Sierra Gruber won her match. 

Seconds later, she collapsed. 

On the day she became the first woman from Cardinal Gibbons High School to qualify for states in wrestling, she also had her first seizure in a year and a half.

Gruber has battled epilepsy since childhood, a condition that causes repeated seizures.

At regionals, Gruber got fourth place out of the 16 girls in the 145-pound weight class, advancing her to compete at states.

Wrestling may not be an obvious choice for someone who suffers from seizures, but Gruber has been determined to play this sport because her older brother encouraged her to. The sport brought Gruber and her brother together more than ever before.

“I (thought) maybe he’d come to my games because he’s at college now. It would be a reason for him to come back in town to see me wrestle,” Gruber said.

Due to the seizure, Gruber was limited by having her license revoked for six months. Without being able to drive to her usual routine and activities, her mind then went straight to wrestling. Focusing on what she could attend after school made it easier to submerge herself into the sport.

“I had a seizure, so that means I can just put an extra effort at regionals to get into state,” she said.

Gruber decided to go into wrestling in November.

In these past few months being involved, Gruber has been impacted by the sport. 

Gruber also mentioned how her grades went up and most importantly, how her epilepsy has improved greatly.

“In multiple ways, it’s helped me become more social. With wrestling, I’ve been able to talk to people more casually.” Gruber said.