Coming off the first individual title in school history for the Powell High School girls’ wrestling program, senior Allison LeBlanc made the decision in late March to continue her wrestling career at NAIA Dickinson State University in North Dakota.

“I can finally take another breath,” LeBlanc said. “I was honestly starting to stress out like, oh my gosh where am I going? These places are gonna need answers and I don’t like telling people no. But, it was finally good to commit to something and say ‘OK, this is where I want to go.’ I’m happy I made that decision.”

LeBlanc has been competing at 110 pounds since her freshman year, and has built a record as the winningest Panther girl in program history.

“It’s awesome to just kind of see how far I’ve come, and winning that state title meant the world to me … I did go into state nervous, because it was my last shot. I only had one more shot to get this, and mentally that can have an effect if you let it. But wrestling is as much about mental toughness as it is physical,” LeBlanc said.

She capped off that career with more than 100 wins, and ended with a title at 110 pounds this season after recording two second place finishes and a third place finish her first three seasons.

“It was nice to cap it off with just getting that state title, 100 wins, Ron Thon title, all of those things. It was definitely another stepping stone in my life, and after getting those, it’s like, this is my next step,” LeBlanc said.

Looking back over her time as a Panther, LeBlanc said it took a lot to get to this point in her career, with making it to the state title bout her freshman year being a major motivator.

“Once I went to state and saw how far I can push myself, the way I viewed myself completely changed. Initially I was like, ‘OK, it’s just another sport’ … Then towards the end of (freshman) year, when I kept winning those matches and got to the state finals it was like, ‘oh, I can be good at this,’” she said.

She said running cross country her junior and senior year was a big help in completing her journey, helping her go further in matches than she could earlier.

“I felt like I could do another one and another one. It wasn’t near as exhausting as it was my freshman and sophomore years to do those same matches,” LeBlanc said. “I hate running, I hate all aspects of running … But after my first meet they kind of helped coach me through ‘well, this is your time, let’s try to beat that’ … But I was able to push myself, knowing my limits. Basically I have more speed in me.”

Throughout her time as a Panther, LeBlanc has had a number of coaches who have been at the helm, as the girls’ program didn’t get its own separate head coach until her junior year.

While there was constant turnover, LeBlanc felt her first three seasons were consistent in her approach, before this season turned on its head where she felt a need to bring more of a leadership role to the team.

“This year, that was when the complete 180 happened. It’s like, well, now we’re (boys and girls) not practicing together. We’re not going to the same tournaments. It kind of all shifted,” LeBlanc said. “Mentally, it was like, ‘I cannot believe I’m not going to be able to practice with the boys.’ The boys pushed me in the room, so now I felt like I had the responsibility to be the one that other people look to and be like, ‘oh crap, she’s getting after it.’”

“All coaches are different, and I feel like you can get something positive out of each and every one,” she added.

Ending her career LeBlanc is hopeful she was an inspiration for her teammates as well as her younger siblings, Avery and Chris Jr., and gave everybody a goal to strive for after she set the school record for wins by a girl.

“Records were made to be broken, and I kind of hope the next one to break those is someone from that team currently, and give them something to strive towards and achieve themselves,” she said.

Throughout it all LeBlanc said her family has been supportive in her journey and helped keep her focused and on the right track throughout.

“They’ve been so supportive through it all, and I felt like no matter what decision I made, they would always be right behind me, supporting me all the way,” LeBlanc said.

Continuing at Dickinson, LeBlanc wants to continue competing at 110 pounds, while pursuing a degree in general biology before becoming a veterinarian.