Recently, Herrin High School’s very own Blue Bishop competed in the IHSA State wrestling tournament, held at the University of Illinois.  This was Blue’s second straight State appearance, but it was a challenging road to Champaign.  The Junior wrestler first had to compete at the IHSA 1A Sectionals, held in Carterville.  Bishop put up a very good performance, earning second in Sectionals, and punching his ticket to the State championship in the process.

  At State, Blue gave a performance for the ages, becoming the first Herrin wrestler in over eleven years to make it as far as the semi-final match.  When it was all said and done, he ended by achieving fourth place in the tournament, cementing his well deserved position as one of the best wrestlers, not only in Southern Illinois, but in the entire state. 

When entering State matches, Blue emphasizes the importance of going in with a positive mindset.  “Focusing on myself, putting some music on, thinking about how the match is going to go, and having a positive outlook” are some of the most important things to him before heading out to the mat.   

Going into his senior year, Blue looks to continue where he left off, and he hopes to place higher than he did last year, and do his best to win the entire tournament.  “Placing higher again, possibly making it to the finals, and even breaking my own record.  That is the goal for me.” He feels that if he trains harder and keeps a positive mindset, that he can accomplish these high goals he has set for himself.

Blue Bishop is already one of the most accomplished wrestlers in school history, and he looks to continue on the path to greatness.  He is looking ahead to the upcoming season and tournaments, and he is looking forward to proving why he is one of the highest ranked wrestlers in the entire state.  The future is bright for him, and it will be exciting to see where wrestling takes him in school and beyond.