WESTFIELD, Ind. — Minnesota’s top girls put on a resilient display at the 2026 Women’s Greco-Roman Wrestling National Duals, securing two top-eight national finishes across two days of competition at the Grand Park Events Center on June 19-20.
The event drew top talent from across the country, featuring 20 teams in the 14U division, 21 in the 16U division, and 24 in the Junior division.
Leading the way for the Land of Lakes was the dominant 14U squad, which captured a third-place national finish in the Gold/Silver tier. Meanwhile, the Junior team battled to seventh place nationally, and the 16U team finished on a high note by taking third in the Bronze/Copper pool.
14U Division: Minnesota Storms to Third in the Nation
The 14U Minnesota squad (ages 14 and under) tore through Preliminary Bracket C, dismantling Nebraska 60-19 before routing Pennsylvania RedG 57-24 to claim the bracket title.
Moving into the elite Gold/Silver Championship Pool, Minnesota kept its foot on the gas with consecutive victories over Texas (53-29) and Illinois (53-25). Their championship run was halted by eventual national champion California in a 57-22 loss, setting up the third-place dual against Colorado.
Despite spotting Colorado an early 19-0 lead after dropping the first four matches, Minnesota mounted a fierce comeback to secure a 47-36 victory.
The turnaround began at 115 pounds with a forfeit win by Dayna Kielty, followed by an 83-second pin from Adriana Kunz at 120 pounds. Colorado briefly answered, but Minnesota’s middleweights blew the dual wide open. Isabella Jensen (130 lbs), Graycen Mayer (135 lbs), and Emily Pulk (140 lbs) delivered three consecutive, rapid-fire falls—Mayer and Pulk needing less than 30 seconds each—to put Minnesota in the driver’s seat.
Heavyweight Hailey Goth added a 48-second pin at 165 pounds. Down the stretch, Crosby Smith (80 lbs) secured a 20-10 technical superiority win, and Freyda Nelson (85 lbs) dug deep for a 7-6 decision over Emery McQuillen to seal the third-place national trophy.
14U Division Greco Gold/Silver (1st-tier/Top-8 Overall Teams)
1st – California, CA
2nd – Pennsylvania BlueG, PA
3rd – Minnesota, MN
4th – Colorado, CO
5th – Washington, WA
6th – Texas, TX
7th – Illinois, IL
8th – Pennsylvania RedG, PA
Team Minnesota scores:
Preliminary Bracket C
Semis: Minnesota over Nebraska (60-19)
1st Place Match: Minnesota over Pennsylvania RedG (57-24)
Gold/Silver Championship Pool (1st-tier/Top-8 Overall Teams)
Champ. Round 1: Minnesota over Texas (53-29)
Champ. Round 2: Minnesota over Illinois (53-25)
Champ. Round 3: California over Minnesota (57-22)
3rd Place Match: Minnesota over Colorado (47-36)
Gold/Silver Championship Pool
3rd Place Match: Minnesota over Colorado (47-36)
95 Jessica Dean, CO over Sadie Yang-Elson, MN (F 0:18 ) 5 0
100 Harper Formanek, CO over Sophia Crain, MN (F 0:22 ) 5 0
105 Iliyah Sailas-Lara, CO over Eliana ODonoghue, MN (TF 8-0 (2:00) ) 4 0
110 Charlotte Zimmerer, CO over Breslyn Kirkpatrick, MN (F 0:29 ) 5 0
115 Dayna Kielty, MN over Forfeit, CO (FF) 0 5
120 Adriana Kunz, MN over Zailey Lozano, CO (F 1:23 ) 0 5
125 Harper Schwettman, CO over Sierra Laffin, MN (F 0:13 ) 5 0
130 Isabella Jensen, MN over Hope ELLISON, CO (F 2:38 ) 0 5
135 Graycen Mayer, MN over Aurora Spencer, CO (F 0:27 ) 0 5
140 Emily Pulk, MN over Daisy Cushing, CO (F 0:22 ) 0 5
150 Crimson Graden, CO over Helen Peltier, MN (F 0:19 ) 5 0
165 Hailey Goth, MN over Milan Jones, CO (F 0:48 ) 0 5
180 Autumn Jones, CO over Forfeit, MN (FF) 5 0
75 Kinsley Kothenbeutel, MN over Forfeit, CO (FF) 0 5
80 Crosby Smith, MN over Sarah Huang, CO (TF 20-10 (3:06) ) 1 4
85 Freyda Nelson, MN over Emery McQuillen, CO (Dec 7-6 ) 1 3
90 Brooklyn Binsfeld, MN over Forfeit, CO (FF) 0 5
Junior Division: Strong Effort Earns 7th Nationally
In the older Junior division (ages 18 and under), Minnesota punched its ticket to the top tier by defeating Illinois 40-35 in the Preliminary Bracket D semifinals. Though they dropped a tight 43-35 battle to Texas in the bracket finals, their performance was enough to advance them into the Gold/Silver Championship Pool.
