South Elgin captures title at Fenton’s new Girls Weiss Invite

By Curt Herron – for the IWCOA

BENSENVILLE – South Elgin entered four individuals to the 2024 Conant Regional and they had a combined 16 wins going into the competition with Azucena Rodriguez having half of those victories and she added one more win to that total before running into Gabby Gomez in the quarterfinals and the team finished with eight points and placed 36th in the 41-team regional.  

The Storm’s fortunes changed dramatically last season due to the arrival of freshman Allison Garbacz as the team with 10 entrants scored 80 points and moved up to eighth place in the 27-team Willowbrook Regional with the freshman winning a regional title at 145 over an eventual three-time IHSA medal winner and two-time state runner-up, Schaumburg senior Madeline Zerafa-Lazarevic in a clash of unbeatens, while junior Rodriguez placed second.

Garbacz beat Zerafa-Lazarevic again in the Schaumburg Sectional title match to take a 30-0 record to the IHSA Finals while Rodriguez fell one win shy of a state trip and finished 31-8. The Storm freshman saw her hopes of being an unbeaten champion halted in a 4-1 semifinal loss to the eventual title winner, Cumberland junior Natalie Beaumont, and split her last two matches to finish fourth with a 33-2 record as she became the first state medalist in her program’s history.

South Elgin continued to make history in a different but equally significant fashion on last week as it followed up on a fifth-place showing at the 33-team Rockford East E-Rab Girls Invitational to open its season by capturing an invitational title in decisive fashion when it took top honors at Fenton’s inaugural Girls Weiss Invite, capturing the championship of the 14-team competition with 167 points, which was 29.5 points ahead of runner-up Palatine. Storm coach Robert Tornabene is obviously very excited about what his program has accomplished so quickly.

“There was one girl we had four years ago,” Tornabene said. “She’s a senior now for our team, our 115-pounder, Azucena Rodriguez, and she kind of was kind of the frontier of our program. And she just stuck around, and for us, we just stuck with her and made sure that she felt like she was part of the team. And she appreciated that and has grown tremendously and has been a big boon in recruiting girls and helping us convince them to say, ‘hey, the sport’s for everyone.’

“One thing we’ve been preaching since day one, especially since we have a lot of new girls, a lot of freshmen, a lot of girls who’ve never even done any sport ever. And we’ve just told them, ‘even if you don’t know anything, never stop wrestling because there’s always a chance you can win. Anyone’s beatable. And everyone that went out there today, if they lost their first round, they just came back eventually and just never stopped wrestling. 

“Yeah, I’m very proud of them. This is the first time I think the girls team has won any team trophy. We placed top five in the Rockford East tournament last week and that was a good sign. I am so excited. This is the first time we’ve had nearly a whole lineup, as well. We’re only missing heavyweight, I think, right now. So for us, I couldn’t be more proud of a young group and a team like this.”

Garbacz, ranked just outside of the top 30 at 155 by Sports Illustrated in its national poll, captured her second tournament title of the season but she not only was her team’s lone title winner, she was also the only member of the Storm that was able to reach the title mats.

However, South Elgin had five third-place finishers, two others who claimed fourth place and two more who took fifth and it received points from all but one of the 12 individuals who participated in the tournament and nine of those scored 10 or more points. The Storm also recorded the most falls with 24, which was seven more than Palatine had. And they also collected the most total match points with 151, which was seven more than Metea Valley.

Turning in third-place finishes for the Storm were Leila Ruiz (105), Anni Romo (110), Azucena Rodriguez (115), Abril Caamano (135) and Jaqueline Martinez (140). Finishing in fourth place were Katherine Pallares (100) and Ivary Ortiz (190) while Julissa Arzeta (125) and Melissa Nino (170) both took fifth while Melanie Ruiz (120) and Alexa Olvera (130) also helped the cause.

Runner-up Palatine was led by champions Evelyn Arreola (135) and Irma Villa (190) while Aiva Wikar (170) and Aniaah Garcia (235) both claimed second place. Taking fourth place for coach Munkhtulga Zuunbayan’s Pirates was Brisa Perez (130) while Sherlyn Garcia (115) and Meghan Barry (140) both finished in fifth place.

Metea Valley used championships from Janiya Moore (115) and Alketa Picari (140) as well as second-place showings from Sonya Amin (100) and Barbara Vargas (105) to help it claim third place with 126 points. Mustangs coach Kevin Garbis’ Mustangs also got a third from Jordan Slager (145), a fifth from Hala Elhelou (130) and sixth-place finishes from Layla Snarey (125) and Evelyn Gonzalez (155).

The host school, who tied Waubonsie Valley for fourth place with 121 points, had the most title winners with four. Winning championships for coach Brian Hastings’ Bison were Maria Quintero (100), Kai Zamora (110), Giselle Castillo (125) and Ariana Solideo (235).

Hastings, who is in his 19th season as Fenton’s head coach after holding the same position at De La Salle Institute from 2001-2006, has been a long-time advocate for girls wrestling and earlier implemented a girls division into the boys invitational, which is also called the Weiss Invite, which had its 45th tournament on the following day. 

