Queen Anne’s and Stephen Decatur met in a dual meet this season that ended with both scoring 42 and the Lady Lions being declared the victor based on Decatur forfeiting more matches according to Queen Anne’s coach John Waters.
In the two times they’ve met with scores being kept since then, Queen Anne’s has come out ahead. At the Bayside Tournament the Lions outgained the Seahawks, 243-211. At states, it was more of the same with a 121-109.5 advantage to allow the Lions to become back-to-back champions. Team scoring at the MPSSAA Girl’s State Tournament started a year ago, so Queen Anne’s is the only team to ever win girls’ state titles.
“It was an amazing adventure this year,” remarked Waters. “I couldn’t be more proud of the girls and the way they came together at the end of the season. They actually wrestled their best all year at the state tournament, which is the perfect time to really step it up. I’m really happy for them, for all the adversity we had to go through this year. Having six new starters in the varsity lineup was really a testament of how hard the girls worked all season. And how they progressed. They got better every day."
“They had breakfast together each morning at states. We ate dinner together Friday night. To see the team bonding was probably the most special thing for myself as a coach. And they really pulled for each other, too. If somebody won, you could see they were really happy, and if they lost, it felt like they lost. To have that bonding and also at the same time winning a second state title, that was really special to see.”
Both collectives placed four on the state podium and crowned one champion each. The difference in this race was decided by No. 17 Faith Connolly and her journey to the blood round at 145 and No. 2 Kaylynn Bryant (190) decking No. 1 Azariyah Johnson of Decatur in the second period of a match she was firmly in control of, 2:48.
The gap in the team tally suggests if Johnson had done what she normally does versus Bryant, the Seahawks may have claimed the crown. Two of the previous five meetings between the two had resulted in Johnson winning by fall. Such an outcome here would have made the count, 115.5-115, in favor of Decatur.
In addition to those two pins, the other three encounters resulted in Johnson wins of varying degrees, including 8-3 at regions and 19-8 at the Bayside Tournament. The point is, given the track record, Johnson repeating as state champion was almost a foregone conclusion. But no one informed Bryant of that as she defiantly took the lead before planting her rival. Bryant was third and sixth at states prior to earning this gold.
“Winning first place in the state championship means a lot to me,” Bryant said. “It’s the result of all the hard work, long days and sacrifices I’ve made throughout the season. Wrestling isn’t just a sport to me; it’s a way to push myself past my limits and prove that I can do things I never thought possible. This win shows that all the effort was worth it, and it’s not just about the medal - it’s about the journey, the support from my teammates, and the pride I feel in myself and my team! It’s a moment I’ll always remember, and it makes me excited to see what’s next.”
Queen Anne’s No. 2 Alexandra Conley (100) came in as a two-time state champion, having won titles as a freshman and junior. The senior was sixth as a sophomore. Unfortunately for Conley, there would be no third as she was handed a defeat by pin, 5:27, in her finals bout with No. 5 Violet Land (Marriotts Ridge), who had never placed at states before.
Land, a senior, was second at the 4A/3A East Region after forfeiting her finals match to Montgomery Blair’s No. 9 Natalie Seat. Conley pinned Seat in 53 seconds in the state quarterfinals. In the semis, Land downed No. 1 Oriana Boling of La Plata, 11-5.
“I definitely think the main component for winning and making such an improvement was being my teams 106lb boys varsity starter,” offered Land. “I went against a number of ranked guys this year, and with that I was able to train and expect a high level of intensity. I kept reminding myself how badly I wanted to win and how much I wanted that for myself, and that definitely led me to train harder. My coaches were so supportive in the process. I didn’t really think a whole lot about who I was wrestling at states, I just knew I had already faced tougher competition during the season.”
Other placers for Queen Anne’s were No. 1 Shayla Watson, who was third at 235 and No. 8 Lilly Hammond who landed in sixth at 140lbs. Watson was decked by No. 3 Jabea Ewane (Watkins Mill) 33 seconds into their quarterfinal showdown.
Ewane went on to win her third state crown to go along with the ones she earned as a freshman and sophomore. Ewane was second at 190 last year to Decatur’s Johnson. In the 235lb final, Ewane stuck the defending champ, No. 2 Emily Boling (Northern Calvert), in 2:22. Boling, a senior, was second as a sophomore.
