it off and them ending out of bounds. Mueller would go on to get a takedown and go up 2-0 after the first period. The two would battle in this match which from this writers prospective was the toughest match Mueller faced all season. Mueller would go on to beat McConnell and punch his ticket to the Grand March where he would go on to win the State title at 165 pounds.

McConnell would be done until Saturday morning where he would face the winner of #3 ranked Miller from Washington and #9 ranked Tenuta from Montini Catholic. Miller would go on to win that match and advancing to the placing round to face McConnell.

McConnell not being deterred went out on fire against the #3 ranked Miller where kids move from far and wide to be a part of the #3 ranked Washington team and defending State Champions. McConnell would score the first takedown and never looking back defeating Miller who gave everything he could but losing to McConnell resulting in McConnell guaranteeing himself a top 4 finish.

McConnell would finish the day against Senior #2 State ranked Joseph Gilatta in the 3rd place match. Though losing the match 10-3, McConnell showed a lot of character and really left it all on the mat taking 4th and obtaining All-State Status.

Lincoln Wrestling Shout Out’s

Congratulations to Sam Knox on running another successful IHSA State tournament. Sam has previously served as Athletic Director at Lincoln Community High School prior to becoming the head of Wrestling for the IHSA in the state of Illinois.

Thanks to Walt Landers who supports all Lincoln Wrestlers on all levels. Walt attended the State Tournament and got his first state champion that came through his Lincoln Youth Wrestling program with Bently Wise who has wrestled his junior high and High School years for Olympia Wrestling. After the long drive home, Walt took his LYW wrestlers to a tournament where he had to get up Sunday at 5:00am. Great people are made by the likes of Walt. Thanks for all you have done for the kids and the community.

Junior High Head Coach and retired IHSA official Dan Fulcher gave his Trojan wrestlers a 5-day weekend off to attend the IHSA state finals in his role as Head Official for the state of Illinois. The Junior High will wrestle this Saturday February 23rd. Good luck this weekend to the Junior High team at regionals, sectionals, and state.

Coach Deitrick and the Lincoln Community High School team will wrestle for the Sectional Championship Tuesday February 20th at 6:00pm where if they win they will wrestle in the State Tournament in the round of 8 chasing a State Team Trophy.

Good luck to the Lady Railers Basketball team in their chase to a state title.

[Jason Lawrence]