Due to the increasing number of girls in the sport, it was no longer practical to have a girls division along with the boys competition, thus the need for an entirely separate girls tournament one day earlier was introduced this season.

“We were one of the first ones, right before COVID, so maybe about six years ago, we had girls, so that was really a proud moment for us,” Hastings said of adding a girls division to the boys tournament. “Our girls program has done really well, and they’ve worked exceptionally hard, and we’ve had a lot of success. Last year it was one of the toughest decisions I’ve ever had to make, not to include the girls just because of the amount, it would not have been feasible in one day. So I was happy that we were able to do it tonight, and I think there were a lot of good matches and there was tough competition.

“There were a lot of successful girls. Allison from South Elgin was a top four-placer and Saya, the state champ from Rockford East. And our heavyweight won a match downstate last year. And a bunch of Fargo qualifiers, so it was awesome. And then half of our team are a bunch of newbies, so just get in the experience and try and do their best. It’s awesome and great for them. I’m super happy and proud of them. 

“Our 100-pounder, Maria, had a great tournament, had three wins, three pins, and I think maybe she had two wins last year. She did a lot of offseason and she’s been more dedicated and she’s just a different wrestler, so that’s great. And then we have two incredible seniors in Kai and Giselle. And Ariana, our heavyweight, is a seasoned veteran as a junior she’s been downstate. And then you also know that everyone can wrestle better.”

Rockford East sophomore Saya Hongmounkhoune added to a title win at her own E-Rab Girls Invite to remain unbeaten during her high school career after capturing the championship at 105. Last season at the IHSA Finals, she defeated Montini Catholic’s Kat Bell in the 100 title match to finish with a 28-0 record and become one of five freshmen who won state titles and just the second, with Gomez the other, to be an unbeaten state champion as a freshman.

The additional four champions from the inaugural Girls Weiss Invite were Waubonsie Valley’s Isabella Johnson (120), Lemont’s Molly O’Connor (130), Deerfield’s Madison Mauer (145) and Rolling Meadows’ Leilani Brindis (170). 

Saint Viator had two second-place finishers, Evalyn Idzik (115) and Fiona Monaco (125), Downers Grove North also had two individuals who took second place, Jahdi’yah Hibbler (130) and Kaitlyn Kapral (140) and Waubonsie Valley had two who finished in second place, Sophia Contreras (135) and Nysa Bilal (145).

The additional four second-place finishers were Rolling Meadows’ Yerelin Nava Perez (110), Sarah E. Goode STEM Academy’s Elitzua Sandoval-Mederos (120), Deerfield’s Natalie Rumpel (155) and Fenwick’s Valerie Franco (190).

There were 11 pins and two wins by technical fall in championship matches. The only title match featuring a decision was at 170 where Brindis defeated Wikar by a 7-4 score.

Arreola led all champions with 29.5 team points while Castillo and O’Connor tied for second place with 28 team points. There was a six-way tie among the title winners for fourth place with 26 team points between Brindis, Garbacz, Johnson, Moore, Quintero and Villa while Picari collected 25 team points to round out the top-10 in that category.

Also finishing in third place were Prospect’s Gretchen Heckard (100), Deerfield’s Bella Esparza (120), Waubonsie Valley’s Ava Kus (125), Sarah E. Goode STEM Academy’s Kendra Chatman (130), Rolling Meadows’ Janet Brindis (155), Lemont’s Gabriela Baltierres (170), Waubonsie Valley’s Catherine Schultz (190) and Fewick’s Amirah Favela (235).

Downers Grove North had four fourth-place finishers, Jaszmyn Dotson (110), Valentina Gonzalez (135), Alena Mossman (145) and Samantha Stillo (155)

Additional fourth-place finishers were Rolling Meadows’ Guadalupe Nava Perez (105), Dasia Dantzler (115) and Allison Alcantara Rodriguez (235), Deerfield’s Dany Esparza (125), Madeleine Mauer (140) and Esther Kim (170) and Saint Viator’s Samantha Dyckman (120).

South Elgin’s Abril Caamano was the only individual in the invite to record four falls and she also had the largest seed-to-place difference with nine positions after being seeded 12th and taking third at 135. Three individuals captured three wins by technical fall, Hongmoungkhoune, Moore and Picari. And Moore also led all competitors with 50 total match points.

The competition is named after Steve Weiss, a 2014 Illinois Wrestling Coaches and Officials Association Lifetime Service Recipient. He was head coach of the Bison for 22 seasons and had a 337-91-12 record. His 1972-1973 team won the final one-class IHSA title, when they outscored Sterling 29.5-25 for first, and he also had a fourth-place team in Class AA in 1979. 

Weiss, who passed away in 2016, had two state champions, 2024 National Wrestling Hall of Fame – Illinois Chapter Lifetime Service to Wrestling Award recipient Ed Giese, an AA champion in 1979 and 1980 who took fifth in 1981 after seeing a then-record 132 consecutive winning streak snapped, and 2012 IWCOA Hall of Fame inductee Ben Morris, the program’s only four-time medalist, who won an AA title in 1987 after placing second once and third twice.

