Three two-minute periods are all that stand between a wrestler and their dreams. Each second matters and each decision demands perfection, otherwise every ounce of effort athletes exude for the season will go unrewarded. Senior Ava Niedzielski didn’t need these six minutes, she achieved an amazing feat in only four.
February 18 was the Michigan High School Athletic Association (MHSAA) women’s wrestling Regional meet. Niedzielski was named Regional Champion after winning all four of her matches. This feat earned her position at the Individual State Finals, held at Ford Field in Detroit on March 1 and 2. In 2020-21 women’s wrestling was not an MHSAA recognized sport, instead it was part of the Michigan Wrestling Association (MWA), meaning every athlete went to compete at state. The switch to the MHSAA happened the following year for the 2021-22 season which in return made it a more prestigious honor. While Niedzielski didn’t place at state, she still finished off her senior season with a huge accomplishment.
Niedzielski has been wrestling since her freshman year. Throughout her career, the effort she radiated led her to this milestone, one she felt was merited.
“I didn’t even know I won my last match, it happened so quickly. I thought it was going on to the next period and then I won,” Niedzielski said. “It made me happy because I worked so hard and now I finally got to do something big. I felt relieved because it means that all the hard work I put in paid off. It just felt deserved.”
Niedzielski went to state finals her freshman year when it was still a part of the MWA. While this year wasn’t Niedzielski’s first trip to state finals, it was her first time earning her ride and getting to compete on a larger scale.
“Freshman year, we didn’t have regionals for girls, [so] you just kind of went to states. This is a whole new experience,” Niedzielski said. “It’s more exciting because it’s on a bigger level. Freshman year, it was at some random complex and now it’s taken seriously and at Ford Field along with the guys. There’s more of an experience to it– more pressure– so it’s taken more seriously.”
Going through these important moments can be bittersweet for Niedzielski, since she is doing them without the in-person support of her brother Ian Niedzielski who is now enrolled in the navy. However, he always tries his best to support her from afar.
“He’s the reason I started wrestling in the first place,” Ava Niedzielski said. “I’ll get these random texts like ‘I’m proud of you’ or ‘good luck.’ He was texting me the whole day on Sunday at the [regional] tournament. I always go to him for advice about what I should do and he always helps me with that.”
Another pillar of support for Niedzielski is her teammates. Sophomore Trinity Kemp was her practice partner this season, which meant they both pushed each other to the extremes in order to help one another improve, even if that entailed some tough love.
“We both give each other feedback and basically just hurt each other as much as we can without taking each other out,” Kemp said. “She’s told me where to put pressure and how so she’s helped me with advice and keeping me in the right mental state. We [also] do ‘lives’ where we actually wrestle each other and basically take out all of our anger on each other and it’s pretty fun.”
Assistant coach Carl Bowerman is dedicated to helping his athletes in any way he can. He has worked with Niedzielski through all four years she’s wrestled and appreciates the work ethic she displays and the effect she has on her teammates.
“Ava is an intense athlete, she always wants to be the best,” Bowerman said. “She does a lot of extra time and that generally spreads to her teammates.”
Niedzielski and her fellow senior teammates have spent countless hours dedicating their time to not only improving themselves but also the wrestling program as a whole.
“The girl’s team will definitely take a hit because we’re losing her and two other seniors who have been there and been the core of our team for the past four years,” Bowerman said. “The overall team will still be heading in the right direction because of the building blocks that this year’s senior class has left.”
Wrestling has helped Niedzielski thrive throughout high school and therefore she plans to continue her athletic and academic career at Davenport University next year.
“I am both nervous and excited [about going to Davenport], it is a new opportunity along with it being freestyle wrestling instead of folkstyle,” Niedzielski said. “I am nervous for the unknown since it’s a new place with new people, and I’m excited because it’s something new. It’s also bittersweet because I am leaving behind my family on the Northview team.”