Stephen Decatur’s champion was No. 1 Chaniah Bernier (170) who flattened No. 2 Morgan Linton (Eastern Tech) in the middle frame, 2:39. Bernier was a runner-up a year ago, beating Linton in the semis, 7-2, and placed fifth as a sophomore. Linton was fourth in her two prior trips to states. Both are seniors.
No. 5 Rachel Plata was second at 125 with a win over No. 4 Jaianna Wickline (Mountain Ridge) in the semifinals by fall, 2:39. In addition to Johnson’s silver, No. 4 Amari Purnell was fourth at 135 for the Seahawks.
Crofton’s No. 2 Lexy Pabon (125) has reached the state finals in all four years of her career. After coming in second as a freshman, Pabon has not tasted defeat at the state tournament, a trend she added to this year by decking Plata in 1:29. Pabon also stuck No. 3 Brynn Ryan (Manchester Valley) in 43 seconds in the semis. Plata, a senior, was sixth at states a year ago.
“Initially, coming into this season, my goal was to just to make sure that my technique stays sharp and hopefully beat up on a bunch of guys and come out with a winning record,” Pabon said. “The high school season is technically my off-season to prepare for freestyle nationals and world qualifiers. Prepping for states was very emotional. Not because of the weight cut but because this is the last time I'll be repping red, black, and yellow. "
“The memories I’ve made throughout the years are something I would never trade. Crofton wrestling has not only made me grow as a wrestler but also as a young woman. I am grateful for the four years I have had on this team and all the new relationships and connections that I have made in my final years as a high school wrestler. I couldn't ask for anymore."
“The day before state finals match, I was very nervous, not because of losing, but because it is a chapter that I will be closing in my wrestling journey. The night before I got an hour of sleep and my mind was just racing, I had sent a message to my coach who had passed away earlier in the year and just would think of what he would say to me if he was here."
“Warming up, I was full of emotions, and I did cry. My teammate and practice partner, Nyle (Borges) was a big help in my preparation and helped me through my mental state before finals. Although I never reached my goal as a four-time champ, I am happy to be a three-time state champ. But I am not satisfied. States was just another step closer to my goals of becoming a national, Olympic, and world champion. With the right training, discipline, and God by my side, I have high hopes of achieving this goal.”
Pabon was joined atop the podium by another Anne Arundel County grappler, this one gained her first championship after being third the previous two years, No. 7 Sophia Hodges(135) of Northeast. Hodges won counties but finished second at regions to North Point’ s No. 6 Lena Black, who did not place at states.
The junior’s title run included a win over Decatur’s Purnell, 6-1, in the semis and then a 6-2 upset of state champ, No. 3 Aubry Spadoni of Quince Orchard, a sophomore, in the final.
“Going into the tournament I felt nervous but excited because I knew I put in a lot of work both offseason and in season, in order to get the outcome I’d been striving for,” said Hodges. “During the tournament, I felt really relaxed thanks to my new warm up routine before matches, which was just to mess around and make jokes with my coach, Shevy.
“Going into the state finals I felt nervous, because I knew a lot of people would be watching, and it would be a tough match; however, at the same time I was relaxed, and ready to wrestle through any position I got into. The first period there wasn’t much action, 0-0… during the second, I got reversed, and knew I would have to push the pace and work hard to get ahead again. Going into the third I chose neutral, knowing that a takedown would decide the match. We got into a scramble where I felt really comfortable, because I practice those positions very often. "
“When the buzzer went off and I knew I had won state, my first thought was to run and hug my coaches. I was so excited that I’d finally achieved my goal of winning states. I was especially excited because I knew how tough my bracket was, and every match was gonna be tough, and every girl was good. I knew she was a defending champ, but everyone in the bracket was good, and I was excited to compete with all of them.”
Three girls became two-time champs, two are seniors and top rated at their weights Rockville’s Anastasia Dakoulas (130) and Laurel’s Alexandra Ford (140). The other is a sophomore, No. 1 Madison Birth (Havre de Grace).
Birth took out No. 2 Ariana Carnahan (Eastern Tech), 10-6, in her 110lb title bout. A year ago, Birth pinned Carnahan in the semifinals, 1:37. Birth also hung losses this year on No. 5 Leian Wright (Western Tech), 11-7, in the semis and No. 3 Juliana Wong (Richard Montgomery), by fall, 1:13, in the quarters.
