Newton girls finish third at Sigourney/Keota in season opener

SIGOURNEY — Missing three projected starters from its lineup didn’t slow down the Newton girls wrestling team during its season opener on Tuesday.

The Cardinals were without sophomore state qualifier Kylee Adams and seniors Ella Machin and Kylee Ashley but still finished third in the 18-team tournament hosted by Sigourney/Keota.

Freshman Isabel Talley highlighted the night with a first-place finish at 235 pounds. Senior Stella Cupples (115) and junior Ashlyn Van Manen (190) both were second at their weights, too.

Other top-five finishes came from junior Grace Guy and sophomores Alivia Conley, Johana Cerna and Kamiya Lepley.

The Cardinals scored 105 points in third. They trailed only tournament champion Pekin (132) and runner-up West Liberty (123.5).

Sigourney/Keota (79) and Grinnell (76) completed the top five and the rest of the top 10 included Clear Creek-Amana (67), East Union (64), North Mahaska (63), Lisbon (57) and Lone Tree (52).

Talley’s night at heavyweight featured a 3-0 record with three pins. Two of her pins came in 27 and 45 seconds.

Cupples was 2-1 with two pins at 115. Both pins came in 59 seconds and her lone loss was to defending state champion Reanah Utterback of Sigourney/Keota.

Van Manen was 2-1 with two pins at 190. The returning state qualifier secured both of her pins in the opening period.

Newcomers Conley and Cerna both were third at 125 and 140, respectively. They each went 2-1 with two pins. Cerna, a foreign exchange student, posted two first-period falls.

Returners Lepley and Guy were fourth and fifth, respectively, at their weights. Lepley went 1-2 with a first-period pin at 155 and Guy was 1-4 with one pin at 170.

Freshman newcomer London Everhard did not place but won her first varsity match by fall at 135.