Sparkman Girls Shine At State Wrestling Tournament- Finish Runner-Up

HARVEST- Although still not a sanctioned sport by the Alabama High School Athletic Association (AHSAA), the enthusiasm and commotion centering around girls wrestling among high schools in Alabama remains at a fever pitch. The zeal for the new sport is supreme at Sparkman High as the participants increased from three wrestlers to 15 for the just completed 2021-2022 season.

At the season ending State Tournament, Sparkman fared very well. “We had six wrestlers place this year, three of whom were first year participants,” said Ronnie Watson head coach of Sparkman.

As a team, the Lady Senators placed second behind state champion Daphne. The final tally in team scoring had Daphne 140 to Sparkman’s 127.

Leading the way for Sparkman was junior Akerah Artis who for the second consecutive year placed second in the 147-pound weight class. Her four matches in the state event included a first round forfeit over Saraland, a win by a fall at 0:55 over Josie Faison (12-16) of Northside Methodist Academy, a win by fall at 1:47 in the semi-final match over Estrella Islas (16-9) of Thompson and a tough loss in the championship match. In the title battle Artis (20-4) fell by a fall at 1:50 to undefeated Yasmine Oliveira (21-0) of Spain Park.

Reagan Grant, a sophomore, took second place in the 154 weight class. She opened the state meet with a bye and followed with two victories by fall. In the quarterfinal, Grant defeated Gabrielle Thompson (5-7) of Chelsea with a pin in just 26 seconds. In her semifinal match, Grant again scored a fall in less than a minute (0:57) by defeating Autumn Boutwell (11-5) of Arab. In the championship match, Grant (14-5) lost in a fall at 1:08 to undefeated Sage Rosario (15-0) of Daphne.

In the 167-pound weight class, Sparkman had two wrestlers make the state tournament as Kalea Loving showed a possible longtime tenure at Sparkman as the eighth grader earned a runner-up spot in the 167 weight class. Her opening match she received a bye, but in round two she faced off against teammate Joy Hawkins (11-8) and came away with a fall at 3:36. Loving posted another fall at 1:30 in her semifinal contest over Rachel Crowe (14-7) from Thompson. In her title match Loving (21-3) suffered a fall at 2:29 to Kaylee Holder (19-1) of Daphne.

As for Hawkins, a sophomore, (11-8), she earned third place in the weight class. She won by a fall at 1:01 to open her participation before losing to Loving. In the consolation rounds, Hawkins won by fall (0:41) over Zoe Jones (4-9) of Central, a fall (1:20) over Haylei Hooks (6-8) of Weaver, a fall (1:55) over Zailyn Morton (11-5) of W.S. Neal and a third place victory of a fall (0:59) over Thompson’s Rachel Crowe (14-7).

Kameron Glenn (18-6), a senior on the Lady Senators’ squad, place third in the 134 weight class. She received a bye in round one, but suffered a fall (3:06) in a quarterfinal match to Hayden Kendall (2-2) of Auburn. In the consolation rounds, Glenn rolled off four consecutive falls to earn third place. She defeated Emery Adams (3-5) of Montevallo in 0:56, Loriah Castro (3-11) of Enterprise in 2:15, Amaya Smith (16-12) of Mae Jemison in 1:34 and Opelika’s Shy’Kalya Brooks (4-2) at 1:00.

In the 116 weight class, Kloe Robb, a sophomore, earned fourth place. She opened her competition with a 1:31 fall over Nicole Sanders (2-3) of Brookwood and then fell to Maggie Whitaker (19-5) of Arab in an 8-2 decision. Once in the consolation rounds Robb won by a 5-1 decision over Heidi Peralta-Fernandez (3-2) of Opelika, a sudden victory (7-5) over Amylia Thomas (15-15) of Montevallo and a 4:16 fall over Zoey Bair (12-3) of Thompson. In the silver medal match, Robb (16-7) lost in a 7-2 decision to Maggie Whitaker (19-5) of Arab.

Other wrestlers from Sparkman to participate in the State Tournament included Samantha Clark (2-14) in 116 with no placement, Nadia Smith (20-7) in 122 where she placed sixth, Morgan Nichols (9-9) unknown place in 128, Rylee Parson (14-8) who did not place in 140, and Aliza Wix-Amaya (8-5) who did not place in 237.