Here are the champions and their weight classes at Fenton’s Girls Weiss Invite

100 – Maria Quintero, Fenton

Maria Quintero set the tone for host Fenton in the inaugural Girls Steve Weiss Invite by becoming the first of her team’s four champions when the sophomore who only had five victories last season won by fall in 3:23 over Metea Valley freshman Sonya Amin for the 100 championship. Right after she started the finals on a great note for coach Brian Hastings’ Bison, Kai Zamora added a championship at 110 and a short time later, Giselle Castillo took first place at 125 and Ariana Solideo made it 4-for-4 on the title mats by claiming top honors at 235.

Quintero opened with a pair of first-period falls, which included a pin in 0:44 over Prospect’s Gretchen Heckard in the semifinals. Her 26 team points tied her with five others for fourth place while Castillo tied for second with 28 points and the combination of the four titles and three other top-six showings helped the hosts to score 121 points and tie Waubonsie Valley for fourth place in the 14-team competition, which was just five points behind third place finisher Metea Valley. 

Amin, one of four finalists for coach Kevin Garbis’ third-place Mustangs while competing in her initial high school tournament, won her other match in the semifinals when she got a pin in 1:16 over South Elgin senior Katherine Pallares. In the third-place match, Heckard recorded a fall in 1:45 over Pallares. And for fifth place, Waubonsie Valley sophomore Cynthia Carrillo won by fall in 5:20 over Deerfield’s Mia Moyano.

105 – Saya Hongmoungkhoune, Rockford East

Saya Hongmoungkhoune made history last season by becoming one of five freshmen who have an IHSA championship, joining Roxana’s Chloe Skiles, who also pulled off that feat last year, as well as Kaneland’s Angelina Gochis in 2024 and Hononegah’s Angelina Cassioppi and Glenbard North’s Gabby Gomez in the initial  IHSA Finals in 2022. And she joins Gomez as the only two freshmen who were unbeaten after going 28-0 last season. Now Rockford East’s first medalist hopes to follow the legacy that was established by previous title winners from NIC-10 schools, the lone four-time champion, Angelina Cassioppi, a three-time title winner, Freeport’s Cadence Diduch, a two-time champ, Boylan Catholic’s Netavia Wickson and a first-place finisher in the initial IHSA Finals, Hononegah’s Rose Cassioppi,who’s the sister of Angelina. 

The sophomore, who’s coached by her sister, Madelynn, and won the 100 championship at last year’s IHSA Finals over Montini Catholic’s Kat Bell, is off to another great start after opening with a title at her own E-Rabs Invite last week with first-place finishes on both Friday and Saturday. She became one of the initial title winners at Fenton’s Girls Weiss Invite after claiming a victory by technical fall in 2:11 over Metea Valley freshman Barbara Vargas in the 105 finals and then one day later, she captured a title at Sterling’s Carson DeJarnatt Invite. The lone finalist and one of two top-five finishers for the four-entrant E-Rabs, she also got her semifinal win by technical fall in 1:46 over South Elgin junior Leila Ruiz in her other match. She tied Metea Valley’s Janiah Moore and Alketa Picari as the only individuals with two wins by technical fall. 

“I’ve been working very hard in the offseason,” Hongmoungkhoune said. “I have been constantly at practice in the room and I competed at nationals and on the dual team and just muscling up and making sure I’m eating the right stuff because I knew I was going to be going into a tougher weight class this year. (About competing nationally) Yeah, it’s definitely a big change going from high school season to the national level. Lots of tough girls, the best girls from every state, so I’m getting a lot of competition there and it’s just preparing me to work on what I need to during the season so that I can come back and win another state title. (On Rockford’s East program) It’s definitely very supportive. The boys are always so supportive. They’re cheering me on. The girls cheer the boys on. The coaches, all the coaches care. And it’s just a really great environment to be in. We’re a good, close-knit team. Growing up, I always worked with the boys, so I always had the feeling to prove myself. I’ve been working to be the best, and even if a lot of people still don’t know who I am, I still want to get my name out there so that people on the national level know who I am.”

Vargas, who joined three others who advanced to the title mat for coach Kevin Garbis’ third-place Mustangs, was also competing in her first high school tournament and won her only other match with a fall in 1:57 over Rolling Meadows senior Guadalupe Nava Perez in the semifinals. Ruiz, who was one of the five third-place finishers for the champion Storm, won by fall in 2:21 over Nava Perez to claim third place while Fenton sophomore Kaylee Roque finished in fifth place after getting a pin in 2:50 over Prospect’s Bri Favia.

110 – Kai Zamora, Fenton

Kai Zamora and Giselle Castillo are the only two seniors who competed for Fenton at their school’s initial Girls Weiss Invite, so it was a special night for the pair since they were two of their team’s four champions, which was a tournament-high. Their efforts, along with the other title winners, sophomore Maria Quintero and junior Ariana Solideo, as well as three others in the top-six at their weights, helped coach Brian Hastings’ Bison tie Waubonsie Valley for fourth in the 14-team event with 121 points, which was just five points behind third-place Metea Valley. 

