Centralia girls wrestling had its best showing at Friday's and Saturday's Wonder Woman tournament.
The sixth tournament at Battle High School in Columbia that brought more than 650 wrestlers from nine states saw the Lady Panthers finish 18th out of 83 teams and come away with two medalists. Ava Ward at 135 pounds and Jayci Shelton at 170 pounds were the two out of 10 Centralia wrestlers to make it Day 2. Ward qualified for her second Wonder Woman final and was the runner-up to returning champion and Wisconsin state champion Lillie Banks, of Menasha, after an 8-3 loss. Shelton finished third after losing to Illinois state medalist August Rottmann, of Highland, in an 8-7 decision in the semifinals but then pinning Nebraska's Carson Shank (Lincoln East) and Winnetonka's returning state champion Autumn Calvert. Ward came back to beat Belton's returning state champion and Wonder Woman runner-up Savanna Franklin 9-3 in the semifinals. Centralia's medalists were a combined 10-2 over the two days.
The rest of Centralia's roster that included six freshmen earned 10 combined wins, with Kyleigh Dollens advancing to the consolation fifth round after three straight victories at 155 pounds. Avery Adams won two matches at 100 pounds, Jaylyn Woods (110), Audrianna Trujillo (115), Alyssa Bodine (125), Karli Andersen (130) and Madie Shelton (140) each won one match for the Lady Panthers.
Look for the full story in the Wednesday, Jan. 8, 2024, edition of the Mexico Ledger.
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