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All-RTC4 girls wrestling: Again a state placer, Peppler is RTC4 Wrestler of the Year

Val T.
Apr 4
2 min read

BY VAL TSOUTSOURIS

Sports Editor, RTC

**RTC4 Girls Wrestler of the Year Laine Peppler**

Laine Peppler does not weigh 170 pounds, yet she wrestled in the 170-pound weight class.

Taking down tall timber through extraordinary strength and will to succeed to once again place at the state finals, Peppler is our RTC4 Girls Wrestler of the Year.

Peppler was fifth at state last year when she wrestled at 145 pounds during the last year that Indiana High School Girls Wrestling sanctioned the sport.

The IHSAA recognized it for the first time this year, and Peppler moved up to 170, often weighing five to 10 pounds less than most opponents. Yet she went 25-5, and that included a run to a sectional title at Columbia City.

She then took third on her home mats at the regional.

Peppler also heads the list on our All-RTC4 girls wrestling team.

All three area girls wrestlers who made state were from Rochester, showing that the girls are building a powerhouse program with the girls just as they are with the boys.

We would like to thank area coaches for reaching out to us with results and sharing their thoughts with us.

However, this list is ours and ours alone, and we take full responsibility for it.

Lilly Gerald Makenna Mckee Kyra Doran

All-RTC4

Laine Peppler (Rochester) – Peppler understands leverage better than many wrestlers, and when she gets low leverage on her opponent, it usually is a long six minutes for the opponent.
Lilly Gerald (Rochester) – Gerald placed eighth at state at 105, making it back after an injury-plagued 2023-24 season that she admitted affected her mentally as well as physically. She was one of the area’s most technically proficient wrestlers.
Makenna McKee (Rochester) – McKee, a sophomore, dominated her way through four rounds with her quickness, athleticism and strength to win the Rochester regional and make the IHSAA state finals.
Kyra Doran (Rochester) – Doran, a sophomore, won 17 matches and was sectional runner-up at 130 pounds. Like McKee, she is a gifted athlete who excelled when she could stay out of bad positions.
Jaylyn Layman (Pioneer) – Layman came out of the wrestlebacks with three straight pins to finish third at 125 at the Western sectional, and that came after she won the Hoosier North title.