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Girls’ wrestling kicking off 2-class season today
Decorah, East Buchanan among Eastern Iowa teams to watch this season
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The rapid rise of girls toeing the line and strapping on headgear brings new energy and excitement for the 2024-2025 edition of Iowa high school girls’ wrestling.
Earlier this year, the Iowa Girls High School Athletic Union (IGHSAU) announced girls’ wrestling would be split into two classes. In the May announcement, Erin Gerlich, Executive Director of the IGHSAU, said, “adding a second class is the next building block in our efforts to continue to help the sport grow. The hope is that the addition of a second class will encourage more schools to add girls’ wrestling programs.”
The IGHSAU will put the 64 largest wrestling schools in Class 2A, with the remaining programs completing the Class 1A field.
Teams to Watch
One of the local schools that has added a girls’ wrestling program is Lisbon.
The Lions will be coached by Seth Hall and Cassie Bowdre. Lisbon welcomes in three individuals with high school wrestling experience in senior Lillian Gaizer at 125 pounds and juniors Alina Mallie and Kaylee Jordan at 135 and 155, respectively. Additionally, the Lions also will have freshman Emma Dietsch, an AAU state runner-up, compete at the 145-pound weight class.
“Our strength is a solid core in the middle of our lineup with a lot of experience,” Hall said. “We will have some concerns with holes in the lineup that could lead to giving up some forfeits, but we are a young team with a lot of first-time wrestlers.”
Another team to watch during the 2024-2025 campaign is defending state champion Decorah. The Vikings will return all but one from their core of state qualifiers from a year ago. That wrestler was four-time state champion Naomi Simon, who now wrestles for the Iowa women’s program.
Returners for the Vikings include senior Chloe Sheffield (runner-up at 100 pounds last season), sophomore Ellie Adams (state qualifier at 115), senior Mckenzie Tollefson (state qualifier at 135), senior Amelia Wadsworth (state qualifier at 140), junior Anastasia Simon (third-place finisher at 145), junior Lauren Luzum (eighth at 155), senior Kamryn Steines (sixth at 190) and junior Madysen Lippe (state qualifier at 235).
Additionally, East Buchanan looks to continue its high-caliber competition, after a runner-up team finish a year ago. East Buchanan will return all of its state qualifiers from last season, except for graduate Alyson Krum, who earned fourth place at 225.
Competing once again for the Buccaneers are senior Valeria Torres (state qualifier at 105), senior Destiny Krum (state qualifier at 130), senior Andelyn Cabalka (seventh at 140), junior Tayla Stiefel (fourth at 145), junior Miley Walz (state qualifier at 155) and junior Brooklyn Graham (third at 190).
Area Wrestlers to Watch
- Libby Dix, senior, Mount Vernon, 190 pounds — Dix is coming off her first state title a year ago. She pinned her way to the top of the podium and ended the season with a 36-1 record. Her state title marked the first girls’ state wrestling title for the Mustangs.
- Chloe Sanders, junior, Vinton-Shellsburg, 155 — Sanders earned third place at 130 pounds last season and compiled a record of 60-4. Of her 60 victories, 51 were by fall.
- Silvia Garcia-Vasquez, senior, West Liberty, 120 — Garcia-Vasquez ended last season with a 31-5 record and a runner-up finish in the 115-pound weight class.
- Autumn Elsbury, junior, South Tama County, 190 — Elsbury is coming off a 170-pound runner-up finish and a season record of 37-2. She tallied 29 falls last season.
- Breanna Peach, junior, Iowa Valley, 235 — Peach was the runner-up at 235 last season and finished with a 35-1 record. Her lone loss was in the state finals to Spencer’s Olivia Huckfelt, who has since graduated.
- Mackenzie Childers, senior, C.R. Prairie, 135 — Childers’ run at another state title was cut short by injury during last year’s state tournament. She ended the year with a 35-2 record and won 30 of her matches by fall.
- Kara Vedepo, senior, Solon, 110 — Vedepo led the Spartans at state a year ago when she finished in fourth place in the 100-pound weight class and ended the year with a 39-8 record.
- Lizzy Wolf, junior, Benton Community, 155 — Wolf is a two-time state qualifier for the Bobcats. In the 2023-24 season, she compiled a 40-5 record, won the Wamac at 140 pounds and qualified for state.
Key Dates to Know
The first day of competition for the 2024-2025 girls’ wrestling season is today.
Regional meets will be held on Jan. 31, 2025. New this year, there will be eight schools hosting regional competitions across the state. Sites will be determined at a later date.
For the IGHSAU State Championships, the tournament will remain a two-day event with different sessions for each class on Feb. 6 and combined championship sessions on Feb. 7.
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