Wrestling: Walden Grove & Santa Cruz win team titles; 10 girls claim championships

February 9, 2019 by Andy Morales, AZPreps365


First Girl Champions (Andy Morales/AZPreps365.com)

TOURNAMENT PHOTOS AT PAYNTERPICS.COM

 

For the first time in Arizona history, girls took to the mat to compete for a state wrestling championship they could call their own. To be fair, a few girls have qualified for state competition in the past but the competition was always designed for the boys. But not this year.

The AIA introduced a separate wrestling category for girls this year under the guidance of an “emerging sport,” with the intent of collecting as much information and data as possible to make the experience a rewarding one for the girls. Everything was new. Every time a girl warmed up, wrestled, had her hand lifted in victory or held a medal proudly, was a first. Even the pain of defeat was a first.

4 national titles, including freestyle in Fargo, USA Junior Pan-American gold medalist and now 118 Arizona state champion Stefana Jelacic #azpreps365 pic.twitter.com/UKlNY9YU0w

— Andy Morales (@AZPreps365Andy) February 9, 2019

As an emerging sport, there was no team title this year, but ten girls earned individual state championships just like their counterparts who wrestled right along with the girls at the Findlay Toyota Center on Friday.

“Some of the girls told me they had to practice separate from the boys but I’m lucky because my coaches felt it was important for us to practice with the boys on our team,” Canyon del Oro freshman Mylei Seigla said. “It made me quicker and stronger but it also caused us to bond as a team and I see the boys as my brothers.”

The day of firsts was not reserved just for the girls, with the boys of Walden Grove winning the first state wrestling championship in school history with a 185.5 to 141.5 win over Yuma. Yuma beat Walden Grove 170 to 169.5 last year but the Criminals had a difficult time keeping pace from beginning to end this year.

“Most of these guys have been together since sixth grade and they will be the most memorable thing about this year for me,” head coach Victor Gonzalez said. “They have heart, they are kind to each other, they are a great group of kids and this is why we do this. This just doesn’t happen, it takes work. It’s a beautiful thing.”

A lot of programs can turn to a singular event or athlete and look back and say that was the game-changer. For the Red Wolves, Diego Guerrero is that athlete.

Guerrero (51-2) picked up his fourth state championship in the 132-pound division and his teammates Evan Killgore (50-2) and Jackson Edwards (51-4) also came through with gold medals. In all, Walden Grove had eight wrestlers standing on the awards platform and that is what it takes to dominate.

Safford’s standout duo of McKade Finch (53-2) and Dawon Andrews (44-1) also picked up their fourth titles in a row.

It wasn’t a “first” but it sure felt like it. The Santa Cruz Dust Devils had five state championships in school history but none since 1995. That all changed when the Dust Devils beat St. Johns 182.5 to 155 to claim the D-IV title and the first one to see that coming was head coach Ray Belloc.

“I called it last year when we left here,” Belloc said. “I saw what we had and who was coming in and I knew we had this. It took lots of sweat, blood and tears but this is the most competitive team I have ever coached.”

Belloc only loses three senior placers to graduation.

Lexi Borunda of Shadow Ridge first ever girls state wrestling champion #azpreps365 pic.twitter.com/JxRDvhGeeW

— Andy Morales (@AZPreps365Andy) February 9, 2019

For the girls, Shadow Ridge standout Lexi Borunda (10-0) was the first girl to win a state title in Arizona history. Canyon del Oro freshman Mylei Seigla (16-1) took third place in the 118 division to claim the highest finish for an athlete from Southern Arizona and Chandler junior Stefana Jelacic (11-0) added a state title to her impressing resume of four various national championships and a gold medal as part of the USA Junior Pan-American team.

