MENTOR—Lutheran West’s Catie Kerr and Paris Willis are headed back to the state wrestling tournament, but this time, they’re headed to Columbus as regional champions.
Kerr won the 120-pound weight class while Willis finished atop the podium in the 170-pound weight class at the girls’ regional wrestling tournament at Mentor on Saturday.
“It feels amazing to win a regional title, especially for the first-ever OHSAA regional tournament,” Kerr said. “All I could think about at the beginning of the tournament was that I just want to qualify and become a four-time state qualifier, even though this tournament is different than the other three. But as the tournament went on, all I could think about what how badly I wanted to be first. I think everyone wants to be first, but the fact that I kept getting closer and closer to actually achieving it, the move motivated I got to win it.”
Kerr, who improved to 45-4 on the year, recorded three pins in advancing to the championship match, where she defeated Rittman’s Merrick Gibson, 5-2.
“I’m really proud of the way I performed at the regional tournament,” Kerr said. “I gave it my all and even though my body was in pain and there were times just before the tournament when I wasn’t sure if I could do it, I still went out there willing to leave it all on the mat. I think everyone always has some things they know they could’ve done better with, but all I can do now is continue to work on and perfect those things so that I’m ready for what’s going to come at states.”
Last winter, Kerr placed fourth in the state tournament.
She’s hoping to climb the podium even higher in Columbus this weekend, but she knows it’s going to be a battle, both physically and mentally.
This year, the girls’ tournament will be held at the Schottenstein Center in conjunction with the boys’ state wrestling tournament.
That means a much bigger venue and thousands more spectators, but Kerr has a plan to manage her nerves.
“For me, I think nerves are a good thing,” she said. “I get nervous before every match, even if I’ve beaten that person before because you never truly know how much a person can grow since the last time you saw them. So, in a way, I use my nerves as a way to remain focused and go out there and give it my all. I usually tune out everything else around me, which allows me to remain aggressive on the mat no matter how big the stage is.”
Willis, who placed eighth in the state tournament last winter, pinned her first three regional opponents and then topped Mentor’s Maddie Menchaca in the championship bout, 7-4, to improve to 43-5 on the year.
Two other Chagrin Valley Conference wrestlers also punched their tickets to the state tournament.
Harvey’s Melany Herrera returns to the state tournament after finishing as the runner-up at 100 pounds.
Herrera, who placed seventh at state last winter, used two pins and a decision to get to the championship bout, but there, she ran into defending state champion and two-time state runner-up Riley Banyas of Elyria. Banyas recorded a 42-second pin to win the regional title.
Lutheran West’s Nat Rodriguez won her first three matches to reach the 140-pound championship bout, but she dropped that match to Cleveland Central Catholic’s Ajiahna Triplett and settled for second place.
Future CVC member Conneaut had one wrestler earn a state berth as Mollie Rozalski placed fourth at 120 pounds and Cardinal’s Rylie Leichtman placed sixth at 140.
The state tournament begins on Friday at 1:00 p.m.
