CHAMPAIGN — When their family moved back to Lemont after living for four years in Minnesota, brothers Judah and Justus Heeg went in different directions.
Judah, a junior, enrolled at Lemont. Justus, a freshman, chose to attend Providence.
Both ended their wrestling seasons in the same place, however. On top of the podium as state champions.
“It’s pretty special,” Justus said. “He’s definitely improved an awful lot since last year in Minnesota, and I feel like we both did.
“When he sees me thriving in the sport, he starts thriving, and when I see him thriving, I’m going to thrive.”
Justus Heeg won the Class 2A championship at 150 pounds, while Judah Heeg captured the 2A title at 190 on Saturday night at the State Farm Center on the campus of the University of Illinois.
De La Salle senior David McCarthy won the 1A championship at 285.
Justus Heeg was a state champion before he even began high school. Minnesota allows eighth graders to compete for high school teams and he won a title last winter.
Judah, meanwhile, was a bit more off the radar coming into this season. And he had quite a different experience in Minnesota.
“I was definitely nervous because last year at state in Minnesota, I went 0-1 and I never even scored a point,” Judah said. “But I overcame that, got my mindset in the right spot and I just went out there and did it.”
Judah (41-3) upset Crystal Lake Central’s Cayden Parks in the finals, avenging an earlier loss to him with a dramatic 4-1 overtime win.
“Going into overtime, whenever I’m in a spot like that, I just know I’ve got to open up, I’ve got to unload everything and give it all,” Judah said. “There’s no holding back anymore.”
There was far less drama for Justus Heeg (45-3), who won all four of his matches at state by technical fall, including a 20-5 victory over Mascoutah’s Brock Ross in the finals.
Judah, who won his championship first, said he was confident Justus would follow suit. After all, he has watched Justus do nothing but win the last two years. And it sure has motivated him.
“Seeing him win state last year definitely fired me up a ton,” Judah said. “I definitely wanted to be on top of the podium.”
Several of the brothers’ family members wore sweatshirts that represented both Lemont and Providence. It’s a unique situation, but both brothers are happy where they are.
“It’s definitely a little weird,” Judah said. “Moving back here, I had friends already who went to Lemont and I didn’t want to restart as a junior in high school.
“But Justus is fresh into high school, so it’s a new start and he decided (Providence) was the place for him.”
Justus is now 2-for-2 in his quest to become an extremely rare five-time high school state champ.
“That’s definitely a goal, but I’m not really training for state championships,” Justus said. “I’m training to make the world team and things like that.”
McCarthy (32-2), meanwhile, became De La Salle’s first state champion since 2012, topping Hope Academy’s Roy Phelps 7-1 in the finals.
“It’s a big legacy to follow,” McCarthy said. “I’m glad I accomplished it and I’m glad I’m here.”
McCarthy did not wrestle before high school and he quit as a freshman because he could not make weight. But he came back to qualify for state as a sophomore and finished fifth last season.
“Last year showed me how great of a wrestler I am and how great I could be and what I should be as a wrestler and a person,” he said. “It fueled my anger to go further.”
McCarthy then took it all the way to the top.
“I went from 350-something pounds as a freshman to 259 this morning,” he said. “It’s been a physical journey and a mental journey.”
