Mark Kirk
What a tournament! Little Axe, Cache, Harrah and McLoud battled over three days in an exciting team race to determine the 1st ever Class 5A Girls State Championship team. In thrilling action throughout the finals, Alexus Jones and Chloe Vawter won individual state titles, propelling Little Axe to the title with Cache and Harrah tying for 2nd and McLoud in 4th.
After Friday’s semifinals, Cache led with 59 points, followed by Little Axe – 48, McLoud – 44 and Harrah – 36. With every point critical in a tight team race, Little Axe pushed three into the consolation finals, with Amelia Earhart winning by fall in an important heads up battle with Harrah and Anjelica Morales and Emily McDaniel earning 4th place finishes. Cache had two in the consolation finals with Zoe Bennett winning by fall to earn a 3rd place finish and Shiann Famero placing 4th.
Harrah jumped into contention, putting four in the consolation finals with Madison Welch and Chloe Hodge picking up falls to earn 3rd place finishes and Hannah Miller and Natasha Orozco adding 4th place team points. McLoud got 3rd place finishes from Bridget Bailey and Launa Trout, but fell out of contention for the team title.
Heading into the finals, Cache stood at 76 with three finalists, Little Axe two points behind with two finalists, and Harrah at 72 with one finalist. Little Axe would know what they needed when their first finalist stepped on the mat as Cache and Harrah would be done by that time.
Cache had put themselves in the team race with tremendous wrestling in the semifinals with freshman regional champion Katelyn Patterson getting it started, winning a wild 16-13 battle with Jay’s Angela Lee. Senior CJ Landry and junior Victorya Cox each had two upset wins, coming from 4th place regional finishes to make the finals. Landry had two falls on her march to the finals, including a quarterfinal fall over regional champion Shaylee Kelly from Catoosa. Cox pinned regional champion Kenadee Thomas from Jay and then advanced to the finals with a 3-1 win over Pawhuska’s Savanna Hendren.
Cache’s three finalists faced wrestlers that had a combined record of 97-1 and they were unable to pick up a win, finishing the tournament with 76 points. Harrah’s last wrestler, sophomore Addie Morse, a state runner-up last year, won the 105 lb. title with a 5-1 win over Skiatook senior Destiny Jones. Morse finished the year with a 38-3 record and now has a 62-5 career record.
The win by Morse put Harrah in a tie with Cache for the lead with both teams done for the night. Little Axe trailed by two points, with Alexus Jones and Chloe Vawter yet to wrestle. Little Axe knew what they had to do. Win one more match and they are State Champions.
In the 130 lb. finals, freshman regional champion Alexus Jones, who had survived a scare in the opening round, winning in sudden victory over Tuttle’s Millie Bradley was facing returning state placer Trinity Rakestraw from Tecumseh. Rakestraw struck first, taking the lead with a 1st period takedown. In the 2nd period, Jones got the screaming Little Axe fans on their feet when she almost got the fall, but took the lead with the 3-point near-fall. To the delight of the ecstatic fans, Jones locked up the win with a takedown 37 seconds from the end of the match. When time ran out giving Jones and Little Axe the state title, the celebration was on!
To make the celebration even sweeter, freshman regional champion Chloe Vawter avenged a regular season loss to McLoud’s returning state runner-up Stacey Nash, winning by fall in 3:16 to claim the 235 lb. state title and send the Little Axe fans through the roof in excitement. Vawter finished the year with a 27-4 record.
Ft. Gibson’s Peighton Mullins ended her spectacular career as a 3X state champion and 4X finalist, winning the 155 lb. title with three falls, including a fall in 1:58 in the finals over Henryetta’s Lily Haywood. Mullins finished the year 18-1 and with an 81-4 career record.
Poteau senior Ashley Johnson ended an outstanding career as an undefeated state champion and 3X state placer. Johnson pinned Cache’s Katelyn Patterson in the finals to finish the year with a 31-0 record. Johnson placed 2nd in 2022, 3rd in 2023, before winning the title this year and ends with a 77-11 career record.
Bristow senior Zoey Freeman, a 3X state qualifier, won the 125 lb. title with a 7-0 win over McLoud’s Kendra Perrien. Freeman was named the Outstanding Wrestler of the Tournament. Freeman finished with a 36-2 season record and 82-16 career record. With the win, Freeman…
