Dixon hopes for breakout showing at IHSA scholastic bowl regional

Back in September, Dixon High School’s scholastic bowl season started as a solo act.

For Dixon’s appearance on “Stateline Quiz Bowl,” senior Thomas Stauter was the only player available. His other teammates were involved in fall sports.

Undaunted, Stauter appeared on TV by himself.

(He did just fine, by the way, scoring a 180-40 victory.)

But when the Illinois High School Association Class 2A regional gets underway Monday in Rochelle, Stauter will no longer be ringing in alone.

Since November, Dixon filled out its roster, including sophomores Christopher Wadsworth, Ollie Payne, Hayden Fulton and Aaron Conderman.

Dixon has since compiled a 10-3 record and took third in the Big Northern Conference.

Coach Tom Padilla said the team has built upon on Stauton’s strengths in geography and philosophy, adding Fulton’s emphasis on math and sciences and Wadsworth’s bank of knowledge in the fine arts.

Padilla said he is hopeful for a breakout performance by the team.

Dixon opens with a quarterfinal matchup against host Rochelle at 4:30 p.m. Burlington Central takes on DeKalb in the opposing bracket.

Sterling and Rock Falls also are in the field and will meet each other at 4:30 p.m. The winner advances to face Marengo at 5:20 p.m.

The championship will be at 6:10 p.m.

The regional winner advances to the Rockford Auburn Sectional that begins round-robin play at 10 a.m. Saturday, March 11.

Last year, Dixon and Sterling advanced to the regional semifinals.

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Dixon High School senior Thomas Stauter concentrates on a question during practice for scholastic bowl regionals Thursday, March 2, 2023 at Dixon High School. (Alex T. Paschal - apaschal@shawmedia.com/credit)

Class 1A

Scholastic bowl teams from the Sauk Valley’s smaller enrollment schools will compete in regional tournaments Monday at Morrison, Oregon, Galena and Port Byron. All four regionals will feed into the March 11 sectional at Port Byron.

At Morrison

No. 3 seed Morrison opens the quarterfinal round at 4:30 p.m. against Granville Putnam County. The other matches are Peru St. Bede vs. Spring Valley Hall, Manlius Bureau Valley against Milledgeville and Newman Central Catholic vs. Lanark Eastland. The semifinals start at 5:20 p.m. and the finals are at 6:10 p.m.

Morrison is 31-10 overall and went 13-0 in Three Rivers Conference play, while it has “enjoyed one of its most successful seasons in recent memory,” coach Brian Bartoz said. The team opens with a rematch against Putnam County, which it defeated en route to a fourth-place finish at the Masonic Sectional Tournament on Feb. 18 at Prophetstown. It also counts a Jan. 9 victory over the sectional No. 1 seed Riverdale as a season highlight. All eight members of the varsity have been starters at various points during the season, Bartoz said. Morrison reached the regional final last season.

Bureau Valley went 10-3 in Three Rivers Conference play and placed juniors Blake Helms and Eli Attig on the all-conference team. Senior Violet Krider starts, along with two freshmen. Bureau Valley’s strength is in science, American history and geography.

Eastland is 6-4 and doesn’t have a set lineup, in part due to a season shortened by illness and bad weather. Coach William McLain said the team’s strengths are in geography, math and history.

At Oregon

Quarterfinals will be 5:20 p.m. with Ashton-Franklin Center vs. Oregon, Stockton vs. Polo, Forreston vs. Dakota and No. 2 seed Winnebago vs. the winner of a preliminary match between Byron and Freeport Aquin. The semifinals are at 6:10 p.m. and the championship is at 7 p.m.

Ashton Franklin Center is 11-10, yet coach Sean Waters said four of those losses were by a single question. The team starts juniors Zayne Becker, Lauren Stone and Ethan Vogeler and sophomore Ayden Willstead. Its strengths are in history and geography.

At Galena

Savanna West Carroll faces Hanover River Ridge in one of four quarterfinals that start at 4:30 p.m. No. 4 seed Keith Country Day in Rockford is in the field. The semifinals are at 5:20 p.m. and the finals start at 6:10 p.m.

At Port Byron

Host Riverdale is the No. 1 overall seed and will face the Erie co-op to open the quarterfinals at 4:30 p.m. The other matchups are Annawan vs. Orion, East Dubuque vs. Fulton Unity Christian and Fulton vs. Kewanee Wethersfield. The semifinals are at 5:20 p.m., and the finals are at 6:10 p.m. Riverdale was a regional champion last season.

Unity Christian in Fulton is under first-year coach Monica Clarke. The team opened the season with the title trophy at the Clinton (Iowa) Community College eight-team tournament, and has gone 2-6 since then. The co-captains are Andy Eslick and Carrie Willoughby, and the team counts math and science as its strengths.

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Dixon High School senior Thomas Stauter concentrates on a question during practice for scholastic bowl regionals Thursday, March 2, 2023 at Dixon High School. (Alex T. Paschal - apaschal@shawmedia.com/credit)