Princeton’s Casey Etheridge, Kane Dauber earn state wrestling medals

Last year as a sophomore, Princeton’s Casey Etheridge made it to the blood round at the IHSA Class 1A state tournament, but he lost that match to leave him just shy of a state medal.

This season, Etheridge found himself in the same position.

This time, Etheridge won his quarterfinal wrestleback to guarantee he’d earn a medal and he went on to place fourth at 165 pounds.

“It’s a great feeling considering last year I made it to the blood round and lost so I wasn’t able to place,” Etheridge said. “But this year I was in the same spot and I was able to finish and complete my goal of placing at state this year.”

Etheridge was one of two medalists for Princeton along with freshman Kane Dauber, who took fifth at 132. The Tigers also had three other wrestlers come within a victory of a medal in junior Augustus Swanson (120) and seniors Ace Christiansen (144) and Cade Odell (285).

“They all competed really hard,” Princeton coach Steve Amy said. “I’m proud of all of them. Draws could have been a little better, but you’ll have that. It’s the state tournament, everybody is good.”

In the blood round, Etheridge defeated Coal City junior Brock Finsh by 10-1 major decision.

“I just tried to stay on my offense and keep attacking and trust myself because my coaches always tell me not to get in my head and let myself affect how I wrestle,” Etheridge said. “I just kept wrestling and I was able to win the match.

“I was very relieved and happy because at the beginning of the season that was my goal to medal at state and have the honor of being on that podium.”

Etheridge then beat Mercer County junior Eli Burns by 13-6 decision to advance to the third-place match.

“I tried to come in with the same mentality (as the blood round),” Etheridge said. “I wrestled him at the beginning of the season and I knew he got better since then, so I came in and tried to attack. I didn’t wrestle my best match ever, but I still was able to pull out the win.”

In the third-place match, Etheridge had a rematch with Northridge senior Adam Haddad, who defeated Etheridge by 7-3 decision in Thursday’s first round. Haddad beat Etheridge by 13-4 major decision in the third-place match.

“I tried taking a different approach realizing I’ve wrestled him before so I knew how he wrestled,” Etheridge said. “I wanted to come in stronger and with a better mentality. Obviously, I didn’t leave with the win, but I was happy with how I ended up wrestling at the tournament.”

After losing the first match to Haddad, Etheridge bounced back to win four straight matches to earn his medal.

“I wasn’t too happy with myself the rest of the day (Thursday), but the next day I had a quick opening round (a pin in 1:20 of Shelbyville junior Ryne Peavler) and that helped me get my mentality back up and ready to go for the next couple matches and I kept wrestling like I should and I kind of went on a roll there.”

Dauber won his opening match Thursday before losing in the quarterfinals to fall into wrestlebacks.

The freshman pinned Oakwood senior Tyler Huchel in 5:22 then edged Wheaton Academy junior Lincoln Hoger by 9-8 decision in the blood round before losing to Roxana junior Brandon Green Jr. in the semifinal wrestlebacks.

“Kane’s a little stud,” Amy said. “He’s got a bright future ahead of him. He loves the sport. I know he was pleased with the outcome this weekend, but wishes it could have been a little bit better. There’s some positives to look at there. He’ll be back in the room trying to get ready for next season.”

In the fifth-place match, Dauber beat PORTA junior Zach Bryant by 14-3 major decision.

“There were some good wrestlers here,” Dauber said. “I wrestled the No. 4 seed in the first round and beat him and I went against some other real good wrestlers.

“It was a fun experience and I am looking forward to the next three years.”

In the quarterfinal wrestlebacks, Swanson lost by 20-3 technical fall to Illini Bluffs freshman Barret Speck, who went on to place fifth, Christiansen lost by 4-1 decision to Lena-Winslow junior Arrison Bauer, who finished third, and Odell was edged 2-1 by St. Francis junior Jaylen Torres, who placed third.

“All three of those guys getting top eight in the brackets they were in was fantastic,” Amy said. “All three guys lost in the quarters to the eventual state runners-up. Augustus wrestled really well. He came up one short, but we fix a few things and he’ll be right back in the mix next year I’m sure.

“(Christiansen and Odell) have meant a lot to the program. They’re consistently there working hard and doing the little things right. They’re leaders on the team and have been for a couple years. They’re going to leave a lasting mark on the rest of the guys.”