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Ignacio's Larissa Espinosa prepares to pin teammate Soriah Perez during a bout held Wednesday, Jan. 17, inside IHS Gymnasium as an added attraction to the boys' La Plata County Duals. Espinosa would go on to place first in her division at the 1/19-20 She Devil Classic in Page, Ariz.
Ignacio Girls' Wrestling head coach Aimee Larsen, right, discusses tactics with Soriah Perez while observing a boys' bout Wednesday, Jan. 17, during the IHS-hosted La Plata County Duals. The Lady 'Cats most recently placed tenth at the 1/19-20 She Devil Classic in Page, Ariz.
Photo Credit: Joel Priest | Special to SU Drum
Photo Credit: Joel Priest | Special to SU Drum
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IHS girls on the attack in Arizona

Friday - January 26, 2024 by Joel Priest | Special to the Drum

Espinosa wins, Lady ’Cats take tenth 

Certainly not pleased over both Durango and Pagosa Springs deciding not to send any competitors to the Ignacio-hosted La Plata County Duals on Wednesday, Jan. 17, to give the event more of a girls’ feature, the Lady Bobcats converted frustration into aggression and maximized the action they saw a couple days later at Page, Arizona’s 2024 She Devil Classic. 

And despite having only four wrestlers make the trip, IHS still tallied 62 team points and placed a solid tenth out of 27 teams represented at the 1/19-20 tournament. Ninth-place St. George, Utah, Desert Hills was only two points ahead, and eighth-place Kayenta, Ariz., Monument Valley three in what ended up being a very competitive tournament. 

Placing first overall was Queen Creek (AZ) Casteel – third place at last season’s AIA Girls’ Wrestling State Championships – with 157 points, only three more than runner-up Cedar City (UT) Canyon View. Enterprise, Utah, piled up 113 points and came in third, followed by Phoenix, Ariz., Desert Vista (109) and PHS (99). PSHS (45 points), meanwhile, also attended the event and finished 14th, while Durango (25) placed 17th. 

Leading the way for IHS, Larissa Espinosa (16-10 overall) went 4-for-4 at 235 pounds and pinned all her opponents in placing first. Two foes couldn’t last a full 30 seconds against the sophomore, while the other two survived well into the second two-minute period before Espinosa bested them. Last to fall was MVHS senior Cheyanne Jones, stuck 1:30 into the second. 

Pinned in the placing phase at 132 pounds by Chinle, Ariz., freshman Raidanna Sutton, Ignacio senior Kacey Brown finished fourth and posted a 2-2 meet record improving her to 17-10 overall this winter. Brown did notch one pin, coming at Casteel junior Tyli Clark’s expense in the consolation semifinals (Clark would soon bounce back and save fifth place). 

Sophomore Marlene Martinez-Perez (14-11) also placed fourth at the Classic, going 3-2 at 138. Including a 20-second stick of Canyon View sophomore Arrian Seeley in the first round, Martinez-Perez pinned all three of her victims before losing by pin to Page junior Mya Tsinnijinnie in the third-place bout. 

And at 235, senior Soriah Perez (5-16) went 2-2 with pins of Kanab, Utah, senior Nakita Gonzales and Casteel freshman Miquela Salas, but was pinned in the quarterfinals by Espinosa, and later by PHS’ Kiiyana Huskie in the third consolation round. 

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