Penn’s pin earns titles for her and Morton Ranch girls team
Morton Ranch coach Mark Balser didn’t want to speak about his girls wrestling team’s first-place standing after Friday’s quarterfinal matches.
“I’m just one of those people that it isn’t over until it’s over,” Balser said.
He can speak all he wants about it now.
One year after watching Cinco Ranch win the Class 6A girls state wrestling title, Morton Ranch edged Euless Trinity 8682 to win 6A gold at Berry Center. The teams went into the championship round Saturday separated by three points. It’s Morton Ranch’s first state title after two runner-up finishes in wrestling.
Morton Ranch had two girls advance to the championship round in Chelsea Sanchez at 110 pounds and April Penn at 185.
Sanchez fell to Euless Trinity’s Mack Beggs by major decision, but the silver medal mattered in the points standings. Penn’s win via a pin of Arlington’s Naara Gonzalez had Balser jumping for joy.
“This really proved that point,” Balser said, referring to his earlier statement. “It came down to that last 185 championship match where April Penn was able to get a pin against an Arlington competitor. That really decided the state title.”
The Houston area had three other champions in the girls division: Klein’s Xochitl Mota-Pettis (119 in 6A), Seven Lakes’ Megan Lloyd (165 in 6A) and Foster’s Nkechinyere Nwankwo (185 in 5A).
The senior Nwankwo ends her career with two gold medals. She comes from a wrestling family but said she has the chance to brag now because of the first-place finishes.
“It makes you feel even that much better about go- ing to college and wrestling there,” Nwankwo said.
Houston had two champions in the boys division, both in 6A. Katy’s Daniel Manibog (138) and Cameron Barnes (220).
“I had to stay on the attack,” Manibog said. “I knew he had a good single leg. I just wanted to make sure he didn’t have any opportunities to try it. I made sure I kept on pushing.”
Because of those efforts, Katy is the lone Houstonarea team that finished in the top 10 on the boys’ side. The Tigers were fourth with 63 points, just one off third place. Allen won the 6A crown with 264.5 points.
“That was one of our goals — to be back-to-back district and regional champions this year,” Manibog said. “Hopefully get top five, top three finish here at state.”