Posted: Feb 22, 2025

Nine wrestlers qualify for national tournament

INDIANOLA, Iowa – For the first time in program history, the Simpson College women's wrestling team will send multiple wrestlers to the NCWWC Championships as nine wrestlers punched their ticket to Coralville.

Gracie Waage (103), Sarah Zimmerman (110), Layla Phillips (110), Ashley Cannon (124), Dionni Garcia-Vasquez (131), Paige Gershmel (138), Annelise Obermark (145), Breanna Wier (160) and Keeley Kehrli (160) will all represent Simpson on the big stage in two weeks.

Leading the charge, Kehrli secured Simpson's highest finish of the tournament, earning runner-up honors at 160 pounds. Waage and Zimmerman battled their way to third place finishes, while the remaining six wrestlers locked in their national bids with hard-fought fourth place finishes.

The Storm put together a strong team performance, finishing third overall with 110.0 points. Simpson had the second-most qualifiers behind Iowa with 15.

PATH TO NATIONALS

103 - Gracie Waage showed resilience after dropping her first match of the day 8-5, bouncing back with a pin in the consolation semifinals over Wartburg's Carissa Hersom. She capped off her run by avenging her opening loss to Ava McNeal (Sioux Falls), securing a hard-fought 13-9 decision to claim third place.
110 - Sarah Zimmerman made a statement with a commanding 10-0 shutout over Wartburg's Hope Chiattello to open her day. After falling to eventual champion and No. 2-ranked Ava Bayless, she responded in dominant fashion, recording back-to-back pins to clinch third place and a trip to nationals. Her final pin over Paw Hobza (Sioux Falls) came in just 27 seconds.
110 - Layla Phillips wasted no time making an impact, pinning two opponents in under a minute to reach the third place bout alongside Zimmerman. In a hard-fought battle, she was ultimately pinned in 4:39.
124 - Ashley Cannon was the first Simpson wrestler to punch her ticket via a true fourth place match, defeating teammate Lainie Burkhart with a pin in 1:22. Earlier in the day, she captured a pair of technical falls.
131 - Dionni Garcia-Vasquez kicked off her run with a 9-6 decision before pinning Sioux Falls' Mackenzie Armagost to earn a place in the third place bout. She fought hard but fell late in the match via pin.
138 - Paige Gershmel continued her impressive season, extending her win streak to 13 with two early victories before falling 8-2 to No. 10 Aniyah Kelly (Wartburg) in the semifinals. She rebounded with a 10-0 tech fall over Augsburg's Kelsey Cruz before dropping a tough match by the same score to Augsburg's Nina Makem.
145 - No. 9 Annelise Obermark opened her day in dominant fashion, rolling to a 10-0 technical fall before facing No. 2 Reese Larramendy (Iowa) in the semifinals, where she fell 11-4. Despite a setback in the third place match, Obermark secured her spot at nationals with a clutch 6-2 decision over Augustana's Aine Moffit in a true fourth place bout.
160 - No. 10 Keeley Kehrli battled her way to the finals with a quarterfinal pin and a gritty 9-7 decision over No. 9 Alexandra Hofrichter (Dubuque) in the semifinals. Facing Olympic silver medalist Kennedy Blades (Iowa) in the championship, Kehrli fought hard but fell 10-0, earning a runner-up finish.
160 - Breanna Wier powered her way through the bracket with a pin in 2:37 and a 12-7 decision, setting up a semifinal showdown with Blades. After a 10-0 loss, she advanced via injury default before falling in the third place match. She finished her day on a high note, securing a pin over Augustana's Maryam Ndiaye in 1:35.

MEET RESULTS
103 - Gracie Waage: 2-1, 3rd place
110 - Sarah Zimmerman: 3-1, 3rd place
110 - Layla Phillips: 2-2, 4th place
124 - Ashley Cannon: 4-2, 5th place
124 - Lainie Burkhart: 1-3, 6th place
131 - Dionni Garcia-Vasquez: 2-2, 4th place
138 - Paige Gershmel: 3-2, 4th place
145 - Annelise Obermark: 3-2, 4th place
145 - Noa Arnold: 2-2
160 - Keeley Kehrli: 2-1, 2nd place
160 - Breanna Wier: 4-2, 4th place
180 - Jenna Joseph: 1-2, 6th place
207 - Morgan Miller: 2-2, 5th place
207 - Savannah Sistad: 1-3, 6th place