LUBBOCK – There are a few themes that can best define the UIL Region 1-5A Tournament, which took over the Lubbock Memorial Civic Center last weekend. Two of the most prominent were “rematch” and “the great filter.”
The latter is what separates the good from the great, as the top four grapplers earned their spot for the UIL Wrestling State Tournament – slated to begin next Friday at the Berry Center in Cypress. Out of 207 boys and girls from the Texas Panhandle and the South Plains, only 65 – 32 boys and 33 girls – advanced to the final weekend of high school wrestling.
The former painted a picture of the championship bouts on Saturday, where four of the 24 overall title bouts were rematches from the district round. Three of the four rematches ended up with the district champ coming out on top.
Tascosa senior Presley King was the lone exception. Following a 1-0 setback against Amarillo High’s Jennifer McNeil in the girls 140 lbs. championship last Saturday on her home mat, King picked up a 13-5 victory for the regional title.
The rest of this story is only for subscribers.
“I wasn’t feeling the best (at district),” King said. “I knew that I’d have to put that tournament in a past and focus on regionals. I knew that I had that shot to fight my way back to the top. I had confidence going in, and I knew that I wanted to be first.”
King built up a 7-1 lead by the end of the first period, thanks to a takedown and a nearfall. From there, King collected two takedowns for the major victory.
“I knew that I had to be aggressive,” said King. “I knew I had to get to my ties and I didn’t want to force anything. Once I got her leg, I wanted to put it away early. I didn’t want to go the distance with (McNeil). She took (the district title away) from me the week before, so I was wanting to get it back.”
In the team standings, the regional tournament belonged to Azle. The Hornets kept Lubbock High and Caprock at arm’s length on the boys’ side with two champions and five qualifiers, while the Azle girls picked up three championships and two runner-up slots.
Denying the Hornet girls of one of those championships was Palo Duro senior Jasmine Vick. Vick had to fight tooth and nail to clinch the top spot in her weight class, fending off Azle’s Elizabeth Yelle via a narrow 4-3 decision in the girls 170 lbs. championship.
“I’m feeling great,” Vick said, following the win. “I’m ready to move on, go to state and get that first place spot. I fell a little short last year, and I’m ready for some redemption. (Yelle) was one of the best competitors that I’ve faced. We were right there, head to head, up until the very end.”
Even though Vick was the lone champion for the Lady Dons, she’ll be joined by her teammates Jency Twee (110 lbs. runner-up), Genesis Cerda (120 lbs., fourth place) and Xazanya Gonzales (145 lbs. runner-up).
On the guys’ side of the tournament, Lubbock High led the pack with a runner-up finish, 145 total points, seven state qualifiers and one champion in Jaxon Russell (150 lbs.). Caprock was a half-point behind, taking third with the help of champion Christian Casarez (132 lbs.) and four other qualifiers in Zyair Gonzales (106 lbs. runner-up), Miguel Sandoval (113 lbs. runner-up), Max Trostle (150 lbs. runner-up) and Xavier Vargas (165 lbs., third place).
The Randall boys, a traditional powerhouse within and beyond the Texas Panhandle, settled for fourth with 140.5 points. However, senior Mark Gallegos continued his push for another state championship with a series of dominating performances.
In the 190 lbs. title match, Gallegos handled El Paso Bel Air’s Cesar Ramos with a 2:49 pinfall. According to Gallegos, the key to success lies within the mind.
“A big problem with (some) wrestlers is their mindset,” said Gallegos. “I come into these tournaments just knowing about the number and not looking at who I have. I just trust my training, go out there and attack.”
The Raiders will boast Gallegos, Abraham Campa Cortes (120 lbs. runner-up), Landen Ballesteros (138 lbs. runner-up), Elijah Luna (285 lbs. runner-up) and Micah Meurer (113 lbs., third place) heading into the state tournament.
Gallegos offered praise to Ballesteros.
“It’s his first year on varsity,” said Gallegos. “He won district and wrestled with (Azle’s Tyler Yancey) better than everybody expected. He did really well, and he still has state next weekend.”
The Randall girls were the top team from the Panhandle in the girls’ team standings, behind Azle and El Paso Bel Air. The Lady Raiders were paced by Lauren McHam, the 115 lbs. champion.
Caprock landed fourth with just two qualifiers (Anaika Barker and Mikayela Valdez), followed by Tascosa and Lubbock-Cooper. The Lady Rebels tout King as their lone champion, while the Lady Pirates take four to the state tournament.
