March 19, 2026 | WALLS 102

Marseilles man charged with attempted murder

A Marseilles man was charged with attempted murder Thursday after a woman sustained what Marseilles police termed “life-threatening” stab wounds – and prosecutors confirmed a family dog saved her life.Brian G. Reinhart, appeared Thursday in La Salle County Circuit Court and was presented with two felony charges, led by attempted murder, a Class X felony carrying six to 30 years with no possibility of probation. He was also charged with aggravated domestic battery, a Class 2 felony carrying three to seven years.The La Salle County State’s Attorney’s Office filed a petition to have Reinhart detained pending trial. When he appeared Thursday in court, however, Reinhart advised the judge he’d defer his right to a detention hearing until he retains private counsel.Chief Judge H. Chris Ryan Jr. ordered Reinhart to return March 26 for an appearance with counsel and possible arraignment.Details are still emerging. An update on the victim’s condition (she was stable as of Wednesday) was pending.One salient detail emerged from the newest court filing, however. The woman told police Reinhart was aiming the knife at her neck when a pet dog charged at Reinhart. The state’s attorney’s office confirmed the dog’s intervention enabled her to break away and flee the residence.In a Thursday press release, Marseilles police said they were summoned at 7:04 p.m. Tuesday to the 900 block of Andrew Lane. A woman was found in the roadway with stab wounds to her abdomen. She was taken from the scene by ambulance and then flown to a regional medical center.Reinhart, police said, was quickly located and taken into custody.“This was an isolated incident,” police said, “and there is no ongoing danger to the public.”Reinhart was transported early Wednesday to La Salle County Jail, where he was held on a preliminary charge of aggravated domestic battery. Prosecutors filed the attempted murder charge the next day.According to court records, the woman’s injuries were sustained following an argument with Reinhart. Prosecutors said in the new filing that the woman had defensive cuts to her hands, indicating a struggle, and that a knife was found in the roadway near where the victim was located.“The defendant (Reinhart) was found sitting outside the residence with a red, blood-like substance on his hands,” prosecutors wrote.

Marseilles man charged with attempted murder

Ogle County Board: Bid for grant-funded Memorial Plaza project approved

The Ogle County Board on Wednesday unanimously approved a $200,700 low bid from O’Brien Civil Works for a Memorial Plaza project on the south side of the historic Ogle County Courthouse property.

Sterling’s Woodlawn Arts Academy honors 2026 student-teacher art exhibit winners

Woodlawn Arts Academy is proud to exhibit artwork from talented students and staff from all over the Sauk Valley area and is pleased to announce the winners of the 2026 student-teacher art exhibit.

Local author and USA Today bestseller Flanagan to host book signing in Dixon

Local author, clinical psychologist and relationship coach Kelly Flanagan will host a book signing for his USA Today bestselling book “The Road Less Triggered: Turning Conflict into Connection with a Single Choice” on Saturday at Books on

Wild Rose Casino & Hotel Clinton to host Fool House – The Ultimate 90’s Party: The Millennium Tour Friday

Wild Rose Casino & Hotel in Clinton, Iowa, will present Fool House – The Ultimate 90’s Party: The Millennium Tour on Friday, March 20, in the Oakwood Grand Ballroom.

The Beach House brings coastal feel to Ottawa’s dining scene

The Beach House matches the flavors, décor, and relaxed feeling people may remember from their coastal vacations – and that’s exactly how owner John Mathias designed it to be.

