Lady Vikings score eight medals at Seniors

LAS VEGAS -- Stephany Lee is back.

The junior from Honolulu, Hawaii, who missed the U.S. Senior Nationals last year due to a knee injury, finished second in the premier event Saturday at Las Vegas -- one of eight members of the Missouri Valley College women's wrestling team to medal.

Lee, No. 2 in the TheMat.com's Seniors rankings, ripped through the first two rounds of the 72 kilogram class decisively -- the second by fall -- and knocked off the Gator Wrestling Club's third-rated Ali Bernard in a tough semifinal, 1-0, 1-2, 4-3.

After a competitive 3-1 first-period loss in the finals against veteran Kristie Marano of Gator, Lee was pinned 20 seconds into the second frame. Still, she was a lot closer to the form she had shown two years ago when she crashed onto the scene by winning the College Nationals at Marshall over Olympian Toccara Montgomery before losing to the Cumberlands (Ky.) star in the title match at the World Team Trials.

Sophomore Rachel Billerbeck (63 kilograms) of Pflugerville, Texas, won her first two contests, both two-round shutouts, before dropping her final two -- the first to top-ranked champion Sara McMann of the Sunkist Wrestling Club, another 2004 U.S. Olympic team member -- to come in fourth.

Some of the Lady Vikings had to fight their way up the back side to medal, including freshman Michelle Hooker (67) -- who only lost two matches, both to Heather Martin of the NYA, and pinned Cumberlands' tough Shelly Ruberg for fifth place.

Junior Erika Chew (59) won three straight bouts before the medal round, finishing sixth. Senior Brooke Bogren also won three matches, last losing in the penultimate round, to place seventh in the same class.

Valley's grapplers performed especially well in the medal matches, taking five of eight. Freshman Samantha Schuman (51), junior Clarissa Calibuso (55) and freshman Lacey Novinska (72) each won at least twice to claim seventh place.

Sophomore Courtney Martell and freshman Sharlee Solis each picked up a pair of victories in the rugged 55 kilogram class. Also posting wins were juniors Tabithia Ramsey (48) and Maika Watanabe (51), sophomore Emily Rinehart (67) and freshman Karen Howe (59).

The list of former Lady Vikings who wound up near the top was also impressive, including Clarissa Chun -- a member of Valley's inaugural squad in 2000 -- who won the 48 kilogram championship for the Sunkist club.

Each of the MVC medallists qualified for the World Team Trials at Colorado Springs in June. In the meantime, the Lady Vikings will make a trip to Front Range of the Rockies May 6-7 for the Body Bar FILA University Nationals.