Facing the nation’s elite, the Juniors endured tough losses to California Gold (41-32), eventual champion Colorado (57-17), and a heartbreak against Kansas after a 37-37 tie.
The setbacks set up a rematch with Texas for seventh place, and Minnesota exacted its revenge in a 40-36 triumph.
Minnesota relied heavily on its upper-middle weights and heavyweights to close the gap. Anica Barze sparked the team at 120 pounds with a 12-4 technical superiority win, followed by an Abigail Gindele pin at 125 pounds. Chloe Wehry (140 lbs) and Nora Akpan (145 lbs) kept the momentum alive with a tech fall and a first-period pin, respectively.
The dual was decided by razor-thin margins in the upper weights. Cassandra Gonzales (155 lbs) gutted out a 13-10 decision, and Sarah Pulk (170 lbs) followed with a 13-12 decision over Aisha Williams Bautista. Pins by Ellianna Schendel (207 lbs) and Lillian Drews (235 lbs) ultimately slammed the door on Texas, securing the seventh-place national honors.
Junior Division (ages 18 and under)
Greco Gold/Silver (1st-tier/Top-8 Overall Teams)
1st – Colorado, CO
2nd – Ohio Blue, OH
3rd – Washington j, WA
4th – California Gold j, CA
5th – Kansas, KS
6th – Pennsylvania Blue, PA
7th – Minnesota, MN
8th – Texas, TX
Team Minnesota scores:
Preliminary Bracket D
Semis: Minnesota over Illinois (40-35)
1st Place Match: Texas over Minnesota (43-35)
Gold/Silver Championship Pool
Champ. Round 1: California Gold j over Minnesota (41-32)
Champ. Round 2: Colorado over Minnesota (57-17)
Champ. Round 3: Kansas over Minnesota (37-37)
7th Place Match: Minnesota over Texas (40-36)
Gold/Silver Championship Pool
7th Place Match: Minnesota over Texas (40-36)
110 Natasha Shafer, MN JRG over Forfeit, TX JRG (FF) 0 5
115 Anisa Nuchols, TX JRG over Ivy Brandenburg, MN JRG (Dec 12-6 ) 3 1
120 Anica Barze, MN JRG over Samara Lerma, TX JRG (TF 12-4 (2:35) ) 1 4
125 Abigail Gindele, MN JRG over Sadie Smith, TX JRG (F 2:32 ) 0 5
130 Macey Jeffrey, TX JRG over Gabbi VonBerge, MN JRG (F 4:17) 5 0
135 Marisa Iturrino, TX JRG over Jasmine Tukhlynovych, MN JRG (F 0:35 ) 5 0
140 chloe wehry, MN JRG over Jayada Ramos, TX JRG (TF 9-1 (2:39) ) 1 4
145 Nora Akpan, MN JRG over Rasanie Ly, TX JRG (F 1:13 ) 0 5
155 Cassandra Gonzales, MN JRG over Elizabeth Yelle, TX JRG (Dec 13-10) 1 3
170 Sarah Pulk, MN JRG over Aisha Williams Bautista, TX JRG (Dec 13-12 ) 1 3
190 Jaida Kuntz, TX JRG over Charlize Laban, MN JRG (F 1:34 ) 5 0
207 Ellianna Schendel, MN JRG over Mikaella Green, TX JRG (F 1:26 ) 0 5
235 Lillian Drews, MN JRG over Shelby Wells, TX JRG (F 4:05 ) 0 5
95 Kadence Juarez, TX JRG over Forfeit, MN JRG (FF) 5 0
100 Odessy Esparza, TX JRG over Brooklyn Smith, MN JRG (TF 8-0 (3:29) ) 4 0
105 Katelynn Dockery, TX JRG over Teagan Earley, MN JRG (F 0:20 ) 5 0
16U Division: Resiliency Leads to Bronze/Copper Success
Minnesota’s 16U team (ages 16 and under) faced a rocky start in Preliminary Bracket A. After an opening 50-28 win over South Carolina, they were sent to the consolation bracket by a powerhouse Washington squad (70-7). A bounce-back 40-27 win over New York put them in the third-place bracket match, where they fell to Texas 58-14.
