LOUISVILLE, Ky. – The Southern Oregon University women's wrestling team hit its biggest program milestone yet Saturday, taking down No. 5 Menlo (Calif.) in the semifinals and No. 2 Grand View (Iowa) in the final to capture the NAIA title at the U.S. Marine Corps/NWCA National Dual Meet Championships inside the Kentucky Expo Center.
The top-ranked Raiders came from behind in both duals, ultimately topping Menlo 25-18 and Grand View 22-18, thanks to a pair of upper-weight seniors: 170-pounder Joye Levendusky and 191-pounder Grace Kristoff. Trailing the Oaks 18-17, Levendusky, ranked No. 3, and Kristoff, ranked No. 5, scored back-to-back technical fall shutouts against Jessica Mendietta and Nikita Dhaliwal. And trailing the Vikings 17-15, Levendusky put the Raiders on top with a 10-0 technical fall over No. 4 Abby McIntyre before Kristoff clinched the championship with a 3-1 decision over No. 11 Olivia Brown.
SOU's previous best finish at the tournament had been last year's third-place showing. The team went on to take second place at the NAIA National Tournament.
This time around, the Raiders established themselves as the clear favorites to win their first NAIA championship two months from now.
They started the tournament Friday by dominating Ottawa (Kan.) 43-6 and No. 9 Texas Wesleyan 32-10. The Menlo dual was a rematch of a Dec. 9 meeting in Ashland, where the Raiders rolled the Oaks 36-8 for just their second win in the head-to-head series.
They won six of 10 matches this time around, getting a pin from Esthela Trevino (101 pounds), more bonus points on a technical fall from Emily Se (143), and decisions from Macie Stewart (109) and Bella Amaro (136). At 155, Shannon Workinger briefly gave the Oaks a lead with a first-round pin of Sage Teixeira, setting the stage for Levendusky and Kristoff.
The Raiders and Vikings split their 10 matches. The difference, however, was that the Raiders still earned a team point in four of their five losses, withstanding a run of four consecutive GVU wins that led up to the final two matches.
Before Levendusky and Kristoff came through, Trevino (101) won by technical fall, Natalie Reyna (109) worked a 4-2 win over No. 11 Lita Cruz, and top-ranked Carolina Moreno (123) blanked No. 4 Catharine Campbell in a technical fall.
Levendusky finished the tournament with a 4-0 record, winning by technical fall in every match. Trevino, ranked No. 3 at 101, was also perfect with a pin, two technical falls and a forfeit victory. Kristoff didn't compete until Saturday, having only accepted a forfeit victory on Friday. Reyna and Stewart combined to keep SOU unbeaten in the 109 ranks.
The Raiders brought their dual record to 6-0. Their next appearance will be their last of the season at home, a 2 p.m. matchup against No. 5 Providence (Mont.) on Jan. 14.
SOUTHERN OREGON 25, MENLO 18 (Semifinals)
101 – #3 Esthela Trevino, SOU, p. #11 Kayla McKinley-Johnson, 1:40. (5-0)
109 – #7 Macie Stewart, SOU, dec. #9 Barbara Greenberg, 7-1. (8-1)
116 – #16 Ajayzee Zaballos, MC, dec. #8 Glory Konecny, 4-4. (9-4)
123 – Haley Narahara, MC, dec. #1 Carolina Moreno, 6-6. (10-7)
130 –#7 Alana Vivas, MC, p. Jordynn Robson, 5:19. (10-12)
136 – #8 Bella Amaro, SOU, dec. #16 Louisa Schwab, 3-2. (13-13)
143 – #2 Emily Se, SOU, tech. fall #19 Desiree Jones, 11-0. (17-13)
155 – #13 Shannon Workinger, MC, p. Sage Texeira, 0:41. (17-18)
170 – #3 Joye Levendusky, SOU, tech. fall Jessica Mendietta, 10-0. (21-18)
191 – #5 Grace Kristoff, SOU, tech. fall Nikita Dhaliwal, 11-0. (25-18)
SOUTHERN OREGON 22, GRAND VIEW 18 (Championship)
101 – #3 Esthela Trevino, SOU, tech. fall Jalen Bets, 10-0. (4-0)
109 – #5 Natalie Reyna, SOU, dec. #11 Lita Cruz, 4-2. (7-1)
116 – #5 Cailin Campbell, GVU, dec. #8 Glory Konecny, 10-1. (8-4)
123 – #1 Carolina Moreno, SOU, tech. fall #4 Catharine Campbell, 10-0. (12-4)
130 – Isabella Gonzalez, GVU, tech. fall Jordynn Robson, 11-0. (12-8)
136 – #2 Adrea Schlabach, GVU, dec. #8 Bella Amaro, 5-1. (13-11)
143 – #1 Alexis Gomez, GVU, dec. #2 Emily Se, 9-6. (14-14)
155 – #9 Madison Diaz, GVU, dec. Desinee Lopez, 6-3. (15-17)
170 – #3 Joye Levendusky, SOU, tech. fall #4 Abby McIntyre, 10-0. (19-17)
191 – #5 Grace Kristoff, SOU, dec. #11 Olivia Brown, 3-1. (22-18)