HISTORIC DAY FOR WOMEN’S WRESTLING AT GRAND VIEW OPEN

DES MOINES, Iowa – For the first time in the brief history of Avila women's wrestling, the Eagles had two placers at one of the most prestigious competitions in the country.

The Grand View Open, one of the biggest competitions in women's wrestling, features close to 500 wrestlers from all across the country. Multiple Olympians and national champions from all levels were represented today.

One of Avila's senior wrestlers, Markayla Lottie, finished in sixth place with a 3-3 record in the 124-pound gold class.

Two of Lottie's wins came via fall while a third was won via tech fall.

Lottie rolled her way through a bracket that featured multiple NCAA opponents, before falling to NAIA No. 18 Tess Barnett of Wayland Baptist in her last match.

On one end of the spectrum, Lottie has been one of Avila's longest-tenured wrestlers. But it was a semester transfer, Nicole Redmond, who had the best day of all Eagle wrestlers.

Redmond finished in first place in the 131-pound silver class, going 5-0, with all of her wins coming via pin or tech fall.

Redmond's division featured 35 wrestlers – a list she finished at the top of – and she outscored her opponents 45-3 across all of her matches.

Chloe Taylor, in the 131-pound silver bracket, finished 2-2 in the competition with a fall and a tech fall victory. In the 138-pound silver class, Jaclyn Riedinger also went 2-2 with two wins via decision.

Normally one of Avila's strongest finishers, Alexis Hatfield, had an unlucky draw, losing two matches to top-15 opponents.

With one of the best showings of the season, Avila head coach Sara Hilliard was pleased with the team's overall performance: "We are largely a very young and hungry team, and we are getting better every single match. The future is very bright."

The Eagles have three more competitions before hosting the KCAC Championships at Mabee Fieldhouse on March 1. Next up for Avila: at William Jewell on Wednesday at 6 PM.

A full list of results and statistics from the Grand View Open can be found here.