2023 UIL Wrestling State Championships: Allen repeats with 6A boys, girls state titles

The Allen Eagles rallied to claim the 6A boys state title from Arlington Martin and split the 6A girls state title with El Paso Eastwood to highlight Class 6A action at the 2023 UIL Wrestling State Championships at the Berry Center in Cypress

The UIL State Wrestling Championships concluded Saturday night at The Berry Center of Northwest Houston in Cypress.

The Class 6A boys and girls championships featured some repeats as Allen won both titles – though the girls shared the championship.

The Eagles won the boys' title with 201.5 points and rallied from a deficit earlier in the day to beat Arlington James Martin, which was second with 186 points. The Allen girls won a third straight title, though the Eagles will share it this year with El Paso Eastwood, as each team had 67 ½ points.

Eagles' Record Streak Continues

The Eagles won an unprecedented 14th straight boys championship and capped off the day with three championships to put an exclamation point on the victory.

Kelby Bernard (120), Caden Brown (144) and Ryan Nichols (215) all won titles Saturday night, but the wins in the third- and fifth-place matches helped the Eagles surge ahead of Martin going into the finals.

Brown’s head-to-head win against Martin’s Julian Garnica sealed the win for the Eagles. He screamed and stomped his feet on the mat after the 5-4 win.

Allen had five in the semifinals and five in the consolation bracket and they all won their last matches. Gabe Romans (126), Joseph Liescheski (138), Warren Smith (165) and Aiden Cooley (190) all took third and fifth-place finishers were Jair Jackson-Bey (132), Jay Stahl (175) and Drake Madole (285).

“We got a lot of bonus point wins too and we didn’t get a lot of help from anyone else and our kids stepped up and went 10-0 today in placement matches and that is unheard of,” Allen coach Jerry Best said. “So, we’re really proud of our kids.”

Fantastic Four

The Troopers from El Paso Eastwood didn’t score a single point in last year’s girls' Class 6A tournament. This year, armed with only four wrestlers, they earned a share of the state title.

Alexis Montes won the 120-pound title, Paulina Butler (138) was a runner-up and Jadine Mata (165) took fifth place. Daniela Romo (152) went 1-2 but her win on day one was key in the big picture when the final scores were announced.

“We came with four and we needed every point to be where we are right now,” El Paso Eastwood coach Troy Douglas said. “I tried not to do too much, but it is hard (not looking at the scoreboard); At the end, I started peeping a little bit more. I’m really happy for the girls. We have a couple of seniors that will go out on top … it’s good.”

Montes, who missed last year with knee surgeries, finished 23-1 and beat Alyssa Ruiz from Trophy Club Byron Nelson, 5-2, in the championship. She wrestled only 2 minutes and 44 seconds on day one to reach the semifinals on Saturday. There, she won 11-1 against Vanessa Egorah of Richardson.

Class 6A trio complete three-peats

Three different wrestlers won state title No. 3 during the weekend.

Jasmine Robinson won No. 3 for Allen by winning the 152-pound title and will return with a chance for No. 4 – something that has happened only three times in state history: Shelley Morrison of Bushland, Hilary Cordero of Amarillo Caprock and Allen’s Alex Liles.

Robinson beat previously undefeated Audrey Onyeonwu (31-1) of Round Rock McNeil by a pin.

Prior to Saturday night, only four girls wrestlers won three titles in a row but Robinson and Olivia Moreno joined that list.

Moreno, a senior from Austin Bowie, was named the Class 6A Most Outstanding Wrestler and took home a plaque.

Her title came with a 1-0 win over Emily Pedro of Little Elm in a battle of undefeated wrestlers. Moreno went 36-0 this season.

“It honestly felt unreal doing it for a third time,” Moreno said. “I knew it would be a tough match going into it. I was preparing myself, I wanted to give my best (effort) I could. It was a hard match and it was tough but it was worth it.”

On the boys' side, Arlington Martin’s Shawn Ryncarz capped off his career with three state titles to go with a runner-up finish as a sophomore. The Warriors’ standout picked up a 2-1 win over Conroe Woodlands College Park’s Caio Aron in the finals of 126 pounds.

Check out results from championship matches in every weight class for Class 6A boys and girls wrestlers at the 2023 UIL Wrestling State Championships on Saturday in Cypress:

Class 6A Boys — Championship Match Results

106 — Titus Howell, Keller Timber Creek def. Richie Walsh, Katy Cinco Ranch, 5-2

113 — Isaak Arevalo, Arlington Martin def. Juan Cantu, Houston Westside, 4-2

120 — Kelby Bernard, Allen def. IIan Abdallah, El Paso Franklin, 3-1

126 — Shawn Ryncarz, Arlington Martin def. Caio Aron, Conroe Woodlands College Park, 2-1 OT

132 — Trebor Moreno, El Paso Eastwood def. Timothy McGuire, Klein, 9-3

138 — Kyle Lew, Houston Westside def. Garrett McChesney, Katy Jordan, 3-2

144 — Caden Brown, Allen def. Julian Garnica, Arlington Martin, 5-4

150 — Gavin Ramos, El Paso Montwood def. Finn Shepard, Arlington Martin, 4-3

157 — Julius Alfaro, Arlington Martin def. Juan Pablo Garcia, Katy, 9-6

165 — Jeremy Manibog, Katy def. Cam Girard, McKinney Boyd, 1:47

175 — Isaac Sheeren, Katy def. Nico Lozano, Klein Cain, 7-5

190 — Jarrett Stoner, Rockwall def. Isaiah Francis, Coppell, 9-6

215 — Ryan Nichols, Allen def. Andrew Jurasek, Keller, 3-2

285 — Riah Ostrander, Keller Timber Creek def. Rodney Trotter, Katy, 4-2

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Class 6A Girls — Championship Match Results

100 — Jubilee Rendon, El Paso Franklin def. Arianna Rodriguez, South Grand Prairie, 3-0

107 — Riley Rayome, Conroe The Woodlands def. Akeelah Moore, Richardson, 1:55

114 — Fernanda Lopez, Richardson Lake Highlands def Ileah Brown, Lewisville, 6-2

120 — Alexis Montes, El Paso Eastwood def. Alyssa Ruiz, Northwest Trophy Club Byron Nelson, 5-2

126 — Olivia Moreno, Austin Bowie def. Emily Pedro, Little Elm, 1-0

132 — Jania Dunigan, Arlington Martin def. Scout Carrell, Coppell, 7-2

138 — Anna Vogt, Conroe Woodlands College Park def. Paulina Butler, El Paso Eastwood, 1:48

145 — Azana King, Trinity Euless def. Talyn Naylor, Klein Cain, 1:33

152 — Jasmine Robinson, Allen def. Audrey Onyeonwu, Round Rock McNeil, 1:17

165 — Audrey Lockhart, Wolfforth Frenship def. Samaria Barnett, Converse Judson, 7-3

185 — Rylee Ferranti, Klein Oak def. Faith Macharia, Keller Central, 5-2

235 — Erica Cobbs, El Paso Americas def. Dayla Brown, South Grand Prairie, 6-0