The Van Buren County girls wrestling team delivered a commanding performance at the WACO Warrior Girls Invitational on Monday, January 5th, claiming the team championship with 180.5 points. North Mahaska finished second with 115 points in the nine-team field.
Team Standings
Van Buren County led the field with 180.5 points, followed by North Mahaska (115), Lisbon (113.5), Highland (97), Albia (82), Columbus (68), North Linn (64), WACO (57), and Lone Tree (51.5).
Individual Results
Van Buren County crowned three individual champions and earned medals from nearly every wrestler.
Brystol Wiley (110), seeded first, dominated her two matches against North Mahaska’s Lilly Briggs—the only other wrestler in the weight class. Wiley won by pin in the second period after building an 8-0 advantage in their first meeting, then claimed the championship with a fall in the second period after leading 10-0. Wiley didn’t surrender a single point throughout the tournament.
Rylee Caviness (125), seeded first, earned a championship with three impressive victories. She won by pin in the first period of her opener, recorded a 19-4 technical fall in the second period of her semifinal, and claimed the title with a pin in just 26 seconds.
Teagan Sickels (170), seeded first, also captured first place with three consecutive pins—in the second period, first period, and first period of the final. Sickels took a 3-0 lead in every match and didn’t give up a single point throughout the tournament.
Armoney Adams (100), seeded first, took second place. She defeated teammate Rory Philips 6-3 with a second-period pin in her opener, won by fall in one minute after building a 4-3 advantage, and fell in a tough third-period championship match.
Hadley Noe (135), seeded second, earned runner-up honors. She won by fall in the second period after dominating 13-3, won by decision 7-2 in her semifinal, and fell in the first period of the championship match.
Lexie Wiley (140), seeded third, also finished second. She won by pin in 55 seconds, won by fall in the first period of her semifinal, and fell in the first period of the championship match.
Willow Worley (145), seeded third, took second place after receiving a first-round bye. She upset second-seeded Allison Arnold of North Linn with a 51-second fall before falling in the first period of the championship match.
Rory Philips (100), seeded fourth, captured third place. After losing to teammate Adams 6-3 with a second-period pin and falling in the third period of her second match, Philips bounced back with a pin in 47 seconds to claim bronze.
Mallory Brauns (105), seeded second, took third place. After a first-round bye, she lost by pin with seven seconds left in the third period of a competitive semifinal. Brauns rebounded to win by fall in the first period before defeating teammate Jacqueline Singer 14-11 by decision for third place.
Rylee Philips (120), seeded sixth, also earned third place. She lost by fall in the second period, received a bye, won by fall in the first period, and pinned teammate Arianna Harvey for bronze.
Adisson McLain (155), seeded third, finished third after losing by fall in the second period of her first two matches.
Randi Grimm (190), seeded third, took third place despite losing by pin in the first period of both her matches.
Jacqueline Singer (105), seeded fourth, placed fourth. She won by pin in the first period after trailing 3-2, lost in the second period, received a bye, and fell to teammate Brauns 14-11 by decision in the third-place match.
Arianna Harvey (120), seeded eighth, finished fourth. She lost by pin in the first period, upset second-seeded Lucy Haughenbury of North Linn with a pin in the second period after trailing 8-2, and lost to teammate Rylee Philips in the third-place match.
Looking Ahead
The Warriors will be back in action on Friday, January 9th, at Highland as they continue their impressive season.
Photography provided by Jessica Goehring.
