ADRIAN, Mich. — Augsburg University women’s wrestler Emily Shilson (JR, Maple Grove, Minn./Mounds View HS) won her fourth collegiate national title and third straight 109-pound title at the National Collegiate Women’s Wrestling Championships, one of four Auggie wrestlers to earn All-American honors at the tournament, completed on Saturday.
TOP 10 TEAMS: 1. McKendree (Ill.) 188.0; 2. King (Tenn.) 166.0; 3. Simon Fraser (B.C.) 145.5; 4. North Central (Ill.) 18.0; 5. Colorado Mesa 89.0; 6. Augsburg (Minn.) 82.0; 7. Tiffin (Ohio) 75.5; 8. Adrian (Mich.) 42.5; 9t. Emmanuel (Ga.) 38.5; 9t. Gannon (Pa.) 38.5.
Shilson, ranked No. 1 nationally at 109 pounds throughout her career, claimed her third straight 109-pound national championship and fourth national title of her collegiate career with a dominant performance, outscoring her opponents by a 39-4 in four victories — a 28-second pin and two technical falls on Friday, and a 2:42, 11-0 technical fall win over No. 5-ranked Sydney Petzinger of North Central (Ill.) in the national title match on Saturday. Shilson claimed a takedown 46 seconds into the bout, then claimed another takedown with 33 seconds left in the first period, quickly converting three two-point turns and a pushout to end the match early, earning her third win over Petzinger this season.
Shilson, who also claimed a Women’s Collegiate Wrestling Alliance national title at 109 pounds in 2020, completed her third straight perfect season as a collegian, finishing 25-0 with seven pins and 13 technical falls. In her college career, she is now 47-0 with 15 pins and 26 technical falls, earning four All-American honors.
As a team, Augsburg completed its third season as a varsity program with its third straight top-10 NCWWC finish, finishing in sixth place with 82.0 points in the meet, which featured competitors from 32 NCAA schools that sponsor women’s wrestling. Augsburg finished in fifth place in last year’s NCWWC national meet and in ninth place in 2020, while also finishing sixth at the 2020 WCWA national tournament.
Nina Makem (FY, Shakopee, Minn./Shakopee HS), who entered her first national tournament as the No. 5-ranked wrestler nationally at 136 pounds, finished as national runner-up, dropping a 4-0 decision to No. 2-ranked Zoe Nowicki of host Adrian (Mich.). Nowicki built a 2-0 lead, then clinched the win with a takedown with 26 seconds left in the bout. The win was Nowicki’s second over Makem this season.
On Friday, she claimed wins over two higher-ranked wrestlers, including an 8-7 win over top-ranked Ana Luciano of King (Tenn.) in the semifinals, to earn a spot in the championship match. Makem finished her first college season with a 29-6 record, including three pins and 17 technical falls.
Marlynne Deede (JR, Springville, Utah/Springville HS) earned her third NCWWC All-American honor of her career, finishing in third place at 155 pounds with a pair of victories on Saturday. In the consolation semifinals, she scored a 12-2 technical fall over No. 8-ranked Taylor Hites of Tiffin (Ohio), using a takedown, two turns and a four-point throw to end the match at the 2:41 mark. In the third-place match, Deede used a takedown and four two-point turns to score a 10-0 technical fall win in 2:15 over Nyla Burgess of Adrian.
Deede, who entered the tournament ranked No. 3 nationally at 155, finished in third place at the national tournament for the second straight year, after finishing sixth at 155 in 2020. She finished her junior campaign with a 25-5 record with five pins and 14 technical falls, and is now 48-18 in her college career with 13 pins and 24 technical falls.
Gabby Skidmore (JR, Spooner, Wis./Cumberland HS) earned her third collegiate All-American honor with an eighth-place finish at 123 pounds on Saturday. After going 2-2 on Friday, she dropped a 10-6, come-from-behind decision to No. 6-ranked Asia Nguyen-Smith of North Central (Ill.). Trailing 2-0 in the first period, Skidmore claimed a four-point throw with 1:46 left in the first, then took a 6-2 lead with a takedown 52 seconds into the second period. But Nguyen-Smith scored a takedown with 1:31 remaining, then converted three two-point turns to take the lead.
Skidmore, who finished second at 130 pounds at the 2020 WCWA tournament and sixth at 130 in the 2020 NCWWC, finished her junior season at 21-9 with nine pins and seven technical falls. She is now 42-17 with 17 pins and 12 technical falls in her college career.
Check out Auggies Women’s Wrestling at athletics.augsburg.edu.