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One of Olivia Heft’s favorite memories from the Illinois High School Association’s first state meet for girls wrestling was the Grand March of Finalists.
“They played the Olympic theme song and had lights flashing and the crowd cheering,” she said. “It was super cool to experience it with my coaches and family and to take it all in.”
The Lakes sophomore went on a personal grand march through the tournament too.
Heft finished in second place in the 115-pound weight class at Grossinger Motors Arena in Bloomington on Saturday, matching Zion-Benton sophomore Ileen Castrejon’s achievement at 170.
Heft won three matches before losing a 10-3 decision to Chatham Glenwood’s Maya Davis in the final.
“I’m motivated to get back to state again,” Heft said. “Getting second is an amazing accomplishment as a sophomore, but I would love to get at least one state championship in my high school career.”
Heft, a team captain who placed fourth at 113 at the Illinois Wrestling Coaches and Officials Association’s state meet last year, went 18-9 overall and 14-1 against girls this season.
“Olivia leads by example and is one of the hardest-working athletes in the practice room,” Lakes coach Jack Troesch said. “She has an incredible positive attitude, is always determined to improve and continuously wants to learn more. … With her unbelievable work ethic and self-driven motivation, there’s not a doubt in my mind she will achieve her goals.”
The state meet had a heavy Lake County presence. Lakes and Grant each had three qualifiers; Round Lake, Stevenson, Warren, Wauconda, Waukegan and Zion-Benton each had two qualifiers; and Lake Forest had one qualifier.
Grant’s Ayane Jasinski finished fourth at 100; Grant’s Crystal Villegas was fourth at 130; Grant’s Snow Khi was eighth at 105; Round Lake’s Ireland McCain was fifth at 120; Wauconda’s Keira Dafnis was fifth and Lakes’ Ava Babbs was eighth at 135; Zion-Benton’s Rachel Williams-Henry was fourth at 140; Warren’s Adriana Demos was third and Stevenson’s Sajra Sulejmani was fifth at 145; and Lake Forest’s Naomi Miles was sixth at 170.
Zion-Benton coach Hal Lunsford, who said his program didn’t send an individual qualifier to the boys state meet for the first time since its streak started in 2009, welcomed the success of Castrejon and Williams-Henry.
“I got pretty emotional because it was a historic event,” Lunsford said. “I’ve seen a lot of cool things and experienced a lot of cool things, but this event ranks in the top five. The girls finally got their moment. It was a big deal and is now officially in the books.”
Castrejon won three matches at 170 before she was pinned in the final by Rockton Hononegah’s Rose Cassioppi, a junior who was ranked No. 4 in the nation, won a gold medal at the Pan-American Championships in Mexico last year and wrestled for the U.S. national team.
Castrejon, who returned to the sport after a five-year hiatus, said she gained valuable insight wrestling against Cassioppi, whose brother Tony is an All-American at Iowa.
“I’m excited and proud of myself — just a little bit disappointed because I got second,” Castrejon said. “I learned that I have to work on technique, which is a big thing. I was more focused on strength. It was such a cool weekend and so cool to see how the sport has evolved at Zion-Benton.”
Williams-Henry, a junior, concluded a memorable first full season in the sport. She said it was an emotional weekend, both on and off the mat.
“It was a historic event, a very big deal,” she said. “I’m so thankful for all the help from my coaches. They believed in me and did not let me stop and pushed me to reach this point. Without them, I wouldn’t have made it to state. I want to experience this again.”
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Bobby Narang is a freelance reporter for the News-Sun.