Your Prep Sports

Girls wrestling has exploded across the state of Iowa and in the Your Prep Sports area over the past several seasons.

Participating numbers, excitement and recognition for the sport has grown by leaps and bounds in a short amount of time.

On Saturday girls high school wrestling took another huge step forward.

“The Iowa Girls High School Athletic Union announced prior to the start of the championship round of the IWCOA Girls State Wrestling tournament at Xtream Arena in Coralville on Saturday that girls wrestling would be a IGHSAU sanctioned sport beginning with 2022-2023 season.

The Iowa Girls High School Athletic Union Board of Directors voted unanimously at its meeting last Wednesday to make girls wrestling the 11^th sanctioned sport and first to be added since Bowling in 2007.

“We think there’s a great foundation in place for the success of this sport and we intend to fully support these Iowa Girls as they continue their pursuit of championships,” IGHSAU Executive Director Jean Berger said in a release. “As the sanctioning process unfolded, the Board was able to quickly approve this new opportunity for our girls and schools across the state. The increase in participation, the growth in youth wrestling and the willingness of our schools to commit to the sport all factored into this decision.”

The announcement came with the energy surrounding girls wrestling at an all-time high.

Nearly 700 wrestlers competed on Friday and Saturday in Coralville with six schools in the Your Prep Sports area sending a combined 43 wrestlers to the state meet.

City High, West High, Clear Creek Amana, Solon, Regina and West Branch all had competitors with three area athletes collecting top-eight finishes.

West High junior Jannell Avila highlighted the Your Prep Sports area medalist placing third at 155 pounds.

Avila recorded four consecutive first-period pins to reach the semifinals where she fell to eventually state champion Isabella Deeds of Ridge View via fall.

Avila (12-1) posted a second-period pin of Baileys Weeks of Vinton-Shellsburg in the consolation final to close the tournament 6-1.

Teammate Emma Barker finished eighth at 145 pounds for West High going 3-3 over the two-day tournament.

Barker (10-6) fell to Kayte Yaw of Des Moines East in the seventh-place match.

Lexi Nash (9-4) went 4-2 at the meet at 170 pounds for West High.

West High finished 15^th in the team standings with 69 points while Waverly-Shell Rock won the team title with 219.

Colfax-Mingo was second with 159 followed by Osage with 135, Bettendorf with 133 and Decorah with 124.

Claire Brown went 2-2 for City High at 120 pounds and teammate Sydney Wilkes went 2-2 at 115 for the Little Hawks in their first season of competition.

West Branch senior Madelyn Hartz went 2-2 and placed seventh at 285 pounds earning a second-period pin of Miranda Ginn of Dallas Center-Grimes in the seventh-place match.

Emmersen Thomas went 2-2 at 110 pounds for the Bears.

Bre White went 2-2 at 140 pounds to lead Regina.

Solon had seven different wrestlers win multiple matches at the meet led by junior Addison Burden (14-6) who went 4-2 and reached the third round at 135 pounds.

Kara VeDepo, Safina Yermetova, Bella Feaker, Cheyenne Mulford, Olivia Bonnema and Emilee Suchomel all posted at least two wins as Solon finished 20 with 60 team points.

Marlie McBride went 5-2 at 110 pounds to lead Clear Creek Amana as five different Clippers won multiple matches.

Teagan Schreiber won four consecutive matches without a loss to win the silver bracket championship at 120 pounds, pinning Anna Hitchcock of Bettendorf in the championship.

Haley Descourouez went 3-2 and finished fourth in the silver bracket at 125 pounds.

Emma Mathis, Kaly Thomas and Caitlyn Williams all won at least two matches for Clear Creek Amana which rolled up 46 team points.

IWCOA Girls State

At Xtream Arena

Team scores – 1. Waverly-Shell Rock 219; 2. Colfax-Mingo 159; 3. Osage 135; 4. Bettendorf 133; 5. Decorah 124; 6. Charles City 115; 7. Council Bluffs Lewis Central 114; 7. Spencer 114; 9. Mid-Prairie 98; 10. Vinton-Shellsburg 90; 11. North Scott 82; 12. Ridge View 77; 13. Humboldt 74; 14. East Buchanan 72; 15. West High 69; 16. Dallas Center-Grimes 67; 17. Crestwood 66; 18. Boone 62; 18. Southeast Polk 62; 20. Perry 60; 20. Solon 60; 22. Ankeny Centennial 58; 23. Cedar Rapids Kennedy 57; 23. Independence 57; 23. Dubuque Wahlert 57; 26. Pleasant Valley 55; 27. Waukon 53; 28. Newton 52; 29. Cedar Falls 51; 30. Algona 50; 30. Sumner-Fredericksburg 50; 30. West Liberty 50; 30. Williamsburg 50; 34. Ames 48; 35. Clear Creek Amana 46; 36. Central Elkader 45; 37. Davenport West 44.5; 38. Mount Vernon 44; 38. Union 44; 40. Council Bluffs Abraham Lincoln 43; 40. North Cedar 43; 42. Ottumwa 42; 43. Iowa Valley 41; 44. Western Dubuque 40; 44. Saint Ansgar 40; 46. Anamosa 39.5; 46. Clayton Ridge 39.5; 48. LeMars 38; 48. West Fork 38; 50. AGWSR 36; 50. Sigourney-Keota 36; 50. Southwest Valley 36; 65. City High 28.5; 101. West Branch 15; 109. Regina 10

Championship matches; area placewinners

100 – 1. Jillian Worthen (Union) dec. Gable Hemann (Osage) 3-0

105 – 1. Molly Allen (Underwood) major dec. Hannah Davis (Council Bluffs Abraham Lincoln) 12-1

110 – 1. Reanah Utterback (Sigourney-Keota) pinned Jalynn Goodale (Osage) 3:12

115 – 1. Eva Diaz (Waverly-Shell Rock) dec. Jasmine Luedtke (Ottumwa) 1-0

120 – 1. Hannah Roges (Wilton) pinned Maddie Black (Eddyville-Blakesburg-Fremont) 1:57

120 (Silver) – 1. Teagan Schreiber (Clear Creek Amana) pinned Anna Hitchcock (Bettendorf) 3:33

125 – 1. Ella Schmit (Bettendorf) pinned Rylee Vercande (Williamsburg) 2:55

125 (Silver) – 1. Addy Appelhans (Anamosa) pinned Emily Lundvall (Glenwood) :27; 4. Haley Descourouez (Clear Creek Amana)

130 – 1. Lilly Luft (Charles City) dec. Macy Smith (Waverly-Shell Rock) 9-3

135 – 1. Alexis Ross (Fort Dodge) dec. Sarah Lewis (Centerville) 3-0

140 – 1. Emma Peach (Iowa Valley) pinned Annika Behrends (Waverly-Shell Rock) 5:53

145 – 1. Alana Duggan (Dubuque Wahlert) dec. Tatum Wolford (Wapello) 6-3; 8. Emma Barker (West High)

155 – 1. Isabella Deeds (Ridge View) dec. Aine Moffit (Pleasant Valley) 6-3; 3. Jannell Avila (West High)

170 – 1. Naomi Simon (Decorah) pinned Bella Porcelli (Southeast Polk) 3:57

190 – 1. Jana Terwee (West Lyon) dec. Mackenzie Arends (Nevada) 3-2 TB-1

220 – 1. Savannah Sistad (Creston) dec. Jocelyn Buffum (Missouri Valley) 3-0

285 – 1. Olivia Huckfelt (Spencer) pinned Rylee Coyle (Humboldt) 2:35; 8. Madelyn Hartz (West Branch)

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