SPRINGFIELD, Mass. (March 6, 2025) – The Western New England women's wrestling team saw seven of their own qualify for the National Collegiate Women's Wrestling Championships at the NCWWC Region I Championships two weeks prior and will compete for the top spot in their respective weight classes this weekend in Coralville, Iowa. 

Representing Western New England women's wrestling in the 103 lb. weight class is Gianna Hernandez. Hernandez enters the NCWWC Championship event for the first time in her career. Hernandez came up with a massive victory in the Region I quarterfinal round, a technical fall victory, 11-0 in 3:51 to pick up the automatic qualifying bid in the NCWWC championships. Hernandez finished the weight class in fourth place overall, clinching a spot.  Hernandez owns an 18-8 record for Western New England on the mat this season and becomes the first Golden Bear to earn a spot into the championship event at the 103 lb. weight class. 

Hailey Laabs qualifies for the championships in her first year as a Golden Bears, getting there via the 117 lb. weight class. Laabs picked up nine wins in her first year with Western New England women's wrestling and picked up a fourth-place finish in the NCWWC Region I Championships to qualify for the championship event. Laabs opened with a fall victory in 48 seconds to advance to the quarterfinal round where the Orange, California native picked up a fall victory in just 27 seconds to advance to the semifinal round, earning Laabs an automatic spot in the championships. Laabs would go 3-2 overall on the day, putting together an impressive run to come away with a spot in the NCWWC Championships. 

Linda Holeman became Western New England women's wrestling's first ever Region I champion, coming up with a 4-0 record in the 124 lb. weight class, automatically qualifying for the championship event. Holeman came up with a fall victory in 1:14 over Utica's Lauren Palmer in the opening round of the Region I event to quickly move on in the bracket. Holeman would then defeat Ariel Casella, her teammate, on a technical fall decision, 10-0, 2:01 into the match, grabbing a spot in the semifinal round. Holeman would win the semifinal match 8-3 on a decision to advance to the championship bout. There, Holeman would take care of Utica's Jazmene Molina, coming up with the win in the weight class, advancing to the NCWWC Championships for the second straight season. 

At 138 lbs., Tanya Teneva qualified for the NCWWC Championships after taking second place in the weight class at the regional event. Teneva needed just 13 seconds in her first match to pick up a fall victory over Emily Brown of Alfred State University, getting to the semifinals quickly. In the semis, Teneva came up with a win via fall in 1:11 to get into the championship bout. Teneva came up just short in the championship bout but supported a 27-3 record overall this season, getting into the NCWWC Championships. 

Also in the 138 lb. weight class, Kendall Branchaud will make her first appearance to the championships event after finishing fourth overall in the regional event. Despite falling in her first match at the regional event, Branchaud battled back for two wins to get into the fourth-place match to qualify for the championships. Branchaud picked up two clutch fall victories in the consolation third round and consolation semifinals to qualify for the championship event. In the fourth-place match, Branchaud would come up with a no contest victory, getting the win and will compete in the NCWWC Championships. 

Atiyana Williams placed third in the 160 lb. weight class and will compete in her first NCWWC Championships this season. Williams was victorious, needing just 20 seconds to pick up a fall victory in the quarterfinal round of the weight class. Williams would fall in the semifinal round but would quickly bounce back in the consolation semifinals, earning another fall victory in 41 seconds to get to the third-place match, qualifying for the NCWWC Championships. Williams would grab a fall win in 47 seconds, taking third overall. 

Shalom Feliz Lopez came in fourth place at the regional event and will compete in the 180 lb. weight class for Western New England women's wrestling at the championship event. Lopez took down teammate Mikalya Maloy in her first match of the regional event on a technical fall, 12-0 to get into the semifinals. Lopez would fall in that round but came up with a win in the consolation semifinals, grabbing a fall win in 1:34 to get into the third-place match. Lopez would wrestle twice more, winning the fourth-place bout on a no contest to qualify for the championship event. 

In total, seven Golden Bears will be guided by NCWWC Region I Coach of the Year Tyler Keane into the championship event, which will be held in Coralville, Iowa on March 7 and March 8.