Nebraska's best high school girls wrestlers: Meet the state's top middleweights

Girls wrestling in Nebraska is in its third season of sanctioned competition. In those three seasons, we’ve seen several athletes emerge as superstars, others fill underdog roles for a surprising upset and some begin to establish early dynasties as the best ever. 

Below you will find a list of wrestlers who fit that specific criteria and excel in other ways. The list was compiled in alphabetical order. If you feel as if someone was left out who is a deserving candidate for the list, please email us at nate@scorebooklive.com.

Rylie Arens, Crofton/Bloomfield Junior, 140 pounds

Arens wasn’t a wrestler when the NSAA first offered it as a sanctioned sport two years ago. But while she had a late start, she’s making up for it now with two stellar seasons and two state medals.

Once Arens put on a singlet, she won her first 10 matches, won gold at her first tournament and quickly established herself as an athlete capable of leading the Crofton/Bloomfield program to a noteworthy start. She lost just three times during her first season, won five tournaments and captured the gold at the prestigious Norm Manstedt Invite.

This past winter, Arens was limited to just 21 matches, but she again had a solid season. She made it back into the Manstedt title match and won a conference title. The only hurdles she couldn’t clear were Ralston’s Dylan Ritchey and Adam Central’s Kayden Sipp. Ritchey handed her three losses and Sipp denied her a shot at state gold with a loss in the semifinals. However, there’s no shame in failing to earn a victory over the duo that decided the 140-pound state title. Arens’ only other loss was to an opponent from South Dakota who was in the middle of an unbeaten season as of this writing.

Arens came away with a bronze medal in Omaha and looks like one of the favorites to wrestle for gold next year regardless of the weight class.

Zoey Barber, Westside Girls Junior, 145 pounds

Barber didn’t get started right away in wrestling when the NSAA first sanctioned the sport two years ago. Yet, although she was a year behind many of her competitors when she put on headgear and a singlet last winter, she caught up quickly. Barber wrestled for a title in her first tournament and went through the season 45-2. A tough 2-1 loss in the semifinals denied her a shot at a title. She came back as a junior and completed her quest, going 39-3 with eight tournament titles including a conference championship and the state gold medal at 145 pounds.

Jordyn Campbell, Yutan Sophomore, 125 pounds

Campbell has been a force since beginning her varsity career. The Yutan 125-pounder won 50 matches in her rookie year, four of which came at state and earned her a fifth-place medal. She came back this winter wanting more and created a happy ending by winning the 125-pound championship. Campbell won 50 matches again and dominated her competition in Omaha, taking gold with three pins and a 12-0 major decision. She’s one of the fastest Nebraska girls wrestlers to 100 wins in state history.

“Jordyn has a great competitor mindset. She practices like she is on a mission every day. Jordyn is one of the more coachable athletes I have been around, and it is a blast to coach her,” Yutan coach Dan Krajicek said. “If I had to find the one thing that makes her special though is her mental toughness and attitude. Before the state finals, we were joking around in the tunnel about how she should walk out of the tunnel and she was skipping and doing ballet moves and was just completely loose. You would never know she was about to wrestle the biggest match of her career.

“Once her match was on deck though, she was able to focus in and be all business. The entire tournament, Jordyn was on a different level. She wrestled some very good girls and was dominant in all of her matches.”

Madison Davis, West Holt Senior, 135 pounds

Davis was the first girl at West Holt to take to the mat when girls wrestling became an NSAA-sanctioned sport. But she wasn’t just the first two years ago, she was the only Husky girl on the roster. Blazing a trail of her own, Davis turned that first lonely season into a 24-4 record and a fourth-place state medal. She lost at state in the quarterfinals but completed the tough task of winning three in a row to secure a medal. Her success helped spark a movement at West Holt that soon grew to eight wrestlers in 2023. Davis continued to lead the way and went 38-5 while again overcoming a loss at state for a run to the medal round. This time, she lost in the first round then earned revenge on that opponent in the consolation semifinals, made the third-place match and won bronze. In her final year, Husker girls wrestling grew to 11 and Davis went 43-3 for a third state medal. An injury cost her the final few matches of her career after making a run to the semis.

