Ryan Murken

Your Prep Sports

The sport of girls wrestling continues to grow around the state each season.

Participation numbers and excitement in the sport continued to surge this year in the third season as a sanctioned sport in Iowa.

It was another impressive season of girls wrestling in the Your Prep Sports area.

Three Your Prep Sports area wrestlers earned state medals this season as West Branch senior Teagyn Hartz, Liberty High sophomore Peyton Van Dyke and City High senior Shaona Emmanuel all earned spots on the medal stand at the 2025 state tournament at Xtream Arena in Coralville.

Those three wrestlers highlight the third edition of the Your Prep Sports all-area girls wrestling team.

This year’s team features nine state qualifiers, three state medalists and wrestlers from five different schools.

Emmanuel is the captain of the 2025 Your Prep Sports all-area team after finishing third at the Class 2A state tournament.

The third-place finish by Emannuel was the highest for a City High wrestler and capped a season in which she also won Mississippi Valley Conference and Regional titles.

Your Prep Sports Area Girls Wrestling Team

100 – Eva Pentecost (27-13) Fr., Liberty High: One of the top freshman in the area Pentecost put together an impressive debut season that included 27 wins, a sixth-place finish at the Mississippi Valley Conference meet and a fourth-place performance at the Class 2A, Region 2 meet.

105 – Kara VeDepo (36-5) Sr., Solon: A three-time state qualifier, VeDepo won WAMAC Conference and Class 1A regional titles before making a third consecutive state tournament appearance.

105 – Taylor Cavanh (30-7) Jr., Liberty High: A leader in the Liberty High room Cavanh added to an already impressive career resume this season winning a Mississippi Valley Conference title before finishing third at the Class 2A, Region 2 meet.

110 – McKenna Rogers (28-8) Jr., Solon: A stalwart in the Spartan lineup the past three seasons Rogers finished runner-up at both the WAMAC Conference and 1A region 7 tournaments before going 1-2 in a third consecutive state tournament appearance.

115 – Tess Richards (13-8) Soph., Solon: Richards did her best wrestling at the end of the season going 3-0 with three pins on her way to winning a regional title to secure her first state tournament appearance.

120 – Trinity Myers (31-15) Sr., West High: A two-time state qualifier, Myers had the best season of her career as a senior winning a career-high 31 matches, finishing fourth at the Mississippi Valley Conference meet and runner-up at the Class 2A, Region 7 meet before going 1-2 at the 2A state meet.

125 – Kaitlyn Raue (28-8) Soph., Liberty High: After winning 16 matches last season as a freshman Raue enjoyed a breakthrough sophomore season in which she won 28 matches and finished third at the Class 2A, Region 2 meet.

130 – Alexis Anderson (20-18) Jr., Solon: In her third varsity season Anderson continued to take strides posting a career-high 20 wins while placing fifth at the WAMAC Conference meet.

135 – Lucianna Miller (24-15) Sr. Solon: One of the most improved wrestlers in the area Miller went from 16 wins a season ago to a 24-15 mark this season that included a fourth-place finish at the WAMAC Conference meet and a third-place regional finish.

140 – Evelyn Eggleston (19-3) Jr., Liberty High: An injury kept Eggleston off the mat for a large part of the season but didn’t stop the Liberty High standout from winning a Mississippi Valley Conference title and finishing third at the Class 2A, Region 2 meet.

140 – Olivia Bonnema (23-8) Sr., Solon: Another three-year state qualifier in the Solon lineup Bonnema was a leader for the Spartans and closed her career with her best season finishing runner-up at the WAMAC Conference meet and winning a regional title before going 1-2 at the 1A state meet.

145 – Callum Wu (35-9) Jr., Liberty High: Another Liberty High wrestler to make a big jump this season Wu more than doubled her win total from a season ago posting a career-high 35 victories while finishing third at the MVC tournament and fourth at the Class 2A, Region 2 meet.

155 – *Shaona Emmanuel (32-5) Jr., City High: Last season Emmanuel won 34 matches but narrowly missed a trip to the state tournament in a breakthrough sophomore season. This year Emmanuel continued her impressive climb toward being one of the best in the state. Emmanuel won MVC and Class 2A Regional titles before claiming the first state medal of her career with a third-place finish at the state meet. The junior won five consecutive matches at the state meet, all by fall, after an opening-round loss on her way to a third-place finish.

155 – Peyton Van Dyke (23-9) Soph., Liberty High: A state qualifier last season as a freshman, Van Dyke earned the first state medal of her career this season with an eighth-place finish at the Class 2A state meet. Van Dyke finished runner-up at the Class 2A, Region 2 meet before going 2-3 on her way to the eighth-place finish at state.

170 – Molly Carlson (28-8) Jr., City High: A three-time state qualifier, Carlson continued to add to her career resume with another strong season. Carlson finished fifth at the MVC tournament and won a Class 2A, Region 4 title before going 1-2 at the state meet.

190 – Teagyn Hartz (37-5) Sr., West Branch: The most decorated wrestler in program history, Hartz capped a stellar career with her first state medal finishing seventh at the Class 1A state tournament. Hartz had 28 pins among her 37 wins, won a River Valley Conference title and finished runner-up at the 1A Region 7 meet before going 3-2 at the state meet.

235 – Abigail Carr (17-13) Jr., Liberty High: Among the most improved wrestlers in the area last season Carr continued her climb this year improving her finish at the MVC meet by two spots with a fourth-place finish.

*- Denotes Captain

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