CORALVILLE, Iowa (AP) — Yu Sakamoto beat Riley Rayome of North Central (IL) 4-3 to win the 117-pound crown and clinch the team title for McKendree on Saturday night at the inaugural NCAA women’s wrestling championships.
After a wild scramble in the final seconds, a challenge by North Central and a review, Sakamoto’s win gave McKendree a 167-166 lead over Iowa — which finished with three individual champions and a runner-up, but had no remaining competitors with two matches remaining. The Bearcats finished with 171 points and third-place North Central had 123.5.
Grand Valley State’s Katerina Lange, the No. 1 seed, beat second-seeded Claire DiCugno of North Central 4-1 to claim the 138-pound title and become the first women’s wrestling national champion.
North Central’s Bella Mir won at 145 pounds, beating No. 1 seed and former teammate Reese Larramendy of Iowa in the first round to avenge her only regular-season loss. The second-seeded Mir — an Iowa transfer and the daughter of former UFC heavyweight champion, Frank Mir — reversed a takedown attempt, immediately rolled and pinned Larramendy with 34 seconds left.
Iowa’s Valarie Solorio, the No. 2 seed, beat fourth-seeded Rayana Sahagun of Grand Valley State by technical fall in the second round to win the 103-pound title. Sahagun beat No. 1 seed Heather Crull on criteria (7-7) in the semifinals.
Lehigh’s Audrey Jimenez pinned Sage Mortimer of Grand Valley State just 1:19 into the first round to claim the crown at 110 pounds.
Quincy’s Xochitl Mota-Pettis won at 124 pounds, beating Shelby Moore of McKendree by technical fall (10-0) in the second round.
Cameron Guerin of McKendree beat Alexis Janlak of Aurora on criteria (5-5) to win the championship at 131 pounds in the final match of the night.
Iowa’s Kennedy Blades, the No. 1 seed, pinned third-seeded Tiffani Baublitz of East Stroudsburg in 1:19 to claim the 160-pound crown.
Iowa’s Kylie Welker outscored Destiny Rodriguez of McKendree 11-0 in the first round to win the 180-pound title by technical fall.
McKendree’s Tristan Kelly beat Sabrina Nauss of Grand Valley State by technical fall (11-0) in the second round to secure the national championship at 207 pounds.