GIRL RESULTS

101

1st Place - Lexi Borunda of Shadow Ridge

2nd Place - Grace Wietschak of Desert Ridge

3rd Place - Caylee Townsend of Camp Verde

4th Place - Arianna Erb of Dobson

 

110

1st Place - Sierrah Thrun of Corona del Sol

2nd Place - Genesis Angel Cejudo of Desert Mountain

3rd Place - Arely Carbajal of Yuma

4th Place - Sakina Lord of North

 

118

1st Place - Stefana Jelacic of Chandler

2nd Place - Cynthenie Tai of Washington

3rd Place - Mylei Seigla of Canyon del Oro

4th Place - Genesis Higuera of Odyssy Institute

 

125

1st Place - Julia Chambers of Skyline

2nd Place - Trinity Howard of Basha

3rd Place - Brinley Driggs of Pinnacle

4th Place - Camry Carter of Casteel

 

130

1st Place - Carolina Moreno of Kofa

2nd Place - Yaniva Carrillo of Cesar Chavez

3rd Place - Tiffany Salahub of Mohave

4th Place - Roxana Porras of Apollo

 

135

1st Place - Julia Lundberg of North Canyon

2nd Place - Jazmine Lobato of Mohave

3rd Place - Latasha Slim of Page

4th Place - Adriana Garland of Sunnyside

 

145

1st Place - Jessie McCurry of Deer Valley

2nd Place - Courtney Cardoza of Millennium

3rd Place - Nesa Martinez of Morenci

4th Place - Amber Rodriquez of Basha

 

160

1st Place - Jennifer Curry of Hamilton

2nd Place - Layla Velasquez of San Pasqual

3rd Place - Trinity Tompkins of Chino Valley

4th Place - Eva Schroeder of Arizona Lutheran

 

185

1st Place - Mia Didur of Centennial

2nd Place - Sofia Rubio of Marcos de Niza

3rd Place - Stefanie Valencia of Westwood

4th Place - Gaby Winter of Basha

 

225

1st Place - Danni Schulz of Mingus Union

2nd Place - Mariana Reyes of Cibola

3rd Place - Taylor Haney of Basha

4th Place - Destiny Magdaleno of Pinon

 

The Walk. Girls, D2 & D3 state wrestling: Part 1 pic.twitter.com/AtNkeEreiQ

— Andy Morales (@AZPreps365Andy) February 9, 2019

DIVISION III TEAM RESULTS

 

1 Walden Grove 185.5

2 Yuma 141.5

3 Chino Valley 121.5

4 Show Low 121.0

5 Safford 107.5

6 Canyon Del Oro 94.5

7 Pueblo 87.0

8 Marcos De Niza 64.5

9 Combs 63.0

10 Snowflake 60.0

11 Prescott 56.0

12 Dysart 45.0

13 Peoria 42.0

14 Salpointe 40.5

15 Apache Junction 33.0

16 Tempe 32.0

17 Lake Havasu 31.0

18 Coconino 30.5

19 Thunderbird 29.0

20 Estrella Foothills 24.0

20 Mesquite 24.0

22 Greenway 23.0

23 Blue Ridge 21.0

24 Cactus 19.0

24 Lee Williams 19.0

26 Casa Grande 18.5

27 Cortez 18.0

27 Desert Edge 18.0

29 Catalina Foothills 14.0

29 Washington 14.0

31 Douglas 13.0

31 Glendale 13.0

33 Payson 12.5

34 Youngker 12.0

35 Poston Butte 11.0

36 Shadow Mountain 10.0

37 Flagstaff 9.0

38 American Leadership - Ironwood 7.0

38 Arcadia 7.0

40 Buckeye 6.0

40 Gila Ridge 6.0

40 Moon Valley 6.0

43 Seton Catholic 5.5

44 American Leadership – QC 4.0

44 Mingus 4.0

46 Bradshaw Mountain 3.0

46 Palo Verde 3.0

48 Vista Grande 2.5

49 Florence 2.0

49 Mohave 2.0

51 Amphitheater 0.0

51 Sabino 0.0

51 Sahuarita 0.0

51 Sahuaro 0.0

 

DIVISION III INDIVIDUAL RESULTS

 

