Cameron, Oak Glen Wrestlers Aim for State Titles in Huntington

HUNTINGTON, W.Va. – The West Virginia Boys State Wrestling Tournament begins Thursday night at Mountain Health Arena, with Cameron High School seeking a repeat performance after winning the Class A championship last winter. Several local wrestlers are poised to contend for individual state titles, led by a strong contingent from Cameron, Oak Glen, and Weir High School.

Cameron boasts five state qualifiers, all of whom secured North Region I championships earlier this month at Weir High School. Three Dragons are ranked No. 1 in their respective weight classes: Maverick Lilley (106), Braxton Birch (132), and Eli Tedrow (165). Talen Brown (157) is ranked No. 2, and Marshall Crow (150) holds the No. 3 spot.

Oak Glen enters the tournament with the most qualifiers – seven – while Weir High School will send five wrestlers to compete. Tyler Consolidated has three representatives, and Magnolia High School will be represented by one wrestler.

Maverick Lilley, a sophomore (35-4), is looking to improve upon his fifth-place finish at the 2025 state tournament. Braxton Birch, a junior (10-1), is aiming for the top spot after finishing as a state runner-up in both 2024 and 2025. Eli Tedrow (40-2), also a junior, is a returning state champion from 2025 and was runner-up in 2024.

Talen Brown (6-1) and Marshall Crow (34-10) round out Cameron’s championship contenders. According to Dragons head coach Chad Burge, both Birch and Brown battled injuries throughout the season, causing them to miss the OVAC Ron Mauck Tournament.

Magnolia High School will be represented by senior Riley Dennis (26-12) at 126 pounds, who placed fourth at the regional tournament.

Oak Glen head coach Josh Cornell expressed confidence in his team’s prospects. Jordan Tomsic (32-16), a junior at 106 pounds, is ranked third in the state and a returning sixth-place finisher. Cornell noted Tomsic has “greatly improved his technique” this season. Kaleb Eckleberry (18-16), a sophomore at 126 pounds, has shown significant improvement, while freshman Kayden Spencer (24-20) at 138 pounds secured a big win at the regional championships over a top-ranked wrestler and is currently ranked seventh in the state.

Wyatt Wolanski (46-7), a senior at 144 pounds, is a two-time state place winner with over 120 career wins and is ranked fourth in the state. Parker Boyce (33-20), a senior at 157 pounds, is a four-year starter and two-time state qualifier. Paxton Ware (23-21), a sophomore at 165 pounds, has also shown improvement, while Noah Schmidt (43-6), a senior at 215 pounds, is ranked No. 2 in the state and a two-time state place winner.

Tyler Consolidated will send Wesley Kelly (29-8) at 120 pounds, Gideon Winfrey (25-15) at 150 pounds, and Israel Winfrey (29-8) at 175 pounds to the tournament. Gideon Winfrey was ranked No. 5 in the final state rankings.

Weir High School’s contingent includes freshman Chad Artman (5-0) at 126 pounds, who upset a returning state D-I runnerup in his first match. Jonathan Rhodes (33-13) at 150 pounds, Joshua DeFelice (39-8) at 165 pounds, Hunter Streng (28-17) at 175 pounds, Ben Bryan (36-6) at 190 pounds, and Brock Hebb (11-7) at 285 pounds. Bryan was the top-ranked wrestler in the state in the final rankings, but finished third in the regional.

Wheeling Central will be represented by Tylique Marshall (28-9) at 113 pounds, Trenton McCardle (26-9) at 165 pounds, Wyatt Brady (23-5) at 190 pounds, Dustin Sanner (20-5) at 215 pounds, and Dominic Paesani (22-8) at 285 pounds. Brady, ranked No. 3 in the final state rankings, missed his junior season due to injury. Paesani is ranked No. 2 in the final state rankings.

The top six placers in each weight class will earn all-state honors.