Relegated to the second-tier Bronze/Copper Pool, Minnesota showed immense pride. They edged out host Indiana 40-39, bounced back from a 42-29 loss to Ohio Blue, and then handled North Dakota Red 44-29.
In the win against North Dakota Red, Roselane D. Verrett (115 lbs) pinned her opponent in just 53 seconds, Giana Palumbo (130 lbs) secured a 45-second fall, and heavyweight Olivia Martinez capped off the performance with an dominant 8-0 technical superiority victory in just 50 seconds.
Minnesota was awarded a forfeit victory over Oregon in the placement round, officially taking third place in the Bronze/Copper pool to cap off a resilient weekend in Indiana.
16U Division Team Minnesota scores:
Preliminary Bracket A
Quarters: Minnesota over South Carolina (50-28)
Semis: Washington over Minnesota (70-7)
Cons. Semis: Minnesota over New York (40-27)
3rd Place Match: Texas over Minnesota (58-14)
Bronze/Copper Pool (2nd-tier)
Champ. Round 1: Minnesota over Indiana (40-39)
Champ. Round 2: Ohio Blue over Minnesota (42-29)
Champ. Round 3: Minnesota over North Dakota Red (44-29)
3rd Place Match: Minnesota over Oregon (FF)
Bronze/Copper Pool
Champ. Round 3: Minnesota over North Dakota Red (44-29)
95 Elouise Snook, MN 16G over Forfeit, ND RED (FF) 0 5
100 Elizabeth Carlson, MN 16G over Forfeit, ND RED (FF) 0 5
105 Hannah Berg, MN 16G over Forfeit, ND RED (FF) 0 5
110 Brynn Streff, MN 16G over Forfeit, ND RED (FF) 0 5
115 Roselane D. Verrett, MN 16G over Scelia Maneze, ND RED (F 0:53 ) 0 5
120 Kathryn Marstein, MN 16G over Forfeit, ND RED (FF) 0 5
125 Kaydence Golding, ND RED over RaeAnna Gruchow, MN 16G (F 0:14 ) 5 0
130 Giana Palumbo, MN 16G over Arianna McElwain, ND RED (F 0:45 ) 0 5
135 Madisyn Racine, ND RED over Payton Puppe, MN 16G (TF 8-0 (1:06) ) 4 0
140 Allie Grant, ND RED over Forfeit, MN 16G (FF) 5 0
145 Madison Irwin, ND RED over Forfeit, MN 16G (FF) 5 0
155 Chasity Skerik, MN 16G over Forfeit, ND RED (FF) 0 5
170 Lainy Jochim, ND RED over Shelby Strandlund, MN 16G (F 2:31 ) 5 0
190 Aleah Martin, ND RED over Forfeit, MN 16G (FF) 5 0
207 Forfeit, ND RED vs. Forfeit, MN 16G (DFF) 0 0
235 Olivia Martinez, MN 16G over Jacey Peterson, ND RED (TF 8-0 (0:50) ) 0 4