COLORADO SPRINGS – Saturday was an eye-opener for four Campbellsville University women's wrestlers. Breonnah Neal, Rosemary Flores, Hanna Hall and Michelle Organ each competed in their first senior international tournament at the Dave Schultz Memorial International, hosted by USA Wrestling at the U.S. Olympic Training Center.

"This tournament was so important for the development of our program. The girls were able to see what the highest level of women's wrestling looks like. I knew that we were not going to have a lot of success here but, that was not the point in the trip for this year," said Lee Miracle, CU head coach. "These four young athletes were star struck. Being able to train at the Olympic Training Center, they were able to get up close and personal with a lot of the athletes that they have looked up to for years."

While Flores, Hall and Organ each went 0-2, Neal posted a 1-2 mark on the day, defeating Natassya Lu of Canada in the second round of consolation before falling to defending world champion Mercedesz Denes of Hungary by a 9-2 decision.

"This weekend was a good experience, and I had the chance to wrrestle and meet some of the top wrestlers in the world," Neal said. "I figured out today I have a lot of work to do and thngs to fix to get to that level."

Neal's tough battles with defending Dave Schultz champ Jessica MacDonald (2012 World Champion, Canadad) in the first round and Denes attracted the eyes of some sponsorship opportunities, which is common in women's collegiate wrestling to help student-athletes have a chance to train at the U.S. Olympic Training Center and compete in more international events.

"Tournaments like this one not only get the Campbellsville University name out there to the wrestling world, but it shows recruits that we are going to support them on their quests to be World Team members and Olympians," said Miracle.

Flores (58kg) lost 11-0 to 2012 World bronze medalist Geeta (India) in the first round at 58kg and fell in the consolation round to Trinity Griffin, a three-time University National Champion and 2010 World bronze medalist.

"This weekend was an incredible experience. Not only was I able to wrestle against girls ranked in the world, but I was also able to watch some amazing wrestling. Although I did not win any matches, I learned so much through my losses and plan to work on a lot of things when I get back," said Flores. "I also know what to expect now going into tournaments like these. Most of all this tournament. It gave me motivation to work harder for the next tournament."

Hall's first loss at 63kg came against 2011 World Champion Xi Luozhuoma, 26, who also won gold at the 2013 Asian Championships and bronze at the 2012 World Championship. She fell in the consolation bracket to Sunkist Kids' Erin Colodgo, 23, who is ranked No. 2 on Team USA at 63kg.

"This weekend was a big eye-opener to see the next level of competition," said Hall. "It was good to see where time and dedication gets you. I know I have a lot of hard work to put in but I feel confident that with time I will be able to compete successfully at the next level."

Organ dropped her first 69kg match against Dzhanan Manolova (Bulgaria), who won silver at the 2013 Junior World Championships, and then lost by tech fall to Gulmaral Yerkebayeva, a Kazakhstan silver medalist.

"I felt like I stepped into a whole new world because it sure is a whole different level of wrestling. I realized that I have a lot to learn, but it was a great experience," said Organ.

Campbellsville was one of many Women's Collegiate Wrestling Association (WCWA) teams represented in the international tournament as the Lady Tigers begin their USA Wrestling portion of the 2013-14 schedule. The tournament also included 20 world champion medalists and six Olympic medalists among the field of competitors, according to Miracle.

"This tournament is tough. Every weight class was just stacked. To have the girls see some of the best girls in our country, that they see as their idols, get not only beat but, destroyed in some cases, was instrumental in what I wanted out of this trip," said Miracle. "I wanted the girls to see why I push so hard. I wanted them to ask themselves the questions: 'How in the world does someone get that good? Am I doing all I need to do, am I training hard enough?'"

In addition to seeing a high-level of competition and exposing the Campbellsville University name to a larger level of wrestling, Miracle said he wanted to expose his WCWA All-Americans to different international styles, with more than 12 countries represented.

"Americans tend to have an attack type of style that lends to getting out of position and getting scored on. A lot of international wrestlers are very basic and fundamental. They are good at hand fighting, controlling head position, and controlling the zone. They rarely sacrifice position in an attempt to score points. They are very difficult to score on and they will light you up the second you are out of position or make a mistake," said Miracle. "The girls now understand why we spend so much time on these things and not the "flashy" stuff. Flashy does not win championships. Fundamentals win championships!"

CU is next scheduled to participate in USA Wrestling's University Nationals, March 28-29, in Oklahoma City.
 
RESULTS
Championship – Round 1
48kg – Breonnah Neal, bye
58kg – Rosemary Flores, bye
63kg – Luozhuoma Xi (China) def. Hanna Hall, Fall 1:39
69kg – Dzhanan Manolova (Bulgaria) def. Michelle Organ, Fall 1:41

Championship Round 2
48 kg – Jessica MacDonald (Canada) def. Neal, Tech Fall 10-0
58kg – Geeta (India) def. Flores, Tech Fall 11-0

Consolation Round 1
63kg – Hall, bye
69kg – Organ, bye

Consolation Round 2
48kg – Neal def. Natassya Lu (Canada), Tech Fall 10-0
58kg – Flores, bye
63kg – Erin Clodgo (Sunkist Kids, USA) def. Hall, Tech Fall 11-0
69kg – Gulmaral Yerkebayeva (Kazakhstan) def. Organ, Tech Fall 14-3

Consolation Round 3
48 kg – Mercedesz Denes (Hungary) def. Neal, Dec. 9-2
58kg – Trinity Griffin (Sunkist Kids, USA) def. Flores, Tech Fall 10-0