PREP GIRLS WRESTLING: Marti captures bronze, Sandpoint makes history with seventh-place finish

Extended Recap from Sunday's paper

POCATELLO — Lilli Marti (235) became the highest female finisher in school history at the All-Class State Championship held Friday and Saturday at Idaho State University's ICCU Dome, formerly Holt Arena.

The Sandpoint High junior, who finished the season with a record of 38-6, bounced back after a semifinals loss and picked up two consolation wins by pin to take third in the heavyweight division.

It's a big leap forward for Marti after a sixth-place finish at last year's state championship.

"Her finish is huge," Sandpoint High head coach Josh Ratigan said. "She had to fight back today too. She was in trouble in a few of her matches, early, and to watch her be able to figure things out in the middle of the match is amazing ... I'm thoroughly impressed with her."

Senior Sylvia Becker (165), who finished the season with a 33-10 record, and sophomore Izzy Stark (126), who finished at 43-13, also came away with hardware for the first time in their careers, both placing sixth in their respective weight classes. The two each picked up one win on day two of the tournament and went 3-3 overall.

"For Sylvia to be going out as a state placer, it was very emotional to watch that one," coach Ratigan said. "It's going to be really hard saying goodbye to our seniors; she's such a cornerstone of this team."

Ratigan said much of the same about Stark.

"I have been watching her wrestle since she was six years old and I couldn't be any more proud," coach Ratigan said. "Absolutely incredible for that young lady. To be top six across all classifications, that's really impressive. I'm speechless."

Despite not cracking the statewide top 10 in team rankings this year, the Lady Bulldogs finished seventh with 52 total points, their highest team finish in school history.

That's 12 places ahead of their 19th-place finish at last year's state tourney and 27 spots ahead of the team's 34th-place finish in 2023.

"And we're only going to keep growing from that," coach Ratigan said. "I couldn't be any more proud of these girls."

TEAM SCORES — 1, Rocky Mountain 106. 2, Eagle 88. 3, Kuna 82. 4, Thunder Ridge 64. 5, Grace 54. 6, Meridian 52.5. 7, Sandpoint 52. 8, Buhl 48.5. 9, Middleton 45. 10, Potlatch 42.5. 11, American Falls 40. 12, Post Falls 38. 13, Twin Falls 37. t-14, Bonners Ferry, Rigby 36. 16, Mountain Home 35. 17, Jerome 34. 18, Tri-Valley 31. 19, Caldwell 30. 20, West Side 29.5. 21, Skyline 29. 22, Lewiston 28.5. t-23, Lake City, Salmon 28. t-25, Blackfoot, South Fremont 27.5. 27, Malad 26. 28, Emmett 25. 29, Century 24.5. 30, Timberlake 24. 31, Burley 23. t-32, Bear Lake, Centennial 22. t-34, Coeur d'Alene, Timberline 19.5. t-36, Minico, New Plymouth 19. t-38, Preston, West Jefferson 17. 40, Bishop Kelly 15. t-41, Madison, Oakley 14. t-43, Clearwater Valley, Fruitland, Marsh Valley 13. 46, Kimberly 12. 47, Vallivue 11. 48, Challis 10. 49, Highland 9. t-50, Bonneville, Deary 7. 52, Idaho Falls 6.5. t-53, Borah, Glenns Ferry 6. t-55, Gooding, McCall-Donnelly 5. t-57, Boise, Canyon Ridge, Nampa, Weiser 4. t-61, Parma, Priest River, Snake River, Sugar-Salem 3. 65, Columbia, Wendell 2. 67, Owyhee 1. No score — Filer, Hagerman, Hillcrest, Homedale, Mountain View, Prairie, Soda Springs.

