14 min read
By Michael Smith
Staley is well known for the strong boys wrestling program it has built over the past few years as it seems to always be in contention for a state trophy every year.
But what about the girls? Right now, the Falcons are ranked No. 9 as a team according to the MissouriWrestling.com poll. They also have a No. 1-ranked wrestler in Lexi Hatfield who came into the District 7 tournament with a 27-0 record.
The junior helped lead the way by winning the 122-pound weight class as she was one of eight Falcons to advance to the sectional round. And her team took first, finishing with 135 points, 25 more than second-place Smithville, who qualified six wrestlers for sectionals. Fort Osage pushed through five wrestlers and took third with 100 points.
The top four girls in each weight class advanced to the sectional tournament which will take place on Feb. 20. Hatfield will be one of those girls as she won all three of her matches by fall, including a pin of Fort Osage’s Allison Kraemer in the championship match in 1:30.
“I really worked on getting my setups,” Hatfield said of her last match. “I really love my firemans and I was able to hit one and kept it clean.”