From Tippecanoe High School Athletic Director Kregg Creamer
The Ohio High School Athletic Association held the 2023-2024 State Wrestling Tournament over the March 8-9-10 weekend. Tippecanoe senior Emma Hanharan represented the Red Devils in impressive fashion. Emma entered the tournament with a 35-3 record in the 130 lb. weight class and was fresh off of her Regional Championship. In that regional final, Emma defeated the #1 ranked state wrestler. The State Tournament started with Emma as one of the four #1 seeds.
In the opening match of the State Tournament, Emma got off to a fast start by pinning #4 Audrey Slivka (25-10) from Hilliard Bradley in 23 seconds. In the quarterfinal round, Emma defeated #3 Emily Flynn of Hubbard (38-7) by tech fall 15-0. The semi-final round proved to be Emma's greatest test. She faced another #1 seed, Sienna Sanborn (44-2) of Hamilton Township, but shut her out 6-0 to advance to the championship final. This was going to be Emma's shot at winning a state championship!
Emma was matched up against another #1 seed, Evanie Shank (37-6) of Napoleon High School, in the gold medal match. Emma took control of the match with a 1st period takedown and then road out the time. At the 1:17 mark of the second period, Emma ended the match by pin to win the 130 lb. state championship.
One of the most impressive stats of Emma's tournament is the fact that she did not give up a single point in her four matches!!! Emma ended her senior season with a 39-3 record and the first female state championship in Tippecanoe Wrestling history. The only other state champion from Tippecanoe Wrestling was Nathan Jackson in 1999.
Emma has had a very impressive wrestling career at Tippecanoe High School. In addition to the OHSAA state championship, she has also won a Freestyle state championship and a Greco Roman state championship within the past year. Emma ends her career with a final record of 84-29. She will forever be in the history books and will move on as one of the greatest to ever compete as a Red Devil.
We would also like to congratulate Coach Nick Petro and Coach Ben Bey. This is their first state championship as well.
A special shout out to Collin Isaac, a sophomore, for his first state qualification and ending the season with a 44-13 record. Trent Thompson, a sophomore, was also a state alternate and ended up with a 30-16 record. The future is bright for Tippecanoe Wrestling!