TEAM SOUTH CAROLINA has dropped their roster for Fargo and there are some notable names on the list - particularly on the girls side. “Fargo” 2021 is the 50th edition of the prestigious Junior Nationals event. The first event, held in the summer of 1971, in Iowa City was Freestyle only … so we have progressed significantly since those early days - adding Greco and then 16U’s (Cadets) and the Girls (at both the Junior and 16U levels). For a fantastic breakdown of the history of “Fargo” (in reality, Junior Nationals and the other national-level USA Wrestling “high school aged” events) you should check out the Fargo Almanac produced by Jason Bryant. It is 187 pages of pure “Fargo” gold (even though the event wasn’t held in Fargo for the first 20+ years).

The 2019 edition of the event had 5,000+ entries (yes many wrestled more than one style) and, given that we missed 2020, 2021 could feature an even larger number. South Carolina will bring 7 in JR Freestyle (up 1 from 2019), 7 in JR Greco (up 3 from 2019), 7 in Junior Women’s Freestyle (up 6 from 2019), 7 in 16U Freestyle (up 5 from 2019), 8 in 16U Greco (up 6 from 2019), and 2 in 16U Women’s Freestyle (the same # they brought in 2019). Overall, the Palmetto state will have 21 more entires in 2021 than they did in 2019.

South Carolina has had 39 All Americans and 6 Champions over the 50 years, but not many in recent memory. Terrance Thompson is the only National Champ on the boys side, winning Junior Greco at 98 lbs. in 1998. Genesis Patterson was the last girls freestyle champ in 2013, taking the title in 16U at 101 lbs. But 2021 could be where that drought ends. Dasia Yearby returns after taking 2nd at 164 lbs in 2019 and should be just one of a number of South Carolina girls who will be in the mix for a spot on the podium. Yearby, ranked #10 at 180 in the latest rankings, is joined by Zao Estrada and April Kelly. Estrada is registered to wrestle in both 16U and Junior Girls Freestyle, as well as 16U Greco. She’s ranked #2 at 112 in girls freestyle, but is also registered for 16U boys Greco. Kelly is ranked #13 at 127 and will make a run at the podium in Junior Freestyle. The SC girls have several others that sit just outside the top 25 rankings, but don’t be surprised to see Caitlyn Davis and Emma Burk in the “Juniors” and Annalise Maralit at “16U” make a run at the podium. The last boys All American was Trevor Mansfield in Greco in 2016. That isn’t likely to change in 2021, but keep an eye on Yannis Charles in 16U. He wrestled well at Junior Duals and figures to do well in 16U in Fargo.

South Carolina Entries:

Men's - USA Junior Freestyle
120 Bryson Harper
132 Ryu Brown
138 Jason Garay
152 Justin Hayes
195 Zachary Hornsby, Patrick Brophy
285 Dontavius Daniels

Men's - USA Junior Greco-Roman
120 Bryson Harper
132 Ryu Brown
138 Jason Garay
152 Justin Hayes
195 Zachary Hornsby, Patrick Brophy
285 Dontavius Daniels

Women's - USA Junior Freestyle
106 Zao Estrada
122 Isabella Hoffman
127 April Kelly
138 Caroline Gilstrap
144 Caitlyn Davis
152 Emma Burk
180 Dasia Yearby

Men's - 16U Freestyle
88 William Jakeway
126 Hassan Williams
132 Yannis Charles, Gavin Wilson
145 Anderson Hall
152 Steel Walker
182 Mason Parsons

Men's - 16U Greco-Roman
88 William Jakeway
94 Zao Estrada
126 Hassan Williams
132 Yannis Charles, Gavin Wilson
145 Anderson Hall
152 Steel Walker
182 Mason Parsons

Women's - 16U Freestyle
100 Annalise Maralit
106 Zao Estrada

Nationally ranked girls: Zao Estrada (No. 2 at 112, No. 25 P-4-P), April Kelly (No. 13 at 127), Dasia Yearby (No. 10 at 180).

135 girls from across North Carolina descended on Glenn High School on Saturday to compete in the NCHSAA Women’s Invitational. Each of the photos below was provided by Cheryl Baynard of SanctionNC on Instagram. Parkwood led the way with 79 points, followed by Hoke County, Burns, Dixon, and Pine Forest.

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106A:

Final: Aynsley Fink (Robbinsville) 21-0 won by fall over Diandra Tejada (Jack Britt) 15-4 (Fall 3:41)

3rd: Lilly Prendergast (South Brunswick) 16-4 won by decision over Bryanna Luihn (Wake Forest) 16-6 (Dec 7-0)

The Recap: Fink had 3 falls on her way to the top step. She pinned Curry in the 1st period, Pendergast of South Brunswick in the semis (was leading 7-4 in the 2nd period) and pinned Tejeda in the finals (leading 8-0 in the 2nd period). Predergast was certainly the darkhorse - coming from the 5 seed to finish 3rd and gave Fink a match in the semis.

