Through the hard work of Crown Point High School’s female wrestlers, six members of the team made it to State. Congratulations to: Jaila Powers (100# qualifier), Anna Neal (120# sixth), Helene Papadakis (125# eighth), Ava Strayer (130# first), Kylie Benoit (140# third), and Jayda Miller (170# runner-up). Thanks to the work they put in, these girls were able to qualify, wrestle, and discuss their experiences with the season.
Ava Strayer placed first in her weight class for State and shares her feelings about the season that helped her make it this year.
“I feel like my coaches and teammates really helped me to win [State] again this year,” Strayer said.
Strayer feels that through the support of her coaches and teammates, she was able to push herself to place first in her weight class once again this year. Strayer also notes that some of her best memories from this year’s wrestling season include spending time with her teammates at restaurants and hotels, and she feels that she has not had any bad experiences or memories during her time on the team.
Kylie Benoit placed third in her weight class at State this year and shares her feelings about going.
“I was excited about going to state, I was also a little nervous,” Benoit said.
Benoit goes on to explain that winning was relieving to her. After placing third, she went on to say that all of the stress she felt from worrying about winning or not was gone. She went on to credit her hard work wrestling during the off-season, which helped her get this far.
Helene Papadakis placed eighth in her weight class at State this year and explains her memory of her qualifying moment.
“One memory I specifically remember is when I qualified for State. In my qualifying match at Regionals, I remember that when I won, I looked up and saw my coaches happy and my teammates all cheering,” Papadakis said.
Papadakis reminisces about the feeling of being able to qualify and proceeds to explain what she wishes to improve for next season. Papadakis admits that she is determined to work on her stance for the future, explaining that she felt she was caught in situations because of her stance.
This is the first time since the women’s wrestling team was created that so many girls have made it to State, as well as winning Team State.
