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Caprock Girls capter wresting tourney title
Amarillo Globe News, Sunday Jan. 9, 2000
If the Caprock girls' wrestling team had any doubts about its spot among the
state's elite, the Lady Longhorns certainly had those questions answered
Saturday.
Caprock won four of the nine weight classes to win the Lady Horns
Invitational, outscoring defending state champion and top-ranked Arlington
Sam Houston, 116-108.
Palo Duro finished third, 80 points ahead of third ranked Arlington High.
Wrestling in one of the state's top tournament of the season, the Lady
Longhorns got victories by Deedra Puentes (103 pounds), Jennifer Johnson
(119), Tori Adams (138) and Marie Hernandez (heavyweight) to take the
title.
"We've made so much improvement, it's hard to measure just how much,"
Caprock coach Scott Tankersley said. "Today I saw that we've improved so
much. I'm really proud of the way our girls stepped up."
That was certainly the case for Adams, who faced several of the nation's top
wrestlers in her class. Currently ranked No. 1 in the country at 138 pounds,
Adams got by Cathilee Albert of Colorado and second ranked Toccara
Montgomery of Ohio to take the individual title.
"This is the toughest tournament we've been to all season long," Adams said.
"It gives us a little bit of exposure to some of the top wrestlers."
The Lady Longhorns certainly proved to have one of the deepest rosters in
the tournament, placing wrestlers in the top four in seven of the nine
classes. That depth was the difference over Sam Houston - which won three
division - and Palo Duro.
The Lady Dons took a victory when Casey Brittan won at 165 pounds. Nine
other Palo Duro wrestlers also finished in the top four of their classes.
Hereford finished sixth in the 10-team tournament, while Amarillo High
finished ninth with 11.
Team Standings:
1. Caprock 116
2. Arlington Sam Houston 108
3. Palo Duro 104
4. Arlington High 24
5. New Mexico 20
6. Hereford 19
7. Colorado 15.5
8. Ohio 11
9. Amarillo High 11
10. Tascosa 0
102
1. Deedra Puentes, Caprock
2. Jennifer Fuller, Palo Duro
3. Krunchy Inchirath, Palo Duro
4. Leticia Renteria, Caprock
110
1. Kathy Cotter, Sam Houston
2. Stephanie Olivas, Caprock
3. Teresa Callas, Amarillo High
4. India Wood, Palo Duro
119
1. Jennifer Johnson, Caprock
2. Simone Smith, Sam Houston
3. Lauren Lindsey, Palo Duro
4. Ashley Bragg, Palo Duro
128
1. Brenda Mallot, Sam Houston
2. Miny Garcia, Caprock
3. Liana Von Bose, Arlington High
4. Melissa Holley, Caprock
138
1. Tori Adams, Caprock
2. Cathilee Albert, Colorado
3. Tocarra Montgomery, Ohio
4. Rachel Rodriquez, Hereford
148
1. Rosanna Smith, New Mexico
2. Ember Brettman, Sam Houston
3. Janice Gooden, Palo Duro
4. Rachel Reyes, Sam Houston
165
1. Casey Brittan, Palo Duro
2. Maria Garza, Sam Houston
3. Danielle Garza, Hereford
4. Rachel Morgan, Palo Duro
185
1. Brandi Killingsworth, Sam Houston
2. Leah Ramirez, Palo Duro
3. Denise Alligretti, Caprock
Hwy
1. Marie Hernandez, Caprock
2. Juanita McCambell, Palo Duro
3. Sandy Rothwell, Arlington High
4. Tonya Von Bose, Arlington High
Most Outstanding Wrestler : Tori Adams, Caprock
Fastest Pin: Stephanie Olivas 16 Seconds
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Sam Houston wrestler rebounds
By Rick Mauch
Star-Telegram ,Sunday, Jan. 9, 2000
Losing a high school match for the first time since the 1998 state wrestling tournament didn't keep Brenda Malott of Sam Houston from winning the championship of her weight class at the first Caprock Invitational in Amarillo on Saturday.
Malott lost to Miny Garcia of Amarillo Caprock, 13-11, in the pool portion of the 128-pound division when Garcia scored the winning points with two seconds remaining. Malott came back with a first-round pin of Garcia in the final.
"Brenda and I went back and we talked after that loss," Sam Houston coach Roy Shultz said. "She knew she didn't wrestle well, but the match should have gone to overtime.
"But now she realizes she can lose. She came back and throttled the girl."
Malott was undefeated last season on her way to winning a state championship. Her record this season is 12-1.
Like Malott, Cathy Cotter (15-2) earned a measure of revenge in winning the 110-pound division. Cotter lost to Stephanie Olives of Caprock, 9-4, but then came back in the final to claim a 5-4 victory.
