KEALAKEKUA — Konawaena wrestling hosted another collegiate signing day for the second consectutive week on Wednesday in Ellison Onizuka Gymnasium — but this time, the second girls wrestler in program history inked her signature.
Senior Shakira Ortiz-Strauss signed her letter of intent to wrestle at Southwest Oregon Community College in Coos Bay, Ore. this fall. She will be on a full athletic scholarship. The program is part of the Northwest Athetic Conference.
After beginning her wrestling career as a junior and impressing the school community from the jump, the signing came as no surprise to coach Federico Ventenilla — who saw Ortiz-Strauss’ relentless work ethic on a daily basis. He pointed to Ortiz-Strauss’ injury suffered in her first season, and how she bounced back in inspiring fashion to get to where she is now.
“She kept on going each day to get to this mark, and we can not be more proud,” Ventenilla told West Hawaii Today. “We are grateful that she can be a great example to our younger wrestlers.”
After each member of the coaching staff shared words about Ortiz-Strauss, she officially signed her letter. Ortiz-Strauss then briefly addressed the crowd, which was made up of family, friends, coaches and former teammates.
“I’d like to thank my coaches and teammates for pushing me and shaping me into the person I am,” she said. “And finally my parents. Mom and Dad, we did it.”
Ortiz-Strauss finished the 2023-24 season with a Big Island Interscholastic Federation (BIIF) title in the 125-pound class over KS-Hawai‘i’s Taliya Nishida in February — qualifying for states. Her performance all season helped the Kona girls team capture a BIIF title.