Pioneers Capture Regional Title, Send 9 to Nationals

Saturday, February 18

Erie, Pa.

Sacred Heart

Region I Championship

Pioneers Capture Regional Title, Send 9 to Nationals

2/18/2023 9:21:00 PM | Women's Wrestling

Biega named Region 1 Coach of the Year, while Payne-Parris, Sandquist and Smith win titles

ERIE, Pa. – The top team in the Northeast Region all season, the Sacred Heart University women's wrestling team proved it one more time on Saturday at the Regional Championship, hosted by Gannon University. The Pioneers captured the regional championship and will send nine wrestlers to the NCWWC Nationals. After leading her team to the a Regional Championship, head coach Paulina Biega was named the NCWWC Region 1 Coach of the Year.

Sacred Heart edged out the host Gannon by 3.5 points with a winning score of 176.00. The national championship is set for March 3-4 in Cedar Rapids, Iowa.

The Pioneers had three wrestlers win their weight class to advance to nationals: Aaliyah Payne-Parris (101 pounds), Madison Sandquist (155 pounds) and Jacklyn Smith (191 pounds). Earning their spot with a second-place finish was Nohea Moniz (123 pounds), Alexandra Fitzgerald (130 pounds), Temi Sanusi (143 pounds) and Cara Broadus (170 pounds). Getting the final spots with fourth-place finishes was Taylor McCormick (109 pounds) and Julia Mullane (136 pounds).

The number one seed at 101, Payne-Parris got a bye into the semifinals. She recorded a 10-0 tech fall over East Stroudsburg's Haley Delia to get into the finals. Payne-Parris claimed her title by pinning Ghloe Kitagawa from Gannon in 57 seconds.

A runner-up last year, Sandquist pinned her way to the title in 2023. In her opening bout, she pinned Gannon's Stephanie Floor in 2:37. Hazel Dahlquist of Elmira only lasted 29 seconds before going down in the semifinals. Sandquist finished off the tournament by pinning EC's Skylah Chakouian at the 4:45 mark.

Also avenging a finals' loss from last year was Smith as she produced a trio of upsets. She started by pinning the number three seed, ESU's Shola Casen in 2:20. Next was another pin, this time in 1:29 versus the two seed, Taynaa Labady from Elmira. Smith earned her first gold medal by topping the number one seed, Trinity Monaghan of LHU, 6-1.

Moniz finished off Gannon's Samantha Larsen in only 66 seconds during her opening match. She upset the top seed, Elmira's Abby Duke, with a 5-0 decision. Unfortunately, sixth-ranked Emily Klein from East Stroudsburg got the best of her, 5-2, in the finals.

Ranked seventh in the country, Fitzgerald started her run by pinning Gannon's Nikoly DoSantos in only 14 seconds. She pinned teammate Aliza Leander at the 3:25 mark of the semifinals, but couldn't get past Lock Haven's Lillian Sherer in the finals.

Sanusi had to beat one of her teammates to start the day as she recorded a 6-3 decision over Selena Sifuentes Shaffer. She earned her second trip to nationals by upsetting seventh ranked Zoe Gress, the number one seed from ESU, 6-4. Sanusi was topped by second ranked Grace Stern from Lock Haven in the finals.

Broadus, ranked fifth in the country, cruised to the finals with a 10-0 tech fall over Delaware Valley's
Caira Jaynes and pin against Mariyah Casados of Elmira in 1:27. She lost a narrow 4-3 decision to seventh-ranked Annabelle Helm from Gannon.

McCormick lost her first match to Gannon's Julianne Moccia, but came back to record a 10-0 tech fall over Olivia Amaral from Western New England. She pinned teammate Ahsia Torres in 1:22 to reach the consolation bracket finals. She was pinned again by Moccia, but did enough to earn her spot at nationals.

Mullane made her way to nationals by working her way through the entire back draw falling an opening round loss to LHU's Madison Matta. She started by posting a 12-2 tech fall against Kendall Branchaud of WNEU then pinned Rachel Deguillo of East Stroudsburg in 2:29. Teammate Victoria Whitacre forfeited her match then Mullane lost to EC's Gabby Bradigan in the third-place match. A forfeit put her into the true fourth-place match where she pinned ESU's Zoe Gress at the 1:52 mark to earn a spot at nationals.

Ashia Torres started her day with a 9-4 win over Alanna Barberio from East Stroudsburg, but suffered two-straight losses. She rebounded to record a 10-0 tech fall over Barberio again to place fifth. Another fifth-place finish came from Aliza Leander at 130 pounds. After a win against Gianna Amendola to start the day, she was turned back by Fitzgerald. Leander made her way to the fifth-place match where she won by forfeit.

Three pins in the consolation bracket earned a fifth-place finish for Sifuentes Shaffer. Sanusi sent her to the back draw, but she came through with two pins in 66 seconds. Sifuentes Shaffer lost to Lili Ujfalvia, but pinned Olivia Kinder in three minutes.

Placing seventh was Tati Walker at 116 pounds. She bounced back from two defeats to pin Western New England's Victoria Orender in 1:17. Belen Rios had a tough day at 123 pounds, but managed to place sixth.

At 136 pounds Veronica Whitacre had a promising start as she pinned ESU's Avia Bibeau, but was injured in semifinals and couldn't return.