Unranked Wrestlers Steal the Girls' Spotlight at USA Wrestling’s Brian Keck Memorial Preseason Nationals

The nation’s top high school girls wrapped up the Brian Keck Memorial in Des Moines with thrilling upsets, repeat champions, and breakout performances that reshaped the early-season landscape of girls’ wrestling.

Decorah’s Anastasia Simon was one of two unranked Iowa wrestlers to pull upsets and win a title at the Brian Keck Memorial Preseason Nationals. / Julia Hansen/Iowa City Press-Citizen / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

The girls high school wrestlers took center stage on Sunday morning into the afternoon at the Iowa Events Center in Des Moines for the final day of competition at USA Wrestling’s Brian Keck Memorial Preseason Nationals and National Recruiting Showcase. The boys’ class divisions started it off on Thursday, with their finals on Friday. The Boys Showcase concluded yesterday, leaving the girls to close it on Sunday for the high schoolers.

Heartland Heroes Rise in Des Moines

Two girls from the Heartlands of Iowa, Hayden Bratland (145 pounds) and Anastasia Simon at 170, showed a lot of heart as they came into the tournament unranked and knocked off ranked rivals on the way to earning championships.

Bratland downed two ladies that reside in our latest Girl’s National Rankings, hanging an 11-4 loss on No. 23 Layla Risler (Wisconsin) in the semifinals and controlling Oklahoma’s Emily Beckley (No. 15 at 135 pounds) in the finals, 9-3.

A scoreless opening framed led to excitement in the second as Bratland used a snap down and front headlock to a leg scoop to get on the board. With 17 seconds left in the period, Beckley attempted an ill-advised Granby and got caught for four near-fall points, growing Bratland’s lead to 7-0. Beckley would get a takedown in the final round that was followed by a Bratland reversal to arrive at the 9-3 final.

Interestingly, Bratland beat Beckley here last year on the way to placing fourth. Beckley did not place here but did pick up a 16U Silver at Fargo last summer.

After not stepping on the podium in 2024, Anastasia Simon made it to the highest rung at 170 pounds after she blasted No. 19 Laynie Vaughan (Wisconsin) with an 18-1 tech fall. Simon put on a clinic on how to use a Fireman’s Carry to a dump, collecting four takedowns with the maneuver in addition to a few sets of back points in a surprising outcome.

Repeat Champions and New Names Share the Podium

Minnesota was one of five states that crowned two champs joining Iowa, California, Colorado, and Texas. One of Minnesota’s champs was of the repeat variety as No. 3 Caley Graber added the 125-pound title to her 2024 one. Graber rolled to an easy tech of unranked Corabell Wesley (Indiana), 18-1.

Their other Golden Girl, Isabel Kaplan (No. 8 at 110 pounds), moved up from third a year ago to the top spot at 115 pounds with a 9-1 major decision in the finals over No. 17 Kendall Moe of Indiana. Moe earned a point on an escape the rest was all Kaplan with two Fireman’s Carries and a low single accounting for her three takedowns. Moe took out defending champ, No. 5 Aubree Storm Gutierrez from California, 9-8, in the semis.

Texas experienced a similar pattern to Minnesota with a repeat champion, Landri VonGonten (No. 1 at 130 pounds), and one improving from their prior showing, No. 10 Blake Baker (190), who was seventh in 2024.

VonGonten was at 132 pounds for Super 32 and now at 140 here. We imagine she’ll settle at 130 or 140 to avoid Maryland’s Taina Fernandez, who has defeated her in the past. On Sunday, the 140-pound title was up for grabs and claimed with a 12-0 major decision of Wisconsin’s Franky Groom-Frey (No. 18 at 135 pounds).

Baker hit a headlock shortly after her bout with Wisconsin’s Bryn Schmidt got underway resulting in a 45 second pin. Baker also stuck No. 12 Addison Arvdal (Nebraska) in the semis, 4:33.

Kansas’ Leolyn Karnowski (155 pounds) was the third repeat champion and did so on one of the six pins of the gold medal round, 3:51, versus Iowa’s Skylar Slade (No. 15 at 145 pounds). Karnowski, who’s title a year ago came in the middle school ranks, countered a heel trip attempt by Slade in the second period taking her straight to the back and securing the fall.

Indiana’s No. 6 Naima Ghaffar went from not sniffing the awards stand last year to winning a battle of top-ranked foes, 11-8, over No. 5 Kailin Sebert of Texas. Sebert placed fourth last year and had defeated Ghaffar at the Women’s Nationals and Fargo, by fall (:41) and tech (20-10) respectively.

Ghaffar produced a 7-0 edge out of the gate when she countered a Sebert shot by tossing her to the back. Sebert gained a reversal on a mat return to make it 7-2 after the first. Sebert went to a headlock quickly in the second but accrued no back points. Ghaffar escaped to make it 8-5 when Sebert tied it up by switching from a single to a double leg for a takedown.

The third period gave us yet another point scoring outburst at the whistle with Ghaffar picking up a leg off an arm tie to a takedown for the final points in the 11-8 decision as Ghaffar kept Sebert on the ground for the remainder of the match.

Golden State Power and Coast-to-Coast Success

California’s No. 29 Isabella Lorenzana stood at the top of the 235-pound stand after sticking Iowa’s No. 19 Haley Armstrong with three seconds remaining in the title bout, 5:57. In 2024, Lorenzana was seventh while Armstrong was sixth, pinning Lorenzana, 4:42. In addition to planting Armstrong, Lorenzana ended her encounter with No. 28 Eden Hach (South Dakota) early in the semis, 3:53.

Lilyana Balderas finished as a runner-up a year ago and gave the Golden State its second champ with a 12-0 major decision at 130 pounds over another Californian, Madison Black, 10-2. The 130-pound semifinals featured four California Girls as Balderas faced Zahra Stewart (No. 10 at 125) and Black handled Jocelyn Mendoza.

Clutch Wins and Statement Finishes Define the Finals

Colorado’s two champions came back-to-back at the start of the championship finals with wall charts being claimed at 100 pounds by No. 10 Peggy Susan Dean and 105 by Renee Hudson.

Dean won a showdown of ranked wrestlers by fall, 3:18, over Iowa’s No. 17 Abigail Peterson. In the second period, Peterson countered Dean’s shot, but Dean ended up sitting through and turning into a headlock twelve seconds in to take a 9-5 lead. A cradle evolved near the edge of the mat that resulted in a pin. Peterson was hoping to add this title to her upset run at Super 32 last weekend.

Hudson also won her crown on a fall, hitting an early takedown and getting right to work on a cradle to flatten Emily Beltran (Texas) just past a minute, 1:07.

Illinois’ No. 3 Angelina Gochis was another champion that used a pin to collect their top honors, hers coming at 120 pounds against No. 9 Daelin Cody of Wisconsin in 3:40. Gochis was close to a takedown in the second period, even getting behind Cody, but could not get her down to the mat. That series led to a lateral drop attempt by Cody that was expertly countered by Gochis for a takedown to the back, which she parlayed into the fall with 20 seconds on the clock.

Missouri’s Mabel Rogers won the 110-pound gold with her biggest win coming in the semis with No. 12 Jayden Keller, also of Missouri, whom she edged, 12-11. A 9-3 decision came in the final with Oklahoma’s Audrey Flores. They were tied at three going into the final frame when Rogers took over with a front headlock to a semi-cradle, holding onto the ankle to collect three back points for a 9-3 final.

Brackets (You need to create an account, but it’s free):