CHAMPIONSHIP MATCHES

100 — Raelynn O`Connor, Salmon, sv. Ava Bui, Centennial, 15-8. 107 — Taylor Drake, Kuna, p. Kathryn Christensen, West Side, 3:57. 114 — Joely Slyter, Lewiston, d. Kinzie Williams, American Falls, 7-3. 120 — Alexxis Johnson, Lake City, d. Charlee Noah, Tri-Valley, 8-4. 126 — Olivia Bezdicek, Jerome, p. Shelby Garten, Timberlake, 1:48. 132 — Keanna Conrad, Blackfoot, sv. Kyler Scott, Century, 3-0. 138 — Kylie Fowler, Middleton, md. Zoe Fries, Kuna, 14-6. 145 — Roxy Sheen, Buhl, md. Gracin Dennis, Emmet, 9-1. 152 — Elise Twait, Meridian, tf. Hayley McNeal, Potlatch, 17-1. 165 — Gavin Brown, Rocky Mountain, d. Ella Elordi, Eagle, 6-0. 185 — Shauna Anderson, Thunder Ridge, p. Emry Woods, Eagle, 0:30. 235 — Amie Hartman, Mountain Home, d. Reece Moody, Rocky Mountain, 5-1.

THIRD-PLACE MATCHES

100 — Kiera Hersel, Rocky Mountain, d. Maritza Medina, Caldwell, 6-4. 107 — Kyra Cobb, Timberline, tf. Tommy Stone, Eagle, 21-2. 114 — Ali Svancara, Buhl, md. Talea Nichols, Rocky Mountain, 11-0. 120 — Zuri Tavarez, South Fremont, p. Kiana Trudell, Meridian, 4:01. 126 — Kasia Hanks, Burley, p. Bella Eddins, Grace, 0:58. 132 — Kahli Brown, Post Falls, p. Shelby Prather, Potlatch, 3:47. 138 — Sofia Brown, Bonners Ferry, d. Courtney Hunt, American Falls, 9-5. 145 — Josie Newby, Grace, md. Lochlynn Harned, Rigby, 10-2. 152 — Samantha Harper, Bear Lake, p. Skyla Cloud, Grace, 0:35. 165 — Brooklyn Anderson, Coeur d'Alene, d. Molly Olague, Skyline, 4-3. 185 — Priscilla Garcia, Kuna, p. Rebecka Vail, Minico, 1:57. 235 — Lilli Marti, Sandpoint, p. Charlie Robinson, Rigby, 1:23.

FIFTH-PLACE MATCHES

100 — Brooke Hensley, Skyline, md. Alena Messerli, West Jefferson, 12-3. 107 — Nevaeh Therrien, Bonners Ferry, p. Isabella Rice, Post Falls, 1:56. 114 — Lydia Townsend, Marsh Valley, md. Maliyah Garcia, New Plymouth, 14-0. 120 — Gracie Price, Thunder Ridge, p. Whitney Cawthra, Rocky Mountain, 1:42. 126 — Elyse Asaro, Rocky Mountain, d. Izzy Stark, Sandpoint, 1-0. 132 — Katerina Ivanova, Bishop Kelly, p. Lexeigh Dowd, Twin Falls, 2:40. 138 — Ava Price, Thunder Ridge, d. Jesse Rice, Clearwater Valley, 4-3. 145 — Katelyn Fowler, Middleton, p. Cashlin Volkel, Kimberly, 4:25. 152 — Kate Allred, Preston, d. Gemma Lebeau, Eagle, 5-1. 165 — Sarah Toribau, Oakley, p. Sylvia Becker, Sandpoint, 2:43. 185 — Ellli Hansen, Madison, p. Sage Larson, Twin Falls, 1:38. 235 — Bella Smith, Malad, p. Ella Chandler, Fruitland, 2:02.

    Sandpoint High senior Sylvia Becker, far right, shows off the sixth-place medal she earned in the 165-pound weight class at the All-Class State Championship held Friday and Saturday at the ICCU Dome in Pocatello.
  

    Sandpoint High sophomore Izzy Stark, far right, shows off the sixth-place medal she earned in the 126-pound weight class at the All-Class State Championship held Friday and Saturday at the ICCU Dome in Pocatello.