2025-26 NewsTribune Wrestling All-Area Team

A look at the top boys and girls wrestlers in the NewsTribune area for the 2025-26 season.Eli Berlin, sr., Princeton: Berlin had a strong senior season as he went 38-12 at 190 pounds with 31 of his wins coming via fall, which set a program record for pins in a season. Berlin won the Class 1A Princeton Regional and came up one win short of a state berth.Corbin Brown, so., Princeton: There was no sophomore slump for Brown as we went 33-15 with 19 wins by fall at 132 pounds. Brown placed third at the Class 1A Princeton Regional and won his first match at the Byron Sectional.Kane Dauber, so., Princeton: Dauber overcame an injury to have another solid season, going 29-5 with 18 pins at 138 pounds. He pinned his way through the Class 1A Princeton Regional to win the title, then placed second at the Byron Sectional. Dauber finished fourth at state.Kiely Domyancich, sr., La Salle-Peru: The repeat NewsTribune Girls Wrestler of the Year was dominant as she went 35-5 at 125 pounds. She won the Rockford East, Princeton, Ottawa and Interstate 8 Conference tournaments. Domyancich won the Normal West Regional, placed second at the DeKalb Sectional and finished one win shy of a state medal.Marisa Eggersdorfer, sr., La Salle-Peru: Eggersdorfer nearly earned a state berth, falling one win short. She won the Interstate 8 Conference Tournament and the Normal West Regional. She placed second at the Mahomet-Seymour Tournament. Eggersdorfer went 28-6 at 155 with 27 wins by fall.Casey Etheridge, sr., Princeton: The co-NewsTribune Boys Wrestler of the Year went 46-7 and was Class 1A state runner-up at 165 pounds. Etheridge won the Princeton Regional and finished second at the Byron Sectional. He won the LeRoy and Dewitt tournaments and set the program record for career pins.Gavin Evans, sr., Mendota: Evans finished his career strong as he went 31-9 with 20 pins at 157. He placed second at the Kewanee Invitational. In the postseason, Evans placed second at the Class 1A Princeton Regional to advance to the Byron Sectional.Kalista Frost, so., La Salle-Peru: Frost had another successful season as she qualified for the sectional for the second time. She won the Rockford East Tournament, Interstate 8 Conference Tournament and the Normal West Regional. Frost finished 27-8 at 100 pounds with 23 pins.Emily Lowery, so., La Salle-Peru: Lowery had a solid sophomore season as she went 27-11 with 20 pins at 115 pounds. She won the Interstate 8 Conference Tournament. In the postseason, Lowery placed fourth at the Normal West Regional and won two sectional matches.Sarah Lowery, jr., La Salle-Peru: Lowery was strong all season, finishing second on the team in wins at 33-7 at 110 pounds. She won 29 matches via fall. Lowery won the Springfield and Mahomet-Seymour tournaments, placed second at the Interstate 8 Conference tournament and the Normal West Regional and took third at the Rockford East and Princeton tournaments.Max Moreno, so., St. Bede: Moreno followed up a strong freshman season with a successful sophomore campaign as he went 36-9 at 132 pounds. He won the Jaguar Classic, placed second at the Orion Invitational and took third at the Plano and Kewanee invites. Moreno placed second at the Class 1A Princeton Regional to earn a sectional berth.Augustus Swanson, sr., Princeton: The co-NewsTribune Boys Wrestler of the Year placed second in Class 1A at 113 pounds and finished the season 47-3 with 30 wins by fall. He won the Princeton Regional and took second at the Byron Sectional. Swanson won the Princeton Invitational and the LeRoy Tournament.Gianni Verucchi, jr., La Salle-Peru: Verucchi won 20 matches at 113/120, with nine coming by pin. He placed fourth at the Plano Tournament and took fifth at the Sterling Tournament. Verucchi was runner-up at the Class 2A Sterling Regional to earn a sectional berth.Jentz Watson, sr., La Salle-Peru: Watson capped his career with a strong senior season, going 28-17 at 165 pounds. He won 17 matches by fall and four by technical fall. Watson placed third at the Sterling Tournament, fourth at the Morton Tournament and sixth at the Springfield and Reed-Custer tournaments. He took third at the Class 2A Sterling Regional to advance to sectional.Honorable mention: Michael Benge, so., St. Bede; Komen Denault, so., Mendota; Justyn Doden, so., Putnam County-Hall; Avalyn Edwall, so., La Salle-Peru; Ella Irwin, sr., Putnam County-Hall; Brady Peach, so., Princeton; Audri Plut, fr., La Salle-Peru

2025-26 NewsTribune Girls Wrestler of the Year: La Salle-Peru’s Kiely Domyancich

When La Salle-Peru senior Kiely Domyancich started wrestling as a freshman, she said she was “really bad” at the sport.But she had fun with the sport and made friends with teammates.She also had people doubt her.That motivated Domyancich.“As a wrestler, I think I’ve really shown that I love when people doubt me because they’re going to regret doubting me,” Domyancich said. “I had so many people freshman year that would look down on me. I kind of took that as a threat, and I was like, ‘OK, I have to prove these people wrong.’ I’ve grown a lot mentally and physically, and I think I’m going to keep on growing because that’s just me. I’m a competitive person.”Domyancich certainly grew as a wrestler.She went from a novice to a dominant wrestler in the area and one of the best in the state.As a senior, Domyancich went 35-5 with 25 pins, eclipsed 100 career wins, won the Rockford East, Princeton, Ottawa and Interstate 8 Conference tournaments, won the 125-pound bracket at the Normal West Regional, placed second at the DeKalb Sectional and finished one win shy of a state medal.For all she accomplished this season, Domyancich is the 2025-26 NewsTribune Girls Wrestler of the Year.Domyancich also won the honor last season.“It was a phenomenal season,” L-P coach Nolan Keeney said. “Last year, she came in wrestling like she was on a mission with something to prove. This year, she came in knowing she was one of the better girls in the state, so she wrestled more freely. It was really nice to see the confidence level change in her from one season to the next. It was a joy to watch.”While Domyancich grew as an individual wrestler during her career, she did much more than that as she helped grow the L-P program.Domyancich was the only female wrestler at the school her freshman year. This winter, the Cavaliers had a separate girls program for the first time, with more than 20 girls on the roster.This season, the Cavaliers won the Interstate 8 Conference tournament and went unbeaten in conference duals, placed second in the regional and had nine sectional qualifiers.“The past few years, I’ve heard so many people say how I’ve had a part in growing the program,” Domyancich said. “Honestly, I never really thought about it that way. I like to win, and that’s what I did. I didn’t really think about the program as a whole, but now seeing how far we’ve come, it really just makes me feel really good being part of this. “I think it’s my biggest blessing because not everybody gets to be a part of something bigger than themself, and I really enjoy that.”Domyancich is the first L-P female wrestler to win 100 matches, finishing with 116, and was the first L-P female to earn a state medal as she placed fifth at 115 as a junior and was a three-time state qualifier.“I don’t know if anyone could dream of what she’s done,” Keeney said. “The program was literally born because of her and Sarah Lowery the next year. Then we had 10 more girls join the next year. They all play a key factor, but everyone knew Kiely was the leader. With the legacy she built, she’s going to have a bunch of girls come into the wrestling room, and they’re going to see her name plastered all over. They’re going to see her picture on the wall. Little girls are going to look up and think, ‘I want to be like Kiely.’ She set the bar.”Domyancich, who credits her coaches, teammates and community support for her success in high school, plans to continue her career in college. She’s still considering schools.“I’m excited for what she’s going to do in college,” Keeney said. “Kiely can do anything she sets her mind to. I don’t know where she’s going, but she’s going to do great. I hope I did the best I could to prepare her for the college level.”

HumanKIND Initiative and Safe Journeys to put on ‘Succulents & Self-Care’ event