Iowa High School Girls Wrestling Preview

In last year’s preview there were 37 girls registered to wrestle in Iowa on their high school teams. Within a few weeks of the start of the season we saw those numbers increase significantly to 66. In light of that, we waited a couple extra weeks this year to bring out our girls high school preview and hopefully include the majority of those wrestlers who will be competing this season.

Iowa’s female wrestlers are growing in numbers at an impressive rate. As of this week, there are 85 wrestlers registered, which is a 28.8% increase over last year’s 66. It is also important to note that there is a female registered to wrestle in 23 out of the 24 districts covering 1A, 2A & 3A throughout the state of Iowa. Keep in mind that there are 6 additional wrestlers who are listed on the rosters but have not yet weight certified and there are always additional wrestlers who are late sign ups or have not been entered in the roster data. At this rate of growth, what used to be a handful of female wrestlers throughout the state will soon be well over 100 and growing.

Iowa does not currently sanction girls wrestling at the high school level, requiring those females interested in wrestling to do so by competing on the boys team at their high school. We have reached a point in Iowa where sanctioning girls wrestling should be a major topic of discussion at the Iowa High School Athletic Association (IHSAA) and the Iowa Girls High School Athletic Union (IGHSAU). The participation numbers, rate of growth, and active support among coaches, officials, and administrators point to the need for sanctioning. The assumption can also be made that the numbers would increase exponentially given the opportunity for girls to wrestle other girls. For those who have not supported girls wrestling because they have competed against the boys, here is your opportunity to support the girls by supporting sanctioning of girls wrestling in Iowa. There are a lot of people working behind the scenes to make sanctioning a reality and we will include information on the progress in future updates.

Now on to the preview!

We have listed the wrestlers in their respective classes and districts and have included their grade level and weight class. Keep in mind that these are the certified weights and many wrestlers will compete at different weights as the season gets underway.

Of the 85 wrestlers included, the class and grade breakdowns are:

Class 1A: 27
Class 2A: 21
Class 3A: 37

Seniors: 13
Juniors: 22
Sophomores: 24
Freshmen: 26

Class 1A Districts (27 wrestlers)

District 1 – Hudson (Sectionals 1 & 2)
Emily Thomason (Fr) – 126, Dike-New Hartford

District 2 – Lake Mills (Sectionals 3 & 4)
Ali Gerbracht (Fr) – 106, AGWSR, Ackley
Cailee Henning (Jr) – 132, West Fork, Sheffield
Annette Casino (So) -182, Northwood-Kensett

District 3 – Maple Valley (Mapleton) (Sectionals 5 & 6)
Mykenzi Brinkman (Sr) – 113, Westwood, Sloan
Kaitlyn Guy (Fr) – 113, Woodbine
Hannah Payne (Fr) – 113, South Central Calhoun
Sheyenne Jochims (Fr) – 126, Maple Valley-Anthon-Oto
Madison Kafton (So) – 132, Westwood, Sloan
Keagan King (So) – 132, South Central Calhoun
Brittany Shumate (Jr) – 132, Woodbine

District 4 – Okoboji, Milford (Sectionals 7 & 8)
Shae Muecke (So) 106, Kingsley-Pierson
Grace Meier (Jr) 126, Alta/Aurelia
Rachel Dreeszen (Sr) – 220, Kingsley-Pierson

District 5 – Pleasantville (Sectionals 9 & 10)
Emma Cochran (So) – 113, Moravia
Sarah Moorman (Fr) – 120, Wayne, Corydon
Mollie Greve (So) – 126, Colfax-Mingo
Kyla Lampman (So) – 126, Colfax-Mingo
Erica Halferty (Sr) – 170, Wayne, Corydon

District 6 – Starmont (Sectionals 11 & 12)
Felicity Taylor (Jr) – 113, South Winneshiek, Calmar
Teodora Leopold (Jr) – 152, Starmont

District 7 – Underwood (Sectionals 13& 14)
Gracie Bluml (Fr) – 106, Riverside, Oakland
Nayely Martinez (Fr) – 113, Riverside, Oakland
Soledad Castaneda (Sr) – 138, Riverside, Oakland
Sarah True (Sr) – 145, AHSTW, Avoca
Julia Smith (Jr) – 220, Griswold

District 8 – Wilton (Sectionals 15 & 16)
Sabina Halleman (Sr) – 160, Tipton

Class 2A Districts (21 wrestlers)

District 1 – Decorah (Sectionals 1 & 2)
Chloe Clemons (Fr) – 106, Center Point-Urbana
Matti Pladsen (Jr) – 132, Waukon

