HUMBOLDT — Last spring, the Kansas State High School Activities Association sanctioned girls wrestling for the 2019-20 school year. Humboldt’s senior, Cheyenne Harris, was ready to make her mark.
On Saturday in Paola, the 143-pound wrestler was the first Lady Cub to reach state in girls wrestling. Harris finished sixth in her division, clinching a spot at the state tournament in Salina on Feb. 28 and 29.
In her first match, Harris won by fall over Lauren Hooser of Lansing High. Harris cruised through the second round to advance to the quarterfinals, earning a win by fall over Holton High’s Ally Beard.
After a loss in the quarterfinals, Harris captured two consecutive wins by fall in the consolation side of the bracket to be placed in the consolation semi-final round. Harris lost that match, and her next match by fall to finish sixth in her weight class, a spot good enough to punch her ticket to state.
“This year is really special to me,” Harris said. “Friday and Saturday were regionals for us, and I showed the coaches and the boys how much I improved. And I did it! I made it to state!”
Harris had been Humboldt’s solo girl wrestler under head wrestling coach Kent Goodner’s for her first three years with the Cubs. It wasn’t until this season when girls wrestling was sanctioned that more Humboldt girls decided to compete. Meaning for her first three years, Harris competed against boys in practice, and on most occasions, during meets.
One of Harris’ practicing partners over the last four years has been senior Gunner Elder, a male who competes in a similar weight class and has a state appearance under his belt.
“I think the competition her first three years have prepared her 100%,”Goodner said. “Most of the boys are stronger, are bigger, and have wrestling longer.”
HER track to success starts long before her days at Humboldt. In fact, she started wrestling at the Ottawa kids club when she was five years old.
“I always knew I had a heart for wrestling,” Harris said. “I decided to do high school wrestling, and see how long I’d actually stay out, and this is my fourth year now and I’m actually loving it. I wanna go for college and see how far I can go.”
Last year, Harris was itching to compete at a non-official girl’s state tournament hosted in McPherson. With girl’s wrestling not yet sanctioned, the event gave girls the opportunity to duke it out on the mat against their own gender. Unfortunately, those planes were derailed due to weather.
“That’s the tournament the girls look forward to all year long,” Goodner said. “That is where they go to get to just wrestle girls, and she didn’t get to do that last year. It was a big disappointment.”
It was a big relief for Goodner when he heard the news that girl’s wrestling would be sanctioned for this school year. In the beginning of the season, he had expectations for Harris to reach state, and on Saturday with money on the line, she cashed in.
“I was nervous,” Harris said. “Then I put music in, and started pacing. I was in my head telling myself, ‘I got this, I got this.Then I set my mind to it, I went out there, and I did it.”
Harris has nearly two weeks to prepare for the state meet. In the meantime, she will rumble with her fellow boy teammates and practice drill after drill to be ready to take the podium in Salina.
