Mark Kirk
The debate has raged all year on who was number one in the Girls Class 6A race for the state championship. It will be decided this weekend on the mat as it is State Tournament time! Broken Arrow, Edmond North, Union, Bixby, Westmoore and Moore all have visions of claiming the state championship trophy on Saturday night.
As regional champions, Broken Arrow and Edmond North will enter as the early favorites. You just have to look at the past two State Tournaments to see that Union claimed both state titles without winning the regional tournament to know that it is more than a two-team race. The team champion will likely be decided by who gets on a roll, avoids upsets and earns the all-important bonus points.
Edmond North won the West Regional title and will send 11 wrestlers to the State Tournament, including four regional champions and one runner-up. Taylor Ellis Hishaw, Clover Williams, Bella Williams and Teegan Steward all won regional titles with Kinslee Collier earning a 2nd place finish. East Regional champion Broken Arrow qualified 10 wrestlers, including three regional champions and five 2nd place finishers. Emily Beckley, Jordyn Todhunter and Tiffany Breshears won regional titles with Alina Peralta, Sophie Reece, Kristen DeLaRosa, Addison Farquhar and Sophie Donaho earning runner-up finishes.
Union trailed Edmond North by 13 points at the regional tournament and qualified eight wrestlers, including two champions and three 2nd place finishers. Kali Hayden and Azreal Smith won regional titles with Dakota Harris, Aiyana Perkins and Terrilan Banner all finishing 2nd. Bixby qualified eight wrestlers including one champion (Millie Azlin) and three runners-up (Jadyn Roller, Brissa Bernal and Jay’la Ford). Moore qualified seven wrestlers, including five wrestlers that finished in the top three, with Brooklyn Noel and Hannah Lopez winning regional titles and Shelby Kemp earning a runner-up finish.
Westmoore doesn’t have the numbers of the other teams but enters the State Tournament with four regional champions out of their five qualifiers. Kyrain Perez, Krystan Perez, Mariah Robbins and Brielle Williams all won regional titles for Westmoore. State Tournament points add up quickly when you earn falls and push wrestlers into the finals. Union won last year’s title with two champions, one 3rd place medalist and leading all teams with 10 falls.
In the race for individual state titles, there are 10 returning state champions, including five 2X champions. To show the strength of the field this year, five of the returning champions did not win regional titles.
The West Regional finals at 170 lbs. featured two of the state’s best regardless of weight, as 2X state champion Kali Hayden earned a quick fall over Elgin’s 2X state champion…
