Women's Wrestling: Late Surge Falls Short as Pilgrims Down Cadets in Final Dual of the Season

NORTHFIELD, Vt. — The Norwich University women's wrestling team came up just short in a tightly contested dual on Friday evening, falling to New England College, 25-24, inside Plumley Armory in their final home dual of the season.

The Cadets won five of the 10 contested weight classes, including four bonus-point victories, but forfeits in the lower weights proved decisive in the one-point setback.
New England College opened the dual with back-to-back wins at 103 and 110 pounds, including a fall at 110 to take an early 10-0 advantage. After another forfeit at 117 extended the lead, Norwich began its rally at 124.

Gianna Silva (Monroe, Conn.) ignited the comeback with a first-period fall over Olivia Delegas in 1:38. At 131, Marjorie Welton (Tewksbury, Mass.) followed with an 11-0 technical fall at 4:32 to quickly narrow the deficit.

The Cadets continued to build momentum at 138 as Charlii Carbajal Sanchez (Broomfield, Colo.) earned a forfeit victory to even the team score.
NEC responded with consecutive falls at 145 and 160 to regain control, pushing the margin to 25-18 entering the final two bouts.

Norwich closed strong. Ay'Seante Ross (Wilmington, N.C.) delivered a third-period fall at 180, pinning Marisol Almanzar at 3:53 to keep the Cadets within striking distance. At 207, Ana Lemler (Borbon, Ind.) secured a forfeit victory to pull Norwich within one. Still, the Cadets were unable to overcome the early deficit as NEC held on for the 25-24 decision.

After concluding the dual portion of their schedule, Norwich will turn their attention to the NCAA Northeast Regionals on Feb. 20-21, hosted by Elmira College.