Members of the Hartford Union High School girls wrestling team stopped in to the WTKM studios to discuss another successful season.
Head coach Erin Rife said there were many highlights.
"We have several girls that have been in the program since I started coaching, as an assistant coach and now as the head coach. One of the highlights for me is the comradery amongst the girls and how supportive they are of each other. We had a lot of good things happen on the mat. Conference champs again, regional champs again and we qualified more girls to state than we ever have."
A lot to be proud of.
Three state qualifiers for the first time in school history. It's such a significant milestone for the program and a chance to wrestle on the sport's biggest stage.
Sophomore Alexis Burback is one of them.
"I would say my favorite accomplishment was definitely going to state and winning matches. There are plenty of girls and I feel like you had to fight to get there. I didn't think I was going to make it very far at state, but with two wins it really was a boost of my confidence and realizing that I'm capable of more than I thought I was."
Alexis finished 2-2 at state.
Ruby Neitzel also qualified for state and was also a sectional champion. Destiny Loss was the other state qualifier for the Orioles.
Alexis said keeping yourself grounded and focused is important at the state meet, with such an electric atmosphere. She received a lot of support from her parents, coaches and teammates.
Sophomore Kendra Pekrul told WTKM what she likes about wrestling.
"My favorite part of wrestling is the togetherness, with the girls in the room and the coaches in the room. It's such a positive environment. I also like that you practice for it and then you finally get to a tournament and you step out on the mat, and there is no one else out here. I control the pace and I control what I can do. It's such a cool part of it."
Coach Rife was honored as the North Shore Conference Girls Wrestling Coach of the Year. The award is well-deserved and it started with a nomination by Hartford's biggest rival.
"I was very shocked when I was nominated," Rife admitted. "We have an end of the year meeting with all of the coaches in the conference. Actually the Slinger coach, one of our biggest rivals, is who nominated me. I was speechless and really appreciative. It all comes down to the success of our program and what the girls have done this year. It's all due to their hard work."
Such a classy move by Slinger High School girls wrestling coach Carlo Davila to submit the nomination. It says a lot about the Hartford - Slinger rivalry and how much they respect each other.
The popularity of girls wrestling continues to grow rapidly. Coach Rife said that three seasons ago at Hartford Union High School, they had five to seven girls finish the season. They had 12 last year and this season, 16 girls finished the season. There are twice as many girls now at tournaments and the state meet is more of a competitive environment.
The photo (L-R) features Kendra Pekrul, coach Erin Rife and Alexis Burback.
