Rodriguez Named KCAC Wrestler of the Year; Tigers Place 6th at KCAC Championships

(Rodriguez photo courtesy of Bob DeHart Photography)

Doane Women's Wrestling competed in their first postseason championship event on Saturday as they took part in the Kansas Collegiate Athletic Conference (KCAC) Championships in York. The Tigers collected 102.0 points to finish sixth overall.

Headlining the championship for Doane was the First Place finish by Cristelle Rodriguez at 130. She went 3-0 on the day. In her first match, she needed just 24 seconds to post a 10-0 tech fall win over Autumn Ortiz of York. In the semifinals, Rodriguez had a close match with Alexandra Baudhuin of Jamestown until she hit a big throw to put Baudhuin on her back to pick up the pin at 2:56. In the finals, Rodriguez defeated Emily Paulino of Midland by tech fall, 10-0, in 1:40.

Following the championship event, Rodriguez was named the KCAC Women's Wrestler of the Year. Her next competition will be at the NAIA National Championships in March.

Joining Rodriguez as national qualifiers are Karina Vang and Aevri Ciha who both earned runner-up finishes in their weight classes. 

Vang went 1-1 at 101 as she drew a pair of byes in the tournament. She defeated Zoe Omura of Midland by a 5-2 decision before falling to Esther Walker of Midland by pin.

Ciha went 2-1 at 143. She opened with a pin of Tayler Hayase of Midland in 1:05. In the semifinals, she defeated Abigail Sebesta of Ottawa by pin in 2:23. In the finals, Kaydince Turner of Hastings won 8-1.

The Tigers added two Third Place finishes, courtesy of Brooke Cox and Lamia Benn. Cox went 3-1 at 116, starting the day with a pin of Olivia O'Donnell of Ottawa. Following a loss in the semifinals, Cox defeated Allison Doppenberg of York by pin and Samantha Weeks of Jamestown by pin. Her final two pins came in the second period.

Benn went 3-1 at 170, starting out with a pin of Ingrid Beltran-Gonzaga of Ottawa. Following a 10-5 loss in the semifinals, she defeated teammate Makiaya De La Cruz, 10-0. In the final match, Benn defeated Taylor Rickley of Hastings by pin.

De La Cruz placed sixth and Victoria Hernandez placed eighth at 191. Hannah Nix also competed in the event.

Next up for Doane's trio of national qualifiers is the NAIA National Championships in Jamestown, N.D., on March 10-11.