Which Teams will be competing for a WCWA title this weekend?

Photo courtesy of CampbellsvilleTigers.com.

The Women’s Collegiate Wrestling Association (WCWA) Championships will take place this Friday and Saturday, February 7th and 8th, in Marietta, Georgia. For the second year in a row, Life University will host the tournament.

The champions at each weight class will qualify for the U.S. Olympic Team Trials in Penn State this April.

Additionally, USA Wrestling is hosting Special Wrestle-offs to see who will represent Team USA at the Pan American Olympic Qualifier in Ottawa, Canada this March. The three women’s freestyle weight classes being contested are 50 kg, 53 kg and 57 kg.

The Special Wrestle-off will feature stars such as Olympic champion Helen Maroulis (57 kg), 2019 World champion Jacarra Winchester (53 kg), two-time World silver medalist Ali Ragan (57 kg) and 2018 World silver medalist Sarah Hildebrandt (50kg). Also vying for the opportunity to try to qualify the weight class for the Olympic Games will be 2019 World Team members Whitney Conder (50 kg) and Jenna Burkert (57 kg) as well as 2016 Olympian Haley Augello (53 kg) and six-time National Team member Katherine Shai (53 kg).

For a full rundown on the history of the WCWA Nationals, check out Gary Abbott’s Women’s Wednesday article here.

This year, due to the continuing boom of women’s wrestling and the addition of new tournaments like the NAIA National Invitational (founded in 2019) and the inaugural Cliff Keen National Collegiate Women’s Wrestling Championships, specifically created for NCAA schools, the top-five teams from last year’s tournament, including 2019 WCWA and NAIA champions Menlo College, will not be participating this year at the WCWA Championships.

Currently ranked No. 2 in the WCWA rankings, Life University will look to bring home a title on their home turf. Life has eight women ranked in the top-eight in their weight class including No. 1 at 143 pounds Erica Sotelo and No. 2 at 101 pounds Faye Cherrier.

Life will have their hands full with formidable foe No. 1 Campbellsville also gunning to bring home the top spot.

Campbellsville defeated Life, the No. 1 team in the country at the time, in a dual meet, 33-13, less than a week ago. Campbellsville has 12 wrestlers ranked in the top-eight in their weight class. Two are ranked No. 1 in the country including Abby Nette at 130 pounds and Kenya Sloan at 170 pounds. Nette, who is currently No. 3 on the National Team at 59 kg, will look repeat as a WCWA champion after transferring from Emmanuel in the off-season. Nette won the tournament’s Outstanding Wrestler award last year.

The University of Jamestown, the current No. 3 team in the WCWA rankings, has a loaded lineup featuring 11 wrestlers ranked in the top-eight including No. 2 at 155 pounds Myranda Valasquez and No. 3 at 136 pounds Jacqueline Parks. Valasquez was the top-ranked wrestler in the last WCWA rankings, however it looks like 2019 WCWA champion Jayden Laurent is back in action for Lakeland University and is ranked in the top spot. Laurent is No. 3 on the National Team at 68 kg. Additionally, Parks was ranked No. 1 at 143 pounds before dropping down to 136 pounds.

Another team with high-end fire power is Oklahoma City. Ranked No. 4, Oklahoma City has two No. 1 wrestlers, Destiny Lyng at 136 pounds and Nkechinyere Nwankwo at 191 pounds. Overall, the program has six wrestlers ranked in the top-eight including 2018 National Team member and Final X finalist Rachel Watters, who is No. 3 at 155 pounds. Watters was previously ranked No. 1 at 170 pounds.

Rounding out the top five teams is Augsburg University who is wrapping up their first year as a program. The team is extremely young and features five wrestlers ranked in the top-eight. Leading the way are top-ranked freshmen Emily Shilson, a 2018 Cadet World champion and Youth Olympic Games gold medalist, at 109 pounds and two-time Cadet World Team member Vayle Baker at 123 pounds.

The final two top-ranked wrestlers in the WCWA are Ira Navarro of Southwest Oregon Community College at 101 pounds and Jaslynn Gallegos, a freshman at No. 7 Presbyterian College, at 116 pounds. Presbyterian, the nation’s first and only NCAA Div. I women’s team, is another program in their first official year of competition.

Action will kick off at 9:00 am EST and can be streamed live on Flowrestling.