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106B:

Final: Laila Sa (Hoke County) 24-3 won by major decision over Morgan Repasky (McDowell) 20-4 (MD 18-5)

3rd: Glennin Hansen (North Henderson) 14-5 won by tech fall over Khia Htway (New Bern) 15-5 (TF-1.5 3:15 (15-0))

The Recap: Senior Laila Sa looked great on her way to the top step in 106B. She had two quick 1st period falls before downing Morgan Rapasky 18-5 in the finals. #2 seed Hansen of North Henderson rebounded from her semifinal loss to Rapasky to take 3rd (Rapasky got the fall with 5 seconds remaining in a back and forth semi - she was leading 11-9, but trailed by 7 early in the 2nd period).

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113A:

Final: Reagan Riddick (First Flight) 13-2 won by tech fall over Hope Horan (Mt Airy) 16-6 (TF-1.5 4:19 (15-0))

3rd: Ayonna McNeill (Westover) 13-5 won by fall over Jaylynne Esquivel (Cherokee) 17-6 (Fall 1:26)

The Recap: First Flight’s Reagan Riddick dominates the 113A bracket. She had two 1st period falls before downing #2 seed Hope Horan 15-0 in the finals. Riddick didn’t give up a point in the tournament (outscored her opponents 25-0). Horan was 2nd followed by #3 seed Ayonna McNeill and Cherokee’s Jaylynne Esquivel.

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113B:

Final: Amy Williams (Millbrook) 19-1 won by fall over Elizabeth Daniels (Northern Nash) 7-2 (Fall 3:25)

3rd: Liliana Lizarde (Overhills) 6-6 won by fall over Shayla Evans (North Mecklenburg) 5-6 (Fall 3:56)

The Recap: Millbrook’s Amy Williams dominated her bracket - also did not yield a point as she outscored her opponents 17-0 (each of her 3 matches ended in a fall). Williams pinned #3 seed Elizabeth Daniel in the 2nd period of their finals match and unseeded Liliana Lizarde proved to be the “darkhorse” as she won her first match 10-3, her semi by fall, and then her 3rd place match by fall over Shayla Evans.

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120:

Final: Brooke Zak (Currituck County) 12-4 won by decision over Isabel Rodriguez (Dixon) 10-5 (Dec 13-8)

3rd: Mickey Allen (West Henderson) 10-2 won by fall over Sydney Sullivan (Northern Nash) 10-3 (Fall 2:55)

The Recap: Freshman Brooke Zak came from the #5 seed to claim the top step at 120. Zak had a 2nd period fall over Diya Dhananjay (after leading 14-0) and then downed #4 seed Ferrell Ava 15-0. She took out top seed Sydney Sullivan with an 11-4 decision and beat fellow unseeded wrestler Isabel Rodriguez of Dixon 13-8 in the finals. #3 seed Mickey Allen pinned Sullivan to finish 3rd.

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126:

Final: Aurora Efird (Parkwood) 6-3 won by injury default over Milena Daniels (Hoke County) 11-3 (Inj. 4:00)

3rd: Madeline Coplin (Dixon) 4-6 won by decision over Kady Watkins (Cedar Ridge) 12-14 (Dec 9-3)

The Recap: Top seed Aurora Efird of Parkwood had 2 falls and took an injury default win in the finals to claim the 126 lb. title. Efird controlled her fir two matches before running into a tough Milena Daniels of Hoke County in the finals … Daniels led 3-1 in the 2nd period before having the injury default. Madeline Coplin of Dixon was 3rd and Kady Watkins was 4th.

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132:

Final: Jade Hutto (South Caldwell) 14-13 won by tech fall over Autumn Coles (East Chapel Hill) 6-11 (TF-1.5 3:11 (15-0))

3rd: Kamilah Brooks (Manteo) 6-6 won by fall over Maya Kaleo (Hoke County) 11-2 (Fall 2:51)

The Recap: Hutto had a 10-1 major decision and a 3rd period fall before a 15-0 tech fall over Autumn Coles to claim the top step at 132. Coles had two falls - one over #2 seed Maya Kaleo to reach the finals. Kamilah Brooks pinned Kaleo to take 3rd.

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138:

Final: Hailie Misplay (Pine Forest) 10-4 won by fall over Alysha Earley (Alexander Central) 3-1 (Fall 1:22)

3rd: Kenley Riley (West Carteret) 3-3 won by fall over Kaly Brookshire (North Henderson) 2-2 (Fall 4:44)

The Recap: Top seed Hallie Misplay looked every bit the part on her way to the top step. She pinned Savannah Hayden in the first period before pinning Kenley Riley in the 2nd period of their semifinal (leading 14-0). She topped the day off by getting the fall over unseeded Alysha Earley in the finals. Riley rebounded from her semifinal loss to down Kaly Brookshire for 3rd.

