Women's Wrestling Competes at Heart of America Athletic Conference Championship

The Waldorf women's wrestling team competed at the Heart of America Athletic Conference tournament on Saturday. The Warriors had a strong showing with multiple places with athletes making it to the national tournament.
"Big effort form these ladies today! They each fought through adversity and came out of the other side better of it," Head Coach Tyreece Gilder stated. "Not every match went our way, but they came ready for battle each time they stepped on the line and let it all fly."
In the 101 lb bracket, Emily Porras (FR/Glendale, AZ) finished 3rd and Alanis Serrano-Rios (FR/Tacoma, WA) placed 6th. For the third place match, Porras defeated Kylie Hernandez of Baker University by fall, 1:30. Competing for the fifth place finish, Serrano-Rios was beaten by Sage Beltran of Missouri Valley College by technical fall, 10-0.
Neve Barragan (FR/Mesa, AZ) battle in the 136 lb bracket and finished 5th. In her last dual, Barragan defeated Alexis Cervantes of William Penn by fall, 2:39.
At 143 lbs, Waldorf saw a 4th and 5th place finish with Ku'uipo Chan (JR/Mt. View, HI) and Niah Smith (FR/Davenport, IA). Chan fell in the third place match by Lily Gough of Central Methodist University. Smith defeated Naida Abdijonovic of Iowa Wesleyan by fall, 5:43 to take 5th place.
"Ipo toughed her way through some serious adversity, showed serious heart and earned her way to the big show," Reece stated.
"Niah just dug deep and got it done. Every match she wrestled today was against a nationally ranked opponent, starting with the top ranked wrestler in her weight class," said Reece. "She earned a hard-fought berth into the national tournament."
Genesis Higuera (FR/Buckeye, AZ) competed at 155 lbs and got 5th place. In her final dual, Higuera won over Payge Fuller of William Penn by a 10-4 decision.
At 191 lbs, Jojo Hendricks (SR/Beaumont, CA) got a 4th place finish. In the third place match, Hendricks was defeated by Olivia Brown of Grand View by a 2-0 decision.
"Jojo came in and wrestled hard every second of each match as always. A couple of matches didn't go her way against top ranked opponents, but she's staying positive and is ready to make the adjustments heading into Nationals," Reece stated.
Assistant Coach Monica Mendoza was named 2023 Heart Women's Wrestling Co-Assistant Coach of the Year.
The NAIA National Tournament starts on Friday, March 10th for athletes that qualify.