Josie Larson and Haven Sylves, now seniors, were both members of Lakes’ first girls wrestling state win last year. After this huge accomplishment, coming into this season, they want to prove themselves again by teaching the younger group and qualifying for state again. This season, Larson finished undefeated with a stunning record of 20-0 while Sylves finished with a phenomenal record of 15-6. The wrestling team had five girls that qualified for sectionals, two of them being seniors, Larson and Sylves, and underclassmen Elise Kaylor (20-12), Osmari Medina (23-14), and Tina Hasner (29-13).
The girl’s were very connected on and off the mats this season and bonded well together. “I love the fact there’s a big girl’s team, and truly love spending [my time] getting to know them,” Larson said. Larson is a strong and passionate leader for the girl’s team and gave constant advice to her teammates throughout her season. One piece of advice Larson received from her coach was, “Wrestling builds you, it’s not just about the sport, it’s about what you do after the sport, and how it helps you outside of the sport, it gives you skills like hard work and dedication, and being able to continue the grind outside of the sport,” said Larson.
During the season, Sylves puts everything she has into wrestling and spends a majority of her winter focusing on wrestling. She set big goals in the beginning of the season and expects to go big this year especially because they won state last year. Her dedication and hardwork in practice helps to shape her as a leader because she is a role model for her younger teammates who look up to her every move. Sylves emphasized that “Practice is going to be hard, just stick with it.”
The wrestling team fought hard at the New Trier sectional, but only Larson qualified for state (finished 1st place in the sectional). Larson will face some of the best competitors in the state in Bloomington on March 1st, her team and the school will cheer her on and wish her the best of luck. As for the underclassmen, they will look to improve next year, filling into the leadership roles held by Larson and Sylves.
