Simpson duo qualifies for first official NCAA Women’s Wrestling Championship
INDIANOLA, Iowa – No. 6 Annelise Obermark and No. 5 Keeley Kehrli secured spots in the first official NCAA Women's Wrestling National Championship on Saturday, leading the Storm to a fourth place team finish at the NCAA Region 5 Championships.
The top three finishers at each weight earned bids to the inaugural NCAA-sponsored championship taking place on March 6-7 in Coralville, Iowa. Obermark (145) placed second, while Kehrli (160) battled back for third to punch her ticket to nationals.
No. 15 Simpson collected 119.5 team points for fourth place, finishing just behind No. 9 Quincy with 120.0 points. No. 11 Wartburg placed second with 146.0 points, and No. 1 Iowa earned the team title with 196.5 points.
HOW IT HAPPENED
- Obermark placed second at 145 pounds, earning 14.5 team points. After her 49-second technical fall over Hannah Wigern (Augsburg) yesterday, she defeated Aniyah Kelly (Wartburg) in the semifinals to clinch her national berth for the second year in a row. Obermark fell to top-ranked Reese Larramendy (Iowa) in the championship match.
- Kehrli claimed third at 160 pounds and totaled a team-best 19.0 points. After a semifinal setback, she responded with consecutive falls, pinning Alaina Franco (Augsburg) in 29 seconds and May Prado (Wartburg) in 42 seconds in the third-place bout.
- Sarah Zimmerman (110) finished fourth and came within a tiebreaker of qualifying. After earning a quarterfinal fall and a 10-0 technical fall in the consolation semifinals, Zimmerman dropped a 2-2 decision via criteria in the third-place match. It was her second match of the tournament decided by tiebreaker, following a tight loss to No. 9 Afftynn Stusse (Wartburg) in the semifinals.
- Noa Arnold (138) was also one win away from national qualification, while Emaline Hicks (103), Layla Phillips (117), Ashley Cannon (124), and Kendra Bliss (131) finished fifth. Jenna Joseph (180) and Savannah Sistad (207) each placed sixth.
UP NEXT
Obermark and Kehrli will represent Simpson at the inaugural NCAA Women's Wrestling National Championship on March 6-7 in Coralville, Iowa.
MEET REPORT
103 - Emaline Hicks: 3-2, 5th place
110 - Sarah Zimmerman: 2-2, 4th place
117 - Layla Phillips: 4-2, 5th place
124 - Ashley Cannon: 3-2, 5th place
131 - Kendra Bliss: 2-2, 5th place
138 - Noa Arnold: 3-2, 4th place
145 - Annelise Obermark: 2-1, 2nd place
160 - Keeley Kehrli: 4-1, 3rd place
180 - Jenna Joseph: 2-3, 6th place
207 - Savannah Sistad: 1-3, 6th place
