Kamehameha senior Teshya Alo won the U.S. Senior National wrestling tournament in Las Vegas on Friday, earning a spot in the Olympic trials in April.
Alo dominated her competition in the tournament, pinning Axa Molina in 1 minute, 35 seconds and Lahainaluna state champion Breanna Dudoit-Vasquez in 1:36. Dudoit-Vasquez fell short of making the Olympic trials with a 12-4 loss to Becka Leathers.
Alo then beat Maya Nelson by a 10-0 technical fall in the semifinals before taking out 2012 Olympian Kelsey Campbell 8-1 for the 128-pound title.
Alo is now a full-fledged member of the U.S. Senior team but would have to win April’s tournament to earn a ticket to Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. The U.S. Olympic team trials will be held April 8-10 in Iowa City, Iowa, a month after she goes for her fourth HHSAA title.
“Honestly, I am super proud but back to the drawing board when we get back to Hawaii,” Alo’s wrestling coach, Charles Ariola, said. “This is only the first stage of this Olympic year.”
USA Wrestling called Alo ‘the nation’s best high school wrestler’ before the tournament. She is a 2013 and 2014 Cadet World Champion but this is her first national senior title after taking third in two different weight classes at the World Team Trials in June.
UH has 3 named preseason All-America
Hawaii seniors Sinisa Zakovic and Kolby Kanetake were named to the 2016 Off the Block/Springbak, Inc. preseason All-America first team on Friday with junior setter Jennings Franciskovic earned a spot on the second team.
UH, BYU and defending national champion Loyola were the only teams to have three players honored. All three Rainbow Warriors were AVCA honorable mention All-Americans last season.
Hawaii begins the 2016 season with an exhibition match against Team SportConX on Monday, Jan. 4. The season officially kicks off with the 22nd Outrigger Resorts Invitational beginning three days later.
Heun victorious at WSOF 26
Former University of Hawaii linebacker Jake Heun won a split decision against Clinton Williams on Friday night at World Series of Fighting 26 in Las Vegas.
One judge scored the fight 29-28 in favor of Williams while the other two had Heun by the same score. Heun improved to 9-4 in his MMA career with his third win in four fights with WSOF.
Heun controlled the action for most of the fight and was only in trouble late in the third round when Williams picked him up and drove him across the cage into the mat.
