Twenty-one girls from Hernando County earned a spot to wrestle in the Class 1A Region 2 Girls Championships on Friday, Feb. 17, at Osceola High School in Kissimmee, Florida. Hernando with 11 girls, Springstead 7, Nature Coast 2, and Weeki Wachee 1.
Region 2 for both boys and girls wrestling has been known to be one of the toughest regions in the state of Florida. Top wrestling programs in attendance include Freedom (Orlando), Osceola (Kissimmee), Apopka, Hernando, and Springstead, to name a few. There were 49 total schools competing for a region title and over 200 girls vying for a spot to wrestle in the state tournament. The top four girls in each weight class would be able to advance.
Out of these 21 girls, four from Hernando and three from Springstead punched their tickets to the state championships to be held at Silver Spurs Arena March 2-4.
From Hernando, Makenzie Eltzroth (135 lb, 16-10) placed 4th, Olivia Brown (145 lb, 24-8) 3rd, Mariah Earl (155 lb, 22-11) 4th, and Grace Leota (170 lb, 31-0) Regional Champion.
From Springstead, Gianella Walczak (105 lb, 21-10) took 4th, Emma Bauknight (115 lb, 25-3) 3rd, and Jasmine Serrano (120 lb, 20-5) 2nd.
As a team, Hernando took 4th with 111 points, and Springstead took 7th with 66 points.
