Michael Smith
There could be a new sheriff in town when it comes to Missouri girls wrestling at the high school level.
In four of the last five seasons, Lebanon has dominated the Missouri girls landscape, winning four out of the last five state championships as a team.
All three of those teams were in this weekend’s Kansas City Stampede at Bartle Hall. There were teams coming from different states in the United States including Oklahoma, Missouri, Kansas, Texas, Tennessee, Colorado, Arkansas and Iowa.
Even with all that competition there, Nixa stood among the rest, taking first place with 219 points. Lebanon was second with 173.5 points and Francis Howell Central was third with 173.
Nixa had nine wrestlers place in the top eight and had two wrestlers win their brackets – Brenya Crahan (145) and Calyese Dupree (155)
Below is a breakdown of the top finishers of each weight class for Missouri wrestlers and list of the top eight placers of the prestigious event.
100: Liberty sophomore Lilly Breeden, ranked No. 1, pitched a shutout in her last two matches, topping Baylor’s Ryleigh Sturgill 6-0 in the semifinals before taking down Troy Buchanan’s Zoey Haney 9-0 in the championship to earn first place.
“I moved my feet a lot and stuck to what I am good at,” Breeden said. “I was really good on top and bottom. I have always been really good on bottom.
Top placers:
1st: Lilly Breeden, Liberty
2nd: Zoey Haney, Troy Buchnan
3rd: Ryleigh Sturgill, Baylor (Tenn.)
4th: Kyrain Perez Westmoore (Okla.)
5th: Joanne Dinh, Staley
6th: Taylor Reiter, Timberland
7th: Alissa Perez, Klein (Texas)
8th: Anjelica Morales, Little Axe (Okla.)
105: Liberty sophomore Sandy Breeden, ranked No. 1, had a tough match with Harrah’s Addie Morse in the championship match and even trailed 4-2 in the third period, however, she got a late escape and takedown to earn a 5-4 decision and a spot on the first-place podium.
“I am really happy I won because I have lost to her twice,” Breeden said of her match with Morse. “I saw that I was down and I took the chance for a takedown and I got it….