Zamora became the Bison’s second title winner when she recorded a fall in 1:19 over Rolling Meadows sophomore Yerelin Nava Perez in the 110 championship. She earned her spot on the title mat with another pin, this one in 3:01 over South Elgin junior Anni Romo as Fenton captured wins in four of its five semifinal matches and carried that momentum to the finals to win four titles, which was equal to both Metea Valley and Palatine, who each had two champions.

Nava Perez, who was one of two finalists and seven individuals who placed in the top five at their weights for coach Eric Kohlberg’s Mustangs, recorded a pin in her only other match, which came in 5:45 over Downers Grove North sophomore Jaszmyn Dotson in the semifinals.  Romo went on to claim third place when she won by fall in 1:38 over Dotson.

115 – Janiya Moore, Metea Valley

Janiya Moore experienced what most would accept as a very good season in 2024-2025 by posting a 43-6 record. But the Metea Valley sophomore hoped to reach the IHSA Finals, and unfortunately, she fell one victory shy of achieving that goal after losing a 4-2 decision in the 120 consolation semifinals at the rugged Schaumburg Sectional, the same fate that her classmate, Alketa Picari, suffered at the same event. The pair hope to not only take the next step and get to state this season, but also to place there and become the first medal winners for their school. 

The Mustangs juniors both won titles in their first tournament of the season at Fenton’s Girls Weiss Invite with Moore taking first place at 115 by getting a victory by technical fall in 3:46 over Saint Viator sophomore Evalyn Idzik while Picari won the championship at 140. They were two of the four finalists for coach Kevin Garbis’ team, and four others placed in the top six to help them finish third with 126 points. Moore also got a win by technical fall in 2:51 in her opener before winning a 12-3 major decision in the semifinals over Palatine junior Sherlyn Garcia. Moore led all competitors with 50 total match points while Picarai was second with 41 and they joined Saya Hongmoungkhoune (105) as the only competitors with two wins by technical fall. And her 26 team points tied her with five other champions for fourth place in that category. 

“For me personally, I like how I was at least trying to set up my shots and trying to work myself to be better during the matches.” Moore said. “I’m really excited that I’m able to compete. And I’m really excited to say, even though this is the first tournament for me, I’m really excited to be a champ. I’m really glad that we have girls that have wrestled before. So they know pretty much what they’re doing. I’m super glad that we have a lot of girls this year. There’s more girls coming, other than just having five or whatever.”

Idzik joined Fiona Monaco (125) as a second-place finisher and was one of three top-four finishers for the Lions, who are coached by Mark Miedona and Mike Schneider and they claimed tenth place in the invite despite having only four competitors. The sophomore opened with a major decision and then won by fall in 3:25 over Rolling Meadows freshman Dasia Dantzler in the semifinals. South Elgin senior Azucena Rodriguez, who went 31-8 last season and fell one win shy advancing to state from the Schaumburg Sectional, became one of her champion team’s five third-place finishers when she got a pin in 1:05 over Dantzler. And in the fifth-place match, Garcia won by fall in 2:40 over Fenton sophomore Matylda Piskorz.

120 – Isabella Johnson, Waubonsie Valley

Isabella Johnson really wasn’t really expecting very much when she competed in her initial high school tournament at Fenton’s Girls Weiss Invite. But after winning the title at 120 to become Waubonsie Valley’s only champion and joining two teammates on the title mat and four others who placed in the top-six in the competition to help their team to a tie for fourth place with the host Bison, the junior, who also plays soccer and flag football for the Warriors, is beginning to realize that her decision to start competing in this new sport may indeed be a very wise one, especially after tying five other champions for the fourth-highest total of team points with 26..

Johnson captured the title at 120 by recording a fall in 3:19 over Sarah E. Goode STEM Academy junior Elitzua Sandoval-Mederos. In her other match, she won with another pin, this time in 1:36 over Deerfield’s Bella Esparza in the semifinals. With Sophia Contreras (135) and Nysa Bilal (145) joining her on the title mats and taking second place, coach Brad Caldwell’s Warriors scored 121 points to tie host Fenton for fourth place in the 14-team competition, which was five points behind another school from their district, Metea Valley, which took third place.

“We’ve been working really, really hard and all of our girls have been putting in so much effort recently,” Johnson said. “I think all of our girls really just did their best, and we came out with the best we could have tonight. (On the competition at the Invite) It makes it great because especially with girls wrestling, it’s very hard to get a match that’s going to be equal or you’re either getting dominated or it’s too easy. There is so much equality here today and it’s making everything so entertaining, I truly love it. (What got her into wrestling) My dad and my boyfriend, they just really like to see me with individual stuff. I’m really proud of myself, but I’m also really proud of the other girls that I wrestled today. I mean, I was really nervous, even if I didn’t look like it. I was really nervous going into the round. I think all of them, they honestly could have whooped me. I mean, we were both really smart with it. The ending was the ending, but they were both really, really good. I love it. It’s really fun.”

Sandoval-Mederos was the lone finalist and one of six top-six finishers for coach Jared Presley’s Lady Knights, who claimed ninth place. She recorded falls in her other two matches, opening with a quick pin before recording a fall in 4:53 over Fenton’s Merita Drabo in the semifinals. Esparza claimed third place by getting a fall in 3:57 over Saint Viator sophomore Samantha Dyckman. And for fifth, Prospect’s Alexis Thoma won by medical forfeit over Drabo.

