We Own the Dome - 16U Women Freestyle
We, the wrestling community, routinely walk into Fargo (or other events/venues) with a preconceived idea of which are the teams and athletes to watch. Those you should keep an eye on. At the high school level it is South Dade in Florida or Cleveland in Tennessee. At the national level we have a tendency to look at state dominance. NHSCA always seems to have tons of Pennsylvania athletes on the podium. Well, in Fargo it varies based on whether we’re talking the men or the women, Freestyle or Greco Roman.
The We Own the Dome Series came out of this … and at a very basic level, whether those long-held perceptions are true. We could have gone back to the beginning, but decided to focus our analysis on the last time the weights changed (that way we could look at each weight in greater detail, as well). For the women, that includes the last 6 years (although just 5 Fargo’s because of COVID). So, for this series, we examine all of the All Americans from 2017 through 2022.
Where did we get all of these results to do the analysis? Great question, and one that is easy to answer. Jason Bryant of Mat Talk Online has done much of the heavy lifting. The Fargo Almanac is a treasure trove of information and data about Fargo, from those NCAA Champions that made podium in Fargo to the number of “Americans in Europe” (yes, that is an actual designation for one of the competing “states”) that have climbed the podium over the years. If you’re interested in knowing anything (and everything) about Fargo, it is the ultimate resource. As a result, it is where we turned to begin our analysis for this series. Lastly, if there any mistakes below, they’re made by SEWrestle (sometimes we get a bit shaky when we count above 5 or 6).
Who Owns the Dome in 16U Women Freestyle over the last 6 years?
The answer couldn’t be more clear … California. Over the last 6 years, the California women have simply been on another level. Yes - they usually have more athletes compete (and this is not a ratio of those placing vs. the number of those entered), but even with that as a caveat - the women from the Golden State are head and shoulders above the rest of the field. Of the 14 weights, California has the most All Americans in 8 of them.
California (77) - 6 Champs
Illinois (40)
Washington (36)
Missouri (35)
New York (30)
Pennsylvania (30)
Texas (26)
Colorado (24)
Wisconsin (17)
Michigan (17)
SE Status: Florida is currently 16th with 11 All Americans and Georgia is 17th with 10. Tennessee and South Carolina have had 4, North Carolina with 3 and Alabama has 2.
One thing that is always interesting to take a look at is the distribution across the different weight classes. Again - we have perceptions that the “lightweights” from this school, club, or state are the ones to watch or a state is known for being a state from their bigger guys or girls. So here is a breakdown of the number of All Americans by weight over the last 6 years:
94 lbs.
We OWN 94: California (8 All Americans in the last 6 years including 2x All American Melissa Lee who was 3rd in 2018 and 8th in 2017)
Contenders:
Washington (3)
Colorado (3)
9 States with (2) including Florida
Worth Noting: Colorado has been tough lately with Katey Valdez taking 3rd in 2021 and winning it all in 2022. Also California hasn’t had a champ (or a finalist at 94 in the last 6 years … so they get it done with depth).
100 lbs.
We OWN 100: California (9 All Americans, but again no Champs … Mikayla Garcia was 2nd in 2021 and Hailey Ward was a 2x All American in 2017 and 2018)
Contenders:
Pennsylvania (4)
Florida (3)
5 States with (2)
North Carolina and Georgia are the only SE states to have 1 All American at 100 lbs. since 2017.
Worth Noting: All of Florida’s 3 AA’s came in 2021 and 2022 with Mary Manis making the finals and Tedesco taking 5th in 2022 and Clare Booe placing 4th in 2021.
106 lbs.
We OWN 106: Illinois (Illinois has it all at 106 - 5 All Americans that includes a Champ - Mia Palumbo in 2018 and a Runner-up in Alexis Janiak in 2019).
Contenders:
California (4)
Pennsylvania (4)
Indiana (4)
4 States with (2)
Georgia is the only SE State to have a 106 lb. All American since 2017 (U20 World Team Member Amani Jones who was 3rd in 2018)
Worth Noting: California also has a champ and a runner-up during that time (but has 1 fewer All American than Illinois). Heather Crull was a 2x All American for Indiana at 106 including a runner-up in 2022.
112 lbs.
We OWN 112: California (The Golden State puts up an impressive 9 All Americans at 112 including 2 runners-up in Arieana Arias in 2019 and Charlotte Kouyoumtjian in 2018)
Contenders:
Washington (4)
9 States with (2)
Georgia, Florida, and South Carolina have each had 1 (Amani Jones claimed a title for Georgia in 2019 and Zao Estrada was 2nd for South Carolina in 2021)
117 lbs.
We OWN 117: California (9 All Americans and more impressively at least one for each year from 2017-2022; including Champ Jennifer Soto in 2019 who beat fellow Californian Katie Gomez in the finals)
Contenders:
Washington (6)
Illinois (4)
Colorado (3)
5 States with (2)
Alabama is the only SE state represented at 117. Evelyn Holmes Smith was 6th a year ago.
Worth Noting: Colorado may only have 3 in the last 6 years at 117, but that includes 2 Champs Adriana Dorado-Marin in 2018 and Persaeus Gomez last year.
122 lbs.
We OWN 122: California (7 All Americans including 2x All American (at 122) Alejandra Valdiezo in 2021 and 2022)
Contenders:
Illinois (4)
Pennsylvania (4)
Hawaii (3)
7 States with (2) including Georgia
Worth Nothing: Illinois had quite a run in 2017 at 122 putting two in the finals Louisa Schwab and Randi Robison - Schwab ended up with the title as well as another All American in Kortney Atchley who was 6th. Just one AA since. Pennsylvania has relied on two names over the last two years to put them in the list of contenders … Haylie Jaffe and Savannah Witt placed in both 2021 and 2022.
