Katerina Lange
By Brian Jerzak
When Martin County West's Katerina Lange finished up her freshman year of high school, she had been wrestling for ten years. Although she enjoyed the sport, something was missing for her. Wrestling had been such a big part of her life that she needed to find out more about herself outside of wrestling. Two years later, Lange's love of wrestling was reinvigorated. Now, she has a Pan-Am title to her name and national titles and world team aspirations in her future.
"My sophomore year, I took a break from wrestling to explore myself outside of the sport," Lange said. "I had been in wrestling my entire life. It had become too much of me. I came back last year. I realized I still had a lot of wrestling in me. I felt good, and from there, I decided I still had a passion for it."
During her time away from wrestling – among other things, she played on the basketball team for two years.
"When I came back, I felt like I had a new perspective with wrestling," Lange explained. "Before I took the break, I felt like it was a win/lose game, and there was nothing else in it for me. Taking the break gave me a new mindset. It was something I needed."