Warriors Wrap Up Semester at North Central Open

NAPERVILLE, Ill. – (RV) Midland University competed at the North Central College Open on Sunday to wrap up its first semester of competition. Three ranked wrestlers led the Warriors to a 12th-place finish out of 30 teams. The Warriors scored 43 points while the host, North Central, won the meet with 177 points.

Two of the Midland ranked wrestlers competed in the 101-pound weight class. No. 13-ranked Zoe Omura claimed a fourth-place finish. After receiving a first-round bye, Omura won her second-round match by fall over Kiley McNerney of Campbellsville, in 1:20. In the quarterfinals, Omura dropped a 7-0 decision to Madison Avila of North Central. Omura worked her way back through the consolation bracket with a win by fall over Isabella Bocanegra of Providence, in 2:09 of their third-round consolation bout. In consolation round four, Omura received a win by forfeit over her teammate Esther Walker, to advance to the medal round. In the third-place match, Omura lost to Odelia Lopez of Schreiner by a technical fall, 12-2.

Walker, ranked No. 6 in the latest NAIA 101-pound class, finished in fifth place. After receiving a first-round bye, Walker earned a win by a 5-4 decision over Genesis Ramirez of Aurora. In the quarterfinals, Walker picked up a 10-0 technical fall over Megan Valdez of Lindenwood. Walker's hopes of making the championship match halted when she suffered a 12-0 technical fall loss at the hands of the top-ranked wrestler in the NAIA at 101, Erin Hikiji of Providence. Walker forfeited her consolation fourth-round bout to Omura, then won the fifth-place match by fall in 0:17 over Makayla Young of Indiana Tech.

Serenity Durham Goree wrestled at 116 pounds. She opened the day with a win by technical fall over Rose Le of William Jewell, 10-0. In the second round, Durham Goree lost to Caitlyn Thorne of Lindenwood by technical fall, 10-0. In consolation round two, Durham-Goree won by injury default over Carleigh Czerneski of Adrian. Durham Goree's day ended in consolation round three when she was defeated by Abby Nelson of Wisconsin-Stevens Point, by technical fall, 12-2.

The third ranked wrestler to compete was Emily Paulino at 130 pounds, who finished sixth. The NAIA's No. 11-ranked wrestler began with an opening-round bye. In round two, Paulino won by technical fall over Cera Philson of Wisconsin-Stevens Point, 10-0. Paulino advanced to the medal round by picking up a win by fall over Moni Griffin of Augustana, in the quarterfinals, in 3:34. In the semifinals, Paulino was defeated by Haley Vann of North Central by technical fall, 10-0. In consolation round four, Paulino suffered a 10-4 loss at the hands of Taylor Miess of North Central. Paulino lost to the NAIA's No. 3-ranked wrestler at 130, Paige Respicio of Providence, by technical fall, 10-0.

Midland's Eny Bravo wrestled at 136 pounds. In the preliminary rounds, Bravo went 0-and-2. She was defeated by Camryn Brown of Gannon by fall in 0:28, then lost to Alexis Kelly of Indiana Tech by fall in 0:52.

Samantha Segura-Veliz went 1-2 on the day at 143 pounds. In round one, she won by fall over Lilian Hernandez of Aurora in 1:08. In round two, Lili Ujfalvi of Gannon defeated Segura-Veliz by technical fall, 10-0. Natalie Kutzli of Rochester ended Segura-Veliz's day in consolation round two with a technical fall, 11-0.

At 143 pounds, Andrea Frisque also went 1-and-2. In round one, Frisque won by fall over Maya Khabbaz of Schreiner in 3:38. Alana Duggan of Lindenwood defeated Frisque in round two, by fall in 0:26. In consolation round two, Frisque lost to Mckenzie Cook of Eureka by fall in 1:15.

Makena Schramm claimed the consolation championship at 155 pounds. In round one, Schramm won by fall over Rebecca Strong of Lindenwood in 4:12. Schramm's only loss of the day came in round two. Sarina Bertram of North Central won by decision over Schramm, 9-0. The Warrior 155-pounder won four straight bouts in the consolation round to wrap up her day. In consolation round two, Schramm won by decision over Alexis Adams of Davenport, 3-0. In consolation round three, a fall over Claire Matthews of Wisconsin-Stevens Point, advanced Schramm further. In consolation round four, Schramm won by decision, 6-1, over Sierra Chavez of Campbellsville. In the consolation championship bout, Schramm defeated Antonia Phillips of Aurora, by decision, 6-1.

Jasmin Ballesteros wrestled for the Warriors at 191 pounds. After receiving a first-round bye, Ballesteros lost to Sydney Manos of Aurora by a technical fall, 12-2. In consolation round two, Ballesteros picked up a technical fall victory over Lexiana Garcia of Campbellsville, 12-0. In consolation round three, Ballesteros' day ended by decision in a 4-2 loss at the hands of Symphanie Sampson of Schreiner.

The Warrior women are off until January 6, when they return to the mats at the NUWAY Open in Cedar Falls, Iowa. Competition begins at 9:00 a.m. inside the University of Northern Iowa Sports Dome.