“Winning the state title was very exciting and just an amazing experience,” Birth said. “It took a lot of hard work throughout the season and losing to get me to this point in my career, hopefully we can continue to progress and get better and see what happens next year. I think wrestling against boys all year until regions and states definitely gives me an advantage over my competitors. Winning my second high school girls state title and tenth state title overall was very gratifying, but I haven’t accomplished all my goals, so I’m not done yet.”
Ford, who is ranked 17th in the country by USA Wrestling, posted a first period pin of No. 2 Alanna Adams (Severna Park), 1:12, for her second crown in a row after being third as a sophomore at 155lbs. Adams, a senior, had never placed at states before this.
“I have dreams bigger than a state championship,” said Ford. “So, when you want to wrestle the best, the only thought you should have is finding your next position. In the two state championships I’ve won, that’s all I did.”
Dakoulas placed fifth as a freshman and followed that up with a third place showing. As a junior, Dakoulas reached the top of the podium and replicated that again this year with an 11-1 major decision of Northwest’s No. 5 Esther Clark. Dakoulas defeated Clark to earn Montgomery County and 4A/3A West crowns en route to states. Clark, also a senior, did not place last season after being fifth as a sophomore.
Fellow Montgomery County grappler, No. 9 Sonia Pegoue (Walter Johnson) is a junior that used a slew of upsets to secure her first title after being a runner-up a season ago. Pegoue tumbled down the rankings this year after a sixth-place finish at Who’s #1 and a 4A/3A West regional final loss to Tuscarora’s No. 3 Kristina Dorsey.
It started in the round of 16 at 145lbs when Pegoue decked No. 1 Daisy Rojas of La Plata in 1:41. That was followed by an 8-1 semifinal decision of No. 7 Alexandra Adams (Severna Park) and a 6-1 championship bout win over No. 4 Samantha Semprun Salazar of Atholton, who was a state silver medalist in 2024. Dorsey did not place at states and Rojas ended in sixth place.
“I feel like I wanted it more than everyone else, it’s all I could think about, and I had to get it,” Pegoue said. “I was super nervous, but I just told myself to wrestle like I always have, and I knew I had an immense amount of support behind me no matter what.”
Freshman No. 5 Katherine Virgilio (Brunswick) used a pin with five seconds left, 5:55, to win the 115lb crown over Aubrey Ohler, a sophomore from Liberty, who is now a two-time state runner-up. The win over Ohler, who is No. 1at 115, was coupled with a milder upset of No. 4 Grace Ackerman (Crofton), 5-2. Ohler took out No. 2 Kayla Chin (John F. Kennedy), with a quarterfinal win, 7-4 in overtime.
Two juniors accounted for two of the titles we’ve yet to mention, No. 3 105lber Wura Idowu (Randallstown) and No. 1 Reagan Ramadan (Rising Sun).
Idowu was 0-2 at states last year after reaching the blood round as a freshman. After winning Baltimore County and 2A/1A North Region titles, Idowu kept that momentum in her favor with a pin just fractions of a second before the first period buzzer versus No. 2 Catherine Orndorff, a freshman from Brunswick, in the finals, 2:00.
Ramadan wrestled at the West Nottingham Academy last year and was a silver medalist at the National Prep Tournament. Ramadan’s 155lb final was a one versus two matchup with Gabbie McLeod (Winters Mill), who placed second as a freshman and junior, and was fifth in between them. Ramadan put forth a 6-4 decision to add the state championship to those won in the UCBAC and 2A/1A East Region.
Our final champ improved upon her runner-up showing as a freshman in another one versus two showdown as No. 1 Rileigh Romberger of Smithsburg had little trouble with Tuscarora’s Ella McDonald as she trounced her with a 14-2 major decision. For McDonald, a senior, this is her first time on the state podium.
Waters talked about the approach, not just to the season by his squad, but also their outlook on the state tournament.
“I do a lot of self-reflecting on what can we do better, what do we need to improve on as a team,” Waters continued. “But I start with myself as a coach first, and at this time last year, the first thing that I had was, let’s enjoy whatever happens next year, more than what we did this year. We enjoyed it and it was great, but we didn’t enjoy every single success because we were chasing the first ever. We weren’t really chasing it, but we got to a point where, hey, we have a really good shot."
“So, this year, the goal was, we’ll talk about it but we’re not going to bring it up every day. Some of the Team Captains asked if we could just move on. It made it a lot easier and after they won it, they felt, ok, this was just us. It’s our group. Nothing against last year’s group, but we did have a lot more turnover than we thought."
