Kansas Girls Part of First National Duals

From theMat.com:

Eight states to participate in first Women’s Junior National Duals in Fargo, N.D., July 28
7/17/2005
Gary Abbott/USA Wrestling

For the first time in USA Wrestling history, a Women’s National Dual Meet Championship will be hosted, pitting state-level teams of high school women wrestlers in competition against each other.

The first USA Wrestling Women’s Junior National Duals will be hosted at the Bison Sports Arena on the campus of North Dakota State Univ. in Fargo, N.D, on Thursday, July 28. The competition will begin at 9:00 a.m., and will continue straight through until completion, which is estimated at 3:30 p.m.

These teams of female high school wrestlers are organized by the state associations that are participating in the ASICS/Vaughan Junior and Cadet Nationals, which are being held in the FargoDome during the week.

The women athletes will also be competing in the ASICS/Vaughan Junior Nationals for women, the individual tournament which is scheduled for July 29-30 in the FargoDome. It is the fourth year that there has been a women’s division at the ASICS/Vaughan Junior Nationals.

The states that have entered teams in the Women’s Junior National Duals are: California, Florida, Hawaii, Kansas, Ohio, Texas, Washington, Wisconsin.

A seeding criteria has been established, and the teams will be seeded prior to the competition.

Each team will get five matches during the competition. Teams will be broken into two pools, with four teams in each pool. After each pool is completed, there will be a Gold pool and a Bronze pool round to set the medal pairings. The fifth round will feature the 1st place match, 3rd place match, 5th place match and 7th place match.

Many of the nation’s most successful Junior women wrestlers come from these states, which have chosen to enter teams in the first Women’s Junior National Duals event. Last year, there were 39 athletes who came from these eight states that were All-Americans at the ASICS/Vaughan Junior Nationals.

National Dual Meet Championships have become among the most popular and successful of USA Wrestling events on the age-group levels. This is the first National Duals for age-group women in the nation. However, there are National Dual Meet Championships for boys on the Junior, Cadet and Schoolboy levels, events that have shown great growth and participation. These events allow USA Wrestling’s state associations to test themselves as teams, and allow for state pride in achievement.

Who all is on the Kansas team?

Regina Ward 110
Emma Mercer 119
Chandra Engel 128
Tina Karol 128
Cherasa Leak 148
Yaslyn Howey 160
Libby Bowser 175


Where is Chelsea Arnhold? I think I've heard of 1 or 2 of these girls.

Chelsea has never competed with Team Kansas in the USAW tourneys.

Tina is a monster! I was told instead of raw eggs she eats raw chickens! alive!

That's really a shame.

As you are well aware, sometimes the most experienced wrestlers don't always compete at major events like nationals. Scheduling conflicts and financial issues prevent everyone from making the trips. This is true for both the guys and girls. Coach Ed has assembled the largest women's team ever to represent Kansas at Nationals and I know the girls have been working hard to prepare. It's unfortunate that a few others can't make the trip but we're appreciative of the girls who've worked so hard and raised the funds necessary to compete in Fargo.

Regina Ward (110#), Emma Mercer (119#), and Tina Karol (128#) are young wrestlers with experience at national events. The others are chomping at the bit to prove themselves. Chandra Engel (128#) is healthy again and ready to go. Cherasa Leak (148#) is a strong wrestler who also does a little boxing. She had a great camp at Missouri Valley College and she is ready to battle. Yaslyn Howey (160#) is our rookie - but she displays good wrestling instincts, and Libby Bowser is a tough wrestler who can dish out punishment as well as she takes it.

Team Kansas will be young and they have 4 open weight classes but we're proud of them and we're excited about the young wrestlers waiting in the wings. Ed and jenni Edison are doing a great job developing and promoting women's wrestling in Kansas.

Good Luck Ladies!

The ladies have been working hard all week and are ready for the duals tomorrow in Fargo in the Bison Center. Keep us all in your prayers, we are a young team and are missing a few spots but we have choosing to trudge forward into battle. I am so proud of the ladies and how they have stepped up to the challenge. Wish us luck and safety. More tomorrow..............

Ms. Jenni

8th out of 8 teams? OUCH!

OUCH doesn't even decribe the pain.

Ms. Jenni

I saw the one match one of our better girls had to wrestle a Fulp-Allen!!! That name rings a bell!