Marysville’s Cami Leng (right) locks in a single-leg shot on Gibsonburg’s Morgan Leonhardt during the 115-pound girls state finals. The Lady Monarch was pinned late in the third period.
(Journal-Tribune photo by Aleksei Pavloff)
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Marysville’s Cami Leng took home a runner-up finish at the conclusion of this year’s edition of the Ohio High School Athletic Association girls state wrestling tournament.
Despite holding a manageable 12-5 lead with a few ticks left on the clock, the freshman Lady Monarch suffered a late third-period pin loss to Gibsonburg’s Morgan Leonhardt.
Both competitors were familiar with one another after facing off in the finals of the Region 2 girls tournament in Marysville a week earlier.
Leonhardt took the upper hand in that matchup by pinning Leng in the second period.
This past weekend marked the second time the Lady Monarchs were present in the finals since girls wrestling became an OHSAA-sanctioned sport.
“I think Cami was well prepared going into it,” MHS head coach Shawn Andrews said.
“She executed the game plan for the majority of the match.”
Being the second Lady Monarch to participate in the Parade of Champions, Leng sought to bring home another girls state title in the 115-pound weight class.
Leonhardt leaned on her experience at the state level. She placed fourth in 2023 as a sophomore.
However, both grapplers were new to the Schottenstein’s main event.
Taking in the preshow lights and flare, Leng was focused on bringing home another state title for Marysville.
“When I was listening to music, just the words were going through my head,” Leng said when she was walking out on the floor with the rest of the finalists. “I felt like I was confident and I wrestled my best.”
The freshman was quick to collect a takedown in the first period.
She followed with three back points and held a 5-0 lead at the end of the first period.
Leonhardt opted for the bottom position to begin the second period.
She cut her deficit to 5-1 after climbing her way to an escape.
Leng notched another takedown midway through the second period. She exposed Leonhardt’s back to the mat for another trio of near-fall points.
However, Leonhardt’s ability to wiggle out of tight situations came out late in the second period. She earned two points on a reversal and shaved the gap to 10-5.
“Usually, I’m not very calm or peaceful, but I felt like I had peace inside,” Leng said after giving up points. “I was like ‘OK, she can get a couple,’ but I was going to get back up and not give her anymore.”
Entering the third period, Leng leaned on her strongest position, choosing neutral to add more points.
“I was trying to get as many points as possible and was just trying to wrestle to feel good,” Leng said.
Moments of pacing one another culminated in another takedown for Leng midway through the final period.
“I was trying to make sure I didn’t get stuck on bottom,” Leng said. “I felt I could score more points in the neutral position.”
In a scramble toward the end of the match, Leonhardt found an opening for another reversal and put Leng down on the mat.
The referee then slapped the mat and sealed the pin for the Lady Golden Bear with 17 seconds left on the clock.
In a state of what seemed like confusion, Leng looked at the coaches corner as Leonhardt pointed to the crowd after winning the title.
“I felt like I was calm,” Leng said. “If I were to go back and wrestle that match I would do the same thing except I would’ve just cut her (late in the third period).”
The aftermath saw Leng consult with her coaching staff for several minutes, analyzing her choices in the match.
“She’s a competitor and she was working for a position for pin, probably where she didn’t have to,” Andrews said. “Credit Leonhardt… she kept wrestling.”
“I knew I wrestled as hard as I could and I made a mistake,” said Leng. “But that is OK… I’ll get them next time.”
Despite a similar result against a familiar opponent, the young grappler was proud of how far she had come at the state’s biggest stage.
“I would say ‘keep wrestling hard and wrestle with your heart,’” Leng said when referring to a younger version of herself. “Wrestle for yourself and God and just give your all.”
Leng believes she will be back to the finals in the future and understands what next year’s preparation will take to get back to the state tournament.
“Train harder, go to more camps and wrestle with boys more,” she said.
“I think one of the things you are noticing right now is there are a lot of young girls in the finals,” Andrews said. “I have a ton of faith in Cami’s ability to keep getting better.”