TENNERTON, W.Va. (WV News) — Backed by undefeated performances from four of its six ranked wrestlers, the second-ranked Buckhannon-Upshur girls wrestling team captured the inaugural 'Bonnie the Buccaneer Beatdown' team title on Saturday.
Maya Garcia (138), the state’s top-ranked girl grappler at 138, reaffirmed her status as a state title contender, finishing 3-0 to win her division. Garcia pinned Toria Tower (University) in 45 seconds, No. 6 Madalyn Phillips (Shady Spring) in 26 seconds, and Miya Johnson (Tyler Consolidated) in 2:27.
Despite being ranked No. 7 at 145 pounds, Olivia Blonn (165) found success in a higher weight class, defeating two ranked opponents en route to an undefeated 4-0 finish. She pinned Malia Dailey (Morgantown) in 4:49, Chayla Keeney (Oak Hill) in 1:03, No. 9 Maggie Robinson (Calhoun) in 1:06, and No. 4 Jorja Hawkins (Morgantown) in 54 seconds.
No. 3-ranked Emma McGinnis (185) went 2-0 to claim her division title, pinning No. 7 Chloe Dutton (Tyler Consolidated) in 1:22 and No. 6 Calliope Lovelace (Musselman) in just 17 seconds.
No. 3-ranked Abby Radabaugh (235) dominated with a 3-0 record to win her division. She pinned No. 7 Toni Thomas (Tyler Consolidated) in 38 seconds, Katelyn Woodford (Musselman) in 33 seconds, and No. 2 Shy’Lynn Carter (Musselman) in just 14 seconds in the finals.
Sadie McCarty (114) finished as runner-up with a 4-1 record. She pinned Kierra Ruppenthal (Musselman) in 44 seconds, teammate Anya Morehead in 1:49, and Mariah King (Tyler Consolidated) in 43 seconds before falling to Justice Anthony (Parkersburg South) in 46 seconds. She rebounded with a 4:00 pin over Kirra Robinson (Oak Hill).
No. 5-ranked Nicole Blandino (107) placed second with a 2-1 record. She pinned Clara Ealy (Shady Spring) in 4:54 and Kyra Hamilton (East Fairmont) in 3:42 before dropping an 8-2 decision to Zoe Wolford (Morgantown) in the finals.
No. 4-ranked Lylah Ketterman (152) overcame a slow start in which she was pinned by Eliana Winfrey (Tyler Consolidated) in 1:40 and lost via technical fall to Presley Hulbrink (Musselman) in 5:41 to win her final three matches to take runner-up honors at 3-2.
Ketterman got back on track following two-straight losses by recording consecutive pins over Cicely Cullins (Musselman) in 3:08, Kendra Richardson (Parkersburg South) in 1:11, and Kaylyn Emigh (Williamstown) in 48 seconds to close the tournament.
Anya Morehead (114) secured a fifth-place finish with a 1-4 record. She lost her first two matches, getting pinned by Justice Anthony (Parkersburg South) in 13 seconds and by teammate McCarty in the second round.
Morehead bounced back with a 1:10 pin over Kierra Ruppenthal (Musselman) before dropping her final two matches—losing via a 28-second pin to Kirra Robinson (Oak Hill) and a 21-12 major decision to Mariah King (Tyler Consolidated).
The Buckhannon-Upshur girls wrestling team will begin postseason action at the Big 10 Conference Tournament, hosted by East Fairmont on Friday, Feb. 14.
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