Raccoon River-NW, Cedar Falls boast 11 qualifiers; Ankeny among 5 teams with 8

Ankeny’s Nora Bockes is introduced prior to the start of last year’s 110-pound championship match in the girls’ Class 2A state wrestling tournament at Xtream Arena in Coralville. Bockes, who went on to place second to help Ankeny to a runner-up finish, is one of her team’s eight qualifiers for this year’s tournament. She is the No. 10 seed at 115. (Photo by Evan Reiter)

Top-ranked Raccoon River-Northwest is the clear favorite to defend its title in the girls’ Class 2A state wrestling tournament on Thursday and Friday at Xtream Arena in Coralville.

Raccoon River-Northwest qualified 11 wrestlers for the tournament, including eight top-five seeds. The team is led by senior Katie Biscoglia, a three-time state champion who is the top seed at 110 pounds.

No. 2 Cedar Falls also boasts 11 state qualifiers and matches Raccoon River-Northwest with a pair of top seeds. However, five of the Tigers’ qualifiers are seeded 13th or lower at their respective weights.

No. 3 Ankeny is one of five teams with eight qualifiers. The others are No. 5 Iowa City Liberty, No. 6 Waverly-Shell Rock, No. 8 Southeast Polk and South Tama.

The Rams boast five top-five seeds, led by No. 1 Skylar Slade at 155. Waverly-Shell Rock boasts four top-three seeds, including No. 1 Amalia Djoumessi at 170.

Ankeny has four top-five seeds, led by No. 2 Lauren Watson at 110. The junior could eventually meet Biscoglia in the title match.

Ankeny’s Lauren Watson shakes hands with Katie Biscoglia of Raccoon River-Northwest prior to a match last season. Watson, who went on to place third in Class 2A at 105 pounds, is the No. 2 seed at 110 this season. She could meet the No. 1 Biscoglia, a three-time state champion, in Friday night’s finals. (Photo by Stephen McDaniel)

No. 5 Karlie Kruse will face a rematch in her opening bout at 125. She will meet No. 12 Charlee Kounkel of Hinton after pinning her in the final of Friday’s regional tournament at Glenwood, where she handed Kounkel her first loss of the season.

Kruse could meet No. 4 Ellie Hancock of Raccoon River-Northwest in Thursday’s quarterfinals. There could be another quarterfinal matchup between the CIML Conference rivals at 140, where Ankeny’s Haley Togba could meet No. 1 Calista Rodish if she can win her opening match.

Raccoon River-Northwest won the crown last year with 156 points. Ankeny was second with 143, followed by Cedar Falls with 132.

Here are all of Ankeny’s first-round matchups on Thursday:

110: No. 2 Lauren Watson, 33-6 vs. No. 15 Mariana Angeles (CRK), 26-18

115: No. 10 Nora Bockes, 20-4 vs. No. 7 Cadence Pastor (MARI), 34-12

120: No. 5 Trudy Haag, 39-6 vs. No. 12 Piper Zamastil (PCR), 41-14

Ankeny’s Trudy Haag controls Tegan Robertson of Ridge View during the fifth-place match at 120 pounds in last year’s Class 2A state tournament. Haag went on to post a 10-4 decision, but Robertson won a rematch on Jan. 10 at the Ogden Invitational, where she defeated Haag in the 120-pound final. Haag is the No. 5 seed for this year’s state tournament, while Robertson enters as the No. 2 seed at that weight with a 46-0 mark. (Photo by Evan Reiter)

125: No. 5 Karlie Kruse, 38-7 vs. No. 12 Charlee Kounkel (HIN), 25-1

140: No. 9 Haley Togba, 29-12 vs. No. 8 Evelyn Eggleston (ICL), 31-4

145: No. 5 Jammie Krah, 41-5 vs No. 12 Collins Ryan (WSR), 32-16

Ankeny’s Jammie Krah smiles after pinning Ayla Osterkamp of Dubuque Hempstead in 2 minutes 59 seconds to earn a seventh-place finish at 145 pounds in last year’s Class 2A state tournament. She is the No. 5 seed at 145 for this year’s tournament. (Photo by Evan Reiter)

170: No. 10 Aliayah Shade, 36-10 vs No. 7 Precious Kredit (SCN), 28-5

235: No. 12 Aysia Moser, 39-8 vs No. 5 Emma Daniels (CARR), 35-5