Though the Iowa women’s wrestling squad had never taken the mat until last November, wrestling fans and media knew that the Hawkeyes posed one of the most intimidating lineups in the country.
Iowa quickly took the women’s wrestling world by storm and currently sits at 13-0 after a dominating performance at the Iowa Duals on Sunday afternoon.
From an outsider’s perspective, it seems like this Hawkeye team has been cruising all season long, with no apparent issues on the inside. While that may be true, it hasn’t all been easy, especially in the 136 pound weight class.
Enter first-year Lilly Luft.
Hailing from Charles City, Iowa, Luft came to Iowa City on a tear. In high school, she compiled an astonishing record of 125-6 while capturing three state championships.
Despite this, she entered her freshman season buried in the 136 depth chart behind experienced wrestlers such as Nanea Estrella and Esther Han.
But, after rolling through the first few tournaments of the year, Estrella suffered a season-ending leg injury that was announced on Jan 11. The next day, Han announced via Instagram that she would be out the rest of the season due to a nagging arm injury that had plagued her over the previous three seasons.
Though Iowa had lost two key wrestlers in one weight class, Chun knew that Luft was up for the task and put her into more of a lead role in the lineup.
In her first big action at the Soldier Salute on Dec. 30, Luft performed well but suffered a tough defeat to Zanynah McBryde of Life University. Despite the loss, Luft knew that she had an opportunity for revenge in Carver-Hawkeye Arena.
Needless to say, she got it on Sunday.
With Iowa cruising to an early 17-3 lead against Life, Luft and McBryde went at it, but the first-year slowly began to put the pressure on McBryde and jumped out to a quick 9-0 lead after the first period.
Once the second frame began, it was all over for McBryde.
Luft made a quick move and pinned McBryde in a heartbeat, producing the loudest roar of the day from the Hawkeye faithful.
“There’s nothing else like competing in Carver,” Luft said. “It’s super surreal to have the fan base that we have, and they’re just so supportive.”
After the match, Luft was immediately surrounded by her teammates and shared an emotional moment with them.
At the end of the day, Luft is thankful that she is a Hawkeye.
“This year has been amazing as a whole, and competing with Iowa and the teammates that I have is a grind everyday. But, I’m really grateful to be here.” Luft said.
She also credits her coaches and her talented teammates for helping mold her into a better wrestler.
“The high-level experiences that my coaches have had has helped me grow, and it’s going to continue to happen over the next few years,” Luft said.
“We push each other and we’re always trying to beat each other, but we know that it makes us stronger and better,” second-year Kylie Welker added.
Luft’s talent is already well-known to Chun, but she is really happy to see her star first-year strike gold.
“It’s great to see Lilly finally click today, and that was a smart, tactical approach against a strong opponent,” Chun said.
Before each home match, Luft walks out to FloRida’s hit song “My House.” It’s only fitting, because she and her teammates have welcomed Carver-Hawkeye Arena as a second home.
“I’ve been listening to that song since my high school years,” Luft said. “It’s the right song for me.”