By Marisa Dawson
The first day of the 2026 NSAA Girls Individual State Wrestling Championships concluded yesterday at the CHI Health Center in downtown Omaha, with top competitors from across Nebraska battling for state titles in Class A and Class B divisions. The action resumes this morning with semifinals, consolation rounds, and eventually finals to crown champions.
Bennington High School’s Mia Anderson, seeded first in Class A 110 pounds, delivered a dominant performance on day one. She opened with a pin in 0:47 over Shayla Nguyen (Lincoln North Star) in the first round. In the quarterfinals, Anderson secured a technical fall victory, 19-3 (stopped at 3:39), over Rylee Luce (Gering). Now 2-0 in the tournament (and improving her season record to 37-1), Anderson advances to the semifinals Wednesday morning against the winner of Ella Casey (Millard South) vs. Samantha Barajas-Moreno (Omaha Northwest). Head girls wrestling coach Craig Pokorny spoke about her showing after the quarterfinals. “Mia went and did what Mia does.”
He emphasized the team’s focused approach heading into the next rounds. “Just from the beginning as we talked about- it’s just one match at a time. Don’t worry about the arena. And we’ve talked about this throughout the year,” he said. “They’ve seen tougher competition, bigger tournaments… So this is just another match- we try to focus on just the one match at a time. Don’t look ahead… Don’t put anybody higher on a pedestal than they already are, but don’t overlook anybody either. Just continue to stay focused, one match at a time. Do what you always do.”
Teammate Maren McIlnay, seeded ninth in Class A 145 pounds, competed in a competitive first-round matchup. She fell short against her opponent but will continue wrestling back in the consolation bracket Wednesday morning, facing Nevaeh Martinez (Blue River Valley) in her next bout. This gives McIlnay a strong opportunity to battle through the consolation side and secure additional placement. Coach Pokorny acknowledged the challenge in that match while keeping perspective. “We knew it was going to be a tough match,” he added.
The Bennington wrestlers, like many in the field, are drawing on a full season of high-level experience to stay composed amid the big-stage atmosphere.
Fans can follow live results and brackets via FloWrestling, with the tournament concluding Wednesday at the CHI Health Center. Best of luck to Mia Anderson, Maren McIlnay, and all remaining competitors as they chase state hardware!
