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Sunday, Feb. 26 – Two Rockbridge County High School wrestlers, Mia Marando and Stephanie Ross, made history by competing in the inaugural Virginia High School League Girls State Open Wrestling Championships on Friday and Saturday at Unity Reed High School in Manassas.
Marando, a sophomore, went 2-2 at 146-pounds, while Ross, a junior, went 0-2 at 136-pounds.
In the first round, Marando pinned George C. Marshall’s Josephin Gunter in 1:13. Marando then faced Brentsville District’s May Cuyler in the second round and was pinned in 4:44. Cuyler went on to win the state championship. In the consolation bracket, Marando pinned Dinwiddie’s Hannah Hendrick in 21 seconds before losing to Spotsylvania’s Mac Robinson in a 4-3 decision.
Ross faced Nandua’s Dulce Perez-Vicent in the first round and lost in a 10-7 decision. In the consolation bracket, Ross was pinned by Westfield’s Rebecca Dishun in 4:59.
Guiding Marando and Ross was first-year RC assistant coach Garrett Shultz, who was a state placer at Riverheads High School before wrestling at Virginia Military Institute. Both RC girls practiced this season with the boys on the RC wrestling team, under the direction of first-year RC head coach Mike Wood.
For the full story and photos from the tournament, with comments from both RC girls, please see our March 1 newspaper.
