When it comes to personality, Metea Valley junior Ashley Basmajian identifies strongly with the outsized flair and bold vocal range of multipurpose recording star Rihanna.
By repeatedly defying expectations, Basmajian embodies the defiant opening refrain of her favorite Rihanna song “Breakin’ Dishes,” especially the lyric of “I don’t know who you think I am.”
And that’s definitely Basmajian.
“After all the setbacks, my favorite thing is just winning a hard match,” she said. “Sometimes, I’ll win an easy match and feel like I did not really have to try. I don’t feel as good about that.
“Even though wrestling is difficult for me sometimes, I always try my best.”
Basmajian was her best in the second period Saturday in the Aaron Dudley Invite at Oswego East. She recorded a fall over Plainfield North’s Meryn Finnegan in the 115-pound championship match.
A singer in the school choir, Basmajian (5-0) returned to her first passion of wrestling and turned her delayed season debut into a spectacular personal statement.
She finished with five falls, three coming in the first period, and required only a combined 10:09 of mat time. She was coming off a three-month recovery from complications of a third concussion.
“It’s a little scary, especially at practice, because you constantly bump heads,” Basmajian said. “But so far it’s been good. I like to shoot. I try to be aggressive.
“I really take whatever’s there, and I like trying new things when I’m on the mat. I use a lot of different things, so if one thing doesn’t work, I look to make the transition to other things.”
Sophomore Janiya Moore was Metea’s other individual champion at 120 pounds with a fall in the second period over Romeoville’s Jesslynne Ochoa.
Moore, who improved to 29-2, was happy to have Basmajian back in the fold.
“I really like working with Ashley,” Moore said. “We both know what we want to do out there and what it takes to be successful. She’s really fearless.
“The thing you always notice is just how determined she is. She works so hard and she never gives up.”
Metea coach Eric Tecuanhuehue has been around Basmajian since she in seventh grade. He hasn’t been surprised by her resilience and willingness to stare down adversity.
“It just shows her work ethic when she puts her mind to it,” he said. “The first time I met her, I noticed how she was working, how dedicated she was and how good her technique was.
“Nothing deterred her, and it’s amazing to see her deal with the health issues she has these last two years. You could not ask for a better comeback.”
Basmajian had never wrestled competitively until her freshman season. She started participating in mixed martial arts at age 4 and switched to jiujitsu when she was 9. Her parents also had a background in MMA.
“My dad wanted my older brother, Scott, and I to be able to defend ourselves,” she said. “My brother quit when I was 9, and that’s when I switched to jiujitsu.
“I just like that wrestling is so much more physical than jiujitsu. I always feel like I could always try different or new things.”
The transition to wrestling wasn’t natural or easy for Basmajian. She had to confront a different sensation from her other competitive disciplines.
“When I first started, I lost all of my matches for months,” she said. “It was definitely an adjustment, but it gave me something more to work on. Last season, I started to get the hang of it.
“Once I started having success, I realized I really liked winning and I wanted to be as competitive as possible.”
Patrick Z. McGavin is a freelance reporter for The Beacon-News.
