U17 World silver medalist Gomez wins at Who's Number One on a strong women's card

Gabriela Gomez of Illinois works for a fall in Who's Number One. Photo by Sam Janicki

ANN ARBOR, Mich. — Twelve women won their matches against other high school stars in the FloWrestling Who’s Number One event in Ann Arbor, Michigan, on Friday night.

 

For the second straight year, FloWrestling held a women’s card full of U17 World medalists and Fargo champions.

 

The main event featured Fargo champs Ava Ward of Missouri and Alex Szkotnicki of Maryland at 112 pounds. Ward, a 2021 Cadet World bronze medalist, crushed Szkotnicki 6-0.

 

2022 U17 World silver medalist Gabriella Gomez of Illinois pinned Valarie Solorio of Florida at 100.

 

Five matches were rematches of U17 Nationals finals. At 152, U17 World Team member Jasmine Robinson of Texas defeated Mishell Rebisch of Michigan, 9-4.

 

At 144, Sydney Perry of Illinois went on a second period rampage to beat Lizzie Shunn of Utah, 16-7. U17 World Team member Elena Ivaldi of California pinned Persaeus Gomez of Colorado in 25 seconds to win at 117. A bout later, at 127, Shelby Moore teched Skylar Little Soldier 10-0.

 

At 100, U17 World silver medalist Gabriella Gomez of Illinois pinned Valarie Solorio of Illinois in the second period.

 

Five Fargo champions also won on Friday night. Those were Clare Booe of Florida, Everest Leydecker of Arizona, Perry, Janida Garcia of Corlorado and Ward.

 

Garcia repeated as a Who’s Number One champion after a win in 2021.

 

Match summaries

 

106

Clare Booe (Tarpon Springs, Fla., No. 7 at 106) dec. Gigi Bragg (Anoka, Minn. No. 12 at 100), 8-3

 

Fargo champion Booe earned the first win of the night with patient defense and timely counters.

 

Brag opened the scoring with a low-level backdoor takedown and grabbed another on a shot clock violation. From a stalemate restart, Booe pushed Bragg to the edge and dropped a four-point move to lead 4-3 at the break.

 

At the break, Booe led 4-3.

 

Bragg fired off shot after shot Booe didn’t budge with squeezed hips and strong defense.

 

With 50 seconds left, Booe countered from an ankle pick attempt and worked down for a takedown. She added another counter takedown to secure an 8-3 win.

 

152

Jasmine Robinson (Allen, Texas, No. 2 at 152, No. 12 pound-for-pound) dec. Mishell Rebisch (Washington, Mich., No. 4 at 152), 9-4

 

In a rematch of the U17 Nationals final, Robinson relied on her double leg lifts to defeat Rebisch.

 

Early in the first period, Robinson blasted Rebisch on a double leg takedown to take an early 2-0 lead. Robinson, a U17 World Team member, lifted and chucked Rebisch for a four-pointer late in the first.

 

From the break, Robinson stutter stepped and shot for another four-pointer in what would’ve ended the match via technical fall. However, following a challenge from Rebisch’s corner, Robinson earned two points on the takedown instead of four.

 

With 45 seconds left, Rebsich forced Robinson to the corner and scored a four-point inside trip. Robinson outlasted Rebisch’s attacks for the win.

 

 

138

Zaynah McBryde (Buffalo, N.Y., No. 5 at 138) dec. Sarah Henckel (Southbury, Conn., No. 13 at 144), 5-4

 

The final seconds decided this fast-paced bout full of hand fighting. A shot clock violation from Henckel, a Fargo champ, became the only point scored in the first.

 

Out of the break, Henckel took the lead with a speedy slide-by takedown. Later in the second, McBryde, a Life University commit, finally converted a duck under with 1:50 remaining to lead 3-2. Moments later, Henckel double legged McBryde for another lead change, 4-3.

 

The chaos ended when McBryde solved Henckel’s whizzer and grabbed the winning takedown as time expired to win 5-4.

 

122

Everest Leydecker (Phoenix, Ariz.) dec. Cadence Diduch (Freeport, Ill., No. 6 at 127), 8-8 (criteria)

 

In a clash of Fargo champions, Leydecker used persistent offense and her lanky arms to collect two takedowns in the first.  From a neutral restart, Diduch, who scored from a pushout earlier, countered another circle takedown attempt into a double leg blast to get withing one.

 

Leydecker led 4-3 at the break. Out of the stoppage, Leydecker added another takedown in the same fashion — circle to stepover— as the previous scores. Moments later, Leydecker added another to lead, 8-3.

 

Diduch made it interested late. With 19 seconds left, Diduch lunged and lifted on the edge to get within two after a caution and one. With a par terre restart and Leydecker on bottom, Diduch chopped her opponent down for a takedown but Leydecker claimed criteria.

 

144

Sydney Perry (Batavia, Ill., No. 5 at 144) dec. Lizzie Shunn (Eagle Mountain, Utah., No, 4 at 144), 16-7

 

For Sydney Perry, the first period didn’t matter. Fifteen points in the second period will do that. In a rematch of the U17 World Team Trials final Perry won, she faced a 6-1 deficit at the break.

