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OREM — Ellie Jensen didn't recall how it happened; and truthfully, it was all such a blur that describing it might not do it justice.
All she knows is that with 22 seconds left, the Maple Mountain first-year wrestler scored a takedown to clinch a sudden-victory win in the 105-pound state title match. And with that win, the Golden Eagles likely clinched their second consecutive state title, outpacing Uintah by 20 points.
The Utes finished second with 165 points, followed by Northridge (162), Springville (144) and Mountain View (126).
"It's exciting," Jensen said. "We came in here with a pretty small team. But knowing that our girls are that good to score that many points is exciting.
"I have partners and teammates in practice who just beat on me. And I — I just won state. But they're so good, and all first-years. They learned so fast."
Jensen was one of three champions at the UHSAA 5A girls wrestling state championships Thursday night at the UCCU Center in Orem, along with 115-pounder Ariana McGee and 190-pounder Nya Seiuli.
Jensen's match was the most dramatic, but each champion — as well as runner-ups Casey Harris (170) and Aurellia Ramos (190), along with the consolation winners — added to the Golden Eagles' win, the first in a standalone 5A tournament that ran concurrently with the boys championships at the UCCU Center.
"I'm excited to see the growth of our team," said Maple Mountain coach Hailey Cox Corona, who was named Coach of the Year after her first season. "I hopped into this super late, didn't know I was going to coach until two weeks before the season started. We were just working with what we had, and I'm excited to start building it up next year."
More than half of the Maple Mountain roster were first-year wrestlers, with only four returning placers from last year's inaugural tournament. Add it to a a coach who until two weeks before the season was wrestling for No. 2-ranked McKendree in Illinois, and Corona admits she was "just working with what we had."
"They're such a group of hard workers," said Corona, who still competes out of the Utah Valley Regional Training Center in Orem. "I have a pretty high expectation for the girls, and for them to be able to meet that high expectation and dedication, dealing with a lot of injuries, sickness and canceled tournaments.
"To pull through and be a group that loves and supports each other and are really great friends is fun for me to be part of."
Pulling through was exactly what Jensen did to secure the Eagles' first title.
Down 2-0 midway through the second period, Tooele's Lindsay Hansen scored a takedown with 1:16 left to help force overtime. But Jensen had the last laugh when the first-year wrestler scored in 22 second to secure her first individual title — and help the Golden Eagles maintain their hold on the team title.
Moments later, Jensen uttered the three words she's always dreamed of, breathless and with an aura of disbelief — "I won state."
But she had. And the team did.
"It's scary out there," Jensen said. "I was about to lose, but I pulled i tout. I'm still trying to comprehend it."
McGee doubled Maple Mountain's haul moments later, but in mildly less dramatic fashion. The junior allowed just one point in the final two periods to cruise to a 14-6 win over Uintah's Chanley Green.
"I've worked so hard this season and it's nice to see it actually come into action," McGee said. "There's no way to measure how hard you work in practice, except to go out and win."
McGee showed just how dominant she was — and so did the Eagles, rolling to a second title in two seasons of formal sanctioning of the sport by the Utah High School Activities Association.
Pressure? You betcha — but in a good way, McGee said.
"It was the good kind of pressure, where you want to live up to the standard you did last year," she said. "It helped motivate us. We knew we were capable, because we did it last year."
Grantsville pulls away for 1A, 2A, 3A title
Brielle Fawson (125), Hailey Broderick (155) and Hannah Broderick (170) each won a state title as Grantsville pulled away for its first girls wrestling state title in the combined 1A, 2A, 3A tournament at Sevier Valley Center in Richfield.
Grace Holman (120) won an individual title for Juab, which finished second. Rachel Camacho (110) and Olivia Carrillo (140) each won a second-straight title for third-place American Leader Academy, which also got a champion in 105-pounder Jaskin hair.
The Cowgirls scored 165 points, pulling ahead of the Wasps by 12 points for first place. American Leadership (147), Union (125.5) and North Sanpete (125) finished in the top five.
UHSAA 5A Girls Wrestling
Feb. 17, 2022
UCCU Center, Orem
Team scores
Maple Mountain 188.5, Uintah 165, Northridge 162, Springville 144, Mountain View 126, Tooele 126, Jordan 89, Stansbury 71, Cedar Valley 63, Timpview 56, Bonneville 46, Park City 43.5, Hillcrest 42, Murray 28, Payson 28, Alta 24, Provo 22, Woods Cross 22, Bountiful 18, Lehi 18, East 17, Highland 17, Olympus 16, Salem Hills 16, Cottonwood 11, Brighton 10.
Championship matches
100 — January Langston, Payson, p. Emeri Mortimer, Springville, 1:54.
105 — Ellie Jensen, Maple Mountain d. Lindsay Hansen, Tooele, 4-2 (SV).
110 — Taileigh Lujan, Uintah p. Cecibeth Santos, Northridge, :24.
115 — Ariana McGee, Maple Mountain d. Chanley Green, Uintah, 14-6.
120 — Alexia Woods, Cedar Valley p. Valery Ethington, Springville, 2:44.
125 — Izzy Clements, Springville p. Isla Baeza, Mountain View, 1:20.
130 — Kaianne Sabagala, Timpview p. Katelyn Wolf, Provo, 1:10.
135 — Esther Han, Mountain View p. Annie Clanton, Northridge, 3:32.
145 — Elleni Johnson, Murray p. Briona Love, Hillcrest, 1:30.
155 — Hotaia Valeti, Springville p. Siena Fairbanks, Jordan, 1:55.
170 — Taimane Fiatoa, Timpview p. Casey Harris, Maple Mountain, 1:55.
190 — Nya Seiuli, Maple Mountain d. Aurellia Ramos, Maple Mountain, 4-0.
235 — Karla Padilla-Zepeda, Northridge p. Arianah Cowgur, Jordan, 2:42.
