There are many aspects of DGN that give it identity, its athletic organizations some of the most considerable among them. The 2025-2026 winter season saw boys wrestling and girls gymnastics going to state, and boys and girls basketball leaving behind a considerable performance in their Sectionals. But now, senior members of these teams are now contemplating the fact that their time in high school athletics has ended.
“It’s definitely a different feeling being a senior now. The last three years, I’ve had seasons end, but the next week, I’m playing club basketball,” senior Ady Fanta said. “Now, I don’t have anything until June. It kind of feels sad. The program here is awesome, and I wouldn’t trade it for anything else.”
Seniors Caden Chiarelli, Colin Murphy and Nathaniel Olona all qualified DGN for the IHSA State boys wrestling competition. They competed against top-ten teams like Glenbard West and Oak Park Feb. 18 alongside sophomore Damian Garcia.
“The last two years, I was a match away from making it to State, so it was pretty cool to make it this year,” Chiarelli said. “We’re in one of the hardest Sectionals of the state. I was in a close match that I ended up winning, so that helped me qualify.”
The “Trostangs” girls gymnastics team also had a notable season, it being their final year DGN’s final year combined with DGS. Despite unexpected circumstances, they secured third place in their IHSA State competition.
“A few weeks before State, we were all dying of illness, and we had a bunch of injuries. So, we didn’t know how we were going to perform, but we’re really proud of how we did,” senior Emilie Kuchta said.
And of course, DGN girls basketball also had all eyes on them this winter, ending 30-3 overall. By the end of the season, the team had even racked up a 16 game win streak, before their loss to Nazareth Academy in the Sectional final Feb. 26.
“They’ve been working incredibly hard every day, working as hard as they can, conditioning, skill work, and all of them on their own will spend so much time studying the players, and watching film, and looking at scouting reports of all these players,” senior and team manager Emerson Harres said. “They are always looking toward State, but they always have to make it through the next game first.”
As nature went from winter to spring this past month, many Trojans went from basketball to track, or from swimming to tennis. However, many athletes at this time who stick to the same sport are also returning to club season. With this comes a new wave of seniors who decide not to return for a single season before college.
“I feel like I’m having an identity crisis, because after the season ends, I’m so used to going back and training,” Kuchta said. “I know that as time goes on, I will eventually find something else to do. But right now, it feels kind of weird.”
For some student athletes, the months after their final season ends can be a good time to find alternative ways to stay fit or reconnect with personal passions that were previously set aside in place of athletics. While many plan their responsibilities around a busy athletic schedule during the season, no longer being in training can be just as big of an adjustment.
“It’s not too bad. It’s mainly just trying to fill my day up with meaningful stuff to do. I just try not to fall into the routine of going home and just not doing anything for the rest of the day, now that I don’t have wrestling to take up all of my time,” senior Nathaniel Olona said. “But, I feel like I’ll eventually adjust to it, and I’m still happy that it’s over and I can relax a little bit.”
For other students, there is the prospect of continuing athletics during post-secondary education. Now that their high school careers are over, many of DGN’s most talented athletes are now focusing on the collegiate offers they have earned.
“I’m going to be able to play in college, but not being able to be on this team and with all these girls who have been helping me from freshman to senior year to get better is sad and kind of upsetting,” senior Lizzy Murphy said. “But, I’m excited that it’s going to be a new chapter.”
There are certainly exciting opportunities afoot for many of DGN’s future college athletes. This includes Ady Fanta, who will be practicing abroad with her new basketball team at Northern Michigan University.
“This year, we’re going to Spain. We leave at the end of June, so it will be good to get up there, and then I’ll be practicing with my team,” Fanta said. “We’re there for a week, and they do this trip every four years. It just happens to be my freshman year, so that will be really cool.”
Whether through a sport or not, the four years of involvement between a Trojan’s freshman and senior year is a transformative time. As one’s teammates and coaches change, it’s hard for some not to notice an equal change in themselves.
“When I started wrestling, I was not as talkative, not as outgoing. It’s definitely changed me in that sense, because you meet so many different kinds of people, and they bring that out of you,” Olona said. “Along with that, it’s made me a lot more resilient, just being able to go through all the trials and tribulations of a wrestling season.”
After four years of working to improve the mind and body to excel in their sport, the class of 2026 has uniquely shaped the athletic institutions it has partaken in. As a result, what these athletes have gained alongside muscle mass and coordination is resilience to change.
“Even now, I look back at my freshman year and those seniors, and we were just a completely different team,” Kuchta said. “But I think that’s the beauty of it. Changing each year, working around different teammates, and building new relationships.”
