H.S. GIRLS WRESTLING: Panther Valley’s Banks chasing historic fourth state championship

Key Highlights

• She’s also a three-time district champion, a four-time regional champion, and a three-time state champion. AdvertisementAdvertisementAdvertisementNext week, she will be chasing history at the 2026 PIAA Individual Wrestling Championships at the Giant Center in Hershey. She’ll look to become just the 15th wrestler in Pennsylvania’s rich 88-years of wrestling history to be a four-time state champion.
• If successful, Banks would not only be immortal in Pennsylvania wrestling history — she would be a pioneer as the first girls’ wrestler to accomplish the feat. A mature decision at a young ageWhile one would think that a wrestler boasting a career record of 106-2 and three-state championships would have extended experience in the sport, that’s far from the case for Banks. AdvertisementAdvertisementAdvertisementThis season is just her fourth, making her accomplishments thus far all the more remarkable.“I started first, not even knowing that it was an actual sport,” Banks said, recalling her decision to join the wrestling team.
• “Because I feel like WWE is really popular.
• I didn’t realize that wrestling was actually a sport that was participated in in high school.”So that year, Banks joined the wrestling team alongside her friend, Anelia Bennick. From the jump, it was clear to Panther Valley coach Kris Nalesnik that Banks was gifted, but how good she could be was still a question.“I knew she was pretty naturally athletically gifted.
• I wasn’t sure just how good she was going to be, but I knew she was going to be talented,” Nalesnik said.