Starting off the season with open mats and high spirits, the girls’ wrestling team is ready for their season.
During their meet on Thurs. Dec. 4 against Romeoville, the Panthers scored -without forfeits- 30-24 OH. Then, against Joliet Central, the team had a tying score of 18-18; however, with forfeits, the final meet score was 42-18 Joliet Central.
Open mats were hard to start up for pre-season due the unexpected heavy storm hitting the OH main gym, but this issue was resolved right before the start of the season.
“I have been wrestling since freshman year,” said OH junior Helena Torres. “In practice, we start with the basics and then learn new skills every day, doing a lot of conditioning and running. Wrestling didn’t necessarily come to me easily; it took me throughout freshman and sophomore year to get as good as I am now.”
Torres has experience in wrestling and expressed how “it will always be hard for someone starting a new thing, especially a sport, for some it comes easy and for others it is hard to get a grip of everything in the first few weeks.”
Wrestling is more of an independent sport with a strong team there to support each other. The team has a total score at the end of all the matches, and that outcome depends on how well everyone on the team did individually.
The strength of the team and the wrestler is key to a successful match. “The thing that makes me want to stay in the sport is the feeling of strength I get when I’m wrestling. I feel really strong, and feeling strong makes me feel good,” said OH senior Kendra Padilla who won her match against Romeoville, then did not beat her opponent against Joliet Central.
Padilla has been wrestling for three years now and said, “As an individual sport, it is kinda independent, with wrestling, you, yourself have to want to get better, but it’s better with the support from the team.”
Wrestling uses a lot of someone’s mind. It’s more of a sport for one person to focus on multiple factors, such as physical attacks and quick thinking.
“I would say the hardest part would be setting yourself up for success before your match because wrestling is an individual sport and can be hard on the brain,” said OH senior Joslynn Sheets, who although lost her match against Joliet Central, she won her match against Romeoville.
Sheets grew up watching Brayden Swanson, an OH 2025 graduate that made it to State, then sophomore year fell in love with the sport. “I work hard every day to get better to get to the state finals and be the best athlete I can possibly be,” said Sheets.
From dreams to reality, wrestlers often take away more from the sport than the competition.
“My favorite memory was from when I went to [Illinois Wrestling Coaches and Officials Association] State which was such an experience and I got to meet a lot of people,” said Padilla.
Padilla loves the strength she gains from wrestling. “For girls that want to join, I want to say not to be discouraged after losing matches, matches are like learning experiences, and you’ll improve,” said Padilla.
Wrestling season has started up again, with newcomers and people back for more action. Their next meet is Fri. Dec. 12, against Minooka, come support OH girls’ wrestling.
Their next home game is crosstown on Thurs. Jan. 8, in the main gym.
Hello! My name is Jessica Bellah and I'm a senior and this is my first year on 42Fifty Staff. You can contacts me by emailing 42Fifty@sd308.org and putting my name in the subject line. We welcome comments on our articles and feedback on our publication!
