Robinson and Sabu of Normal West advanced through the first two rounds before both were eliminated in the third. Bloomington’s Starr was also knocked out of the finals contention on Friday.
Bloomington-Normal wrestlers compete at IHSA Girls State Meet
Written by Ben Webster on February 28, 2026
Image courtesy of IHSA
BLOOMINGTON, Ill. – Two high schools in the Bloomington-Normal area competed for IHSA Girls’ Wrestling honors at the State meet on Friday and Saturday at Grossinger Motors Arena.
Normal Community West High School had two state qualifiers: Karsyn Robinson qualified as a freshman at 195 pounds, and Arian Sabu qualified as a sophomore at 155 pounds.
Bloomington High School had its first-ever state qualifier in girls wrestling: Autumn Starr qualified as a freshman at 115 pounds with a 25-8 record this season.
Wrestlers had to make it through three rounds on Friday before making it to Saturday’s finals.
“Today might have not been my best, but I didn’t have hard feelings about the losses,” Arian Sabu said following elimination, “Now that I’ve made it here, I know how hard it is and the challenges I’ll face in the future.”
Karsyn Robinson said, “Even though I don’t have as much experience as some of the other girls, I left knowing that I left it all on the mat. I tried my best, and at the end of the day that’s all that matters.”
Autumn Starr decided not to comment.
