Hinsdale South’s Callie Carr caps off 39-0 season with first state title ‘I was just ready’

BLOOMINGTON – Callie Carr is the last thing from selfish.

Growing up the Hinsdale South junior tried her hand at every imaginable sport.

She was naturally eager to find her place, and discover where she really excelled.

What she learned in the process was she preferred to go it alone.

“I tried softball, basketball and volleyball, and I just couldn’t do it,” she said.

“I didn’t really like team sports. I needed more, and I went and got it. Winning is not enough at this point. I always want more.”

Carr capped her astonishing unbeaten season with the 6-0 decision over Oswego’s Kiyah Chavez in the 155-pound match of the girls state championship Saturday at Grossinger Motors Arena in Bloomington.

In a rematch of the sectional championship at Schaumburg, Carr (39-0) fought off the spirited upset bid of Chavez with takedowns in the first and third periods.

”I won by technical fall the last two times we wrestled, and I knew she was going to come out hard,” Carr said.

She extricated herself from several potential dangerous offensive maneuvers by Chavez.

“I did not want to give up a takedown there, because I’d knew I’d have to come back,” she said.

She leveraged her power and strength to superb effect.

“She’s a heck of a wrestler,” Chavez said. “This is the fourth time this year we’ve wrestled, and she beat me every time.

“She’s really talented.”

The glittering moment was not hers alone to celebrate.

Carr’s older brother, Griffin Carr, a two-time state qualifier for the Hornets, was just feet away as an assistant to head coach Michael Uhlir.

“It started out and she said she wanted to try wrestling, and my mom told her it was either all in or all out,” Griffin Carr said.

“She started in her 8th grade year, and then went into offseason, watching us, and it’s turned into what it is now. She has a great attitude. She never misses practice. She is always ready to go.”

After qualifying last year and going 2-2 here, Carr was bound and determined to take the next step.

She was virtually untouchable in capturing the highest honor.

Carr registered a fall and two major decisions before her hard-fought victory over Chavez.

She sketched out her own fortunes.

”I was just mentally prepared for this weekend,” Carr said.

“This past week, I’ve been writing in my journal that it was Friday morning, and I was in the first round. I was just ready.”

Montini senior Kat Bell had the early takedown against Rockford East freshman Saya Hongmoungkhoune.

The wheels came off.

Bell was trapped on her back and suffered the late first period fall in the 100-pound championship match.

A four-time state qualifier and Aurora University recruit, Bell (39-6) watched her dream slip away.

“I think I just got caught in that situation, and I didn’t wrestle my match,” she said.

She was spectacular in the lead up to the championship match with a fall and two technical falls.

“I was just trying to think about what I’d be doing my match, and how to manage the nerves and stuff,” Bell said.

”I had to deal with the pressure of it being my senior year, and trying to go out on top.”

Fighting back tears, she recounted a life of sacrifice to get to this step.

“I had really great experiences, and I met a bunch of great people through the sport,” she said.

Glenbard East junior Nadiia Shymkiv sported a gash on her lip.

Like Bell, she struggled to contain her emotions after coming up just short with the 10-5 loss against Roxana’s Chloe Skiles in the 105-pound championship.

She avenged her only loss of the season with a 6-1 decision over Leyden’s Zoey Dodgers in the semifinal.

Shymkiv (35-2) could not sustain the momentum. She finished third last year at 100 pounds.

Struggling to find the words, she expressed a harsh reality.

“Wrestling is life,” she said.