125 – Giselle Castillo, Fenton

Giselle Castillo has had the great opportunity of seeing girls wrestling grow from just having a few individuals who were trying out the new sport to seeing talented newcomers participating and bigger teams and new tournaments becoming more of a constant. That certainly applies to Fenton, where the senior who was injured last season, was excited to be competing again in the initial Girls Weiss Invite that was separate from the boys tournament that held its 45th edition the next day, but she also got to be a champion in the event, as did three of her teammates, to give the host Bison a tourney-high four title winners which helped them to tie for fourth place.

She joined classmate Kai Zamora (110), junior Ariana Solideo (235) and sophomore Maria Quintero (100) on top of the awards stand after claiming top honors at 125 by recording a fall in 4:35 over Saint Viator freshman Fiona Monaco. With three others placing in the top six, coach Brian Hastings’ Bison scored 121 points, which tied them with Waubonsie Valley for fourth and were just five points behind third-place Metea Valley in their initial Weiss Invite. She finished with 28 team points, which tied for second place, after opening with a pin and then earned a spot as one of her team’s four finalists by getting a pin in 1:12 over Deerfield’s Dany Esparza.

“I think I was so surprised, especially because we have so many first years and so many new wrestlers that have been coming, training hard,” Castillo said. “But it shows that discipline is what breeds a good athlete, a good wrestler. So honestly, as much as I say I am surprised, I’m honestly not surprised because I’ve seen the work they’ve been putting in and I know that they deserve that. It was really a great tournament. I feel like always hard work is going to beat talent. And that’s what I feel like we’ve been seeing in our younger wrestlers. And that’s why I love wrestling as a sport, because even though there are some girls who have been in wrestling for years and years, there’s also us new girls who are coming in. I started my freshman year, and now it’s my senior year. And then last year I was completely out because I was injured and look, I just got a championship. I think the biggest thing I like about the team is that we all push each other to drive towards discipline. The team helps each other because it’s very hard to do those things alone. We need that family. We need that connection. We need the teamwork in order to push each other together. So I’m just in love with the team aspect that we have. We all want something so much greater for each other. And it’s shown, you know, we’re champions.”

Monaco kicked off her high school career in a good fashion by being one of three freshmen to advance to the title mats. She joined sophomore Evalyn Idzik (115) as finalists for the Lions, who are coached by Mike Schneider and Mark Miedona, who also got a fourth from sophomore Samantha Dyckman (120) to give them three high-placers among four entrants. Monaco won by technical fall in her opener and then got a pin in 0:49 over South Elgin freshman Julissa Arzeta in the semifinals. Waubonsie Valley junior Ava Kus claimed  third place with a fall in 0:32 over Esparza and Arzeta placed fifth by medical forfeit over Metea Valley freshman Layla Snarey.

130 – Molly O’Connor, Lemont

Molly O’Connor was drawn to wrestling after watching her brothers compete in the sport at Lemont. The senior has gone from being just an interested spectator to someone who’s really good at the sport, as was evidenced by her qualifying for the IHSA Finals last season and winning a match there to finish with a 42-8 record. Now the senior would like to do what her brother Noah accomplished in 2024 when he finished fifth at 150 in the IHSA Class 2A Finals so that she can conclude her high school career by becoming her program’s initial IHSA medalist.

O’Connor claimed top honors at 130 in her first tournament of the season when she recorded a fall in 3:10 over Downers Grove North junior Jahdi’yah Hibbler in the title match. She was the only finalist and one of three top-five finishers for coach Robert Hammerschmidt’s Lemont team. She recorded first-period pins in her initial two matches and then assured her spot in the on the 130 title mat with a fall in 1:05 over Prospect’s Rebecca Howe in the semifinals. She had 28 team points, which tied for second, just 1.5 points behind Palatine’s Evelyn Arreola (135). 

“I was so excited to see new competition,” O’Connor said. “We’re usually not by the Fenton area, so a lot of the teams I didn’t really recognize, so I was excited to see some girls that I don’t normally see. I’m very excited because we’ve always been a new team, and seeing these girls develop and seeing them have success, it really makes me proud of them and our program. It’s been a lot of fun, wrestling with my brothers and in my underclassman years. Now that I’m an upperclassman and helping the newer athletes and also seeing the success with myself and seeing all the work pay off, it’s really rewarding.I’ve always been involved with this sport, with my brothers, Johnny and Noah, being involved when they were younger and me going to the gym.”

Hibbler, who went 31-8 last season and fell a bit shy of advancing to state from the Schaumburg Sectional, was joined by senior Kaitlyn Kapral (140) as one of two finalists and also one of eight top-six placewinners for coach Marcos Rico’s Trojans, who took eighth place. She won her first two matches with pins in the opening period, earning her spot on the title mat with a fall in 1:20 over Metea Valley sophomore Hala Elhelou. In the third-place match, Sarah E. Goode STEM Academy freshman Kendra Chatman was a winner by fall in 0:49 over Palatine sophomore Brisa Perez. And for fifth place, Elhelou claimed the victory with a pin in 1:41 over Howe.

