Graceland Women’s Wrestling Competes at Grand View Open

DES MOINES, Iowa — The Graceland University women's wrestling team competed Saturday at the Grand View Open inside the Viking Event Center, facing a competitive field of NAIA and junior college programs.

At 124 pounds, Sierra Davenport opened championship bracket action against Jaclyn Hodge (Cumberlands) and dropped a 14-3 technical fall at the 3:25 mark . Davenport received a bye in the first consolation round before falling by pin to Laurieann Cavaco (Missouri Valley) at 1:19 in Consolation Round 2 .

Competing at 131 pounds, Elsyah Hernandez was defeated in Championship Round 1 by Sasha Williams (OK RTC) via 10-0 technical fall in 33 seconds . Hernandez-Jimenez responded in the consolation bracket with a fall at 4:35 over Anacarolina Cazares (Iowa Lakes CC), securing back points before recording the pin . She later dropped a 12-1 technical fall to Brooklyn Sheaffer (Cumberlands) in Consolation Round 2 .

At 138 pounds, Ilee Basaldua fell 11-2 by decision to Olivia Brown (North Iowa Area CC) in her opening championship match . After advancing via bye in Consolation Round 1, Basaldua was defeated by Samantha Graciano (Carl Albert) by 13-2 technical fall at the 6:00 mark .

Graceland recorded one fall on the day and multiple consolation advancements against a field that featured nationally competitive programs. The Yellowjackets emphasized positional control, hand fighting and mat awareness throughout the tournament.

"Competing at an open of this caliber exposes our athletes to strong neutral attacks and high-level mat transitions," head coach Evan Hansen said. "We saw improvement in scramble situations and counter offense, and we will build on that as we prepare for our next dual."

The Yellowjackets now turn their focus to one of the premier matchups of the season.

Up Next: Graceland travels to face Missouri Baptist in a dual on Thursday, Feb. 12 at 5 p.m. CST at the Carl & Deloris Petty Student Recreation Complex in St. Louis, Missouri. The dual will feature top-tier collegiate competition and serve as a significant benchmark event.

For more information on Graceland women's wrestling and all Yellowjacket athletics, visit GUjackets.com.