Maggie Fiene, Conestoga Sophomore, 145 pounds

Fiene has already done just about all there is to do in her career and has only reached the halfway mark. The Conestoga sophomore has two state medals, wrestled for state gold and has 87 wins. Following a third-place finish in Omaha as a freshman, she made it to this year’s 145-pound state title but ultimately came up short to Westside’s Zoey Barber.

While a good season and a good career thus far are never a true consolation, Fiene can at least remain hopeful with two more years to go. In her first two, she’s already shown she’s one of the best.

Plus, Fiene is no stranger to overcoming adversity. As a freshman, she lost her first four semifinal matches before finally making a gold-medal match. Fiene then qualified for three straight tournament title matches over the next three weeks and eventually took the district title.

She made the semis at her first state tournament and came back from a loss in that round with two wins and a pinfall victory for bronze. Fiene went through the 2023/24 schedule unbeaten with 11 tournament championships, 41 wins and 33 pinfalls. Not a single opponent forced her into a full six-minute match until state. She had two more pins in Omaha and a dramatic 1-0 victory in the quarterfinals. A 10-5 defeat to Westside’s Zoey Barber, another member of this list, was the only thing that held her back from state gold.

Kaylyn Harrill, Skutt Catholic Freshman, 120 pounds

Skutt looks like it’s on the brink of becoming a girls wrestling dynasty to rival the boys program because of athletes like Harrill. The Skutt freshman didn’t waste a minute of her first season, winning her first 19 matches before suffering a loss to Westside’s Regan Rosseter at the Wisner-Pilger Invite. Rosseter, another member of this list, just completed an unbeaten state championship season. Harrill lost once more, to an opponent from another state, but also rose to the top of the state podium at 120 pounds while finishing 47-2. She won nine tournaments in all including the prestigious Council Bluffs Classic that includes the best wrestlers not just from Nebraska and Iowa but the Midwestern region. She isn’t one to put the cart before the horse, but from a historical perspective, one state title gives her the chance to be a four-time winner.

Harrill represented Team USA at the Pan-Am games in Panama City, Panama; was a Fargo Nationals last summer, won a USA Wrestling Folkstyle national championship, a USAW high school preseason national championship and carries a 4.07 GPA.

“Kaylyn started wrestling when she was four years old. She has high aspirations and sets many goals for herself through the sport of wrestling,” Skutt coach Kim Harrill said. “She trains year-round, including folkstyle, freestyle, and greco. Kaylyn seeks opportunities to improve her skill set and is a true student of the sport. She dedicates her time to daily training sessions, reviewing matches, strength training, and competing at various competitions across the country.”

Millie Jensen, Millard South Sophomore, 140 pounds

Two state tournaments, two state medals. That’s the start Jensen has had to a varsity career that has now amassed 87 wins in just two seasons. Jensen hasn’t yet wrestled for a title. But more than halfway to 150 wins already, it seems she’s progressing toward making that a reality very soon.

Jensen went 43-12 as a freshman and started out with a third-place finish at the Council Bluffs Classic. That kind of performance against foes from all over the Midwest showed she had tremendous potential. That potential became two tournament titles and a Metro Conference runner-up. At state, Jensen came back from a quarterfinal loss and won twice to get into the medal round. She eventually took sixth and suffered losses to wrestlers who each went on to win a state title this winter.

Her sophomore season started with nine wins in a row and a fourth-place medal at Council Bluffs. Jensen won at Platteview and Murray, was a district champion and made it into the state semifinals.

“One of the main reasons why Millie is such a special wrestler is because she loves the process, and what I mean by that is she loves to practice and get better. Millie is one of the hardest workers in our wrestling program. She shows up each day wanting to make herself and teammates better,” Millard South coach TJ Bickford said. “Millie has had success at an early start in high school because she wrestles year-round. When she is not in high school season, she is attending club practices and tournaments – off-season wrestling has made her so much better. Millie sets goals for herself and works until she accomplishes those goals. After she has achieved a goal, she will then set another. Millie has a bright future not only in wrestling but whatever she pursues because of her work ethic.”

