High school girls wrestling: Bear River scores 303 points to win 4A state championship

It was destiny for the Bear River girls wrestling team. Bear River led by 35.5 points over defending champs Mountain Crest heading into the championship matches and never looked back, finishing with a total of 303 points to take home the 4A state championship. Mountain Crest finished in 2nd place with a score of 225.5, while Uintah finished right behind them and took the 3rd spot with an overall score of 189.5

5 wrestlers from Bear River got induvial titles. Wins by Janessa Esquivel(125), Rhees Hatch(155), Eve Allsup(170), Sydnee Nielson(190) and Brighton Wise(235) helped Bear River to the title.

For Bear River head coach Jason Bingham, it was a complete team effort, with the girls coming together when it mattered most.

“Bottom line is that these girls have worked hard for four years, and they’ve really come out and they’ve competed for themselves as well as the team. At the end of it, it came down to the team. They wanted to win for not themselves, but for each other and there is nothing that makes me more excited than that. To see the relationship that they build and to know to know that they form something that will last them forever,” said Bear River head coach Jason Bingham.

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It was never easy for Bear River during the regular season, as they had to deal with their fair share of injuries and faced some stiff competition along the way.

“We came in knowing we had 19 seniors, and they were tough. We had some ups and downs along the way. We went to Reno and we took 7th. We went to the rumble and finished 3rd against some really tough teams. We also had some key injuries. We had one of our captains go down with a dislocated elbow and was out for the year. The bottom line is that the tenacity these girls have to keep fighting and keep working, and we found ways to make things happen,” added Bingham.

While Bear River was the team of the night, there were a number of individual wrestlers who shined bright.

One of the biggest surprises of the night came early on, in the 110-weight class championship match.

Ridgeline freshman Kemrie Grange found herself going head-to-head with 2-time defending champion Lindsey Hansen from Toole.

With Hansen going for a 3-peat, the odds were very much stacked against Grange. With Hansen up 13-1 after the 1st period, something snapped for Grange and she was able to pull of the massive upset, defeating Hansen via fall at the 4:38 mark of the match.

For Grange, she may have been the heavy underdog, but she knew she had nothing to lose.

“My thoughts were just that I had nothing to lose. I might as well just go for it and I did and it ended it my favor,” said Grange.

Very emotional after her match and justifiably so, Grange was still in shock at what she had just pulled off.

“I just can’t believe it. It doesn’t feel real. It’s so crazy. Coming into this I was definitely the underdog and even the confidence in myself wasn’t great, so this just proves that I can do anything, and it feels so nice,” added Grange.

In the 120-pound weight class, Aleena Navarrete of West Field finished off her high school wrestling career by completing the 3-peat, defeating Shelby Bevan from Mountain Crest by technical fall.

For Navarette, it was a bittersweet ending to her high school career.

“It was kind of a bittersweet feeling, like it’s everything and nothing at the same time. Ever since I lost in the state finals my freshman year, I knew I wanted that 3-peat and just to actually get it is such a real feeling. This was my last match of my high school career, and I am just beyond grateful. I hate that this is my last match, but I know that there are bigger and better things to come,” said Navarrete.

Other 4A Champions include Uintah’s Leena Sharp(100), Jordan’s Abbey West(105), Uintah’s Sadie Rhoades(115), West Field’s Brooke Deeter(130), Snow Canyon’ Nia Hagler(135), Desert Hills’s Lucy Harris(140), and Snow Canyon’s Jeanine Field(145).

4A State Championships

At UVU

Team Scores

1. Bear River, 303
2. Mountain Crest, 225.5
3. Uintah, 189.5
4. Tooele, 121.5
5. Ridgeline, 117
6. Crimson Cliffs, 101
7. Snow Canyon, 92
8. Mountain View, 82
9. Pine View, 71
10. Stansbury, 70.5

Individual results

100 pounds

1. Leena Sharp, Uintah, Fr. (46-0)
2. Alicia Hansen, Murray, Sr. (36-12)
3. Avarey Dortch, Stansbury, Jr. (22-10)
4. Hadley Carrigan, Bear River, Sr. (27-15)
5. Addilyn Baxter, Mountain Crest, Sr. (27-11)
6. Aimee Sapp, Hurricane, Jr. (16-5)

Championship — Leena Sharp, Uintah def. Alicia Hansen, Murray, Fall 3:32

105 pounds

1. Abbey West, Jordan, Sr. (30-5)
2. Kenna McCauley, Uintah, Jr. (23-8)
3. Jadyn Graham, Hurricane, Fr. (18-2)
4. Amelia Choate, Mountain Crest, Sr. (24-12)
5. Elise Millsap, Desert Hills, Jr. (31-13)
6. Gracie Meeds, Bear River, Sr. (27-18)

Championship — Abbey West, Jordan def. Kenna McCauley, Uintah, Fall 2:56

110 pounds

1. Kemrie Grange, Ridgeline, Fr. (35-15)
2. Lindsey Hansen, Tooele, Sr. (43-4)
3. Emma Morales, Murray, Jr. (30-20)
4. Acailles Jenks, Uintah, Fr. (31-14)
5. Livia Meeds, Bear River, Sr. (32-9)
6. Sarah Salas, Desert Hills, Sr. (20-8)

Championship — Kemrie Grange, Ridgeline def. Lindsey Hansen, Tooele, Fall 4:38

115 pounds

1. Sadie Rhoades, Uintah, So. (46-4)
2. Quinci Smith, Crimson Cliffs, Sr. (28-6)
3. Chrissa Hawkes, Bear River, Fr. (26-14)
4. Ma’apupula Faumui, Pine View, Sr. (25-8)
5. Autumn Radmall, Mountain Crest, So. (22-19)
6. Liah Tree, Bear River, Jr. (10-9)

