College Trail: Trailblazing Trojan Figueroa finds home at Indiana Tech
Brooklyn Figueroa was a trailblazer in high school.
The Monroe High graduate was an accomplished wrestler for the Trojans at a time when fewer girls were competing on the mat.
She was a three-time state placer, but the Michigan High School Athletic Association only started hosting official state tournaments the year after she graduated in 2021.
"We always had an automatic bid into states. When I was there, we were in the pilot program," Figueroa said. "It wasn't sanctioned like it is now. ... It would've been nice to be able to actually compete through all the same hoops as the guys I went to high school with. Maybe they would've seen it as more real."
Figueroa has found a home the past two years at Indiana Tech.
The challenges she's faced have only made her tougher.
"There were times I wasn't supported for everything I was doing (at Monroe) and time I was supported," Figueroa said. "Sometimes people just wanted to put me down for doing something that was not normal to them."
Like many female wrestlers, support even wavered from her team.
"The head coach (Jordan) Mayes was all for it. He was definitely very supportive," she said. "Some of the guys I don't think were, especially some of the older guys. Even to this day, some of them don't see what's so important about women's wrestling and why it needs to be talked about more."
That never deterred Figueroa from sticking with the sports. She started wrestling at 10 years old after watching her brother, Talan, compete.
"I begged my mom for a whole year to let me wrestle," she said. "Eventually she did, and I'm grateful for it."
Figueroa was recruited to Indiana Tech by Warriors' head coach Paul Rademacher. A visit convinced Figueroa she belonged with the team. Having Gibraltar Carlson graduate Elly Kuzma as a teammate was also a comfort.
"I felt like I could see myself being on the team," Figueroa said. "I was the only woman on my team at Monroe, so I had some hard practices, some hard days. But here it feels like I always have someone I can turn to and talk to. They get it."
An elbow injury from a car accident derailed Figueroa's freshman season last year. Now full healthy, she has flourished as a sophomore.
Figueroa finished this season 10-10 overall. She came back to Michigan last month to compete in a dual against Siena Heights University in Adrian. Wrestling at 143 pounds, she defeated the Saints' Maggie Mann in a 9-4 decision.
"I was able to wrestle a couple tournaments last year and I saw growth, but this year I've been able to come back and compete a full season," she said. "It's been really good. I've seen so much improvement from last year to this year."
Kuzma finished with a 23-9 record at 143 pounds.
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Addie Hudson is off to a great start with her new team.
The Jefferson graduate, who transferred from Jackson Community College this season, is hitting a robust .465 for Western Michigan.
She has 20 hits in her first 43 at-bats. The second-leading hitter for WMU stands at .362.
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The Siena Heights women’s basketball season ended Thursday with a 109-78 loss to No. 12 Rio Grande in the first round of the NAIA Tournament. Ida graduate Jillian Gelso played five minutes in the game and Airport product Hadley Gratz two.
Gelso started three games for the Saints this season and averaged 4.1 points, 2.4 rebounds and 0.3 assists per game. She shot 40.2 percent on 3-pointers, hitting 33-of-82 attempts.
Gratz saw action in 19 games, averaging 1.1 points, 0.8 rebounds and 0.2 points per game.
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Monroe High graduate Ellie Sieler ranks third in batting average for the University of Michigan softball team through 21 games.
She has 16 hits in 54 at-bats for a .296 batting average. She has a pair of doubles, 4 RBI and has scored 6 runs.
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Dundee graduate Brandon Whitman has the fastest pin of the season for North Carolina.
The senior 285-pounder recorded a stick in just 15 seconds. He has a 9-14 record.
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Monroe graduate Haley Frank has a .316 batting average through 23 games for the Northwood University softball team.
She leads the team with 18 runs scored and 8 stolen bases. She is second with 12 walks and 13 RBI.
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Casey Swiderski, a freshman from Dundee, has an 11-10 record with 1 fall, 1 technical fall and 1 major decision for Iowa State.
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The Northwood University baseball roster features three Monroe County Region products – Derek Clark of Summerfield, David Jeffers of Bedford, and Zach Abbey of Milan.
Clark leads the team in innings pitched (29) and strikeouts (26). He has a 2-1 record and a 3.41 earned-run average.
Jeffers is hitting .289 through 45 at-bats with 5 doubles and 11 RBI.
Abbey is a left-handed pitcher who has yet to appear in a game.
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Do you know a local athlete who is excelling in college this year? Send us the details to sports@monroenews.com.
This article originally appeared on The Monroe News: College Trail: Trailblazing Trojan Figueroa finds home at Indiana Tech
