Missouri Valley College has four champions in first Women’s College National Championships
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Amy Ufnowski ()
03/22/2004
March 20th, 2004 was a historic day in Women's collegiate wrestling. For the first time, women crowned their own individual college wrestling national champions. Missouri Valley College in Marshall, Mo. hosted the first National College Women's Wrestling Championships. It was the host Vikings who claimed the team title with 97 points. Rivals Cumberland College and Pacific University came in second and third respectively with 87 and 55 points. Missouri Valley crowned four champions: Debbi Sakai at 112 pounds, Brooke Bogren at 130 pounds, Mollie Keith at 138.75 pounds, and Kelly Branham at 158 lbs. The Vikings also had two runners up: Brandy Golt at 147 lbs., and Stephany Lee at176 lbs. Missouri Valley's continued dedication throughout their spring break paid off in the end by winning the team title. Sakai upset No. 1 ranked Kapua Torres of Pacific in the finals with a score of 16-5. Both are natives of Hawaii, and competed against each other on other occasions. Bogren scored a 3-2 overtime victory over Iris Mucha of Cumberland in the finals. Keith also needed to go into overtime before beating Suekoilya Shelly of Cumberland, 3-2. Branham pinned Othella Lucas of Cumberland in the finals in 4:20. Cumberland College was only 10 points behind champion Missouri Valley with 87 points. Cumberland placed five women in the finals, with two champions and three runners-up. Many of the Patriots athletes were competing in weight divisions higher than their normal Capturing individual titles were Alaina Berube at 147 lbs. and Toccara Montgomery at 176 lbs. Berube usually competes at 130 pounds, while Montgomery is regularly at 158.5 pounds. Berube pinned Brandy Golt of Missouri Valley College in the finals in 4:20. Montgomery and Missouri Valley's Lee moved up in weight and met in the finals, where Montgomery scored a 5-2 win. The top ranked wrestlers who normally compete at 176 pounds, met in the bronze-medal match, where freshman Misty Stalley of Menlo College pinned No. 1 ranked Megan Goldsmith of UM-Morris in 1:23. Pacific University and Menlo College both had one individual champion. No. 3 ranked Desiree Lockhart of Pacific knocked off her teammate, Alexis Gonzalez, to win at 121 pounds in a 10-0 technical fall. For Menlo, Sara Fulp-Allen won the105.5-pound title, beating Kristen Fujioka of Pacific by a 10-0 technical fall. She is coached by her father, Lee Allen, a former Olympic Greco-Roman coach, who is the women's coach at Menlo Organizers expect the tournament to grow and improve next year. It is just the beginning of things to come in women's collegiate wrestling.