Bostelman in Finals, Estrada and Vanderwood Place in Top Four at MVC Open

Marshall, Mo.--Three Statesmen women's wrestlers placed at the biggest collegiate tournament of the year as they competed at the Missouri Valley Open Friday and Saturday.

In a event that featured over 600 individuals from the all divisions, Kendall Bostelman (Jr., Napoleon, Ohio, Exercise Science) topped the navy and gold by placing second at 138 pounds.  She was 6-1 with four technical falls in a bracket that included nearly 80 wrestlers.  Her 15-4 loss in the finals came to Xochitl Mota-Pettis, an inductee of the National Wrestling Hall of Fame.

Zao Estrada (Fr., Bluffton, S.C., Sociology) was WPU's next-highest finisher, taking third at 117 pounds.  She won six matches, including five technical falls and one fall.  Her only setback came to Brianna Gonzalez of Iowa, who is ranked #1 in the NCAA.

Joanna Vanderwood (Sr., Graham, Wash., Nursing) also placed, ending up fourth at 124 pounds, going 5-2 with four technical falls.

131-pounder Devin Patton (Jr., Plano, Texas, Business Management) won four of her six matches with four technical falls.

The trio of 103-pounder Teya Garner (So., San Antonio, Texas, Biology), 131-pounder Bronwyn Brenneman (Jr., Parnell, Iowa, Biology), and 138-pounder Espie Almazan (Fr., Council Bluffs, Iowa, Political Science) all notched three victories at the Open.

Garner won all three matches by fall, while Brenneman had one technical fall and one fall and Almazan had a pair of technical falls and one fall.

103-pounder Lily Zapata (Fr., Lewisville, Texas, Sociology), 117-pounder Kylie Bustos (Jr., Amarillo, Texas, Nursing), 138-pounder Isabelle Hawley (Jr., Winchester, Calif., Sociology), and 180-pounder Grace Gray (Jr., Ankeny, Iowa, New Media) all pinned two opponents, while Catherine Steinkamp (Sr., Quincy, Ill., Exercise Science) claimed two technical falls at 124 pounds.

Four others earned two wins as well.  Grecia Martinez (So., Horizon City, Texas, Industrial Engineering) had one technical fall and one fall at 131 pounds, while 145-pounders Naida Abdijanovic (Jr., St. Louis, Mo., Biology) and Alexa Wolf (Rogers, Ark., Business Management) both collected a fall within their two victories.  160-pounder Isabella Harris (Charleston, Tenn., Sociology) notched a technical fall in her two-win day.

145-pounder Tatiana Garcia (Jr., Amarillo, Texas, Undecided) (one fall), 207-pounder Daisy Cabriales (Jr., Richland Hills, Texas, Business Management) (one fall), and 235-pounder Phoebe Burt (Sr., Iowa City, Iowa, Sociology) (one technical fall) all had their hands raised once as well.

"This was one of the toughest tournaments of the year, featuring top NAIA and NCAA programs," Head Coach Jake Kadel said.  "The most important outcome for us was that our team finished the weekend healthy.  I am incredibly proud of how we wrestled.  This provided valuable experience that will benefit us as the season progresses."

"Kendall Bostelman, Zao Estrada, and Joanna Vanderwood all had standout performances," Kadel added.  "Overall, we saw a lot of positives.  We are excited to build on this momentum after Thanksgiving break."

Next Up: William Penn returns to Oskaloosa on Thursday, December 5 to host Missouri Valley in a Heart of America Athletic Conference dual meet at 5 p.m.