Kalynn Lyons, Omaha Westview Sophomore, 130 pounds

As Westview begins to build an athletics culture, boys basketball has entered the public consciousness thanks to a big season and wins over some traditional powerhouses. But for sports fans who might not have been paying attention, it’s girls wrestling that can make the claim to having the best start of any Wolverine program. Lyons has spearheaded that effort as a back-to-back state medalist. Westview had 17 girls on the roster last season and 19 this season. Lyons is leading the way with 68 career wins, a fourth-place state finish as a freshman and runner-up this winter as a sophomore.

She didn’t start wrestling until eighth grade but fell in love with it immediately. Following the short junior high season, Lyons spent much of her summer seeking out camps and tournaments for competition.

Although the doors to the school weren’t yet officially open, she met with future and current coach Colton Wolfe that same summer and began training in the weight room and during open mat nights. Thus, she can justifiably claim, that before there was Westview wrestling, there was Kalynn Lyons.

“I believe what makes her so special is her attitude, her work ethic and her dedication to being great,” Wolfe said. “Since meeting her in the summer of 2022, Kalynn has been at every open mat we've held and has even traveled across the country to places such as Washington, Florida and North Dakota to seek out the best competition. Additionally, Kalynn not only excels on the wrestling mat but also maintains a 4.6 GPA in the classroom while involved in two sports – wrestling and track – and she also participates in orchestra.

Victoria Maxey – Norfolk Junior, 145 pounds

Norfolk is building quite the girls wrestling program up in Northeast Nebraska. The Panthers had 12 girls on the roster two years ago then increased to 19 last season. Among the leaders in the room is Maxey. The junior just finished off another strong campaign with her second straight medal and is nearing ever closer to competing for a state title.

Maxey was 22-8 as a freshman and won four straight state tournament matches to earn the bronze medal. Her only loss in Omaha was to an unbeaten wrestler who went on to win the title.

A year later she suffered heartbreak at state and had an uneven year due to injuries. Maxey made state, but as a district fourth-place medalist, drew a state champ in round one and faced another state champ in the second round of consolations. That’s where it came to an end.

Back to full strength this winter, Maxey drew on that disappointment to go 33-3 and get back to state as a district runner-up. She suffered another loss in the second round but came back with three straight wins and wrestled for third. She’s now a two-time state medalist with 74 career wins. Her only losses this past season were to the two wrestlers who faced off for a state title, a medical forfeit to a teammate and the third-place state defeat.

Ann Marie Meiman, Omaha North Senior, 135 pounds

Meiman’s career had been progressing toward having a chance at a state championship following a fifth-place medal as a sophomore then fourth as a junior. To be sure, she put herself in position for gold at this year’s state tournament but standing in the way was a back-to-back champion. But while Meiman was the newcomer to the biggest stage of high school wrestling, she was clearly comfortable in the spotlight. After building a 4-3 lead, she scored a takedown midway through the third period of the state title match and converted it into a pin. The win capped a 41-1 season and closed her career with three state medals and a 109-5 record.

One of Meiman’s assistant coaches gave her the state gold medal from his career at the start of her sophomore year and told her to give it back when she earned her own. She did so proudly after finishing her senior year as a champion.

“Ann Marie Meiman is a model student-athlete. Her work ethic on and off the mat is the driver to her success,” North coach Steve Kirchner said. “She is currently ranked in the top 10 of her class academically and is now the 135-pound state champion. She has stayed after practice almost every day for the past three years to get extra work and often does two to three workouts per day to get better.

“Ann Marie has a brilliant mind, and it has impacted her ability to learn how to wrestle. She listens, asks questions and takes what her coaches say to heart. She is a great friend and a great teammate.” 

Fia Rasmussen, Chadron Senior, 145 pounds

Rasmussen has continued to improve every year of her career but almost certainly wishes she had one more year. The Chadron senior went from 21 wins as a sophomore to 25 as a junior to 36 this year as a senior. She was a state qualifier, a sixth-place medalist then a fifth-place medalist. Whether she could have had one more year as a freshman if the NSAA had approved girls wrestling sooner, or whether she could have another year of eligibility, it seems one more chance might have been what it took to compete for state gold.

Regardless, 83 wins and two state medals is something only a handful of wrestlers can ever achieve.

Ramussen started her career with a pinfall loss then didn’t lose again for two weeks. She was a district runner-up, lost in the state quarterfinals then lost again in the next round and just missed the medal round. In 2023, the only girls who beat her during a 25-7 season were all state medalists, two of whom were either a state champ or future state champ. This past year, she was 36-3 and again only suffered losses to state medalists and a state champ.