D3-106

1st Place Match

Pedro Billups (Coconino) 53-1, Jr. over Chase Sorenson (Blue Ridge) 16-4, Jr. (TF-1.5 3:46 (15-0))

3rd Place Match

Romeo Avalos (Canyon Del Oro) 48-6, Jr. over Noah Perez (Marcos De Niza) 14-4, Jr. (Fall 4:40)

5th Place Match

Thomas Kinnebrew (Safford) 50-8, Sr. over Cole Housley (Show Low) 40-13, Fr. (Dec 1-0)

 

D3-113

1st Place Match

Tanner Fellows (Show Low) 50-8, Jr. over Colby Evens (Chino Valley) 50-9, So. (Dec 7-3)

3rd Place Match

Oscar Seputveda (Peoria) 42-7, Sr. over Mario Bugarin (Yuma) 47-5, So. (Dec 5-2)

5th Place Match

Gabriel Castillo (Walden Grove) 32-15, Sr. over Gavin Gonzalez (Marcos De Niza) 34-14, So. (Fall 4:55)

 

D3-120

1st Place Match

Damond Lujan (Pueblo) 20-3, Sr. over Conner Schweigert (Show Low) 36-5, Jr. (Fall 2:36)

3rd Place Match

Jordan Busch (Casa Grande) 33-11, Sr. over Wade Payne (Chino Valley) 54-11, Sr. (Dec 4-1)

5th Place Match

Isaac Castro (Peoria) 42-10, So. over Sergio Zuniga (Douglas) 43-17, Jr. (Fall 2:16)

 

D3-126

1st Place Match

Trey Trejo (Canyon Del Oro) 42-10, Jr. over Owen Berry (Walden Grove) 49-2, Jr. (Dec 12-10)

3rd Place Match

Lane Evens (Chino Valley) 48-12, Sr. over Bryan Aizu (Glendale) 33-5, Sr. (Dec 9-4)

5th Place Match

Crew Perkins (Snowflake) 36-8, Jr. over O`Connir Vega (Peoria) 51-11, Jr. (Dec 3-2)

 

D3-132

1st Place Match

Diego Guerrero (Walden Grove) 51-2, Sr. over Connor Darling (Thunderbird) 37-11, Jr. (Fall 3:57)

3rd Place Match

Hunter Bateman (Show Low) 50-6, Sr. over Malik Shuaibe-Jones (Marcos De Niza) 42-8, Sr. (Dec 3-2)

5th Place Match

LIncoln Eby (Prescott) 33-10, So. over Earle Parra (Lake Havasu) 40-3, Sr. (Inj. 0:00)

 

D3-138

1st Place Match

McKade Finch (Safford) 53-2, Sr. over Carlos Ramos (Walden Grove) 39-10, Sr. (Dec 5-1)

3rd Place Match

George Sipie (Pueblo) 34-13, Sr. over Andrew Salberg (Prescott) 22-10, Sr. (MD 10-1)

5th Place Match

Rene Garcia (Canyon Del Oro) 46-16, Jr. over Easten Skinner (Flagstaff) 30-7, Sr. (MD 15-6)

 

D3-145

1st Place Match

Evan Killgore (Walden Grove) 50-2, Sr. over Corbin Nelson (Combs) 59-6, Sr. (Dec 7-1)

3rd Place Match

Jimmy Wayman (Lee Williams) 57-8, Jr. over Jack Northrup (Prescott) 38-8, Sr. (Dec 7-0)

5th Place Match

Carter Long (Show Low) 34-11, So. over Kody Ball (Desert Edge) 24-5, Sr. (For.)

 

D3-152

1st Place Match

Dawon Andrews (Safford) 44-1, Sr. over Kyle Lund (Chino Valley) 50-12, Sr. (Fall 5:27)

3rd Place Match

Erick Cervantes (Yuma) 57-8, So. over Aiden Keith (Salpointe Catholic) 48-16, Sr. (SV-1 9-7)

5th Place Match

Logan Mills (Show Low) 30-20, Jr. over Adrian Pena (Desert Edge) 33-16, So. (For.)

