Class 1 Girls State Recap

The battle for first place came down to a razor thin margin in the Class 1 girls state tournament.

In the end, Kearney won the team state title for the second year in a row, edging Brookfield 80-79 Thursday at Mizzou Arena during the Missouri State High School Wrestling Championships.

Odessa finished in third with 71 and Oak Grove took fourth with 65.5 points.

Kearney managed to win it with just one state champion and two other who were runner ups.

Below is a breakdown of the championship matches of each weight bracket and a list of the state medalists:

100: Festus junior Mya Hairston won her first state championship after getting sixth as a freshman and fourth as a sophomore. He took care of business early, pinning Ellie Douglass of Sikeston in 2:18.

State medalists:

1st Place – Mya Hairston of Festus
2nd Place – Ellie Douglass of Sikeston
3rd Place – J Colbert of Center
4th Place – Mckenzy Mason of Marshall
5th Place – Cecile Puati of St. Charles
6th Place – Aubrey Schrunk of Lathrop

105: Kearney junior Bailey Martin had to cut weight to be able to compete in the 105-pound weight class. She did just that and it paid off as she pinned Holden sophomore Haley Brooks in 1:35 to take first place.

“I moved from 115 to 105 so I kind of had my hopes up,” Martin said.

State medalists:

1st Place – Bailey Martin of Kearney
2nd Place – Haley Brooks of Holden
3rd Place – Aleah Conard of El Dorado Springs
4th Place – Lillian McCleary of Lone Jack
5th Place – Candace Calvert of Hallsville
6th Place – Janessa Avila of St. Clair

110: Brookfield sophomore Jayden Keller looks to be well on her way to being a four-time state champion. She is now halfway there as she dominated in her match against Kearney sophomore Riley Walker, getting a pin in 51 seconds.

“It was definitely one of the fastest (pins she had this season),” Keller said. “My strategy was just to get to my stuff no matter what happened. I wasn’t really looking for a pin in the first period.”

State medalists:

1st Place – Jayden Keller of Brookfield
2nd Place – Riley Walker of Kearney
3rd Place – Sydnee Baldwin of Nevada
4th Place – Cheyenne Kincade of DeSoto
5th Place – Adasyn Yoder of Holden
6th Place – Mallori Edwards of Eldon

115: Savannah sophomore Jade Brundige won her second straight state championship and she did so in dramatic fashion by getting the match-winning near fall late in the third period to take a 6-4 decision.

“I was just trying to stay in a good position the whole match,” Brundige said. “When I saw the opportunity, I just went for it.”

State medalists:

1st Place – Jade Brundige of Savannah
2nd Place – Delanie Smith of Mid-Buchanan
3rd Place – Audrionnah Donahue of Boonville
4th Place – Addison Eddleman of Odessa
5th Place – Nova Porter of Southern Boone
6th Place – Macey Greene of Holden

120: Southern Boone senior Callie Bergthold had a stiff challenge ahead of her to earn her second state championship. She faced off against two-time state champion Cassidy Benwell of Holt and she came away with a 3-2 victory. For Bergthold, it was all about having the right mindset going into the match.

“I just stayed composed and I thought that my bottom work was pretty good,” Bergthold said. “I just knew I had to stay focused and go to work.”

State medalists:

1st Place – Callie Bergthold of Southern Boone
2nd Place – Cassidy Benwell of Holt
3rd Place – Jordan Diercks of Lathrop
4th Place – Dalayna Hargis of South Callaway
5th Place – Louzella Graham of Seneca
6th Place – Kyndal Brown of Westminster Christian Academy

125: Chilicothe junior Yoo Lee got her first state championship after finishing as a runner up last season. She used a double chicken wing to pin Fulton junior Emmy Begemann in 4:37 to earn her spot at the top of the podium.

State medalists:

1st Place – Yoo Lee of Chillicothe
2nd Place – Emmy Begemann of Fulton
3rd Place – Elizabeth Riggs of Wright City
4th Place – Addison Geiler of Ste. Genevieve
5th Place – Zoe Fisher of Pacific
6th Place – Alivia Bottoms of Boonville

130: The state championship win was an emotional one for Odessa sophomore Emily Bischoff. She earned an 8-1 win over Smithville senior Noellie Parrott 6-1 to get her first state championship.

“I was crying for 10 minutes straight and I was just hugging everyone,” Bischoff said. “It felt amazing. I am the first girl from Odessa to win the state championship.”

State medalists:

1st Place – Emily Bischoff of Odessa
2nd Place – Noellie Parrott of Smithville
3rd Place – Kylie Miller of Knob Noster
4th Place – Jossie Hopkins of St. Clair
5th Place – Skyla Schroeder of Fatima
6th Place – Brookelynn Meeks of Blair Oaks

135: Cassville senior Faith James remembers dreaming about winning a state championship back when she was just in middle school. Fast forward a few years later, that dream came true. She pinned Oak Grove junior Lauren Phillips in 2:12 to win the state title.

“It feels great. I have been working for this my whole wrestling career,” James said. “I remember being in seventh grade and thinking one day I was going to be a state champ.”

State medalists: