MADISON — Holmen High School junior Aini Anderson knew she had to use her quickness against Milton sophomore Dilynn Albrecht if she wanted the chance to wrestle for a WIAA state championship.
After partaking in extensive hand-fighting early in their Division 1 100-pound semifinal bout at the Kohl Center on Friday, Albrecht started taking her shots.
The top seed in the bracket, Albrecht certainly expected more success than she experienced.
One in the first period and twice in the second, Albrecht (41-3) went for the takedown on fifth-seeded Anderson.
Each time, Anderson rest her position, slipped past Albrecht and secured three points.
That paved the way for Anderson’s 12-6 victory, which made her the first wrestler from Holmen to qualify for a championship match since Kalyn Jahn in 2019. She is also the first Viking to wrestle for a girls title.
Anderson (45-2), who turned the tables on a previous loss to Albrecht, will square off with Freedom junior Katherine Cook (40-7) for the championship Saturday evening.
“One of my greatest strength is probably my quickness,” Anderson said. “So the second she moves her foot a little bit, I know what’s coming.
“It’s like, ‘I shoot, I score; you shoot, I still score.'”
The third takedown, which came with 16 seconds remaining in the second period, gave Anderson a 9-2 lead. She gave up two points for stalling in the third but scored another takedown to pull away.
Anderson was a state qualifier as a freshman before an injury cut her sophomore season short and kept her out of the postseason. She is taking advantage of the second chance to compete at the Kohl Center with a pin in her first match and decisions over the fourth and first seeds in quarterfinal and semifinal matches.
She handed Albrecht — ranked first by Wisconsin Grappler with Anderson third — just the fifth loss of her career. Cook is ranked sixth.
Anderson’s victory also set off a run of Holmen victories. Freshman Brendan Henderson (52-2, 113), sophomore Rex Lancaster (48-4, 120) and Brock Needham (51-5, 126) followed Anderson’s win their own to give the Vikings four qualifiers for the finals.
