WILLIAMSBURG, Ky. – Campbellsville University women's wrestling opened the 2014-15 season over the weekend with a third-place finish at the University of the Cumberlands' Patriot Duals.

The Lady Tigers, ranked No. 4 in the preseason Women's Collegiate Wrestling Association (WCWA) national rankings, dropped only two duals in the opening weekend, losing to No. 2 Oklahoma City University, 25-22, and No. 1 King University, 33-9.

DAY 1 RESULTS | DAY 2 RESULTS


Campbellsville opened the tournament Friday with pool play victories over Lindenwood University's B team, 42-1, and Cumberlands' B Team on a criteria point after tying the score, 23-23. The Lady Tigers opened bracket play Saturday with a 25-16 win over No.10 Cumberlands to face King in the semifinals. After the loss to King, CU beat No. 7 McKendree, 28-16 and then Cumberlands again, 29-15, in the third-place match.

"The team wrestled very well once it found itself. Friday was a very unique day. It is rare to see a team wrestle so flat against a poor team and then scream back to life and wrestle extremely well against the No. 2 team in the country," CU head coach Lee Miracle said. "There were a couple things that the team realized this weekend. The first being that they are indeed the third best team in the country right now with plenty of time between now and nationals to grow into the second best team in the country. The second realization is that they have a long way to go before we can reach our goal of being a national championship team.

"This is important as a team to know exactly where we are in just one short year of existence, where we are going by the end of the year, and where we are going with the future of CU Women's Wrestling. The whole team is on the same page. We're not as good as we're going to get but, we are better than we used to be."

CU's 11 wrestlers were a combined 15-15 against ranked individuals.

Tiaira Scott, ranked No. 2 at 191 pounds, led the way with a 7-0 day, including three forfeit wins and victories over No. 3 Heather O'Connor of Oklahoma City, No. 9 Clarke Walker of Cumberlands and No. 10 Alana Jimenez of McKendree.

"Tiaira Scott wrestled very well this weekend and continues to impress me this season. She is doing everything right on the mat and off the mat. When someone with her talent does that great things seem to happen," Miracle said.

CU's top returner, 130-pound top-ranked Rosemary Flores, bumped up to 136 pounds, where she went 6-1, including a win over Kernon Henderson of McKendree, ranked No. 10 at 130 pounds.

"Flores had a great tournament and put up a lot of team points. She just finds a way to win with a fall and that is huge during dual competitions," said Miracle.

Kayla Miracle, ranked No. 5 at 130 pounds and No. 6 in the U.S. Senior Rankings, was 6-1 in her Campbellsville debut. Miracle had two forfeit wins, beat No. 6 Gaybrielle Weyhrich of McKendree and tech falled No. 2 Breanna Delgado of OCU. Miracle's one loss was against rival Sara Hilderbrandt of King, ranked No. 1 at 123 pounds and No. 2 in the U.S. Senior Rankings.

"It was a clash of the titans, a freshman versus a highly decorated senior. Kayla and Sara are great friends. The two have grown up together in Indiana wrestling. Kayla had Sara be her drill partner when she became the only female in Indiana history to wrestle at the high school state championships. Kayla has always looked up to and respected Sara," Miracle said. "Sara wrestled a heck of a match, and this time, came out the victor. Kayla wrestled her heart out and was overwhelmingly the offensive wrestler of the match. Kayla is a technical machine. She just rolls through opponents with a mixture of technique, toughness, and an unrelenting assault of offensive weapons."

Two other freshmen made their mark with wins over ranked opponents, as Shelby Hall and Kaitlyn Hill were both 3-1 against ranked opponents.

At 123 pounds, Hall also beat sixth-ranked Sherri Berube-Johnson twice and pinned No. 10 Alyssa Gonzales of McKendree. Her one ranked loss was a 7-1 decision to King's Hannah Grisewood, ranked No. 8.

Hill, unranked at 170 pounds, was 4-3 on the weekend, including a pin against No. 2 Sherese Thomas of Oklahoma City and wins over No. 8 Ashley Miles of McKendree and Walker, ranked No. 9 for Cumberlands. Her one loss to a ranked opponent was against the top-ranked 155-pounder, Julia Salata of King.

Campbellsville is 3-2 in duals action against varsity teams. The Lady Tigers will travel to the Missouri Baptist University Spartan Tournament this weekend, Oct. 17-18, in St. Louis, Mo.

Photo Gallery compliments the University of the Cumberlands Sports Information Department