IHSA - Illinois High School Association
01/26/2026 | Press release | Distributed by Public on 01/27/2026 11:33
STATE CENTRAL: Boys Bowling
The 2026 IHSA Boys Bowling State Finals, presented by COUNTRY Financial, are set for Friday and Saturday, January 30-31 at St. Clair Bowling in Fairview Heights. The state tournament is hosted by O'Fallon High School.
The 2025-26 school year is the 125th in the IHSA's storied history. Learn more about some of the pivotal student competitors, coaches, and moments from the IHSA's first 125 years here.
A schedule, links to important state final info, and a preview can be found below…
---2026 IHSA BOYS BOWLING STATE FINALS---
Friday & Saturday, January 30-31
St. Clair Bowl | Fairview Heights | Directions
GoFan Tickets | Friday | Saturday
State Final Info
State Final Merchandise | Minerva Promotions
Download/Order State Final Program | PIP Printing
Photos from Visual Image Photography
---STATE FINAL SCHEDULE---
Friday, January 30 | Tickets
9:00 AM | First Round
1:00 PM | Second Round
Saturday, January 31 | Tickets
9:00 AM | Third Round
1:00 PM | Fourth Round
4:00 PM (approx.) | Awards
---STATE FINAL PREVIEW---
After placing second in 2024, Harrisburg broke through for its first state championship in school history a year ago. The top three scorers from that team all return for their junior seasons including James Cranmore (2nd, 2,722 in 2025), Dalton Wheeler (4th, 2,717) and Miles Brombaugh (10th, 2,613), who all placed in the Top 10 in the state individually at the 2025 state finals.
Parity seems to be the story of the 2026 season, as only one of the six teams who won team Sectional titles on Saturday placed in the Top 12 as a team at state a year ago.
The lone team to accomplish that feat was Morton, from Berwyn-Cicero, who is led by a pair of seniors who both notched Top 30 scores at state last in Desmond Zuro (21st, 2,553) and Mathew Roman (26th, 2,530).
Two-time state champ Hononegah posted the top Sectional team score in the state behind the play of senior Lucas Wheeler (1,415), while fellow Sectional champ Minooka (6,419) and junior Ben Clark (1,439) weren't far off the pace.
Taft (6,324) and Oswego East (5,983) rounded out the Sectional team champs in 2026. Taft junior Tyler Paulus (1,349) won the individual Sectional crown to pace his squad, while Oswego East senior Derek Zahorak shared the individual title with St. Charles North senior Spencer Merritt after they tallied identical pinfalls of 1,363.
Waterloo and Mt. Vernon bear watching this weekend, as both topped defending state champ Harrisburg in Sectional action on Saturday. Mt. Vernon senior Travin Elliott (1,414) was the Sectional champion, while Waterloo was led by junior Matthew Eller (1,325).
Breese Central earned its first trophy in school history a year ago when the Cougars placed third. The team placed fourth in a deep Sectional, but could sneak up on the field this weekend with three of its top four bowlers from last year returning, including Top 25 finishers from a year ago in senior Blake Horstmann (18th, 2,560) and sophomore Jacson Deiters (23rd, 2,545).
Lane Tech (4th) and Glenbrook North (5th) both notched Top 5 team finishes in 2025 and battled one another again in Sectional action this year. They will depend on junior Jordan Landa (1,325) and senior Kyle Hobson (1,303), respectively, to try to return to trophy contention this weekend.
A trio of sophomores rounded out the individual Sectional champions in 2026 in Morton's Weston Sadler (1,532), Harlem's Benjamin Dahle (1,474), and Morgan Park's Shaun Tasker-Lewis Jr. (1,364). Dahle and Sadler finished in the Top 50 in the state a year ago as freshmen (Dahle 44th-2,433; Sadler-50th-2,420) when Dahle helped lead Harlem to a runner-up team finish.
The 2025-26 school year is the 125th in the IHSA's storied history. Learn more about some of the pivotal student competitors, coaches, and moments from the IHSA's first 125 years here.
A schedule, links to important state final info, and a preview can be found below…
---2026 IHSA BOYS BOWLING STATE FINALS---
Friday & Saturday, January 30-31
St. Clair Bowl | Fairview Heights | Directions
GoFan Tickets | Friday | Saturday
State Final Info
State Final Merchandise | Minerva Promotions
Download/Order State Final Program | PIP Printing
Photos from Visual Image Photography
---STATE FINAL SCHEDULE---
Friday, January 30 | Tickets
9:00 AM | First Round
1:00 PM | Second Round
Saturday, January 31 | Tickets
9:00 AM | Third Round
1:00 PM | Fourth Round
4:00 PM (approx.) | Awards
---STATE FINAL PREVIEW---
After placing second in 2024, Harrisburg broke through for its first state championship in school history a year ago. The top three scorers from that team all return for their junior seasons including James Cranmore (2nd, 2,722 in 2025), Dalton Wheeler (4th, 2,717) and Miles Brombaugh (10th, 2,613), who all placed in the Top 10 in the state individually at the 2025 state finals.
Parity seems to be the story of the 2026 season, as only one of the six teams who won team Sectional titles on Saturday placed in the Top 12 as a team at state a year ago.
The lone team to accomplish that feat was Morton, from Berwyn-Cicero, who is led by a pair of seniors who both notched Top 30 scores at state last in Desmond Zuro (21st, 2,553) and Mathew Roman (26th, 2,530).
Two-time state champ Hononegah posted the top Sectional team score in the state behind the play of senior Lucas Wheeler (1,415), while fellow Sectional champ Minooka (6,419) and junior Ben Clark (1,439) weren't far off the pace.
Taft (6,324) and Oswego East (5,983) rounded out the Sectional team champs in 2026. Taft junior Tyler Paulus (1,349) won the individual Sectional crown to pace his squad, while Oswego East senior Derek Zahorak shared the individual title with St. Charles North senior Spencer Merritt after they tallied identical pinfalls of 1,363.
Waterloo and Mt. Vernon bear watching this weekend, as both topped defending state champ Harrisburg in Sectional action on Saturday. Mt. Vernon senior Travin Elliott (1,414) was the Sectional champion, while Waterloo was led by junior Matthew Eller (1,325).
Breese Central earned its first trophy in school history a year ago when the Cougars placed third. The team placed fourth in a deep Sectional, but could sneak up on the field this weekend with three of its top four bowlers from last year returning, including Top 25 finishers from a year ago in senior Blake Horstmann (18th, 2,560) and sophomore Jacson Deiters (23rd, 2,545).
Lane Tech (4th) and Glenbrook North (5th) both notched Top 5 team finishes in 2025 and battled one another again in Sectional action this year. They will depend on junior Jordan Landa (1,325) and senior Kyle Hobson (1,303), respectively, to try to return to trophy contention this weekend.
A trio of sophomores rounded out the individual Sectional champions in 2026 in Morton's Weston Sadler (1,532), Harlem's Benjamin Dahle (1,474), and Morgan Park's Shaun Tasker-Lewis Jr. (1,364). Dahle and Sadler finished in the Top 50 in the state a year ago as freshmen (Dahle 44th-2,433; Sadler-50th-2,420) when Dahle helped lead Harlem to a runner-up team finish.
IHSA - Illinois High School Association published this content on January 26, 2026, and is solely responsible for the information contained herein. Distributed via Public Technologies (PUBT), unedited and unaltered, on January 27, 2026 at 17:33 UTC. If you believe the information included in the content is inaccurate or outdated and requires editing or removal, please contact us at [email protected]