“We actually talked about it with the team the day before, and said, look, we’re not even chasing the team score as a team. All we are worried about now is your individual success, because this is what you worked your whole season for. And through your individual successes, our team will be our team. We’ll let everybody else worry about the team score all weekend. Let’s just get locked into our matches."
“Our normal approach is one match at a time, that’s how we approach everything. The girls really believe that philosophy. We really buy into that and that’s something we work on. You have to believe it, if not, the moments gonna get too big, and it did for some of our girls."
“We just tried to keep it about what we’re doing that day instead of looking back and saying hey, we did this last year, so we gotta do it again this year. We didn’t want it to be like that, for them to stress on that’s what we’re wrestling for because wrestling is stressful enough as it is. I didn’t feel like putting any added pressure on them was worth it, just try to let them be as free as possible out there on the mat.”
Team Scores (Top 15):
1-Queen Annes 121
2-Stephen Decatur 109.5
3-Tuscarora 89
4-Quince Orchard 87
5-Crofton 78
6-Winters Mill 71.5
7-La Plata 58.5
8-Eastern Tech 55.5
9-Rockville 55
10-Walter Johnson 53.5
11-Havre de Grace 53
12-Atholton 52
13-Northeast-AA 49
14-Brunswick 47
14-Manchester Valley 47
100
1st Place Match
Violet Land (Marriotts Ridge) 22-17, Sr. over Alexandra Conley (Queen Annes County High School) 23-7, Sr. (Fall 5:27)
3rd Place Match
Oriana Boling (La Plata) 32-2, Sr. over Laicey Durham (Williamsport) 27-22, Fr. (Fall 2:49)
5th Place Match
Alexa Hresko (Winters Mill) 18-5, Jr. over Amy Tressler (Fort Hill) 23-15, So. (Dec 9-7)
105
1st Place Match
Qluwadamilare(Wura) Idowu (Randallstown) 29-1, Jr. over Catherine Orndorff (Brunswick) 21-1, Fr. (Fall 2:00)
3rd Place Match
Jada Agurs (Gwynn Park) 31-2, Jr. over Isabella Peluso (Quince Orchard) 31-13, So. (Fall 0:14)
5th Place Match
Juliet Chin (John F. Kennedy) 23-7, Fr. over Brooke Jones (Kenwood) 26-6, Sr. (Fall 1:48)
110
1st Place Match
Madison Birth (Havre de Grace) 25-15, So. over Ariana Carnahan (Eastern Technical) 29-1, Sr. (Dec 10-6)
3rd Place Match
Juliana Wong (Richard Montgomery) 18-1, Sr. over Leian Wright (Western School of Tech.) 19-11, Sr. (Dec 4-1)
5th Place Match
Alina Fang (Poolesville) 22-7, So. over Juliana Oxenberg (Atholton) 28-12, Sr. (Fall 2:04)
115
1st Place Match
Katherine Virgilio (Brunswick) 19-9, Fr. over Aubrey Ohler (Liberty) 18-3, So. (Fall 5:55)
3rd Place Match
Liv Goldinger (Annapolis) 18-1, Sr. over Madelyn Hartman (Oakdale) 23-6, Fr. (Dec 6-5)
5th Place Match
Kayla Chin (John F. Kennedy) 23-3, Sr. over Jayla Shropshire (Winters Mill) 21-10, Sr. (Fall 1:24)
120
1st Place Match
Rileigh Romberger (Smithsburg) 23-1, So. over Ella McDonald (Tuscarora) 34-1, Sr. (MD 14-2)
3rd Place Match
Alexis Nicholas (Walkersville) 27-9, So. over Annika Emshoff (Frederick) 23-10, So. (MD 10-0)
5th Place Match
Landine Dorleans (Colonel Richardson) 25-6, So. over Cielo Prieto (Richard Montgomery) 20-3, Sr. (Fall 2:28)
125