 

D3-160

1st Place Match

Zane McKissick (Canyon Del Oro) 52-7, Sr. over Marcos Gamez (Walden Grove) 39-6, Jr. (Dec 3-1)

3rd Place Match

Jared Thomas (Lake Havasu) 43-5, Jr. over Dallin Lewis (Snowflake) 35-9, Jr. (Dec 3-2)

5th Place Match

Colton Johnson (Greenway) 41-12, Jr. over Muzaffar Muzaffaro (Washington) 35-16, Jr. (Dec 12-6)

 

 

D3-170

1st Place Match

Keller Rock (Chino Valley) 58-2, Jr. over Robert White (Safford) 54-1, Jr. (Fall 5:37)

3rd Place Match

Aidan Irwin (Yuma) 59-7, Sr. over Davion Barnes (Cortez) 45-7, Sr. (Fall 3:26)

5th Place Match

Mark Orlando (Shadow Mountain) 30-12, Jr. over Koby Coates (Prescott) 21-9, Jr. (Dec 8-2)

 

D3-182

1st Place Match

Jacob Sanchez (Yuma) 62-2, Sr. over Lewis Everett (Mesquite) 45-4, Jr. (Fall 3:31)

3rd Place Match

Charles Hindley (Pueblo) 53-7, Sr. over Max Zavalza (Salpointe Catholic) 43-13, Sr. (Fall 0:59)

5th Place Match

Gibson Limongello (Apache Junction) 38-4, Jr. over Briggs Baldwin (Safford) 34-13, Jr. (Fall 3:58)

 

D3-195

1st Place Match

Jayden Dobson (Yuma) 43-3, So. over Roper Howard (Show Low) 43-9, Sr. (Fall 3:19)

3rd Place Match

Ricardo Avelar (Walden Grove) 49-9, Jr. over Justin White (Snowflake) 42-6, Sr. (Dec 10-3)

5th Place Match

Soto Sellis (Payson) 45-15, So. over Michael Milton (Poston Butte) 27-16, Sr. (Dec 8-4)

 

D3-220

1st Place Match

Jackson Edwards (Walden Grove) 51-4, Sr. over Wyatt Powe (Estrella Fh) 48-3, Sr. (Fall 1:47)

3rd Place Match

Michael Moussa (Catalina Fh) 44-11, Jr. over Ethan Wright (Apache Junction) 48-8, Jr. (Dec 2-1)

5th Place Match

Devin Montgomery (Combs) 44-9, Sr. over Trae Cates (Dysart) 31-9, Sr. (Dec 10-6)

 

D3-285

1st Place Match

David Leasau (Dysart) 38-2, Sr. over Orlando H. Molina (Tempe) 51-3, Sr. (Fall 1:25)

3rd Place Match

Taniela Taunima (Combs) 51-14, So. over Shane Garcia (Yuma) 37-9, Sr. (Dec 1-0)

5th Place Match

Ellye Hill (Marcos De Niza) 25-9, Sr. over Juan Rabago (Pueblo) 37-18, Jr. (Dec 3-0)

 

