Regional Girls Wrestling: Elyria's Riley Banyas, Keystone's Lydia Gould win titles

MENTOR — The seniors shined Sunday as Elyria's Riley Banyas and Keystone's Lydia Gould blew through the competition at the inaugural OHSAA girls regional wrestling tournament to capture weight class championships and earn top seeds at next week's inaugural state tournament in Columbus. Joining the pair will be five other girls from Lorain County — Vermilion's Lauren Ficker (runner-up at 105), Avon Lake's Layla Patterson (runner-up at 125), Avon Lake's Rejan Alhashash (runner-up at 135), Keystone's Sage O'Brien (third at 135) and Columbia's Cailyn Demagall (fourth at 155). "I'm definitely happier than I was last year," Gould said of finishing as a state alternate when the Ohio wrestling coaches ran a state tournament for girls. "(Getting to state) is all I've wanted all season since I started wrestling last year. It's like a dream come true to me." Gould — ranked No. 7 in the state at 115 pounds — pinned her way into the semifinals, then won an 11-2 major decision over Canton South's Deanna Walters before winning 4-2 over Collins Western Reserve's Kelsey Lasch in the final. Lasch is ranked No. 16. "She came in pretty confident and she did a really good job in that match," Gould said of Lasch. "It was really anybody's match there, but I think I wanted it more. It's all a mental game. But I was determined to do better than last year and I think that factored into how well I wrestled today." Banyas spent just over three minutes on the mat at the regional tournament, and her first-period pin of Brush's Lyneyya Anthory in the semifinals allowed her to become the first girl to earn a state tournament berth in Ohio history. "It feels amazing," Banyas said. "I can't even really find words to explain it. My freshman year we didn't even have a regional and the past couple years it wasn't sanctioned, so it just didn't feel as good as it does this time around." Banyas — ranked No. 2 at 100 pounds — pinned her way to the title in speedy fashion. She needed just 42 seconds to finish off Painesville Harvey's Melany Herrera in the final. "I'm just glad I get to experience this my senior year," Banyas said. "I'm already committed to college and I feel there's not as much pressure on me this year. So going into The Schott … I mean, I've never seen it. I've never actually been there to experience it, so I couldn't have asked for anything else." Ficker pinned her way into the final before being pinned by Sandusky's Nikera Johnson. Both were state-ranked at 100 pounds — Johnson at No. 5 and Ficker at No. 16 — before they decided to wrestle at 105 for the postseason. "Last year my matches lasted just 30 seconds to qualify for state," Ficker said of the 2022 district tournament at Lutheran West. "So this year I knew it was going to be way harder and I was going to have to work harder. "My goal was to get to the regional final (and get a No. 1 or 2 seed) because last year I got third and got dominated in the second round of state. I don't want that to happen again so I need a good spot in the bracket." The Shoregals are sending multiple girls to state for the second straight season, but it'll be the first trip for Patterson, who didn't get to wrestle her sophomore year. "I still watched all the events because I just wanted to be able to support my team and I care about them all so deeply," she said. "So I was amazed that I was able to get this opportunity because I'm just a second-year wrestler and I'm only a junior." Patterson earned her trip to Columbus in dramatic fashion. After pinning her way to the semifinals, she dominated Sandy Valley's Madison Vickers for a 7-0 victory. Vickers is a returning state placer, the top seed and ranked No. 9 in the state. "I did not know that, they just tell me to wrestle whoever they put in front of me," Patterson said. "After I won, it was crazy and incredible. Just so many emotions going through my head. I was crying, I was cheering and I was hugging everyone in sight." Alhashash was one of the Shoregals who competed at state last season as a freshman. She pinned her way to the final before being pinned by Akron Manchester's Jaydyn McKinney. Alhashash is ranked