Ben Hawk’s first home competition as Yelm High School’s head girls wrestling coach was a successful event, as YHS’s girls wrestling program placed first out of 14 teams in the inaugural Prairie Open tournament on Saturday, Dec. 7.
En route to a first place finish, the Tornados earned 141 points and were followed by Forks, 135.5, Shelton, 125, Mount Vernon, 92.5, North Creek, 72, North Mason, 65.5, and Timberline, 62. Olympia, Cascade (Everett), Life Christian Academy, Hoquiam, Tumwater, Raymond-South Bend and Kamiak also competed in the Prairie Open tournament.
Among the top placers for the Tornados included Samantha Blank, first place in the 140-pound weight class, Madelyn Lawson, first place in the 170-pound weight class, Kylie Minker, first place in the 190-pound weight class, and Kaitlyn Dover, first place in the 235-pound weight class. Blank, Lawson and Dover each went 3-0 en route to their Prairie Open victories, while Minker went 4-0 with four pinfall victories in her weight class, earning “Most Outstanding Wrestler” honors at the competition.
Aurora Smith, 100-pound weight class, earned second place at the Prairie Open with a 2-1 record, and teammate Olivia Kaiser, 125-pound weight class, also finished in second place with a 2-1 record. Sofia Sheedy, took third place in the 100-pound weight class with a 3-1 record.
“It went great. I had a blast. The team had a blast, and we all got out there and competed loosely. The goal for the day was to open up and not be afraid to make some mistakes. My message to the girls was to open up, attack and be fearless, let it go,” Hawk told the Nisqually Valley News after the Prairie Open tournament. “If they went through the day without making a mistake, we’d have nothing to look at on Monday. They went out and made mistakes, and it made me happy because none of them took the mistake as the end of the world. They got up, knew what they had to work on, and competed really hard. I could not be more proud of these girls.”
Hawk added that he was thrilled to see how supportive the athletes were off the mat while they had another teammate wrestling. Throughout any given YHS girls wrestling match on Saturday, there were at least five Tornados watching and cheering their teammate on. As a head coach, Hawk said he loved the environment his athletes were creating for their teammates on the mat.
“It was amazing to see. As I’ve been around the girls sport, seeing how inclusive everyone was and how supportive everyone was — it was just what a coach could ask for,” Hawk said. “Between the teams there and the competition, the Prairie Open was a lot of fun. We had a pretty full bracket. A lot of girls got four matches, which is about what you get in really big tournaments. All of the teams were sportsmanlike. Everyone was there to let the girls compete and let the girls figure out the results.”
Hawk said all of the athletes and coaches understood that they were there to find out who the best wrestler in attendance was. The first “Most Outstanding Wrestler” award at the Prairie Open tournament went to the senior Minker, who has her sights set on the Tacoma Dome and bringing home a state championship in 2025. She was nominated for the honor by all of the coaches in attendance at the tournament.
“[Minker] had a goal of picking up the most pins in the least amount of time in a way to prove she was the best one there, and she got four pins in about 4 minutes and 50 seconds,” Hawk said. “Kylie does so much work that it’s hard to tell people how much work she really puts in. It’s never her trying to get better at wrestling. In her mind she’s just out there with her brothers and sisters and trying to teach them about the sport. Last year, she re-committed to finishing her senior season. She’s been on the mat a lot more than I would’ve expected, and she’s out there on the mat before me.
“She’s almost like an assistant coach on the team, along with all of the other leaders, but Kylie has really taken the bull by the horns and led the entire team,” Hawk continued. “She leads by example, not out screaming at everyone or yelling at everyone. She just works hard, shows up before everyone and tries to do it best.”
Early on in the season, Hawk said it’s been so much fun to share the mat room with the YHS girls wrestling team.
“They are all like-minded in their goals and their preparation. They always come with a positive attitude,” Hawk said. “I also want to give a huge shoutout to all of our parents. The hospitality room was unbelievable. It had every snack possible, every drink possible, and all went so great.”
Yelm girls wrestling will host a dual at home on Thursday, Dec. 19, against the Bethel Bison and the Graham-Kapowsin Eagles. Hawk views the upcoming competition as a big opportunity for his wrestlers.
“I’m pumped for that dual because I graduated from Bethel,” Hawk said. “I coached with a lot of those guys, and it would be fun for them to come out to my new hometown and rub their face in the mat and get our hand held high over the Bethel Bison and Graham-Kapowsin.”
