Waldorf’s McLaughlin, Losee earn fourth at Ottawa
By Matt Oliver
OTTAWA, Kan. – Bailey McLaughlin and Justice Losee secured fourth-place finishes to lead the Waldorf College women’s wrestling team in Sunday’s EZ Flex Sports Mats Open.
It was a positive step forward for the Warriors, who are preparing for their final regular-season tournament before heading to next month’s Women’s Collegiate Wrestling Association (WCWA) National Championships.
“I think the girls are seeing what positions they need to get to and are working to get to them,” Waldorf coach Tyreece Gilder said. “We had a few flashes of the fight it’s going to take to come out on top in those situations. Putting that same fight together for a full six minutes is going to be key moving forward.”
In the opening round, McLaughlin (136 pounds) lost by fall to the University of Jamestown’s Joy Muniz in 2 minutes, 20 seconds. The sophomore from Centennial, Colorado earned a first-round consolation bye and came back strong with a 10-2 decision over Ottawa University’s Anna Ernst. Muniz topped McLaughlin (5-23) once again, putting together a 10-0 technical fall in the third-place match.
Losee (143) came off a first-round bye and the junior from St. Ansgar notched a 7-2 decision over freshman teammate Cherydan James (7-12). Jamestown’s Marlie Gillis, who’s ranked No. 10 in the latest WCWA poll, pulled away from Losee (6-7) behind a 14-4 technical fall in the third-place bout.
James started her day by pinning Lindenwood University-Belleville’s Claudia Gallegos in 5:09. She lost by fall to Oklahoma City University’s sixth-ranked Maggie Douma one minute into her second-round matchup and then faced Losee.
Redshirt freshman Rachael Coleck (130), freshmen Hope Cordoviz (101), Marinna Vela (123) and Harmony Maitland (170) also went to work on the mats for the Warriors.
Coleck (16-15) received a first-round bye and lost an 11-0 technical fall to Oklahoma City’s Rachel Young, who’s ranked No. 4 at 136. Lindenwood-Belleville’s Kim Straub battled her way to a pin over Coleck in 5:15 during a third-round consolation match.
Cordoviz (6-16) fell to Oklahoma City’s Valeria Rivera by decision in the opening round. She lost by technical fall to Jamestown veteran Kim Cardenas in her final match.
Making her collegiate debut with Waldorf, Vela (0-2) lost a decision to Missouri Valley College’s Anna Poyner. Vela fought hard against Jamestown’s Tricia Martin before losing by fall in 4:38.
Maitland (4-13) came off a first-round bye and was pinned by Jamestown’s sixth-ranked Mckinzie Phillips in 4:10. She dropped a 20-11 decision to Jamestown’s Myranda Velazquez in a second-round consolation bout.
The Warriors wrap up the regular season in next weekend’s Bearcat Open at Lebanon, Illinios, beginning the two-day tournament at 9 a.m. on Friday. Waldorf then shifts its focus to the WCWA National Championships, set for Feb. 12-13 at Oklahoma City.