HAVELOCK — Sophia Marshall and Mia Glaspie-Leach have set a new precedent in the Southern Wayne wrestling program.And head coach Tori King couldn’t be prouder.
The duo competed in the NC High School Athletic Association eastern regional on Thursday and Marshall punched her ticket to the state tournament next weekend.
“The ladies did a great job,” King said.
Seeded seventh at 235 pounds, Marshall dropped into the wrestle-back (consolation) bracket with a loss to second-seeded Sundiata Gaston of Dixon. She stayed alive with a 25-second pin over Smithfield-Selma sophomore Secia Jimenez in the consolation semifiinals.
With a bronze medal on the line, Marshall and Fike freshman Faith Cherry staged a classic battle in the consolation finals.
Marshall executed her patented lateral drop and appeared to pin Cherry as time expired in the opening period.
“She had been having difficulties getting off bottom, so I chose standing [neutral position] to start the second period and she again threw her opponent, but she didn’t quite get her hips up to push her opponent over to her back,” King said.
Cherry pinned Marshall.
“A very exciting match,” King said.
Coming off a fourth-place finish in the season-ending Quad County 3A tournament, Glaspie-Leach pinned Wilmington Laney sophomore Jenny Bugbee in opening-round action. She fell to No. 1 seed and eventual regional champ Addison Vindigni of Cleveland in the quarterfinals.
A senior, Glaspie-Leach’s prep career ended with a loss to Wake Forest sophomore Ava Lytle.
“I’m very happy with how the girls performed and proud of how hard they have worked all year,” King said. “The wrestling community as a whole is better off for having women’s wrestling, and I’m very excited to see the sport grow and thrive and women are a very integral part of that.”