DIVISION IV TEAM RESLTS
 

1 Santa Cruz 182.5

2 St Johns 155.0

3 Morenci 144.5

4 Page 119.0

5 Willcox 96.0

6 Thatcher 90.0

7 Arizona Lutheran 87.5

8 Round Valley 80.0

9 Benson 79.5

10 Northwest Christian 76.0

11 Miami 67.0

12 Joseph City 49.0

12 Mogollon 49.0

14 San Pasqual 47.5

15 Camp Verde 45.5

16 River Valley 42.0

17 Winslow 40.0

18 Yuma Catholic 39.5

19 AZ College Prep 37.0

20 Monument Valley 36.0

21 Globe 31.0

21 Pima 31.0

21 San Manuel 31.0

24 Fountain Hills 27.0

25 Odyssey Institute 22.0

26 Pinon 14.0

27 Ben Franklin 13.0

28 Alchesay 11.0

28 Hayden 11.0

30 Phoenix Christian 10.0

31 Bourgade Catholic 9.0

32 Ganado 6.5

32 Parker 6.5

34 Antelope 5.0

34 Bisbee 5.0

34 Wickenburg 5.0

37 Tuba City 4.0

37 Window Rock 4.0

39 Catalina 3.0

39 Chinle 3.0

39 Holbrook 3.0

39 Mayer 3.0

39 Tombstone 3.0

39 Valley Christian 3.0

45 Santa Rita 2.5

46 Coolidge 0.0

46 Northland Prep 0.0

46 San Tan Foothills 0.0


DIVISION IV INDIVIDUAL RESULTS

 

D4-106

1st Place Match

Davian Guanajuato (Santa Cruz Valley) 60-0, So. over Marcus Morales (Morenci) 39-6, So. (Dec 7-2)

3rd Place Match

Malaki Porter (Mogollon) 43-13, Fr. over Terrell Kinlicheenie (Joseph City) 57-7, Fr. (Dec 7-2)

5th Place Match

Jozabad Ayala (Arizona Lutheran) 49-14, So. over Jackson Mccall (Round Valley) 44-11, So. (Dec 3-1)

 

D4-113

1st Place Match

Zachery Ruiz (Page) 53-4, . over Cael Porter (Mogollon) 46-7, Fr. (SV-1 8-6)

3rd Place Match

Bryant Ogle (Santa Cruz Valley) 27-7, Sr. over Calvin Dunning (Morenci) 38-6, Jr. (Dec 10-4)

5th Place Match

Collin Veen (Northwest Christian) 46-8, Sr. over Wesley Scarbrough (St Johns) 20-22, Fr. (Fall 2:44)

 

D4-120

1st Place Match

Emilio Ysaguirre (Santa Cruz Valley) 43-0, Fr. over Gilbert Rodriguez (San Manuel) 53-3, So. (Dec 6-5)

3rd Place Match

Carlos Bray (Morenci) 37-14, Jr. over David Pena (Miami) 43-12, Sr. (Dec 6-2)

5th Place Match

Miguel Loya (Yuma Catholic) 40-10, Jr. over Morgan Orona (Round Valley) 40-10, Fr. (Fall 0:38)

 

D4-126

1st Place Match

Tanner Crosby (St Johns) 45-4, . over Treven Clark (Thatcher) 39-3, Sr. (Fall 5:21)

3rd Place Match

Marcus Orona (Round Valley) 46-13, Jr. over Wyatt Ogle (Santa Cruz Valley) 31-5, Fr. (Fall 2:42)

5th Place Match

Benjamin Perez (Camp Verde) 44-6, Jr. over Brad Moreno (Monument Valley) 28-6, So. (Dec 4-2)

 

D4-132

1st Place Match

Anthony Tinghitella (Camp Verde) 47-0, Sr. over Ruben Tito Casillas (Morenci) 44-8, Sr. (Dec 5-2)

3rd Place Match

Seth Durbin (Globe) 44-3, So. over James Thomas (St Johns) 22-7, Fr. (Fall 0:38)

5th Place Match

Roy Sullivan (Santa Cruz Valley) 47-10, Sr. over Aden Cain (Yuma Catholic) 46-14, So. (Dec 7-0)

 

D4-138

1st Place Match

Kaiden Smith (St Johns) 53-4, Sr. over DAVID ENS (Benson) 52-7, Sr. (Dec 7-1)

3rd Place Match

Kelby Flowers (Willcox) 48-4, Jr. over Jose Macias (Yuma Catholic) 44-7, Fr. (Fall 2:23)

5th Place Match

Evan Clute (Santa Cruz Valley) 46-12, Jr. over Carson Stansfield (Page) 40-22, . (Dec 6-5)

 

D4-145

1st Place Match

Jake Borneman (Arizona Lutheran) 63-0, Sr. over Mark Roybal (Morenci) 13-1, Sr. (Dec 7-4)

