Riley Hanrahan didn’t execute the way she wanted to during the final period of her 138-pound Bi-State Classic championship match on Saturday, but that did nothing to diminish the brilliance of what she did in the first two.
The Black River Falls High School sophomore tied Mineral Point’s Dealya Collins into a pretzel for the entirety of the first two periods on her way to a 7-1 victory on a stage in the middle of the La Crosse Center.
Hanrahan (6-0), a WIAA state runner-up last year, said she wished she could have had more success in the third — she did eventually escape the bottom position and reverse Collins (9-2) in the closing seconds — but added that she may have been a little gassed while finishing her first tournament of the season.
“I should have done better at trying to get on my feet,” said Hanrahan, who returned to competition Friday after missing a couple of months with an elbow injury. “She likes to do cradles a lot, so that’s what she was looking for.”
Hanrahan was almost caught on a couple of attempted roll-throughs, but she avoided trouble each time before collecting herself and getting the late reversal.
Conversely, there wasn’t much Collins could even do until the third period. Hanrahan used her legs to tie up Collins’ legs and give her little chance at offense.
“She was real aggressive on her feet, and she rode strong,” Black River Falls coach Steve Markee said. “What she didn’t do well was get out from the bottom very easily.
“She has some moves that she can use really well, but they weren’t working. But it was a very strong match for her.”
Hanrahan won four of her matches over the weekend by technical fall and pin. She recorded three straight pins to qualify for the championship bout and took control of that with a takedown early in the first period. Collins struggled to free her arms and legs the rest of the first and the majority of the second after Hanrahan scored a reversal in the second.
“The idea was to just go out there and do what I do best,” said Hanrahan, who injured her elbow while winning the Defense Soap Super 32 Challenge in Greensboro, North Carolina on Oct. 12. “I was a little tired because this was my first tournament back. By the second (period), I felt good about how it was going.”
The performance didn’t surprise Markee a bit.
“She’s a phenomenal athlete who has been training hard for this,” he said. “It’s a credit to her hard work and all of the people who have worked with her to become the wrestler she is.”
PAULSON FINISHES ON STAGE: Aquinas senior Sophia Paulson (14-3) qualified for the 145-pound championship matches after beating four straight opponents, but Spencer/Marshfield Columbus sophomore Azariah Hoffmann caught her at the right time just before the second period ended.
Hoffman (15-1) turned Paulson while their title match was tied at 4 and recorded a pin at the 3:59 mark.
Paulson, who won her first three matches by pin and advanced to the title bout with a major decision in the semifinal round, emerged from an extended hand fight and tie-up with the first takedown with 30 seconds remaining in the first. Hoffman escaped 17 seconds later and took Paulson down in the second to turn the tables.
Hoffmann entered the Bi-State fresh off winning a championship during a tournament in Rhinelander a week ago.
THIRD PLACE: North Crawford/Seneca’s Franky Groom (19-3) and Black River Falls’ Katelyn Nosbisch (10-4) posted third-place finishes at 132 and 145, respectively, with Nosbisch winning her placement match by pin.
FOURTH PLACE: Holmen’s Aini Anderson (11-2) and Westby’s Kyle Klum (11-2) advanced through the consolation round but lost placement matches at 100 and 107, respectively.
FIFTH PLACE: Holmen’s Haley Dezelske (9-5) and Tomah’s Tylar Tillotson (13-6) finished their tournaments with wins at 114 and 145, respectively. Tillotson claimed fifth place with a pin.
SIXTH PLACE: Prairie du Chien’s Irelynd Cejka (16-4) was pinned in her fifth-place match at 138, and Ithaca/Weston’s Kaylee Manning (9-7) lost hers by major decision at 235.