127 lbs.
We OWN 127: New York (6 All Americans since 2017; Mia Macaluso led the way with a title in 2018 and a 3rd place finish in 2017. Naomi Henry was 2nd in 2018)
Contenders:
Washington (5)
Wisconsin (4)
California (3)
Minnesota (3)
Texas (3)
4 States with (2)
No SE State has had a 16U All American at 127 lbs. over the last 6 years
Worth Noting: Wisconsin had a pretty good 127 a few years back … Macey Kilty claimed the title in 2017 and Minnesota is part of the conversation aftre back to back Fargo titles by Skylar Little Soldier in 2021 and 2022.
132 lbs.
We OWN 132: Actually it is no one. One of the few weights where there is some parity. California, Illinois, Missouri, and Pennsylvania each have 4 All Americans. We could select one of the states, but each has a claim - Pennsylvania has Lily Scherer who was 2nd and 3rd in 2018 and 2019, Nonnie Justice beat fellow Missourian Maddie Kubicki in the 2019 final, Sydney Perry was 2nd for Illinois in 2021, and Cheyenne Bowman won a title for California in 2018.
Worth Noting: Arizona trails the top group by just a single All American and had 2 All Americans at this eight in 2022 (Isis France was 3rd and Morgan Lucio was 4th).
138 lbs.
We OWN 138: California (Yep the Women from the Golden State are back on top as we move to 138 with 7 All Americans; Emily Se won a title for California in 2017 and Annie Hua was a 2x All American at this weight in 2018 and 2019).
Contenders:
New York (4)
Texas (4)
Illinois (3)
Missouri (3)
Two States have (2) including Georgia (Genevieve An in 2021)
Alabama (Lena Johannson in 2022) and Florida (Sofia Delgado in 2022) each have one All American since 2017
Worth Noting: Sara Sulejmani was a two time runner-up for Illinois at this weight (2018 and 2019).
144 lbs.
We OWN 144: Illinois (6 All Americans since 2017 including 2xer and Fargo Runner-up Sydney Manos in 2018 and 2019)
Contenders:
Pennsylvania (4)
Washington (3)
Iowa (3)
Maryland (3)
5 States with (2)
South Carolina and Tennessee are the only SE states to have an All American at 144 since 2017 (Jaleena Graham for SC in 2018 and Maggie Graham for TN in 2021)
Worth Noting: Nevaeh Cassidy leads the way for Washington as a 2xer at this weight including claiming a title in 2018. This has been a Tsarni weight in Maryland. Nebi is a 2x Champ in 2021 and 2022 and Seda Tsarni claimed an AA spot in 2018.
152 lbs.
We OWN 152: Colorado (5 All Americans since - 4 in 2021 and 2022 including Alison Evans who was 4th in 2021 and 5th in 2022)
Contenders:
California (4)
Texas (4)
Illinois (3)
Washington (3)
Missouri (3)
3 States with (2) including Georgia (Genevieve An was a Runner-up in 2022 and Tiyahna Askew was 3rd in 2017).
Tennessee is the only other SE state with an All American at 152 since 2017 (Genesis Gilmore was a runner-up in 2021).
Worth Noting: Both California and Texas have one fewer than Colorado but both states have had a champ over the last 6 years. Hannah Ricioli won in 2019 and Jasmine Robinson took the title in 2021. Illinois also has had a champ in the timeframe … Kennedy Blades in 2018.
164 lbs.
We OWN 164: Oregon (With 4 All Americans, Oregon leads the way at 164. Bailey Dennis claimed a title in 2017 and Olivia Robinson twice made the podium (2017 and 2018) … that said - Oregon hasn’t had an All American at 164 since 2018)
Contenders:
California (3)
Washington (3)
New York (3)
Pennsylvania (3)
Iowa (3)
Kansas (3)
5 States with (2)
Georgia, Tennessee, and South Carolina each have had 1 All American at 164 since 2017.
Worth Noting: Bella Porcelli was a 2x AA for Iowa (2021 and 2022), Olivia Stean was a 2x AA for Kansas (2021 and 2022), and Jael Miller was a 2x AA for Pennsylvania (2021 and 2022).
180 lbs.
We OWN 180: California (5 All Americans with Adelina Parra making the finals in 2018)
Contenders:
Missouri (4)
Texas (3)
Wisconsin (3)
Michigan (3)
5 States with (2)
Florida is the only SE state with an All American since 2017 (Destiny Madison in 2021)
Worth Noting: 4 2x All Americans at 180 since 2017 (amongst the top states).
Jaycee Foeller was a 2x All American for Missouri at 180 in 2017 and 2018 - winning the title in 2018.
Texas’s Brittyn Corbishley was also a 2x All American in 2018 and 2019 (taking 2nd and 3rd).
Brianna Staebler was another 2x All American - claiming a title in 2019 and finishing 5th in 2018.
Sabrina Nauss claimed titles in both 2021 and 2022 for Michigan.
200 lbs.
We OWN 200: Missouri (6 All Americans; Mariyah Brumley and Ryan Schlereth were each 2x All Americans at the weight with Brumley taking 2nd twice in 2021 and 2022 and Schlereth taking 2nd (2017) and 3rd in in 2018, Catherine Dutton claimed a title for Missouri in 2021 in an All-Missouri final that year).
Contenders:
California (3)
Florida (3)
6 States with (2)
Worth Noting: Jasmin Clarke earned a title for California in 2017. Alyssa Favara, Andrea Smith, and Cheyenne Cruce were All Americans for Florida.