135 – Evelyn Arreola, Palatine

Evelyn Arreola was the first of four individuals from Palatine to compete in title matches at Fenton’s initial Girls Weiss Invite and the first of two from the team to capture championships when the sophomore was a winner by fall in 0:49 over Waubonsie Valley sophomore Sophia Contreras in the 135 championship match to cap off a day where she scored a tournament-high 29.5 team points. Classmate Irma Villa (190) also joined her as a title winner while senior Aiva Wikar (170) and sophomore Aniaah Garcia (235) both settled for second-place finishes.

The two champions and four finalists were joined by three other individuals who had top-five finishers to help coach Munkhtulga Zuunbayan’s Pirates to claim second place in the 14-team competition with 137.5 points. Arreola was one of the few champions who had to wrestle four matches and she won all of them decisively. She opened with two first-minute pins before capturing a win by technical fall over South Elgin junior Abril Caamano in the semifinals.

Contreras, one of three finalists for coach Brad Caldwell’s fourth-place Warriors, also had four matches, opening with a pin and then capturing an 8-3 decision before earning her spot in the 135 finals with a fall in 1:33 over Sarah E. Goode STEM Academy sophomore Lauryn Lee in the semifinals. Caamano, who was the lone individual to record four falls and also had the largest seed-place difference with nine positions, became one of five third-place finishers for the champion Storm when she got a pin in 3:16 over Downers Grove North junior Valentina Gonzalez. In the fifth-place match, Lemont senior Emma Lappay won by fall in 0:30 over Lee.

140 – Alketa Picari, Metea Valley

Alketa Picari enjoyed a very successful sophomore season at Metea Valley by going 35-11 and advancing to the Schaumburg Sectional. But in that challenging competition, she suffered the same fate as her classmate, Janiya Moore, as both fell one victory shy of advancing to the IHSA Finals while their teammate Ashley Basmajian was able to advance to state as the result of a fourth-place finish. Now the two juniors are looking to take the next step and to not only qualify for state in 2026 but to also to become the first IHSA medalists for the Mustangs. Picari and Moore joined Saya Hongmoungkhoune (105) as the only individuals who had two wins by technical fall and she took second in total match points with 41 while Moore led with 50 points. She also had 25 team points, which ranked tenth overall while Moore tied for fourth with 26.

Picari, who also won a championship the next day at the Larkin Royal Rumble in Elgin, got a pin in 3:21 over Downers Grove North senior Kaitlyn Kapral in the 140 title match to join Moore (115) as a champion while freshmen Sonya Amin (100) and Barbara Vargas (105) were also finalists at Fenton’s first Girls Weiss Invite, which was their team’s tournament of the season. With the addition of four other top-six finishes, coach Kevin Garbis’ Mustangs were able to claim third place in the event with 126 points. Her other two victories were both wins by technical fall, with the second of those coming in 2:00 over Palatine junior Meghan Barry in the semifinals.

“I’ve been trying to be locked in the whole year round,” Picari said. “I’m always wrestling, it’s my life. (Having more teammates) It helps a lot. We kind of have to teach a lot of things, but it’s just a lot more encouraging. It’s really good now because we have a lot of girls coming in from middle school that are wrestling, and previously we didn’t have that. I really like how intertwined we are and how supportive we are of each other.”

Kapral joined Jahdi’yah Hibbler (130) as second-place finishers to lead the way for coach Marcos Rico’s Trojans. She won her other two matches with opening-period falls, with the second of those coming in just 0:19 over Waubonsie Valley freshman Aleks Buettner in the semifinals. South Elgin junior Jaqueline Martinez became one of the champion Storm’s five third-place finishers when she won by fall in 1:55 over Deerfield’s Madeline Mauer. And for fifth place, Barry got a pin in 2:47 over Buettner.

145 – Madison Mauer, Deerfield

Madison Mauer is only in her first season in the sport at Deerfield and even though she’s still learning about wrestling, she has already become good enough at it to be able to capture a title in the initial tournament that she participated, the Girls Weiss Invite at Fenton, where she won the 145 championship by recording a fall in 3:24 over Waubonsie Valley senior Nysa Bilal.

Mauer was also her team’s top performer and was joined in the finals by Natalie Rumpel (155). Coach Jim Kirby’s Warriors had five other individuals who took sixth or better to finish in sixth place in the 14-team event with 111 points. She only had to compete in one other match, which she won by fall in 1:36 over Downers Grove North junior Alena Mossman in the semifinals.

“I think my team did really great today,” Mauer said. “We all went out and we tried our best. I’m especially proud of everyone who placed and all our new girls this year. We have so many new girls. This is my first season. It feels really good (to win her first title), I wasn’t expecting to go out there and do amazing because there are so many amazing girls wrestlers out there. But coming out tonight and getting awards is really exciting and I’m confident. (What she likes about her program) Definitely the culture. At Deerfield, there’s a strong championship culture.”

