Freshmen Milagros Garcia Olmedo and Jadyn Magallanes both advanced from last week’s Midwest Regional

By Jay Spivey
For the Clemmons Courier

The first season of girls wrestling at West Forsyth produced two qualifiers for the NCHSAA state championships, which will be held this weekend.
Freshman Milagros Garcia Olmedo qualified at 126 pounds and freshman Jadyn Magallanes qualified at 165 pounds based on their top-four finishes at least week’s Midwest Regional.
They will begin their quest for state championships on Friday at RISE Indoor Sports in Advance. Finals and consolation finals will be held at The Fieldhouse on Saturday, which is part of the Greensboro Coliseum complex.
“They’re hard workers,” Coach Jason Hooker of West Forsyth said. “They’re good girls. They’re both freshmen.”
Magallanes reached this weekend’s state championship by finishing runner-up to Monroe Parkwood’s Savannah Bramhall, who won last year’s state championship.
“My original goal for the entire season was just to qualify at least for regionals,” Magallanes said. “It wasn’t to win or anything. It was just to make it to regionals. And then when I found out that I made it to states I was just so happy.”
Garcia Olmedo reached the state championship after finishing fourth in her weight class at 126 pounds.
“I didn’t want to fight anymore,” Garcia Olmedo said. “I was like, ‘I already lost. I give up. I’m not going to try anymore because it’s, ‘I already lost in the regionals,’ Why continue?’
“And then (Assistant) Coach (Brandon) Johnson was like, ‘Hey, don’t give up. Give it your best, and you’ll see how the outcome comes.’ So, I fought really hard on the third match, which that girl was really strong.”
And fought Garcia Olmedo did.
“I saw the potential, and I was like, ‘I’m going to give it all I’ve got before I end the season. So, I (did it) and it turns out I made it to states.
“At that last moment, I wasn’t surprised that I made it to states because I was still disappointed of how I could’ve gotten third place instead of getting fourth.”
Magallanes, despite losing to Bramhall by pin in the championship, has no regrets.
“Skill-wise, she was really good,” Magallanes said. “And strength-wise, she was definitely much stronger than me. But I feel like if I was just a tad bit stronger, I think I could’ve held off a bit longer even with my skill level.
“But I think once I get stronger and get a bit more knowledge under my foot, I think I’ll be good.”
In Friday’s first-round at RISE, Magallanes, at 165 pounds, will face Fayetteville Britt’s Victoria Shepherd, who won the consolation final in the NCHSAA Mideast Regional.
“I’m very content with where I am because I’m just proud I just made it to states,” Magallanes said. “I mean, if I lose, I lose. I still have next year. But I’m a bit nervous because it is states, but I don’t think I’ll be very upset if I lose.”
And what about if Magallanes wrestles on Saturday?
“If I make it to the championship in Greensboro, I think I would just be speechless because I don’t expect to make it that far,” she said. “If I do, it will definitely be one of the biggest accomplishments that I’ve ever had.”
Garcia Olmedo, at 126 pounds, is scheduled to compete against Abby Carpenter, a senior from Franklin, who won last week’s NCHSAA West Regional.
“I’m going to try and give it all,” Garcia Olmedo said. “Don’t give up if you’re about to lose. Take whatever you’ve got to take.”
Garcia and Olmedo were the only ones to reach this weekend’s state championship, but that doesn’t take anything away from the other 10 West Forsyth wrestlers who competed last week in Kannapolis.
Victoria Pioquinto (100), Amber Summers (107), Alissa Neal (114), Arianna Merlos-Bueno (120), Jenna Cagle (132), Abbierose Summers (138), Devan Bull (145), Chloe Hoover (152), Kendall Pridgen (185), and Chloe Saunders (235) also competed in last week’s NCHSAA Midwest Regional.
“Some of them were just on the wrong side of the bracket,” Hooker said. “If they all come back and keep working — that’s the thing, we’ll have so much turnover because of the lack of middle-school sports, but I think these girls will stick with it,” Hooker said.
Hooker also believes that that girls wrestling is only going to continue to flourish.
“I guess the coaches have got to buy into wanting to push it,” he said. “There’s a lot of good coaches with good boys high school programs that don’t have any girls. I think everybody’s getting onboard. It’s a good thing.”