{"id":8691,"date":"2026-07-20T02:48:07","date_gmt":"2026-07-20T02:48:07","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/princetonillinois.com\/?p=8691"},"modified":"2026-07-20T02:48:07","modified_gmt":"2026-07-20T02:48:07","slug":"princeton-brings-back-pair-of-state-qualifiers-2025-26-bcr-wrestling-preview-shaw-local","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/princetonillinois.com\/?p=8691","title":{"rendered":"Princeton brings back pair of state qualifiers: 2025-26 BCR Wrestling Preview – Shaw Local"},"content":{"rendered":"


Princeton coach Steve Amy (center) welcomes back two Tiger medalists in Kane Dauber (left), who placed fifth at 132 pounds as a freshman, and Casey Etheridge, who placed fourth at 165 pounds. A third Tiger, senior Augustus Swanson, medaled in 2024. <\/span>(John Morris for Shaw Local News )
Coach: <\/b>Steve Amy (18th season)
Top returning wrestlers: <\/b>Boys – Eli Berlin, sr,, 190; Kane Dauber, so., 138; Casey Etheridge, sr., 165; Augustus Swanson, sr., 120. Girls – Izzy Gibson, sr.
Key newcomers:<\/b> Chase Castner, jr. 144; Eli Ozburn, fr., 132
Worth noting: <\/b>Etheridge (48-6), the reigning BCR Wrestler of the Year, and Dauber (50-5), are both returning state medalists, placing fourth and fifth, respectively. Swanson is a three-time state qualifier and medalist in 2024. They all have their sights set on a return trip to Champaign with Berlin (9-11), a 2024 sectional qualifier who was hurt for much of last season, prime to join them. \u201cAny time you return three state placers it is going to be very exciting,\u201d Amy said. … Also returning for the Tigers are sophomores Brady Peach (106), Jacob Paull (113, 16-18), a sectional qualifier, Isaac Hufnagel (113), Allister Swanson (120), Brayden Bickett (132, 24-20 last year), Corbin Brown (132, 19-19) and Joel Odell (144), juniors Daelen Brzezinski (175), Jaydon Cooke (126, 15-7) and Landon Kendall (175) and senior Rhett Pearson (215). Castner joins the program for the first time. … \u201cLike every year our goal is to win the regional and give ourselves a shot at getting to team state. We have quite a few individuals that either have the expectations of competing at the state tournament or being on the top of the state podium at the end of the season,\u201d Amy said. \u201cWe just have to keep getting better every day. We have a very young and talented group with a lot of experience. We have a young group that have all been wrestling for quite awhile so it will be interesting to see how they progress throughout the season.\u201d … On the girls side, Gibson (15-6) is a returning sectional qualifier, having been injured until the end of December last year. She qualified for state as a sophomore. Other returning wrestlers are juniors Rylee Backes (105\/6-8), Abby Harris (115\/6-6) and Jadeyn Klingenberg (130\/12-6) with freshman Avalena Wunderlich (190) joining the program.
Princeton’s Casey Etheridge wraps up his opponent during the IHSA Class 1A state tournament last season in Champaign. He placed fourth, named as the BCR Wrestler of the Year. <\/span>(John Morris)
Coach:<\/b> Sam Allen (9th season)
Top returning wrestlers<\/b>: Max Moreno, so., 132; Mike Benge, so., 126; Jameson Daley, so., 106; William Sramek, sr., 215; Weston Heersink, sr.
Worth noting:<\/b> The Bruins have a young roster of 20 wrestlers with just six upperclassmen. Benge and Moreno both won 30 or more matches last season and were sectional qualifiers. Benge was a regional champion as a freshman. \u201cI have a few future studs in Moreno and Benge,\u201d Allen said. \u201cI\u2019m hoping to see a few sophomores from last season step up and have a good go this year as well.\u201d Allen also is looking for good things from Sramek (19-1 in 2024-25) and Heersink. \u201cI have two seniors who have a good chance at turning some heads with Sramek and Heersink,\u201d Allen said. \u201cVast improvements were made in the offseason with weight training and wrestling like we\u2019ve never seen before at St. Bede.\u201d Allen said the future is bright for a group with six freshmen, eight sophomores and three juniors. \u201cNo matter how it turns out record-wise, I think these young Bruins have a lot to look forward to in the coming years,\u201d he said.
Coach: <\/b>Jerry Kriewald (13th season)
Top returning wrestlers:<\/b> Boys – Keaton Finley, 144; Shane Scribner, 175; Alex Tucker, 190; Justyn Doden, 215. Girls – Annamae Smith, 110; Abigail Lindus, 115; Ella Irwin, 170.
Top newcomers<\/b>: Alex Cooper, 132; Austin Dolder, 138; Chase Mecagni, 150; Dylan Conlin, 157; Jonathyn Jervis, 165; Hunter Buettner, 285. Girls – Zandra Lindus, 105; Bailey Terzick, 190.
Worth noting<\/b>: Kriewald, who helped start the wrestling program at Putnam County, returns for his second stint leading the Panthers. He\u2019s spent the last four years as an assistant coach at the University of Dubuque, his alma mater. The co-op coach for Hall is Brandon Dijong, who returns for his second season, while PC also has volunteer assistant Jesus Sanchez, who is an All-American from the University of Dubuque. For the PC boys, Tucker is a returning sectional qualifier and team captain. Irwin leads the girls as a two-time sectional qualifier and team captain. Lindus also is a returning sectional qualifier. \u201cI\u2019m just getting to know everyone and it\u2019s very enjoyable,\u201d Kriewald said. \u201cThere are a lot of different skill levels, but they\u2019re all coming together as a team. I\u2019m excited to see how everyone progresses.\u201d
Kevin has been sports editor of the BCR since 1986, covering Bureau County\/IL Valley Sports. Was previously sports editor of the St. Louis Daily News and a regular contributor for the St. Louis Cardinals Magazine. He is a member of the IBCA and Illinois Valley Hall of Fames. Fun fact: he is one of 4 sportswriters from his tiny hometown Atlanta, IL<\/p>\n

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Princeton coach Steve Amy (center) welcomes back two Tiger medalists in Kane Dauber (left), who placed fifth at 132 pounds as a freshman, and Casey Etheridge, who placed fourth at 165 pounds. A third Tiger, senior Augustus Swanson, medaled in 2024. (John Morris for Shaw Local News )Coach: Steve Amy (18th season)Top returning wrestlers: Boys – Eli Berlin, sr,, 190;<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"nf_dc_page":"","om_disable_all_campaigns":false,"_monsterinsights_skip_tracking":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-8691","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-uncategorized"],"aioseo_notices":[],"aioseo_head":"\n\t\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t