BLOOMINGTON — Kaneland’s Angelina Gochis left nothing to chance in her bid to repeat as a state champion.
The sophomore decided she wasn’t going to wait around and let the fight come to her, either.
“I didn’t really wrestle my match during my semifinal and I really wanted to get into my attack quickly,” Gochis said after the final. “I had to go out there and show what I could do.”
That she did.
Gochis won 20-4 by technical fall over Crystal Lake South’s Annalee Aarseth in the 110-pound championship match of the girls wrestling state meet Saturday at Grossinger Motors Arena.
After surviving Glenbard West freshman Khloe Perez 7-6 in the semifinal round, Gochies posted her first takedown a mere four seconds into the final match against Aarseth.
From there, Gochis (36-0) dominated to improve her record to 83-5 in two years.
“I was a little nervous, but I knew if I worked hard that I could get the results,” she said.
Gochis joined former Kaneland heavyweight Mike Jorgensen as the only two-time state champion in school history.
In the only the second year of team trophies for girls wrestling, Kaneland brought home hardware with third place. Brooklyn Sheaffer, a senior, finished fourth at 125.
“Angelina is genuinely one of the best in the country,” Sheaffer said. “She is my best friend, and she helped make me. She doesn’t like to do interviews or talk about herself.
“She’s not about showboating. She’s super humble, but she’s a lot of fun.”
Gochis won three of her state matches by technical fall. Her blend of speed, agility, power and technique overpowered the opposition.
“I messed around too much earlier (Saturday) and I was not going to let that happen again,” she said. “I have a great training partner in Brooklyn, and my dad also helped me a lot.
“They are a huge part of my success, and why it worked so well.”
Fourth time more of a charm
Oswego senior Kiyah Chavez, an Iowa softball recruit, made a remarkable turnaround.
Her unlikely quest for a state championship came up just short, however, in a 6-0 loss to Hinsdale South’s Callie Carr at 155.
Chavez lost four times this season against the undefeated Carr, including a one-sided technical fall at the sectional.
“It was way better than the last two times,” said Chavez, who finished with a 41-10 record in her first full year of wrestling.
Chavez, a standout catcher and infielder, hit .489 with 48 RBIs last spring in leading the Panthers to third place in Class 4A, the first team trophy in the softball program’s history.
“I just started wrestling about a year and a half ago,” she said. “I was doing basketball to stay in shape and get ready for softball. I wasn’t playing that much. I wasn’t really get my cardio workout.
“The wrestling coach started talking to me about coming out for wrestling.”
History in the making
Jasmine Rene became Streamwood’s first girls wrestling state medalist by taking fourth at 190.
A junior transfer from Wheeling, Rene (25-4) finished fourth and third, respectively, in her first two years.
“The transition was really difficult at times, so this was a great way to finish,” she said.
Familiar ring to it
West Aurora’s Kameyah Young followed familiar advice as Tim, her older brother, shouted instructions during the third-place match. She won 6-1 over Anna-Jonesboro’s Zoee Sadler.
Tim captured the 195-pound state championship in 2015 at East Aurora.
Kameyah, a junior, also started her career at East Aurora. She finished fourth at 100 pounds as a freshman. She finished second again last season at 100 in her first year with the Blackhawks.
“He just told me to avoid getting tied up and use my fakes when I go in for my shots,” Kameyah said of her brother. “He’s the reason I started wrestling. I saw him up at the podium.
“I told myself that was something I wanted to do.”
Patrick Z. McGavin is a freelance reporter for The Beacon-News.
