Multiple boys and girls wrestlers advanced to State wrestling this weekend at the Hartman Arena in Wichita, Kansas, after placing at Regionals. Matches began today and will continue into Saturday with finals. Regional champion senior Karoline Kendall has been wrestling for four years and said she is nervous for State.
“Dealing with anxiety as an athlete is one thing, but it’s my last kind of go at it, so there’s a lot more meaning behind it than prior years,” Kendall said.
This season, Kendall has received many awards in her weight class: Bronco Champion, Council Bluffs Runner-Up, Bobcat Classic Champion, Southwest Xtreme Champion, Washburn Invitational Champion, EKL Champion and Regional Champion. The varsity boys wrestling team has also had success, winning EKL for the fourth year in a row on Feb. 8. Senior Evan Richardson has been wrestling for 12 years. He said he will compete in the tournament this weekend and he is looking forward to competing in State with his teammates.
“My Dad was a State champ back in the day and he put me into [wrestling] when I was really little, and I’ve just been doing it ever since,” Richardson said.
Richardson has also received many awards during his wrestling season. His favorite memory was placing at Council Bluffs and winning Regionals last weekend. He has blown out his shoulder twice — two seasons ago and earlier this year — yet continued wrestling.
“I definitely think the physical part of wrestling is the most challenging, especially when you’re going against good guys,” Richardson said. ”A lot of times you’re super sore and you get hurt, so stuff like that is more challenging.”
The wrestling team had 13 total athletes who will be competing at State, nine boys and four girls. They will be competing against the other top 5A wrestlers from across the state.
“I’m not nervous because I’ve already been there before and I already know how it works,” Richardson said. “I used to be [nervous] my first two years, but now it’s like the same thing every year, so I’m used to it at this point.”
Kendall said the people around her and the coaches have pushed her through after she’s gone through multiple surgeries due to wrestling. She said she loves how it is so different from anything that she’s ever done, including the environment and how easy it is to become obsessed with it.
“I’ve literally poured my whole soul into getting to where I am and hopefully ending my career with a win,” Kendall said. “There’s lots to lose, but a lot more to win.”
