PLYMOUTH ― Amani Reed, a Penn junior who made an IHSAA girls wrestling State Finals appearance last season, was carried off the mat in a sectional semifinal match at Lincoln Junior High School in Plymouth Friday, Jan. 2.
The severity and official diagnosis of her apparent injury is unknown, but she was holding her lower leg and crying out in pain after an awkward tangle up with South Bend Adams sophomore Kristen Hoffman. Reed’s season is over, but the Kingsmen still won the team sectional title with 255 points.
They had four wrestlers win their weight class, while three finished in second.
“Being able to hold our own in other weight classes is comforting,” head coach Amy Hildebrandt said. “We have time to develop, and we have time to reach those peaks.”
If this isn’t Penn’s peak, it’s a scary thought for other area programs what that could look like. In just two seasons, the Kingsmen have won their sectional both times, and now they look to finish higher than sixth in next week’s regional.
“Control what you can control,” Hildebrandt tells her wrestlers. “That’s what is going to make you successful. That’s what is going to help heal the hurt when you lose.”
While losing Reed is a big blow, Penn gained 2025 state qualifier Lily Clark from Elkhart via transfer prior to her senior season. While the Kingsmen are undoubtedly one of the deepest programs in the South Bend area, Clark is now firmly their biggest threat with Reed out.
“I had a lot of weight on my shoulders,” Clark said. “I had a little bit of nerves, but I knew I needed to show up and that pushed me extremely hard.”
Friday, she pinned Mishawaka junior Amayah Zukas in the first round to win the 235-pound sectional championship match. Clark’s signature move on the mat is flashing a big smile just before scoring a deciding pinfall. She did just that against Zukas.
Clark said her coaches, both past and present, have told her she tends to take herself too seriously. That smile isn’t meant to come off as arrogant; it’s meant to be a message to her coaches that she can still have fun while wrestling at a championship level.
“It helps me loosen up and realize what I’ve worked so hard for,” Clark said. “I have nerves before a match, but they lessen as everyone is building each other up and realizing no matter if it’s the State Finals or sectionals, it’s just another match.”
Knocking the Kingsmen’s queens off their thrones
Clearly, it isn’t easy to beat a Penn wrestler, but three girls from three different programs did so in sectional championship matches. Makenzie Shumaker, a Bremen senior who qualified for state last season, pinned Penn sophomore Madelyn Winter in the second round to win the 140-pound title bout.
Later on, Elkhart senior Kalista Inman pinned Penn senior Emma Turnblom in the third round to win the 190-pound sectional crown. It was the fourth time the two went head-to-head this season, and it was the fourth time Inman left the mat victorious.
Despite the dominance against Turnblom this season, Inman was still surprised she came out of her weight class on top after finishing fourth in the sectional round last year.
“You just have to have better stamina than them,” Inman said. “Wear them out and wear them down … I can push myself physically and mentally to be a part of something.”
Most notably, Plymouth junior Caroline Balica pinned Penn junior Rylen Hackett to not only win the 130-pound sectional championship, but move to 17-0 this season as well.
Balica was a state qualifier last season, which she would’ve never guessed a few months prior. Growing up, she tried other sports and none of them clicked even when her family moved from Illinois to Indiana.
She didn’t want to give wrestling a shot, but her family essentially gave her no choice as her older brother was already on the boys team. Plymouth boys and girls head coach Travis Smith made a quick impression on Balica.
“This is something you have to dedicate yourself to,” Balica said. “I didn’t want to do it ― I’m super scared of new things ― but I went, tried it and loved it the moment I went … I don’t want to take that for granted, and I want to make the most of it.”
Balica quickly became best friends with Smith’s daughter, junior girls wrestler Angel Smith, which grew her love for the sport even more. While Balica was successful last season, Travis said she took a noticeable jump during the offseason leading up to the 2025-26 campaign.
He said Balica was a “staple” at his house all summer, and she constantly practiced against fellow 2025 state qualifier Angel. That constant drive to improve is most exemplified through Angel and Balica, but Travis said he has seen it rub off on the Rockies’ entire team.
They captured three first-place finishes and a second-place finish Friday.
“It’s one of those things that you stand back and watch it all unfold and you gleam with pride,” Smith said. “They give you everything they have.”
South Bend Area Regional Qualifiers from Plymouth Sectional
100-pound class: Khloie Smith (Jimtown, 1st), Jaden Eskew (Plymouth, 2nd), Emma Diaz (Penn, 4th)
105-pound class: Sophia Carper (Jimtown, 1st), Na’Leah Suggs (Mishawaka, 2nd), Macy Carson (Triton, 3rd), Kassandra Souders (Plymouth, 4th)
110-pound class: Kensie Schuh (Triton, 1st), Alyvia Wickizer (LaVille, 2nd), Piper Forsgren (Penn, 3rd), Khloe Jensen (Plymouth, 4th)
115-pound class: Britain Whitmer (John Glenn, 1st), Shiayla Suggs (Mishawaka, 2nd), Aurora Schrader (Penn, 3rd)
120-pound class: Madeline Thompson (Penn, 1st), Andrea Ford (Triton, 2nd), Ella Muffley (Plymouth, 3rd), Amaiah Clemons (South Bend Riley, 4th)
125-pound class: Angel Smith (Plymouth, 1st), Sydney Thompson (Penn, 3rd), Amyah Harvel (Mishawaka Marian, 4th)
130-pound class: Caroline Balica (Plymouth, 1st), Rylen Hackett (Penn, 2nd), Isabella Elliott (Riley, 3rd), Brianna Lockhart (Triton, 4th)
135-pound class: Isabella Reller (Penn, 1st), Rilee Bemish (Triton, 2nd), Trinity Fortin (Plymouth, 4th)
140-pound class: Makenzie Shumaker (Bremen, 1st), Madelyn Winter (Penn, 2nd), Chloe Carlton (Plymouth, 3rd), Bailey Nicely (Triton, 4th)
145-pound class: Teyah Barnhart (Plymouth, 1st), Miah Lichtenbarger (Glenn, 2nd), Lily Lovely (Northridge, 3rd), Nora Anne Purucker (Penn, 4th)
155-pound class: Kristen Hoffman (Adams, 2nd) Marlee Kotinek (Riley, 3rd)
170-pound class: Madison Raper (Penn, 1st), Ava Lloyd (Plymouth, 3rd), Jazmin Lemler (Triton, 4th)
190-pound class: Kalista Inman (Elkhart, 1st), Emma Turnblom (Penn, 2nd), Hope Spitaels (Mishawaka, 3rd)
235-pound class: Lily Clark (Penn, 1st), Amayah Zukas (Mishawaka, 2nd), Saran Jones (Triton, 3rd), Zoe Hunt (Elkhart, 4th)
All South Bend area regional qualifiers, along with those from the Hobart, Plymouth and Goshen sectionals, will convene at the Plymouth regional Saturday, January 10, at 9:30 a.m. ET. The top four finishers in each weight class there advance to the state finals Friday, Jan. 16, in Indianapolis.
Kyle Smedley is a sports reporter at the South Bend Tribune. Contact him via email at ksmedley@usatodayco.com or follow him on X @KyleSmedley03.
This article originally appeared on South Bend Tribune: Penn wins IHSAA girls wrestling sectional; 48 advance to regional
Reporting by Kyle Smedley, South Bend Tribune / South Bend Tribune
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