Platte County put four wrestlers on the podium and finished tied for 13th out of 36 teams in the two-day Council Bluffs Classic this weekend in Iowa. The Pirates filled 11 weight classes in the second of three pre-Christmas tournaments offering plenty of competition.
Of the top-eight finishers, Platte County’s lone semifinalist ended up sophomore Ava Blankenship (fourth, 140 pounds), while only freshman Ariel Humphreys (fifth, 100 pounds) won her final match. She made the quarterfinals of the Gold Brackets, as did senior Charley Sims (eighth, 115 pounds) and freshman Mattie Blankenship (eighth, 135 pounds).
Ava Blankenship went 3-0 in pool but needed an 8-7 decision over Kearney (Nebraska) freshman Madison Wulf in the opener before going on a run. The next four wins were all by fall before losing to Gardner-Edgerton (Kansas) sophomore and eventual champion Camila Vazquez in the semifinals.
Lincoln East (Nebraska) junior Kyra Hains also pinned Ava Blankenship in the third-place match.
Humphreys didn’t take a second loss, winning her first three matches by pin plus a bye in pool to reach the quarterfinals. She dropped to the consolation half of the Gold Bracket after a 13-4 loss by major decision to Millard West (Nebraska) sophomore Maria Hoegemeyer, who went on to finish third.
The next three wins by Humphreys — a technical fall, her fourth pin and a 9-4 major decision over Bennington (Nebraska) sophomore Jenisha Sasankhar in the fifth-place match — provided a memorable finish to the first tournament medal of her career. Humphreys made the Gold Bracket of the Jay Border Wars in Oklahoma last weekend but went 0-2.
A returning state medalist, Sims also went unbeaten in pool with three pins to make the 115 Gold Bracket. She added a fourth in the first round in the second period against Olathe South (Kansas) senior Emily Echeverry.
Sims then reached the medal rounds with a 16-7 major decision over Waverly-Shell Rock (Iowa) senior Macy Tiedt. The final two losses included a 6-2 decision for Echeverry over Sims in a rematch to decide seventh place.
Mattie Blankenship overcame a loss in her opening match to earn a medal. She went 1-1 in pool with a bye and then lost her first Gold Bracket match by a 10-0 major decision against Raccoon River (Iowa) junior Izzy Duncan.
In the consolation side, Mattie Blankenship won back-to-back matches by fall then lost to Papillion-La Vista (Nebraska) sophomore Ruby Ryan and Duncan by a 4-0 decision in the seventh-place match.
Platte County sophomore Harper Golden (10th, 110) and seniors Karrington Friddell (11th, 105), Gabriella Ciccarelli (13th, 120) and Nicole Fernandez (13th, 235) also reached the Gold Brackets but did not finish with medals. The Pirates now have less than a week off before going to KC Stampede at Hale Arena for a third straight tournament featuring talent from multiple states.
Platte County 54, William Chrisman 15
The Pirates won two of the three head-to-head matches contested in a a Suburban Conference White Division dual Wednesday in Independence.
In addition to two open weight classes, Platte County took seven forfeits compared to two for William Chrisman. In addition, Ciccarelli pinned Natalie Schollhammer in the 120 match, while senior Anna Wiesehan led the entire way and earned the Pirates’ second fall in the 130 match.
Platte County sophomore Katelyn Newberry, a first-year wrestler, scored a late takedown to close the gap to 9-7 against William Chrisman’s Ava Brown at 125. Brown then took an escape and didn’t allow a potential tying takedown in a 10-7 decision victory.
Battle of the Braids
In a scramble-style event Tuesday in Independence, Humphreys (100A), Ciccarelli (120C), Newberry (125E) and Mattie Blankenship (135B) all went undefeated for Platte County. The field is divided into pools of two, three or four wrestlers based on seeding.
Humphreys won by injury default in the opener against William Chrisman’s Analea Hewitt, who then didn’t wrestle in the dual the next night. Newberry and Ciccarelli both swept a pair of matches against the same opponent, while Mattie Blankenship pinned Layla Anthony of Paola (Kansas) and Dotty Bolling of Polo.
