The final tune-up for the Chadron State College women’s wrestlers is this Saturday, when they head to Fremont, Nebraska, for the Midland University Warrior Open.
CSC is one of 13 teams with wrestlers entered, as of Friday. All of the teams but itself and No. 6 Iowa Western Community College are NAIA members. Four of the NAIA teams are ranked in the top-25.
The open meet is the last chance for the Eagles to improve before their first-ever trip to the NCWWC Regional Championships in Lebanon, Ill., February 19-20.
The Eagles are led by sophomore Kamila Montenegro with a record of 16-5 on the season at 170 pounds. That includes 11 wins by fall and one tech fall. She placed third at the Maverick Open, second at the Lindenwood Invitational, and took the crown at the Hastings Open last month. She remains unranked in the national poll, but she may get the opportunity to compete against the No. 4 junior college wrestler, from Iowa Western, this weekend.
At 136 pounds, freshman Ryleigh Dye is 8-6 after joining the team just last month. She placed fifth at Hastings, wrestling at 143. Dye then dropped to her current class where she was 3-2 and finished in the top 8 out of 20 at the York Open. All eight of her wins have been bonus wins, with five pins and three techs.
Freshman Taylor Lindstrom and junior Kinsey Smith have both had their share of success at 101 pounds. Lindstrom is 3-9 but owns a win over both the No. 1 and No. 7 junior college contenders. Likewise, Smith is 5-9 and also has multiple wins over ranked opponents.
Karstin Hollen, another freshman, is 6-13 with five falls and a tech fall on the year. She was eighth at Hastings.
Freshman Madison Martinez is 3-2 for the season. She competes at 235, where not many NCAA or junior college teams carry a student-athlete on their rosters.
Both Jeslyn Jindra, at 155 pounds, and Maddison Christiansen, at 143, are still in search of their first wins of the season. Christiansen began competing just last month, while Jindra has wrestled up a weight at times, in order to fill dual spots.
The Eagles compete with NCAA schools in the “Southwest” quadrant, for the purposes of regional alignment. The only other NCAA programs west of Missouri are Colorado Mesa and Simon Fraser of British Columbia. There is not yet a NCAA-sanctioned championship in the sport, so coaches last year formed the National Collegiate Women’s Wrestling Coalition in order to determine champions.
Most of the Nebraska programs are in the NAIA, which sponsors its own championships.