Wayland has company in the Lone Star State, plus results vs Texas Wesleyan
For nearly a decade, Wayland Baptist University was the only program with a varsity women’s wrestling team in the Lone Star State.
This is peculiar considering that Texas sanctioned high school girls wrestling in 1999, second only to Hawaii, which sanctioned the sport for girls in ’98. Texas is recognized as a powerhouse. The state accounted for 21% of all high school girl wrestlers across the Country in 2019 with a reported 4,421 wrestlers in the annual NFHS survey. And, on a participatory note, approximately 17% of college wrestlers that competed at the 2020 NCWWC or made the final NAIA coaches poll were actually from Texas.
.@wbuwrestling senior Asia Ray pic.twitter.com/FddBBVCtXp
— Transition Wrestling (@transition_wres) November 7, 2020
It was last year, as Wayland celebrated a decade of competition, that Texas Wesleyan hit the mats for the first time. The rams were just 1 of an incredible 17 new programs pegged to start last fall.
Both programs are member institutions within the National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics (NAIA), where women’s wrestling is considered an invitational sport. When a total of 40 programs sponsor the sport the coaches association can apply for championship status. There are 38 programs today.
In 2019, Wayland had 3 NAIA National Champions: Asia Ray at 101 pounds, Jathiya Isaac at 116 and Paige Baynes 191. Before that stellar performance, Senior World Champion and WBU alum Tamyra Mensah-Stock addressed NAIA wrestlers at the inaugural event.
The Pioneers were headed into the 2020 NAIA National Invitational ranked 7th after a runner-up performance at the Sooner Athletic Conference. Which, by the way, was hosted for the first time by Wayland.
This season Wayland is led by a group of standout seniors, including Nina Pham, Asia Ray and Desiree Zavala. Zavala wrestled on a pair of senior-level cards this fall, first with the Nittany Lion Wrestling Club and again during FloWrestling’s 8-Man Challenge.
Texas Wesleyan freshman Lexie Basham placed 3rd at Senior Nationals last month, Camille Fournier placed 7th. The pair were champions at this year’s Reno Worlds.
Nov. 7 Match Results: Wayland 38, TX Wesleyan 10
*complete scores will be added as they are available**
191: Kaylynn Albrecht (WBU), forfeit
101: Caryssa Aguirre (WBU), forfeit
109: Nina Pham (WBU) over Carmen Allred (TXWES), 12-2 4:09
116: Asia Ray (WBU) over Alexandra Magana (TXWES), fall 4:21
123: Camille Fournier (TXWES) over Rebekah Cordova (WBU), Fall 3:17
130: Mea Mohler (TXWES) over Jasmine Davis (WBU), fall 5:37
136: Jordan Suarez (WBU) over Maryellen Lafferty (TXWES), 10-0
143: Desiree Zavala (WBU) over Lexi Basham (TXWES), fall
155: Elena Vasquez (WBU), forfeit
170: Olivia Ricci (WBU), forfeit
via TrackWrestling
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