3rd Place Match

Hunter Ogle (Santa Cruz Valley) 44-3, So. over Cameron Baldwin (Joseph City) 54-7, Sr. (MD 9-0)

5th Place Match

Timmy Porter (Mogollon) 51-7, Jr. over Matthew Tuni (Monument Valley) 36-9, Sr. (Fall 2:46)

 

D4-152

1st Place Match

Nicholas Steele (San Pasqual) 58-3, So. over Ote Allsup (Willcox) 47-4, So. (MD 11-1)

3rd Place Match

Gavin Davis (Arizona Lutheran) 55-8, Jr. over Austin Oppen (St Johns) 49-13, Sr. (Fall 1:48)

5th Place Match

Jason Carrosco (Thatcher) 24-6, Jr. over Hayden Gracia (Page) 13-8, . (Fall 0:56)

 

D4-160

1st Place Match

Diego Chavez (Santa Cruz Valley) 60-0, Fr. over Colter Hogle (Round Valley) 40-6, Sr. (Fall 5:39)

3rd Place Match

Cody Torres (Morenci) 37-14, Fr. over Kyler Curtis (Benson) 52-6, Sr. (Dec 6-2)

5th Place Match

Eligh Ashcroft (Joseph City) 56-8, Sr. over Fernando Luna (Ben Franklin) 42-10, Sr. (Fall 2:31)

 

D4-170

1st Place Match

Chase Jarvis (St Johns) 45-10, Sr. over Jad Mazboudi (Az College Prep) 27-4, Jr. (SV-1 10-8)

3rd Place Match

Brandon Garcia (Arizona Lutheran) 61-2, Sr. over Brenon Hughes (Pima) 56-6, Jr. (Fall 1:48)

5th Place Match

Seth Solano (River Valley) 46-13, Sr. over Christopher Shadle (Miami) 35-17, So. (Dec 9-7)

 

D4-182

1st Place Match

Leyton Kauffman (Fountain Hills) 51-6, Sr. over Michael Densmore (Winslow) 53-3, Sr. (Fall 5:03)

3rd Place Match

Brik Skousen (Thatcher) 51-4, Jr. over Miguel Vasquez (Willcox) 36-12, Jr. (Fall 3:53)

5th Place Match

Andres Jimenez (Santa Cruz Valley) 46-10, Sr. over Winden Trimble (Phoenix Christian) 20-11, Sr. (Fall 4:34)

 

D4-195

1st Place Match

Kimball Begay (Page) 50-5, over Caiden Hall (Willcox) 40-4, Jr. (SV-1 6-4)

3rd Place Match

Michael Mowrey (Miami) 46-9, Sr. over Raymond Hernandez (River Valley) 41-20, Sr. (Dec 3-2)

5th Place Match

Levi Bourland (Northwest Christian) 36-7, Sr. over Kellen Gibson (AZ College Prep) 43-9, So. (Dec 8-7)

 

D4-220

1st Place Match

Clayson Goodwin (Benson) 60-1, Jr. over Nathan Willey (Morenci) 45-8, Sr. (Dec 3-0)

3rd Place Match

Calvert Tsosie Jr. (Pinon) 28-4, Sr. over Edgar Espinoza (San Pasqual) 44-15, So. (Dec 7-5)

5th Place Match

Derek Henderson (Northwest Christian) 29-4, Sr. over Gauge Bryce (Thatcher) 43-12, Sr. (UTB 3-2)

 

D4-285

1st Place Match

Cheyenne Richardson (Page) 13-2, over Dominick Sahhar (Northwest Christian) 49-5, Sr. (Fall 3:06)

3rd Place Match

Quinten Mack (Thatcher) 56-3, Sr. over John Pina (Odyssey Institute) 35-6, Sr. (Fall 1:50)

5th Place Match

Cesario Hernandez (Alchesay) 29-7, Sr. over Skylar Guerrero (Miami) 41-13, So. (Fall 1:30)