Rasmussen made it to the semifinals each of the past two seasons and lost to the eventual state champ. She ended her varsity career with a win, taking fifth by building a 5-2 and using a takedown to find a pin midway through the third period of her final high school match.

Dylan Ritchey, Ralston Senior, 140 pounds

Ritchey has been to The Promised Land and then some during a stellar varsity career for the Rams, and it almost never was. Ritchey played basketball as a freshman and was still on the hoops team for the first week of practice before finding her home on the mat.

Even with a late start, the Ralston senior spent her sophomore year winning 25 matches, four tournaments and qualifying for the first-ever Nebraska girls state tournament. She had just one loss prior to traveling across town to the CHI Health Center and left with just one more following a loss in the semifinals. Ritchey quickly recovered from that setback with two pins and a bronze medal.

A year later, Ritchey completed one of the first perfect seasons in state history, won 42 times and earned a dramatic 4-2 tiebreaker for the 135-pound state championship. Obviously, she’s got a flare for the dramatic. Ritchey went across town again with an unbeaten mark at 35-0 and was back in a title match that came down to another close finish. Her 6-4 lead early in the third wasn’t quite enough. She was forced into overtime and lost on a takedown.

The unfortunate part, other than the loss, was that Ritchey walks away from her senior year 1-1 against state champ Kayden Sipp of Adams Central – another wrestler on this list. It feels like this one should be decided by a rubber match. But while Ritchey ends her Ralston wrestling career with a loss, she also brings to a close one of the best careers in the early days of Nebraska girls wrestling.

“Dylen is a tremendously hard worker. She also picks up on things very quickly,” Ralston coach Ed Schmitt said. “Dylen spent a lot of her summer traveling to regional and national tournaments. She also competed on a couple Nebraska dual teams. After her summer of wrestling internationally, she earned a ranking of 19th in the country. Dylen also participates in cross country and soccer and plans to wrestle in college.”

Regan Rosseter, Westside Girls Senior, 130 pounds

It’s too bad for Rosseter that the NSAA waited an extra year before approving girls wrestling. The Westside senior became one of the first three-time champs in state history this season and might have had the opportunity to end her career in the exclusive four-time champs club if girls wrestling was sanctioned her freshman year. But while we’ll never know for sure about that possibility, what we do know is that Rosseter went 117-1 the last three years and won three gold medals.

Kayden Sipp, Adams Central Sophomore, 140 pounds

Sipp looked like a potential star in the making when she won the first 15 matches of her varsity career and made it to the Norm Manstedt Invite championship. Her streak came to an end there, but it was halted by a wrestler who just won her third state title in a row this past season. Sipp closed her rookie year 31-3, suffered two of those losses to that same three-time champ and was knocked out of title contention in the state semifinal round.

It wasn’t a fluke, Sipp came back for her sophomore year and lost just twice – once to a wrestler from Iowa and another to Ralston’s Dylan Ritchey 1-0 in the final of the Crete High Invite.

When Sipp made it back to Omaha and again advanced to the semis, she advanced by converting a reversal into a pin. There waiting in the finals was Ritchey. Sipp found a way in a tough rematch she trailed 6-4 until a takedown with 27 seconds left in the third period. Another takedown with 22 seconds remaining in the overtime period delivered her a gold medal. Sipp is 67-5 in two years of varsity competition. Her win ended Ritchey’s 70-match win streak and avenged that 1-0 loss from the prior season.

Adams Central coach Dan Lonowski calls Sipp the most dedicated wrestler he’s coached in 35 years – and that includes his own two sons.

“Kayden Sipp is more devoted to the sport of wrestling than anyone else I have coached,” Lonowski said. She seeks out opponents who are better than her. See seeks losses; by which I mean that Kayden finds the toughest competition and tries to figure out how to defeat them.”

Emma Stice, Papillion-La Vista, Senior, 145 pounds

It was all lining up for Stice to make history as one of the first champions at the first girls state tournament two years ago. She went through the schedule nearly unbeaten, losing just twice and both came in the final few days of the regular season.