Bilal joined junior champion Isabella Johnson (120) and sophomore runner-up Sophia Contreras (135) as one of the three finalists and seven who placed in the top six for coach Brad Caldwell’s Warriors, who took third place with 126 points. After opening with a quick pin, Bilal advanced to the 145 title match with a fall in 2:41 in the semifinals over Metea Valley freshman Jordan Slager, who captured third place with a pin in 1:27 over Downers Grove North junior Alena Mossman. Taking fifth place was Sarah E. Goode STEM Academy junior Allison Robledo. 

155 – Allison Garbacz, South Elgin

Allison Garbacz made history last season as a freshman when she went 33-2 and finished in fourth place in the IHSA Finals at 145 to become the first medalist for South Elgin. After building on that success in the offseason at the national level, where she competed at Fargo and claimed third place there, she’s not only looking to make a return trip to state finals but also seeks to become an IHSA champion in 2026. She’s off to a great start after capturing a title at Rockford East to open her sophomore season and then not only was a champion at Fenton’s initial Girls Weiss Invite but also helped the Storm to capture top honors in the 14-team event.

Garbacz, who was ranked just outside of the top 30 in last week’s Sports Illustrated national rankings at 155, recorded a fall in 3:49 over Deerfield senior Natalie Rumpel to win the title at 155. Although she was her team’s lone champion and finalist, coach Robert Tornabene’s Storm had five third-place finishers and four others who took fifth or better to give them 167 points, which was 29.5 more than runner-up Palatine. She opened her title run with two quick falls, with the second in 1:48 over Downers Grove North sophomore Samantha Stillo in the semifinals. She finished tied with five other champions for fourth place in the most team points with 26.

“It’s a really cool feeling to be the first to do something like that, to make history that way,” Garbacz said of being her school’s first state medalist. “I was going as much as I could all summer. I was wrestling every day all summer. I went to Fargo and placed at Fargo, I took third. So I just really want to get on top of that podium this year. A lot of these girls are brand new, but we’ve just been really putting in the work. We’ve just been really building it up, and we’ve got a lot of medalists, even though these are new girls. Everybody’s really there to work, everybody’s there to put that work in and practice and everybody cheers each other on so that we can get those results and matches.”

Rumpel, who fell a bit short of a trip to state at the New Trier Sectional last season, joined champion Madison Mauer (145) as one of two finalists for coach Jim Kirby’s Warriors, who finished in sixth place. She opened with a quick pin and then won an 8-0 major decision in the semifinals over Rolling Meadows senior Janet Brindis, who also fell a bit short of qualifying for a state appearance at last season’s Schaumburg Sectional. Brindis captured third place after claiming an 8-3 decision over Stillo. In the fifth-place match, Rockford East junior Aubreyanna Ivey was a winner by fall in 1:18 over Metea Valley sophomore Evelyn Gonzalez.  

170 – Leilani Brindis, Rolling Meadows

Leilani Brindis won 33 matches and qualified for the Schaumburg Sectional last season, but like so many others, she saw her hopes of advancing to state get dashed there. The Rolling Meadows senior hopes that she can take the next step this season and advance to the IHSA Finals and possibly even become the first medal winner for her program and she’s definitely off to a good start after becoming her team’s lone champion at Fenton’s Weiss Girls Invite when she won a 7-4 decision over Palatine senior Aiva Wikar in the 170 championship match. 

Brindis was the lone champion as well as one of two finalists in addition to five other top-five finishers for coach Eric Kohlberg’s Mustangs, who claimed seventh place in the 14-team event with 107.5 points. She opened with a first-period fall and then earned her spot in the 170 championship match by getting a pin in 5:05 over Deerfield’s Esther Kim in the semifinals. She had 26 team points, which tied her with five other champions for fourth place in that regard.

“I feel proud of myself, especially because the first time I came to this tournament, which was my sophomore year, I didn’t place at all,” Brindis said. “And now that it’s my senior year and we came back as a school, I felt really proud of myself to get first because I went from none at this tournament to placing first. I was really excited because there’s some really strong girls here. My goal is to make it a state, so I want to take it as a practice. I feel like it was really well organized, and I feel like the girls here are really strong, and everybody has a good quality. What I do is I really just go to practice. It’s all conditioning, but especially after all of that, it’s all mental. So honestly, you have to have the right mindset. I go to practice at least six times a week because I want to get better. All of these girls, they just appreciate each other, and you just all see that feeling of happiness here, and I really like that.”

Wikar, who went 29-13 last season and came up a bit short of qualifying from the Schaumburg Sectional, was one of four finalists and two second-place finishers for coach Munkhtulga Zuunbayan’s Pirates, who took second place in the tournament with 137.5 points. She won her first two matches with falls that came during the opening minute, with the last of those being in the semifinals in 0:37 over Lemont junior Gabriela Baltierres, who followed up on that loss with a fall in 1:03 over Kim to take third. In the fifth-place match, South Elgin freshman Melissa Nino received a win by medical forfeit over Sarah E. Goode STEM Academy’s Denise Cervantes.