No. 4 in the state at 135 pounds, while McKinney was ranked No. 2 in the state at 130 but decided to bump up a weight class for the postseason. "I'm really excited for the opportunity to be able to go down there," Alhashash said. "This year we're wrestling with the boys at the same place, so it's going to be awesome and a great chance to show other girls that they can come down and wrestle, too. "I've definitely had some hard matches this year and I feel like the size of the girls (pool) has definitely increased … and there's a lot of new girls to come." Contact Shaun Bennett at (440) 329-7137 or sbennett@chroniclet.com. Like him on Facebook and follow him @ShaunBennettct on Twitter. TEAM STANDINGS: 1. Alliance 136.5; 2. Mentor 105; 3. Lutheran West 94; 4. Minerva 93.5; 5. Brush 82; 6. Avon Lake 76; 7. Sandusky 66; 8. Hanover United 64; 9. Keystone 61; 10. Chippewa 56; … 12. Vermilion 52; 13. Elyria 51; 20. Columbia 35; 45. Lorain 13; 57. Firelands 6; 68. North Ridgeville 0. 100 – FIRST: Riley Banyas (Elyria) pinned Melany Herrera (Painesville Harvey), :42. THIRD: Lyneyya Anthory (Brush) pinned Lorelai Megery (Mentor), 3:41. FIFTH: Maddlyn Bean (Marlington) pinned Rylee Horning (Alliance), 2:45. 105 – FIRST: Nikera Johnson (Sandusky) pinned Lauren Ficker (Vermilion), 5:09. THIRD: Bridget Hilliard (Minerva) pinned Ashlynn Pennington (Alliance), :50. FIFTH: Kellie Kennedy (N. Olmsted) pinned Analese Ozanich (Berea-Midpark), 1:32. 110 – FIRST: Gabi Gartin (Chippewa) dec. Lexi Beadle (Boardman), 3-1. THIRD: Madelyn Begert (Canal Fulton NW) pinned Sabrina Shaffer (Alliance), 1:29. FIFTH: Lillian Pulka (Marlington) dec. Mallory Zadel (Avon Lake), 9-2. 115 – FIRST: Lydia Gould (Keystone) dec. Kelsey Lasch (Collins Western Reserve), 4-2. THIRD: Avery Horning (Alliance) pinned Sarah Sphon (Minerva), 1:34. FIFTH: Milo West Ayala (Mentor) def. Deanna Walters (Canton South) by forfeit. 120 – FIRST: Catherine Kerr (Lutheran West) dec. Merrick Gibson (Rittman), 5-2. THIRD: Kai Gaetjens (Mogadore) pinned Mollie Rozalski (Conneaut), 2:25. FIFTH: Alyssa Woodward (Vermilion) pinned Kimberly Thompson (Parma), 1:18. 125 – FIRST: Anna Madi (Brecksville) pinned Layla Patterson (Avon Lake), :54. THIRD: Auston Brown (United) def. Campbell Splete (Mentor) by default. FIFTH: Madison Vickers (Sandy Valley) pinned Alexandrea Willis (Austintown-Fitch), 3:32. 130 – FIRST: Abigail Mozden (Alliance) tech. fall Sophia Antonio (N. Royalton), 17-1. THIRD: Emily Flynn (Hubbard) pinned Jada Shafer (Minerva), 2:32. FIFTH: Ilani Jones-Wallace (Salem) def. Caddyson Edwards (Parma) by forfeit. 135 – FIRST: Jaydyn McKinney (Akron Manchester) pinned Rejan Alhashash (Avon Lake), 1:17. THIRD: Sage O'Brien (Keystone) pinned Olivia Fox (Brush), 1:35. FIFTH: Seraiah Jackson (Elyria) pinned Alexis Lewis (Canal Fulton NW), 1:23. 140 – FIRST: Ajiahna Triplett (Cle. Cent. Catholic) pinned Nathalia Rodriguez (Lutheran West), 3:09. THIRD: Olive Karam (Warrion Champion) pinned Autumn Szucs (Parma), 2:10. FIFTH: Maddie Womack (Mentor) pinned Rylie Leichtman (Cardinal), :33. 145 – FIRST: Mia Gaetjens (Mogadore) dec. Jordan Palmer (N. Canton Hoover), 6-3. THIRD: Lauren Carver (Southeast) pinned Gillian Coulson (Lakewood), :52. FIFTH: Annika Murray (Salem) pinned Naliyah Hale (Lorain), 3:52. 155 – FIRST: Makya Newlun (East Liverpool) pinned Isabella Adams (Chippewa), 2:39. THIRD: Jayda Patrick (Alliance) pinned Cailyn Demagall (Columbia), 3:57. FIFTH: Hattie Rose Hobar (Avon Lake) dec. Abby Forster (Madison), 7-4. 170 – FIRST: Paris Willis (Lutheran West) dec. Maddie Menchaca (Mentor), 7-4. THIRD: Sakeena Hudgins (Cleveland Hts.) pinned Kathleen Eckleberry (Sandusky), 1:31. FIFTH: Massarrah Robinson (John Adams) pinned Hadley Brereton (United), 2:21. 190 – FIRST: Zayna Muntaser (Lakewood) pinned Emily Lorenzon (Akron Firestone), 1:54. THIRD: Skylar Havens (Sandusky) def. Chelsea Gipson (Cleveland Hts.) by default. FIFTH: Dlorrah Harrold (Mentor) dec. Emily Jirousek (Keystone), 5-0. 235 – FIRST: Alaina Jackson (Minerva) pinned Dakota McCracken (United), 2:33. THIRD: Deionna Borders (Berea-Midpark) pinned Le'Naysia Dickson (Brush), :17. FIFTH: Ahleeah Abdullah (Warrensville Hts.) def. Ty'hara Ingram (John Adams) by DQ.