However, once at state, Stice gave up a reversal late in the first period of her opening match and was pinned right before the whistle. She led her next match 6-1 but again went down by pin in the third period. Leaving the arena 0-2 was quite the shock.

She’s turned that frustration into motivation and made two more trips to Omaha, both of which have ended with a medal. Stice went 32-4 as a junior, was in the final at the prestigious Council Bluffs Wrestling Classic, won a conference title and wrestled in the final match at the Norm Manstedt.

Stice ended her junior year with 18 wins in a row and made the 145-pound state championship match. This year, she took a 14-match win streak to Omaha where she again made the semifinals but suffered a loss. Stice came back for two more wins and, though she didn’t end her varsity career as a champion, she was one of the few who could say she won her last match.

Stice finishes with 118 total wins, a state championship and a state third-place medal. She has a better than 4.0 GPA and will continue to put in the work at the next level as a wrestler for Hastings College.

“What has impressed me the most about her development is her mental game; her confidence and maturity have grown tremendously,” Papio coach Jamie Brown said. “She has learned to handle the pressure and not let it get the best of her. She doesn't like to lose, but she has developed skills to address that disappointment and get herself ready for the next match. Emma is so coachable and she's willing to use her practice time to help our new wrestlers develop their skills.”

Libby Sutton, Weeping Water Senior, 125 pounds

Sutton’s chances at becoming one of Weeping Water’s girls wrestling pioneers were obvious early when she won 46 matches as a sophomore and went on to take sixth at the first girls state tournament. She was back again at Omaha as a junior but faced a tough draw and was eliminated before the medal round. Sutton built on that painful experience with a 55-win season, among the highest win totals in Nebraska this season, and made a run to the 125-pound title match.

Making the state finals is even more impressive considering she was dealing with an injury that had her status for the district meet uncertain. Sutton made the district final and took a medical forfeit in order to lessen the wear and tear on her body. That meant she drew back-to-back defending champion Aubrie Pehrson of Skutt in the semis. She won that one 3-0 and also had a win over state finals foe Jordyn Campbell at the Weeping Water Invite.

Sutton came up short to Campbell in Omaha but put together a career with 149 wins, 300 takedowns and 98 pinfalls.

“Hard-working and coachable before the battle; fierce competitor, tough,

and physical during the battle; humble and gracious, win or lose, after the battle,” Weeping Water coach Jeremy Strong said. “She’s not perfect, but the true embodiment of a wrestler if I’ve ever coached one. This describes Libby to a T. I am so proud of her. She has had such a huge impact on this sport and those around her. Other coaches give her such high praise, it is so amazing. It is hard to put into words all the feelings.”

Selena Zemora, South Sioux City Senior, 135 pounds

There’s no doubt Zamora would like one more shot at it. Regardless, she’ll end her career as one of the wrestlers who helped build the foundation for the Cardinals.

The South Sioux senior won a championship her first year of wrestling and made history as one of the first-ever girls gold medalists in Nebraska.

But nothing is a given in the sport of wrestling. Although she had a solid season and 33-6 record as a junior, she went 2-2 at state and came up one win short of the medal round. Even so, a pin and another win were part of a team effort that helped South Sioux win another state title.

Zamora rolled into her senior year with an 87% winning percentage and continued to rack up victories. She had her best season in terms of wins and took gold at the Battle at the Point tournament, in Wahoo, Summerland, Nebraska City and the district tournament.

Of her five regular season losses, three were to a foe who won or wrestled in a state title match and another was to an unbeaten wrestler from South Dakota.

Zamora lost to the eventual 135-pound state champ in the state semifinals then came back for two more wins and a bronze medal. Her 3-1 sudden victory in the third-place match was revenge for her other regular season defeat.

Zamora is the youngest of eight siblings who had one of the most unique experiences for an athlete of any sport. Because of her youth relative to the rest of the family, she was young enough to train with and compete alongside her niece, Jackie Zamora. Jackie graduated from South Sioux last year as a fifth-place state medalist.

“Selena is very strong for her size. She is an undersized 135-pounder but is just as strong as anyone at the weight,” Cardinals coach Evan Bohnet said. “Selena has tremendous body awareness that really serves her well in all positions. She excels in all three positions - top, bottom, and neutral - making her a tough opponent to defeat.”

--Nathan Charles | @SBLiveNeb