 

Thirty seconds into the second period, Perry responded with a takedown from a foot sweep. A pushout put her within three.  From the restart, with 63 seconds left, Perry lifted Shunn on the edge to tie it, 6-6. Twenty seconds later, Perry controlled Shunn on the edge and added a four-point takedown. Thirty-nine seconds left, Shunn responded with a pushout point but Perry didn’t stop.

 

She worked a takedown and a series of leg laces to win, 16-7.

 

117

Elena Ivaldi (New Castle, Calif., No. 2 at 117, No. 22 pound-for-pound) fall. Persaeus Gomez (Arvada, Colo. No. 3 at 117), 0:25

 

In another U17 World Team Trials final rematch, Ivaldi needed 25 seconds to pin Gomez.

 

Ivaldi tipped Gomez on the edge in a tight hold for the pin.

 

In May, Ivaldi swept Gomez in best-of-three series to make the Cadet World Team. In Rome, Ivaldi went 1-1.

 

 

127

Shelby Moore (Buckley, Wash., No. 1 at 127, No. 5 pound-for-pound) tech fall. Skylar Little Soldier (Welch, Minn., No. 4 at 127), 10-0

 

A Cadet World Team member met a Fargo champ in this one. Moore, who finished fifth at the  U17 World Championships, attacked Little Soldier from the beginning with a takedown on the edge 50 seconds into the first. Moments later, Moore shot toward Little Soldier and worked for another takedown to take a 4-0 lead into the break.

 

Moore’s single leg trip worked all night. She scored on the same move for the third time to lead 6-0. With 1:17 left in the match, Moore overwhelmed Little Solider with a barrage of takedowns to win via tech fall.

 

94

Morgan Turner (IL) inj. Erica Pastoriza (Phoenix, Ariz. No. 5 at 100)

 

In this one, world medals didn’t matter.

 

Turner, only 14, quickly grabbed a takedown less than 10 seconds into the bout. From there, Turner rolled Pastoriza on the edge for two more plus the pushout.

 

In a scramble halfway through the first, Pastoriza, a U17 World silver medalist, grabbed a takedown and Turner countered with a reversal.

 

With 54 seconds left in the first, Turner countered a Pastoriza roll through attempt with a takedown. Thirty seconds later, Turner extended her lead to eight. Just before the break, Turner held her right shoulder and received treatment from a trainer.

 

Pastoriza eventually forfeited with her injury before the second period began.

 

132

Janida Garcia (Colorado Springs, Colo., No, 2 at 132, No. 23 pound-for-pound) dec. Valerie Hamilton (Gridley, Ill. No. 5 at 132), 6-1

 

Garcia, a Fargo champ, opened the scoring after she countered a shot with a go-behind takedown. Later in the first, Hamilton, a Cadet World silver medalist, cut the lead in half with a pushout point with 50 seconds left in the first.

 

Garcia led 2-1 at the break. Early in the second, Garcia trucked Hamilton on the edge, to lead 4-1. Garcia added another with 12 seconds left and won 6-1.

 

100

Gabriella Gomez (Carol Stream, Ill., No. 3 at 100) fall Valarie Solorio (Panama City, Fla. No. 4 at 100), 3:54

 

A five-point throw in five seconds.

 

Solorio needed five seconds to slide by Gomez and perform a suplex.

 

About 45 seconds later, Gomez scored via pushout. In a heavy hand fighting bout, Solorio tied Gomez up and scored one more from a pushout.

 

The girls’ physicality earned a stern warning from the referee, but the intensity remained clear. Later in the period, Gomez secured a single leg takedown to get within three.

 

As time expired in the first period, Gomez finished a single leg with an inside leg trip. Solorio led 6-5 at the break.

 

Fifteen seconds into the final period, Gomez attacked with a takedown and grabbed another after she slammed Solorio back on the mat. Seconds later, Gomez turned Solorio for a fall.

 

112

Ava Ward (Centralia, Mo., No. 2 at 106, No. 19 pound-for-pound) dec. Alex Szkotnicki (Riva, Md. No. 2 at 100)

 

In this battle of Fargo champs, Ward, a 2021 Cadet bronze medalist soundly defeated Szkotnicki. Ward grabbed a 4-0 lead with a four-point throw and held that until the break.

 

In the second period, Ward grabbed another takedown on a snap down. She held that 6-0 lead and stymied any hopes of offense of Szkotnicki.

 

Who’s Number One

 

Ann Arbor, Michigan

Sept. 9, 2022

 

Women’s results

106: Clare Booe (FL) dec Gigi Bragg (MN), 8-3
152: Jasmine Robinson (TX) dec.  Mishell Rebisch (MI), 9-4
138: Zaynah McBryde (NY) dec. Sarah Henckel (CT), 5-4
122: Everest Leydecker (AZ) dec. Cadence Diduch (IL), 8-8, criteria
144: Sydney Perry (IL) dec. Lizzie Shunn (UT), 16-7
117: Elena Ivaldi (CA) fall. Persaeus Gomez (CO), 0:25
127: Shelby Moore (WA) tech fall. Skylar Little Soldier (MN), 10-0
94: Morgan Turner (IL) inj.  Erica Pastoriza (AZ)
132: Janida Garcia (CO) dec. No. 2 Valerie Hamilton (IL), 6-1
100: Gabriella Gomez (IL) fall. Valarie Solorio (FL), 3:54
112: Ava Ward (MO) dec. Alex Szkotnicki (MD), 6-0