190 – Irma Villa, Palatine

Irma Villa collected the second title victory to cap a very successful day for Palatine at Fenton’s initial Girls Weiss Invite when the sophomore recorded a fall in 0:44 over Fenwick’s Valerie Franco in the 190 championship match. Villa joined classmate Evelyn Arreola (135) as the title winners for coach Munkhtulga Zuunbayan’s Pirates. Arreola had a tournament-high 29.5 team points while Villa tied five other champions for fourth place in that category with 26 team points.

Villa also was one of four finalists for her Palatine along with senior Aiva Wikar (170) and sophomore Aniaah Garcia (235) and that helped it to capture a second-place showing in the competition with 137.5 points. Villa opened her title run with a quick fall and then followed with another pin, this time in 2:37 over Waubonsie Valley’s Catherine Schultz in the semifinals.

Franco was the lone finalist and one of two top-three finishers for coach Seth Gamino’s Friars, who only entered three individuals into the tournament. Her first two matches were both quick falls, with the second of those in 0:52 over Downers Grove North freshman Hannah Long in the semifinals. For third place, Schultz won by fall in 1:28 over South Elgin sophomore Ivary Ortiz. And for fifth place, Rolling Meadows senior Jonila Ilazi recorded a pin in 1:59 over Long.

235 – Ariana Solideo, Fenton

Ariana Solideo capped a big day for Fenton wrestling when she won the title at 235 to give the hosts a tournament-high four champions at the inaugural Girls Weiss Invite. The junior was joined on top of the awards stand by seniors Kai Zamora (110) and Giselle Castillo (125) and sophomore Maria Quintero (100) and with three others supplying top-six finishes, coach Brian Hastings’ Bison were able to tie Waubonsie Valley for fourth place with 121 points, which was five points behind third-place Metea Valley in an event won by South Elgin with 167 points.

Solideo had the quickest title win for the tournament, needing just 0:22 to wrap up the 235 championship with a fall over Palatine sophomore Aniaah Garcia. She joined Zamora as the only two Bison who competed in just two matches and her semifinal lasted much longer as she needed to go 2:55 before getting a fall over Sarah E. Goode STEM Academy’s Tiy James. 

“I think we did really good today,” Solideo said. “We competed very well. A lot of new stuff to practice and just new experiences are really good for us. We all tried our hardest and we all tried to fight for every match. I think that was pretty good from us because we’ve been training hard these past couple of weeks. I love the conditioning for sure. I think it’s really good and it gives me a good mentality. And I like that I can just be myself and just put all my hard work that I’ve been practicing, put it all on the mat. It was fun to host this tournament and I’m glad we got to have the matches we had.”

Garcia was one of four finalists and also one of the two second-place finishers for coach Munkhtulga Zuunbayan’s Pirates, who finished in second place with 137.5 points.  She won her first two matches with opening-period falls, with the second of those coming in 1:18 in the semifinals over Fenwick’s Amirah Favela, who went on to capture third place with a pin in 3:02 over Rolling Meadows senior Allison Alcantara Rodriguez. And in the fifth-place match, James was a winner by fall in 5:15 over Downers Grove North freshman Jada Bryant.  

Final team standings for Fenton’s Girls Weiss Invite

 1. South Elgin 167, 2. Palatine 137.5, 3. Metea Valley 126, 4. Fenton 121, 4. Waubonsie Valley 121, 6. Deerfield 111, 7. Rolling Meadows 107.5, 8. Downers Grove North 99.5, 9. Sarah E. Goode STEM Academy 74, 10. Saint Viator 61.5, 11. Lemont 60.5, 12. Prospect 43, 13. Fenwick 38, 14. Rockford East 33.

Championship matches for Fenton’s Girls Weiss Invite

100 – Maria Quintero (Fenton) over Sonya Amin (Metea Valley), F 3:23

105 – Saya Hongmoungkhoune (Rockford East) over Barbara Vargas (Metea Valley), TF 2:11

110 – Kai Zamora (Fenton) over Yerelin Nava Perez (Rolling Meadows), F 1:19

115 – Janiya Moore (Metea Valley) over Evalyn Idzik (Saint Viator), TF 3:46

120 – Isabella Johnson (Waubonsie Valley) over Elitzua Sandoval-Mederos (Sarah E. Goode STEM Academy), F 3:19

125 – Giselle Castillo (Fenton) over Fiona Monaco (Saint Viator), F 4:35

130 – Molly O’Connor (Lemont) over Jahdi’yah Hibbler (Downers Grove North), F 3:10

135 – Evelyn Arreola (Palatine) over Sophia Contreras (Waubonsie Valley), F 0:49

140 – Alketa Picari (Metea Valley) over Kaitlyn Kapral (Downers Grove North), F 3:21

145 – Madison Mauer (Deerfield) over Nysa Bilal (Waubonsie Valley), F 3:24

155 – Allison Garbacz (South Elgin) over Natalie Rumpel (Deerfield), F 3:49

170 – Leilani Brindis (Rolling Meadows) over Aiva Wikar (Palatine), D 7-4

190 – Irma Villa (Palatine) over Valerie Franco (Fenwick), F 0:44

235 – Ariana Solideo (Fenton) over Aniaah Garcia (Palatine), F 0:23