Rianne Murphy named USA Wrestling Athlete of the Week

Rianne Murphy image by Tony Rotundo, Wrestlers Are Warriors

Rianne Murphy (Crown Point, Ind./unattached) has been selected as USA Wrestling Athlete of the Week on February 1.


Murphy, a junior in high school, won the 109-pound weight class at the Warrior Women’s Open, a college open tournament held in Fort Wayne, Ind. Murphy defeated Tehani Soares of Indiana Tech in the finals, 8-4. Soares is currently ranked No. 3 in the NAIA. She beat two other college wrestlers on the way to the finals, scoring a technical fall and a pin.


Murphy is not competing on the high school circuit this year, but is doing very well against older opponents. The Warrior Women’s Open is the third women’s college open that she has won this year. Murphy also won the Women’s College Open in Louisville, Ky., Jan. 7, and the Midlands Championships in Hoffman Estates, Ill. on Dec. 30. Murphy also claimed a bronze medal at a Senior international tournament, the Guelph Open in Canada on Jan. 22


Murphy is currently ranked No. 7 at 100 pounds in the National Girls High School rankings. She was a 16U Nationals champion at 100 pounds last summer in Fargo, and also placed fourth in the Junior Nationals last summer. In 2019, she was a Pan American U15 champion, and in 2021, she was a Pan American U17 champion.


Each week USA Wrestling will select an Athlete of the Week based upon performance within wrestling for that week. The selection committee will consider any level of wrestling from youth programs through the senior level.


To nominate a wrestler for this honor please send the athlete's name, wrestling program, weekly accomplishments and career accolades to USA Wrestling Director of Communications Gary Abbott at gabbott@usawrestling.org