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145 lbs.

Final: Mikayla Taylor (Richlands) 8-15 won by fall over Mara Cavazos (Bunn) 6-5 (Fall 3:44)

3rd: Mackenzie Eller (Parkwood) 2-1 won by major decision over Angel Davis (Clayton) 2-2 (MD 13-1)

The Recap: #4 seed Mikayla Taylor wrestled great on her way to the top step. She pinned Caleigh Suddreth in the 2nd period after being down 7-3. She followed that up with a fall of Angel Davis with 20 seconds remaining in their semifinal match. Taylor finished things off with a fall of Mara Cavazos in the 2nd period to claim the 145 lb. title. Mackenzie Eller rebounded from her semifinal loss to Cavazos to down Eller for 3rd.

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152 lbs.

Final: Laura Thompson (Cleveland) 8-0 won by fall over Willow Chance (Rosman) 11-12 (Fall 3:40)

3rd: Marissa De La Cruz (Parkwood) 1-1 won by fall over Serenity Sobolefski (Mitchell) 2-6 (Fall 2:49)

The Recap: Top seed Laura Thompson looked the part in pinning Serenity Sobolefski in the semis and Willow Chance in the finals (Thompson did not allow a point in her two matches). Marissa De La Cruz rebounded from her semi loss to pin Sobolefski for 3rd.

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170 lbs.

Final: Savannah Bramhall (Parkwood) 7-2 won by fall over Aaliyah Milligan (Purnell Swett) 8-1 (Fall 1:31)

3rd: Jamira Jackson (Montgomery Central) 10-8 won by fall over Zariah Moss (Thomasville) 6-13 (Fall 4:03)

The Recap: Top seed Savannah Bramhall spent fewer than 3 minutes on the mat in her 3 matches … getting falls of 26 seconds, 32 seconds, and a fall in 1:31 over #2 seed Aaliyah Milligan in the finals. #3 seed Jamira Jackson pinned Zariah Moss to finish 3rd. This is one of the few weights that went exactly the way as the seeds were set.

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195 lbs.

Final: Ella Beam (Burns) 9-9 won by fall over Jocelyn Paredes (West Wilkes) 4-5 (Fall 0:33)

3rd: Elisa Holly (Broughton) 8-10 won by fall over Gabriella Kessey (Hoke County) 5-2 (Fall 4:01)

The Recap: Top seed Ella Beam looked great on her way to the top step at 195 lbs. Beam had 3 falls including a 33 second pin of #2 seed Jocelyn Paredes in the finals. Elisa Holly rebounded from her semifinal loss to Beam to pin #3 seed Gabriella Kessey to take 3rd.

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285 lbs.

Final: Myranda Johnson (North Iredell) 10-4 won by decision over Saige Cook (Burns) 7-5 (Dec 6-0)

3rd: Savanna Hurley (South Stanly) 3-4 won by fall over Samantha Kidder (Hoke County) 7-3 (Fall 2:30)

The Recap: Round robin action at 285 amongst the 5 in the bracket. Myranda Johnson won her 1st match over eventual 3rd place finisher Savanna Hurley 5-1 before pinning Samantha Kidder and Piper Hill. Johnson downed Saige Cook 6-0 in the final (both came into their last match unbeaten on the day).

Florida Girls Earn All American

The Florida girls stepped up and claimed an All American finish at the Junior Duals in Tulsa, Oklahoma this past week. Florida won a hard fought 36-27 dual vs. Colorado to make the finals in Pool A - losing to eventual overall Champ California 52-12.

Florida then jumped into the deep end with some outstanding teams in the Gold/Silver (All American pool). They lost a close one to Pennsylvania Blue 35-32 as well as Texas Black 36-29 before losing again to California. Florida finished with losses to Missouri 34-24 and Illinois 35-32 to finish 6th.

Florida was in every dual (except their losses to California) and could have finished higher than 6th … still it was a very good effort with some outstanding individual performances.

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South Carolina and Georgia

Both South Carolina and Georgia brought significantly fewer than a full squad and that showed in the overall duals. South Carolina finished 3-4 despite forfeiting 5 of the 14 weights … they benefited from some other squads missing a few as well, but it was mainly because the 9 they brought all came to compete. Two finished 8-0 (Zao Estrada and Emma Burk) and three others finished 7-1. We will get to individual accomplishments below, but that is how South Carolina was able to stay competitive.