"Cathy is such a good wrestler that she sometimes doesn't listen to the corner as well as she should," Shultz said. "I'm proud of her, because after that loss she listened to every word."
As a team, the Texans finished second to host Caprock, 116-108. Brandi Killingsworth (15-0) of Sam Houston won the 185-pound division.
"She dominated, as she has all year," Shultz said.
Sam Houston also recorded three second-place finishes. Simone Smith (7-5) was second at 119, Ember Brettmann (10-3) was second at 148 and Maria Garza (5-4) was second at 165.
Arlington recorded two third-place finishes. Liana VonBose was third at 128 and Sandy Rothwell was third at 215.
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Staff photo by Joseph A. Garcia |
It's not just for boys anymore
WILLIAMS CUP: Tournament organizers seek to make it the premier girls' wrestling event in Southern California.
By David Lassen
Staff writer
Sunday January 9, 2000
The sport of high school girls' wrestling may still be in its infancy, but it's growing up fast.
Another sign of that came Saturday with the first Williams Cup tournament, organized by Thousand Oaks High girls' wrestling coach Shannon Yancey and co-hosted by Thousand Oaks and Westlake at Westlake High. The all-girls competition drew roughly 70 competitors from throughout California, and from as far as Reno, Nev.
Seeing that turnout, many of the girls felt like winners even before they stepped on the mat. It was a chance to compete with others who understand the challenges inherent for female competitors in a predominantly male sport.
"There are only three girls on our team," said Fillmore sophomore Valerie Brown, "and usually, when we go to tournaments, it's all guys.
"It's nice to know there are this many girls out there."
Fillmore coach Bob Calderon felt the tournament was a great opportunity for his wrestlers.
"They get to wrestle against their peers," he said, "although one of our girls (sophomore Heather Steffey)was 8-14 against boys last year. She's our varsity wrestler at 103 pounds."
Calderon admits he was a little reluctant when girls started approaching him about wrestling.
"They started coming around about six years ago, but I discouraged them," he said. "Then last year, we had two who really wanted to. I talked to their parents, and told them they're going to get touched in places they've never been touched before. That's just the nature of the sport.
"But they've stuck with it. They do everything our guys do."
Which is, in part, the point, said Westlake's Aimee Edelstein:"It shows that girls can do anything boys do."
Edelstein and Rachel Reiss are among Westlake's first group of girls' wrestlers. "We have guys on the team who are friends,"said Edelstein. "They convinced us we should come out."
"It's really neat to be the first," said Reiss.
Some schools had just one wrestler; some had two or three. Thousand Oaks has a 20-member team, reflecting the sport's rapid growth, said team captain Elyse Schoenwald.
"Last year, we only had six girls," she noted. "And I know we'll have more next year. A lot of freshmen have said they didn't know about girls' wrestling, and they're going to come out next year.
"It's great to see so many people here. I can't wait to see how big it is next year."
Thousand Oaks athletic director Lou Lichtl hopes to see the event grow, as well.
"When I was wrestling as a freshman back in 1976, I never imagined we'd see a tournament just for girls," he said. "This is all Shannon's vision. We want to do everything we can to support it.
"We hope this can become the top tournament in Southern California, and we're going to look at what we can do to make it even more attractive."
The girls' tournament may be the area's first, but it's not an unknown concept. Vintage High in Napa, which had five wrestlers on hand Saturday, holds a similar tournament, which this year is set for Jan. 22.
"I think Shannon was somewhat inspired to do this after she saw our tournament," said Vintage coach Carl Murphree.
While the chance to wrestle in an all-girl field was welcomed by most competitors, at least one admitted it also seemed very different.
"I feel a little more intimidated," said Cindy Vanis, the lone girl from Agoura High. "If you lose, you don't have the excuse of losing to a guy.
"But I'll just do my best. If I don't have it today, I'm not going to get down on myself."
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Vintage wrestling
SAN JOSE Register
12/22/99
Danni Presley battled both a lingering illness and strung together three straight wins to capture the 112-pound title at the North Coast Girls Classic in San Jose on Tuesday. Presley had wins of 12-5, 17-0 and scored a first-round pin in the finals.
"Danni was having a tough time physically and had to rely on her experience to pull her through," Vintage head coach Carl Murphree said. "I was real proud of her. We have a young group that will only get better."
Four other Crusher wrestlers placed at the tournament which featured wrestlers from the greater Bay Area and Sacramento. Carina Valle-Santana (127) and Emilee Murphree (131) earned second place medals. Maika Watanabe (103) was third and Christie Rafanan (119) placed fifth.
The Vintage girls team has two more major events in January, The Williams Cup in Thousand Oaks and the Napa Valley Girls Classic on the 22nd.