The Borger girls heralded one champion in Nicole Soldevilla, and Lubbock Monterey saw Shaianne Brown become their lone tournament champion. Dumas’ Khlyee Whalen (285 lbs.) became a regional champion, as Amarillo High, Hereford, Lubbock High and West Plains each had two grapplers advance to Cypress.
Canyon had heavyweight Josselin Large advance to state, by way of a fourth place finish. Lubbock Coronado had one wrestler, Arianna Henderson (125 lbs., fourth place), move on to state.
Behind the Randall boys in the team standings was Amarillo High, who captured two championships and are sending four total wrestlers to the Berry Center. Drezdyn Ballard (157 lbs.) and Ethan Webb (175 lbs.) led the Sandies with top spots on the podium.
Dumas settled for seventh place with 80.5 points, finishing behind Aledo. Conner Smith (106 lbs.) was the Demons’ lone champ while Eli Loya (138 lbs.) will return to the state tournament.
Tascosa landed behind Fort Worth Chisholm Trail, but enjoyed a thrilling victory in the championship session. In the 165 lbs. title bout, Jace Castillo outlasted Lubbock High’s Lucas White with a 9-6 sudden victory. Castillo scored a three-point takedown on White with 52 seconds left in the overtime period.
Lubbock-Cooper Liberty went with quality over quantity, due to its two champions in Camillo Esqueda (113 lbs.) and Isaac Rodriguez (215 lbs.). Rodriguez was dominant in his title match against El Paso Irvin’s Austin Mitchell, scoring a 2:52 pinfall.
Known for his prowess on the gridiron, Rodriguez also handled business on the mat.
“(Wrestling) is definitely harder than football,” said Rodriguez. “When it comes to wrestling, I always go by this model, ‘practice like you never won and play like you never lost.’ It’s all about finishing your matches.”
Heavyweight Ryder Hatton was the lone champion for Lubbock-Cooper, while Hereford is represented by its lone champ in Qaletre Garcia (126 lbs.). Canyon will send Connor Armstrong (157 lbs. runner-up) to state, as well.
Region I-5A Tournament
at Lubbock Memorial Civic Center
Boys Team Standings (Top 10)
1. Azle 163.5 (two champions, five qualifiers)
2. Lubbock High 145 (one champion, seven qualifiers)
3. Caprock 144.5 (one champion, five qualifiers)
4. Randall 140.5 (one champion, five qualifiers)
5. Amarillo High 138 (two champions, four qualifiers)
6. Aledo 100.5 (two qualifiers)
7. Dumas 80.5 (one champion, two qualifiers)
8. Fort Worth Chisholm Trail 73 (one champion, three qualifiers)
9. Tascosa 67.5 (one champion, three qualifiers)
10. Lubbock-Cooper Liberty 61 (two champions, two qualifiers)
Girls Team Standings (Top 10)
1. Azle 161 (three champions, five qualifiers)
2. El Paso Bel Air 128.5 (three champions, four qualifiers)
3. Randall 116.5 (one champion, four qualifiers)
4. Caprock 95 (two qualifiers)
5. Tascosa 94 (one champion, four qualifiers)
5. Lubbock-Cooper 94 (four qualifiers)
7. Palo Duro 92 (one champion, four qualifiers)
8. El Paso Burges 85 (three qualifiers)
9. Borger 78.5 (one champion, two qualifiers)
10. Fort Worth Chisholm Trail 69
Boys Individual State Qualifiers
106 lbs.
1. Conner Smith, Dumas
2. Zyair Gonzales, Caprock
3. Chaz Marone, Fort Worth Chisholm Trail
4. Enrique Dioses, Lubbock High
113 lbs.
1. Camillo Esqueda, Lubbock-Cooper Liberty
2. Miguel Sandoval, Caprock
3. Micah Meurer, Randall
4. Kavien Roland, Amarillo High
120 lbs.
1. Ethan Orat, Fort Worth Chisholm Trail
2. Abraham Campa Cortes, Randall
3. Noah Gamez, El Paso Parkland
4. Elijah Ramos, Lubbock High
126 lbs.
1. Qaletre Garcia, Hereford
2. Derek Rojo, El Paso Hanks
3. Aiden Rivera, Tascosa
4. Charles Anderson, Aledo
132 lbs.
1. Christian Casarez, Caprock
2. Camron Latham, Azle
3. AJ Ramos, Lubbock High
4. Gavin Chambers, Amarillo High
138 lbs.
1. Tyler Yancey, Azle
2. Landen Ballesteros, Randall
3. Eli Loya, Dumas
4. Bryson Brown, Amarillo High
144 lbs.