Georgia finished 0-4 while forfeiting 3 weight classes. They fought hard vs. Texas White (33-23 loss), Texas Blue (28-23), and Arkansas (39-29) and were only really overwhelmed as a team vs. Missouri (42-26). Georgia also had some outstanding individual performances … May Prade, Genevieve An, and Dianna Holmes each were unbeaten.

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Five on the Rise

Several outstanding individual accomplishments … tough to pick just 5 to highlight. These girls look ready to make a run in Fargo. Because it was so difficult to narrow to 5 - I’ve included an others to watch section below that includes a few others that wrestled well and could make waves in Fargo in July.

Also it should be noted … the path for the Florida girls was more difficult (because the team made the All American pool) - so not all records are “equal”, but everyone below wrestled well in their matches. Also it was fairly clear that if South Carolina hadn’t had to give up 5 forfeits they would have been hard for anyone to beat.

• 112 - Hannah Hall (Florida) - Hannah wrestled extremely well finishing 6-1 and her only loss coming to Avery Ashley of Texas Black. Hall should be in the hunt for a spot on the podium in Fargo.

• 117 - Zao Estrada (South Carolina) - Few wrestlers were as dominant this weekend as Estrada. She had 4 tech falls and 3 falls. We didn’t get to see Estrada vs. Taylinn Long or Diaz, but those matches should happen in another month.

• 117/122 - Juliana Diaz (Florida) - Diaz was 6-1 with her only loss coming to Taylin Long of Illinois. She looked good in bumping up to 122 to take out Alexis Segura of Colorado.

• 132/138 - May Prado (Georgia) - 4-0 with 3 tech falls and a 31 second fall. Did what was necessary - win the matches in front of you. Would like to have seen her matchup with Sarah Savidge, Mayson Gray, and others, but wrestled well in the matches she had.

• 152 - Emma Burk (South Carolina) - Unbeaten at 8-0 with 4 falls, 3 tech falls, and a forfeit. Only match that was close was a 15-5 tech fall of Shean Miller of Minnesota.

Others to watch:

• 100/106 - Kealonie Vega (Florida) - split time with Clare Booe at 100/106 and finished the tournament 5-2 with losses to Eliana Martinez of Texas Black and Madison Avila of California. Kealonie had a nice hard fought win over Jayleah Pletz of Pennsylvania 7-6.

• 100/106 - Clare Booe (Florida) - split time at 100/106 with Vega. Finished 3-4, but was an important part of Florida making the All American pool.

• 112 - Dianna Holmes (Georgia) - 4-0 with 3 falls and a 10-0 tech fall. Same as Prado - won every match she had and that is all she could control. It will be interesting to see how that translates into how well she does in Fargo in July.

• 122 - Isabella Hoffman (South Carolina) - Hoffman finished 5-3 and split matches with Patron Plummer of Pennsylvania (getting a 20-19 decision and losing by fall). She ran into a very tough Ngao Shoua Whitethorn of Minnesota, but otherwise was in her match vs. Herrick (losing 9-6) before getting pinned.

• 127 - Genevieve An (Georgia) - 4-0 (with 2 forfeits). Two falls and missed opportunity to see the top 127’s that included Savannah Cosme of Colorado and Alex Janiak of Illinois. Still nice to get W’s vs. the competition you did get a chance to wrestle.

• 132 - April Kelly (South Carolina) - 7-1 and dominant in her wins. Competitive in her lone loss to Madyson Gray of Kansas (19-8 tech fall). Still if she wants to claim a stopsign in Fargo … she will have to figure out how to beat the likes of Gray (Gray was unbeaten at 9-0 and only gave up points to Kelly).

• 138 - Carolina Gilstrap (South Carolina) - 5-3 in a very competitive 138 weight class. Nice win over Yatcilla of PA 10-8 (also had a fall of Yatcilla). Got an opportunity to see what the top of the 138 weight class looks like in a loss to Marissa Porsch of Kansas.

• 144 - Caitlyn Davis (South Carolina) - 7-1 with her only loss coming to Maddie Kubicki of Missouri. Won a wild 14-11 decision over Allyssa Johnson of North Dakota.

• 180 - Dasia Yearby (South Carolina) - 7-1 with her only loss coming to Jaycee Foeller of Missouri. Had 4 forfeits, but was dominant in her other 3 matches.

• 180/200 - Sierra Chavez (Florida) - 5-2 with a match at 200 vs. Missouri (where she got the fall). Sierra was in every match - losing to Brittyn Corbishley of Texas 10-4 and split decisions with Maliya Castillo of California.

• 225 - Andrea Smith (Florida) - 3-1 and split time at 225 with Kiara Brin. Smith’s only loss came to Hannah Francis of Texas Black. She had falls over DeHerrera, Benjamin, and Sepeda.