1st Place Match
Lexy Pabon (Crofton) 31-10, Sr. over Rachel Plata (Stephen Decatur) 20-5, Sr. (Fall 1:29)
3rd Place Match
Saniyah Belliel (Rockville) 26-7, So. over Jaianna Wickline (Mountain Ridge) 18-17, Sr. (Fall 0:27)
5th Place Match
Lillian Markoff (Tuscarora) 28-5, Sr. over Triniti Green (Edgewood) 12-6, Jr. (Fall 4:56)
130
1st Place Match
Anastasia Dakoulas (Rockville) 23-0, Sr. over Esther Clark (Northwest) 24-5, Sr. (MD 11-1)
3rd Place Match
Jennifer Djobo (Eleanor Roosevelt) 17-2, Sr. over Caroline McCann (Westminster) 23-6, Sr. (TF-1.5 4:29 (19-1))
5th Place Match
Francheska Bonilla (Oakland Mills) 22-5, Sr. over Efrata Mekene (Bethesda-Chevy Chase) 26-6, Sr. (Dec 4-0)
135
1st Place Match
Sophia Hodges (Northeast (AA)) 24-1, Jr. over Aubry Spadoni (Quince Orchard) 19-1, So. (Dec 6-2)
3rd Place Match
Fiona Ritchie (Henry E. Lackey) 17-4, Fr. over Amari Purnell (Stephen Decatur) 14-6, So. (TB-1 4-0)
5th Place Match
Chloe Chwang (Manchester Valley) 27-4, Jr. over Grace Reilly (Bel Air) 14-7, . (Dec 5-4)
140
1st Place Match
Alexandra Ford (Laurel) 16-0, Sr. over Alanna Adams (Severna Park) 14-4, Sr. (Fall 1:12)
3rd Place Match
Esther Hernandez (Quince Orchard) 21-3, Jr. over Kayla Ward (Havre de Grace) 15-4, Sr. (TF-1.5 3:56 (17-2))
5th Place Match
Vivian Abalama (Meade) 31-4, Sr. over Lilly Hammond (Queen Annes County High School) 19-10, Jr. (Fall 0:37)
145
1st Place Match
Sonia Pegoue (Walter Johnson) 28-4, Jr. over Samantha Semprun Salazar (Atholton) 14-2, Sr. (Dec 6-1)
3rd Place Match
Anna Farr (Rising Sun) 16-4, Jr. over Alexandra Adams (Severna Park) 14-6, Sr. (Dec 2-0)
5th Place Match
Addie Grubb (Manchester Valley) 23-8, Jr. over Daisy Rojas (La Plata) 27-3, Sr. (Fall 1:34)
155
1st Place Match
Reagan Ramadan (Rising Sun) 16-2, Jr. over Gabbie McLeod (Winters Mill) 19-1, Sr. (Dec 6-4)
3rd Place Match
Amirah Abegesah (Quince Orchard) 21-1, Jr. over Reese Butler (North County) 27-4, Jr. (MD 10-0)
5th Place Match
Jariah Washington (Henry E. Lackey) 18-4, So. over Nomtai Kurmi (Oakland Mills) 21-5, Sr. (Fall 1:46)
170
1st Place Match
Chaniah Bernier (Stephen Decatur) 26-2, Sr. over Morgan Linton (Eastern Technical) 27-1, Sr. (Fall 2:39)
3rd Place Match
Maddox Zuniga (Walter Johnson) 28-5, Sr. over Jordan Lawson (North Harford) 21-7, Sr. (Dec 6-0)
5th Place Match
Alexis Ogundipe (Glen Burnie) 12-3, Jr. over Kamil Johnson (Potomac) 21-4, Jr. (SV-1 4-1)
190
1st Place Match
Kaylynn Bryant (Queen Annes County High School) 25-4, Sr. over Azariyah Johnson (Stephen Decatur) 18-2, Sr. (Fall 2:48)
3rd Place Match
Ashari Willis (Patapsco) 20-6, Sr. over Nicole Filip (Harford Technical) 15-5, Sr. (Fall 2:55)
5th Place Match
Amirrah Butler (Frederick Douglass-PG) 12-4, So. over Cynthia Luna (James Hubert Blake) 16-11, Sr. (Fall 4:09)
235
1st Place Match
Jabea Ewane (Watkins Mill) 18-4, Sr. over Emily Boling (Northern-Cal) 13-2, Sr. (Fall 2:22)
3rd Place Match
Shayla Watson (Queen Annes County High School) 26-3, Jr. over Destiny Dupree (Academy for College and Career Exploration (ACCE)) 10-4, Jr. (Fall 3:56)
5th Place Match
Laylah Jefferson (Arundel) 20-6, Fr. over Asia Brown (Gwynn Park) 10-5, Jr. (Dec 5-2)