Fischer wins Simley Girls’ Invite
Owatonna’s Isabelle Townley gets her hand raised after beating Byron’s Annika Hall at the Simley Girls Invitational. Townley placed second at 112 pounds with a 3-1 record. Staff photo by Johnnie Phillips
Standout Owatonna eighth-grader Aliah Fischer added another win to her résumé last week by taking first place in the 142-pound division at the Simley Girls’ Invitational in Inver Grove Heights.
Fischer dominated from start to finish with four straight wins, all coming by fall.
The eighth-grader’s big day started with a first-period pin over Eastview’s Nelly Kemunto, followed by a second-period fall over Byron’s Brooke Golish.
In the semifinal round, Fischer breezed by St. Michael-Albertville’s (STMA) Rhea Barthel to win by fall in 1:37.
The eighth grade phenom secured first place by beating STMA’s Rachel Heil via a second-period pin in the championship round.
Owatonna’s Isabelle Townley also had a massive day taking second place at 112 pounds.
Townley won her first three matches by fall before running into South St. Paul’s Gisele Gallegos in the championship round.
Gallegos (25-4) proved to be a worthy adversary for the Huskies’ 18-4 Townley and emerged victorious with a 12-7 decision in a back-and-forth battle.
Owatonna’s Mckayla Selle also placed fifth at the meet with a record of 3-1.
The Huskies’ wrestling team capped its week by going 2-2 at the Swalla Duals on Saturday at Kasson-Mantorville High School.
Owatonna took down Byron 58-12 and Pine Island 37-25 but also suffered two lopsided losses to Aquinas and host Komets.
The Huskies beat Pine Island thanks primarily to bonus points secured by the team’s lighter weights.
107-pounder Kaden Lindquist kicked off the dual with a 22-6 technical fall, followed by 121-pounder Donoven Sorenson’s 19-4 technical fall.
Pine Island sandwiched a major decision in between Owatonna’s wins to give the Huskies a slight 10-4 edge.
Owatonna was able to separate itself soon afterward thanks to pins from Lane Karsten, Jayden Jirele, and Trey Hiatt to propel itself to a 28-9 lead through 145 pounds.
Owatonna’s lead was enough to hold on for the 37-25 win down the stretch.
Against Byron, Owatonna was dominant in securing wins at all weights excluding 172 and 189 pounds.
Earning pins for the Huskies were Lindquist, Jacob Wilson, Karsten, Jirele, Parker Casas, Hiatt, Blake Fitcher, and Grant Lower.
While the Huskies had some convincing wins, the team also fell 60-11 to Aquinas and 52-9 to Kasson-Mantorville.
Karsten was the only Huskies’ wrestler to remain perfect at the Swalla Duals, boasting a 4-0 record with two pins, a technical fall, and a decision.
Owatonna’s will host Albert Lea on Thursday, Feb. 1, at 7:30 p.m.