Statesmen Thump Pair of ‘Burgs
Waverly–The William Penn women’s wrestling team earned two big dual meet wins Saturday as it faced off against NCAA Division III competition in a triangular hosted by Wartburg.
WPU (4-5) opened the day with a 33-16 victory over Augsburg and then replicated that effort by defeating Wartburg 33-11.
The navy and gold claimed an insurmountable lead against the Auggies by collecting six consecutive forfeits, including 101-pounder Teya Garner (Fr., San Antonio, Texas, Biology), 109-pounder Mia Palumbo (Jr., Oak Lawn, Ill., Exercise Science), 116-pounder Catherine Steinkamp (Jr., Quincy, Ill., Exercise Science), 123-pounder Grecia Martinez (So., Horizon City, Texas, Engineering), 130-pounder Alexis Cervantes (So., San Diego, Calif., Biology), and 136-pounder Adaugo Nwachukwu (Jr., San Jose, Calif., Exercise Science).
AU then got on the board with three wins in a row before Andrea Smith (Jr., Rochester, N.Y., Sociology) took down Melissa Jacobs 4-1 at 191 pounds to wrap up the victory.
Garner gave the Statesmen a 5-0 advantage over host Wartburg as well with a forfeit, while the Knights knotted things up with a forfeit of their own in the next weight class.
WPU then methodically went to work, winning seven of the final eight matches, beginning with Steinkamp getting past Lianette Ortiz 10-4. Martinez added to the edge by rolling over Kylie Wainwright by a 20-9 technical fall.
Following a setback at 130 pounds, the Statesmen returned to their winning ways with Nwachukwu shutting out Ali Russler 10-0. 143-pounder Isabelle Hawley (So., Winchester, Calif., Sociology) then pinned Aniyah Kelly in a time of 2:20, while Kylee Eastwood (So., Fontana, Kan., Biology) held off Randi Nicholson 3-0 at 155 pounds.
170-pounder Ashley Lekas (So., Plano, Texas, Business Management) dominated Kami Senlycki 10-0, and Smith closed out the day with a quick pin of Emersen Smith in 22 seconds.
“We had a pretty good showing today,” Head Coach Jake Kadel said. “After Monday’s performance, we had to turn it up a notch this week and our ladies responded pretty well today. We still have a little time to get healthy and keep our foot on the gas for the postseason.”
Next Up: William Penn travels to Des Moines next Saturday to compete in the Grand View Open. Action begins at 9 a.m.
WPU 33, Augsburg 16
101–Teya Garner (W) won by forfeit (5-0)
109–Mia Palumbo (W) won by forfeit (10-0)
116–Catherine Steinkamp (W) won by forfeit (15-0)
123–Grecia Martinez (W) won by forfeit (20-0)
130–Alexis Cervantes (W) won by forfeit (25-0)
136–Adaugo Nwachukwu (W) won by forfeit (30-0)
143–Autumn Flanigan (A) won by fall over Naida Abdijanovic, 3:00 (30-5)
155–Nina Makem (A) won by fall over Kylee Eastwood, 0:32 (30-10)
170–Madison Horn (A) won by fall over Kaylah Johnson, 2:21 (30-15)
191–Andrea Smith (W) won by decision over Melissa Jacobs, 4-1 (33-16) (AU earned a team point by scoring in the match)
WPU 33, Wartburg 11
101–Teya Garner (WP) won by forfeit (5-0)
109–Hope Chiatello (WC) won by forfeit (5-5)
116–Catherine Steinkamp (WP) won by decision over Lianette Ortiz, 10-4 (8-6) (WC earned a team point by scoring in the match)
123–Grecia Martinez (WP) won by technical fall over Kylie Wainwright, 20-9 (12-7) (WC earned a team point by scoring in the match)
130–Kylie Rule (WC) won by technical fall over Devin Patton, 10-0 (12-11)
136–Adaugo Nwachukwu (WP) won by technical fall over Ali Russler, 10-0 (16-11)
143–Isabelle Hawley (WP) won by fall over Aniyah Kelly, 2:20 (21-11)
155–Kylee Eastwood (WP) won by decision over Randi Nicholson, 3-0 (24-11)
170–Ashley Lekas (WP) won by technical fall over Kami Senlycki, 10-0 (28-11)
191–Andrea Smith (WP) won by fall over Emersen Smith, 0:22 (33-11)






