PARKVILLE – Entering a new era in the absence of 4-time state champion Maddi Kubicki who never lost a wrestling match, Park Hill South is looking for girls to step up.
Without any state qualifiers on the roster, Park Hill South will lean on its five returning starters, led by seniors Germara Guillroy (140) and Anna Katz (170). Sophomore Zella Gray (105) along with juniors Lucia Henriquez (140) and Graciella Ortiz (170) were in the lineup in 2022.
“Our seniors are at the top of my list, they have developed great skills over the years and we’re going to get one more push out of them,” Park Hill South girls’ wrestling coach Bradley Jones said. “Lucia Henriquez had a close match at districts last year and fell short of qualifying so we think with all the work put in during the offseason she will qualify this year; and with two months of training and competition, some of these first-time wrestlers we have might just make a bigger wave than we anticipate.”
Park Hill South has a lot of numbers this year with 21 – 14 of which are freshmen – and will look at some first-year high schoolers to take on large roles. Julia Smith, Eva Estrada, Abigail Monaco and Temperance Lowe are some freshman names to watch out for this year.
“With such a young team and the loss of three state qualifiers from last season, we’ve been going back to the basics of wrestling. Nothing fancy or crazy, just straight up wrestling. We have a big push in team camaraderie that has really spiked the numbers and girls’ interest to stay out for the team,” Jones said.
Rylee Burns (105), Savannah Noe (130) and Molly Drake (135) are some other light-weight wrestlers for Park Hill South. Ella Christensen (190) and Ashanti Williams (235) are in the heavier weight classes for the Lady Panthers.
“We’ve already shown some great success from last season to this season with the growth in numbers. We’re looking to win some duals and tournaments. Our goals we have set as a coaching staff are to qualify at least three to state, win conference in duals and place top-4 as a team at districts,” Jones said.