Ichell Rivas made history, not only for Wayne High, but for girls wrestling in Nebraska.
The Wayne High 100-pound junior earned a 6-2 win over Carlie McKibbin of Bayard in the first round of the girls-only division at the Nebraska State High School Wrestling Championships Friday afternoon at the CHI Health Center in Omaha.
Rivas earned takedowns in each of the three periods to advance to the quarterfinals later this afternoon, and she was excited to be a part of history as one of the first girls to compete in their own division on the mats in Omaha.
“I’m really excited to be a part of this, but I need to keep it going until I’m on the podium,” she said after the match. “I’m pretty confident that I can win, but I know there’s a lot of competition out there so I’ll try to do my best.”
Rivas was somewhat cautious early in her match, but worked for a late takedown to take a 2-0 lead after one period.
McKibbin escaped about midway through the second period after starting in the down position, but Rivas shot in on a single and took a 4-1 lead with a takedown in the final 25 seconds of the period. She chose neutral position to start the third and got a late takedown to put the match out of reach.
“She’s a really strong wrestler,” Rivas said of her win. “I wrestled her before and I beat her, so I knew I could beat her today. I’m really happy and I will keep it up.”
Rivas will face Payton Thiele of Louisville in the quarterfinals later today. Jaycee Bruns will meet Emory Trofholz of Conestoga in the first round at 126 pounds later this afternoon.