District 2 – Fairfield (Sectionals 3 & 4)
Britany Flockhart (So) – 113, Keokuk
Dominique Mosier (So) – 145, Clear Creek-Amana

District 3 – Harlan (Sectionals 5 & 6)
Kyla Devilbiss (Sr) – 138, Perry
Zowie Strough (So) – 152, Perry
Kimberly Valdez (Jr) – 195, Perry

District 4 – Iowa Falls (Sectionals 7 & 8)
Chloe Krebsbach (So) – 113, Osage
Corby Webb (Jr) – 113, Aplington-Parkersburg-GC
Shelby Blake (So) – 120, Osage
Ciana Sonberg (Jr) – 145, Charles City
Nicole Watters (Jr) – 152, Ballard

District 5 – Knoxville (Sectionals 9 & 10)
Dakotah Selby (So) – 113, Albia

District 6 – Maquoketa (Sectionals 11 & 12)
Alaina Sunlin (Fr) – 106, Monticello
Shelby Wilke (Jr) – 182, Northeast, Goose Lake
Haley Snyder (Jr) – 195, Northeast, Goose Lake

District 7 – Spencer (Sectionals 13 & 14)
Kali Zufall (Sr) – 220, Estherville Lincoln Central

District 8 – Webster City (Sectionals 15 & 16)
Kim Hendrian (Jr) – 120, Roland-Story, Story City
Kennadi Colbert (Fr) – 126, Clear Lake
Keona Ries (Fr) – 126, Algona
Leila Seaton (So) – 160, Roland-Story, Story City

Class 3A Districts (37 wrestlers)

District 1 – Ankeny Centennial
Jade Bitting (So) – 106, Southeast Polk
Annatastacia Larpenter (So) – 113, Des Moines, Lincoln
Hannah Perkins (Fr) – 113, Ankeny
Chloe Pearson (Fr) – 120, Des Moines, Lincoln
Alanah Vetterick (Jr) – 126, Norwalk
Eh Ku Ku (Sr) – 132, Des Moines, Lincoln
January Paw (Sr) – 132, Des Moines, Lincoln
Jolynn Harris (Jr) – 138, Des Moines, Lincoln
Emma Cockerham (Sr) – 145, Ankeny

District 2 – Cedar Rapids, Jefferson
Chloey Santee (So) – 120, Cedar Rapids, Jefferson
Donny Bradburn (So) – 132, Dubuque, Hempstead
Alyssa Zinke (Fr) – 145, Clinton

District 3 – Fort Dodge
Autumn Sharp (Fr) – 113, Boone
Camrae Schakel (Fr) – 132, Nevada
Jocelyn Hernandez (Sr) – 152, LeMars
Aliya Gurganus (Fr) – 160, Ames
Eden Highland (Fr) – 160, Nevada

District 4 – Glenwood
Myla Mayo (Jr) – 113, Sioux City, East
Allison Aguilar (Fr) – 138, Sioux City, West
Jesse Lo (Jr) – 145, Denison-Schleswig

District 5 – Mount Pleasant
Yan Chen (Jr) – 113, Iowa City, City High
Morgan Lawson (Jr) – 113, Ottumwa
Courtney Six (So) – 113, Fort Madison
Amaya Graham (So) – 126, Oskaloosa
Kaia Graham (So) – 132, Oskaloosa

District 6 – North Scott, Eldridge
Tateum Park (Fr) – 113, Davenport, North
McKenzee Kempker (Fr) – 120, Burlington
Natasha Rojas (Fr) – 126, Muscatine
Shelby Lee (So) – 132, Pleasant Valley
Alisha Smith (Jr) – 132, Pleasant Valley
Alex Chapman (Fr) – 138, Pleasant Valley
Ashley Blackwood (Fr) – 170, Davenport, North
Liliana Garcia (Sr) – 170, Davenport, Central

District 7 – Waukee
Brittany Ferrell-Harris (So) – 120, Des Moines, East
Grace Massier (Jr) – 126, Des Moines, Roosevelt
Aziza Bell (So) – 132, Des Moines, East
Katie Johnson (Fr) – 132, Waukee

District 8 – Waverly-Shell Rock
-None

As mentioned above, additional wrestlers will likely be added in the coming weeks. If you know of a female high school wrestler who is not included, please email their information to: matt@femaleelitewrestling.org

The first week of competition is at hand with weekend tournaments taking place throughout the state. We look forward to bringing you the results in our next recap!

For updates, be sure to follow us on Twitter: @watters_ia, @FewTeamIowa, and @IAwrestle!

Interested in the benefits of wrestling at any age level? Contact Charlotte Bailey of Female Elite Wrestling (FEW) at: coach@femaleelitewrestling.org to find out more.