Playing basketball just wasn’t doing it for Avalee Euler.
An aggressive approach to the sport can work for some players, but that didn’t turn out to be the case for the Holmen High School student.
So when her sophomore season rolled around, Euler opted to try something new and give wrestling a shot.
And while she won’t be wrestling for a Bi-State Classic championship this weekend, Euler gifted herself with a memorable moment in the South Hall of the La Crosse Center during her debut in the event on Friday.
Euler initiated one of the loudest responses of the night when she came back from a 12-3 deficit to record a pin in a consolation match against Pulaski’s Ellie Neosh. The slap of the mat by the referee sent teammates to their feet as they cheered for their rookie friend during a big moment in her career.
“It was like last-second, win or lose,” Euler said of the comeback, which began with about 30 seconds on the clock. “I was on my back the last 10 seconds of the first period trying to keep my shoulder up, but I was still going at the end.”
Euler said she has leaned on head throws as she familiarizes herself with a new sport, and that was what she needed to use during her last attempt at victory. But while she knew that, executing one with success proved difficult.
“I needed a head throw,” she said. “That was the only thing that could help me win.
“I tried head throw, head throw, head throw. I probably tried eight times before the last one worked. I just sprinted at her. It was crazy.”
Euler said wrestling has been just what she was looking for when considering a sports change. Practices may have scared her at first, but the camaraderie kept her going.
“I had played basketball for a long time, and I wanted a little break from it,” she said. “I figured I’d try something new, and if I didn’t like it, I’d go back. But the wrestling community has been great, and it’s been so fun.”
Euler will continue her 10-4 season in the consolation bracket on Saturday. She is still alive for a ninth-place finish after the exciting performance she gave her friends and teammates on Friday.