1. Chase Yancey, Azle
2. Jacaden Brown, El Paso Chapin
3. Dominic Contreras, Springtown
4. Pavel Ballesteros, Fort Worth Paschal
150 lbs.
1. Jaxon Russell, Lubbock High
2. Max Trostle, Caprock
3. Wyatt Hicks, Azle
4. Hendryx Johnston, Fort Worth Paschal
157 lbs.
1. Drezdyn Ballard, Amarillo High
2. Connor Armstrong, Canyon
3. Mac Shafer, Fort Worth Benbrook
4. Braylan King, Tascosa
165 lbs.
1. Jace Castillo, Tascosa
2. Lucas White, Lubbock High
3. Xavier Vargas, Caprock
4. Desmond Chambers, Fort Worth Benbrook
175 lbs.
1. Ethan Webb, Amarillo High
2. Jorge Quinones, El Paso Bel Air
3. Quaylon Mason, Fort Worth Chisholm Trail
4. Ryan Dyer, Fort Worth Paschal
190 lbs.
1. Mark Gallegos, Randall
2. Cesar Ramos, El Paso Bel Air
3. Brady Powell, Aledo
4. Josiah Medrano, Lubbock High
215 lbs.
1. Isaac Rodriguez, Lubbock-Cooper Liberty
2. Austin Mitchell, El Paso Irvin
3. Jorge Martinez III, El Paso Chapin
4. Troy Chacon, Lubbock-Cooper
285 lbs.
1. Ryder Hatton, Lubbock-Cooper
2. Elijah Luna, Randall
3. Jordan Durrett, Azle
4. Sebastian Pedroza, El Paso Parkland
Girls Individual State Qualifiers
100 lbs.
1. Noah Kovach, Azle
2. Lila Breedlove, Borger
3. Lillian McHam, Randall
4. Mikayela Valdez, Caprock
105 lbs.
1. Nicole Soldevilla, Borger
2. Anaveh Gonzales, Lubbock-Cooper
3. Hilda Urena, El Paso Irvin
4. Anisa Nuchols, Randall
110 lbs.
1. Lauren Marquez, El Paso Bel Air
2. Jency Twee, Palo Duro
3. Savanna Denton, West Plains
4. Solana Castillo, El Paso Jefferson
115 lbs.
1. Lauren McHam, Randall
2. Zaliyah Rodriguez, Lubbock-Cooper
3. Alianna Favela, El Paso High
4. Kyria Keeton, Tascosa
120 lbs.
1. Mackenzie Harris, Azle
2. Tylie Ramos, Lubbock-Cooper
3. Lisa Garcia, El Paso High
4. Genesis Cerda, Palo Duro
125 lbs.
1. Olivia Ontiveros, El Paso Bel Air
2. Sage Mosler, Azle
3. Samantha Marmolejo, Tascosa
4. Ariana Henderson, Lubbock Coronado
130 lbs.
1. Zaylyn Woods, Azle
2. Dailiah Coyle, Henrietta
3. Macey Jeffrey, Randall
4. Ariana Criado-Silvar, Lubbock High
135 lbs.
1. Shelby Coyle, Henrietta
2. Gloria Vasquez, El Paso Burges
3. Anaika Barker, Caprock
4. Alyssa Rodriguez, Lubbock-Cooper
140 lbs.
1. Presley King, Tascosa
2. Jennifer McNeil, Amarillo High
3. Yubia Apodaca, El Paso Bel Air
4. Joceline Bilolo, Eagle Mountain
145 lbs.
1. Rubie Chavez, San Elizario
2. Xazanya Gonzalez, Palo Duro
3. Peyten Jumper, Amarillo High
4. Janielle Hill, Hereford
155 lbs.
1. Cydney Davis, El Paso Bel Air
2. Valori Porter, Hereford
3. Keyondra Villagran, Lubbock Monterey
4. Juleah Estrada, El Paso Burges
170 lbs.
1. Jasmine Vick, Palo Duro
2. Elizabeth Yelle, Azle
3. Natalia Roman, El Paso Burges
4. Kylie O’Dell, West Plains
190 lbs.
1. Shaianne Brown, Lubbock Monterey
2. Piper Wheeler, Aledo
3. Michelle Ramirez, El Paso Del Valle
4. Darlene Rosales, Fort Worth South Hills
235 lbs.
1. Khlyee Whalen, Dumas
2. Aryiah Cofer, Tascosa
3. Mariella Prieto, Lubbock High
4. Josselin Large, Canyon