Wrestling notebook: Peotone’s Kiernan Farmer went a long way for a state title

During the offseason, Peotone wrestler Kiernan Farmer and her father put plenty of miles on the family vehicle in order to get the practice she needed to take the next step.

Last season, Farmer became the first girl in Peotone history to win a state medal, taking sixth place at 155 pounds. She wanted to improve on that this year.

So she and her father took daily trips back and forth to The Compound in Chenoa, a training center 75 miles from Peotone.

“I’d get home at about 11 at night,” Farmer said. “I’d wake up and be sore, so I’d call my dad and tell him I needed a massage or something. He would give me a massage at home and then he would say, ‘All right, I’ll buy you breakfast if you go to school.’”

That rigorous regimen paid off Saturday during the state tournament in Bloomington, as Farmer beat Plainfield Central’s Alicia Tucker 9-6 in the 170-pound championship match. Tucker, last season’s Herald-News Girls Wrestler of the Year, and Farmer were familiar foes. Tucker beat Farmer in the semifinals at last year’s state tournament en route to the championship. They met again this year in the Geneseo Sectional championship, with Farmer coming away with a 9-0 win. That and the title match loss were the only two losses Tucker suffered all season.

“It wasn’t so much that I wanted revenge on her [Tucker],” Farmer said. “I just wanted the chance to wrestle for a state championship. I felt like I put in the work and deserved it.

“Now, I hope I get a sign heading into Peotone saying that it’s the home of Kiernan Farmer.”

Building a program

For many years, the Coal City boys wrestling program was always known as a very good one. After winning the Class 1A title last year and finishing second this year, it’s safe to say that the Coalers have earned elite status.

There are plenty of reasons for that, not the least of which is the Widlowski family.

Brant Widlowski, known to his friends and teammates as Buddy, has been part of the Little Coalers wrestling program since he could walk. That makes sense, as his father started the Little Coalers.

“It’s has been great to take the program to a new level,” Widlowski said. “There’s a little pressure with the Widlowski name, but it has been fun.”

Widlowski’s younger brother, Brody, won the title-clinching match in last year’s state championship, and Brant capped his career with a pin in Saturday’s title match. It was fitting, as Brant set the school record for pins in a season this year.

That particular win, however, was bittersweet for Buddy.

“It’s very hard to walk away from high school wrestling,” he said. “I started to feel it a week ago at individual state, that it was coming to an end. These were going to be my last matches with my brother, my dad and the rest of my teammates.

“I’ve known and wrestled with most of the guys on the team since we were 4 and 5 years old. Going to back-to-back state title matches with them has been great. We are part of history, and I take tremendous pride in that.”

Third time a charm

Lincoln-Way Central’s Gracie Guarino and Joliet Township’s Eliana Paramo became three-time state medal winners. Guarino finished third at 115 after being the 120-pound runner-up the previous two seasons, while Paramo finished second at 110 to Lockport’s Morgan Turner. She finished fifth two years ago and second last season at 115.

“I was able to lose the weight to wrestle at 115 and keep my strength,” Guarino said. “I have known [eventual champion] Gabby Gomez for a while, and we faced each other in the semis, we knew that one would finish first and one would finish third. A good thing is that I got to end my career with a win.

“What I’ll remember most about my career is all the friends that I have made, both on my team and from going around to different tournaments and making friends there.”

Paramo has enjoyed watching the sport grow throughout her career.

“It’s incredible, the size of it now,” she said. “The competition in every match is so much better than it was in 2022 [the first year for IHSA girls wrestling]. I am very excited for the next generation of wrestlers coming through.”

Finishing on top

Although Joliet Catholic Academy did not advance to the boys dual team semifinals, losing a 33-26 decision to eventual 3A champion Chicago Mt. Carmel, 285-pounder Dillan Johnson had one last chance to show off his talents.

Johnson, a four-time state champion, pinned Landin Carter in 38 seconds, the Hilltoppers’ only pin against the Caravan. It was Johnson’s 10th pin against 10 opponents in the postseason, all of them coming in the first round.