Championship — Sadie Rhoades, Uintah def. Quinci Smith, Crimson Cliffs, Dec 7-3

120 pounds

1. Aleena Navarrete, WestField, Sr. (24-0)
2. Shelby Bevan, Mountain Crest, Sr. (20-7)
3. Londyn Gamble, Bear River, Fr. (34-12)
4. Bensha Wade, Dixie, Sr. (41-21)
5. Nedkary Alvarez, Jordan, So. (29-14)
6. Abigail Miles, Crimson Cliffs, Sr. (19-8)

Championship — Aleena Navarrete, WestField def. Shelby Bevan, Mountain Crest, TF-1.5 2:46 (17-1)

125 pounds

1. Janessa Esquivel, Bear River, Sr. (41-8)
2. Keagan Grange, Ridgeline, Jr. (39-5)
3. Abigail Pray, Park City, Sr. (36-14)
4. Riley Hansen, Tooele, Jr. (30-13)
5. Addison Hills, Green Canyon, Jr. (32-11)
6. Jada Sim, Crimson Cliffs, Jr. (10-7)

Championship — Janessa Esquivel, Bear River def. Keagan Grange, Ridgeline, TB-1 3-2

130 pounds

1. Brooke Deeter, WestField, So. (33-3)
2. Sophia Johnson, Orem, So. (22-7)
3. Noa Omessi, Park City, Sr. (35-10)
4. Kinley Seale, Ridgeline, Jr. (34-19)
5. Ella Reynolds, Provo, Sr. (30-12)
6. Daniela Martinez, Stansbury, Sr. (25-14)

Championship — Brooke Deeter, WestField def. Sophia Johnson, Orem, Fall 1:15

135 pounds

1. Nia Hagler, Snow Canyon, Jr. (43-1)
2. Erin Smith, Mountain Crest, Sr. (21-5)
3. Rylee Yeates, Bear River, Jr. (20-15)
4. Bailey Taylor, Green Canyon, Sr. (29-7)
5. Hailey Woolley, Crimson Cliffs, Sr. (22-13)
6. Kaydence Gortat, Tooele, So. (20-19)

Championship — Nia Hagler, Snow Canyon def. Erin Smith, Mountain Crest, Fall 0:43

140 pounds

1. Lucy Harris, Desert Hills, Sr. (9-2)
2. Anissa Laamouri, Uintah, Sr. (44-9)
3. Lily Pomeroy, Pine View, Sr. (34-7)
4. Taya Crookston, Ridgeline, Jr. (36-6)
5. Emelia Welker, Ridgeline, So. (26-9)
6. Anabrie Chlarson, Tooele, Sr. (27-15)

Championship — Lucy Harris, Desert Hills def. Anissa Laamouri, Uintah, MD 13-2

145 pounds

1. Jeanine Field, Snow Canyon, Sr. (37-7)
2. Britzeida Pastrana, Dixie, Jr. (35-17)
3. Gianna Makaafi, Stansbury, Sr. (29-11)
4. Taiana Palmer, Cedar, Sr. (26-15)
5. Breanna Maldonado, Crimson Cliffs, Jr. (32-12)
6. Sophia Richens, Uintah, Sr. (23-13)

Championship — Jeanine Field, Snow Canyon def. Britzeida Pastrana, Dixie, Fall 8:00

155 pounds

1. Rhees Hatch, Bear River, Sr. (22-10)
2. Maggi Budge, Mountain Crest, Jr. (30-6)
3. Bree West, Crimson Cliffs, Sr. (32-8)
4. Nathalia Reyes, Logan, Sr. (27-16)
5. Sophie Stoddard, Mountain View, Jr. (20-15)
6. Sadie Olson, Green Canyon, Jr. (21-17)

Championship — Rhees Hatch, Bear River def. Maggi Budge, Mountain Crest, Fall 4:44

170 pounds

1. Eve Allsup, Bear River, Sr. (28-9)
2. Darryn Matagi, Mountain View, Sr. (12-6)
3. Laura Stabile, Mountain Crest, Sr. (24-16)
4. Leilani Fiefia, Pine View, Jr. (18-6)
5. Josalyn Moore, Mountain View, Jr. (21-16)
6. Addison Fitch, Tooele, Sr. (22-7)

Championship — Eve Allsup, Bear River def. Darryn Matagi, Mountain View, Fall 1:02

190 pounds

1. Sydnee Nielson, Bear River, Sr. (34-3)
2. Audrey DeKorver, Mountain Crest, Jr. (25-9)
3. Rachael Godfrey, Mountain Crest, Sr. (17-6)
4. Jessie Gordon, Snow Canyon, So. (9-7)
5. Brooks Harding, Bear River, So. (12-6)
6. Lilieni Bossy, Jordan, Jr. (21-11)

Championship — Sydnee Nielson, Bear River def. Audrey DeKorver, Mountain Crest, Fall 0:29

235 pounds

1. Brighton Wise, Bear River, Sr. (26-8)
2. Jerri Togiai, Cedar, Jr. (21-6)
3. Rylie Smith, Bear River, Sr. (17-11)
4. Jessica Jackson, Snow Canyon, So. (12-10)
5. Sophia Johnson, Cedar, Jr. (7-3)
6. Addelynn Roeglin, Uintah, Fr. (10-9)

Championship — Brighton Wise, Bear River def. Jerri Togiai, Cedar, Fall 3:03