Storm and Rams shine at regular season finales with state on the horizon 

RIO RANCHO — With the state tournament just around the corner, on Feb. 20-21, the high school wrestling season is drawing to a close.

Before the local teams hit the mats one last time for the state’s grandest prize, here is a rundown of how they got to this point:

Storm boys take Metros

In their latest feat, the Storm boys' wrestling crew closed out January with an APS Metro tournament title.

Cleveland, the lone team to score over 200 points on the weekend with 222.5, had three first-place finishes: Xzavier Gomez (106), Roman Luttrell (120) and Riley Haussler (285). On top of the three champions, the Storm had three second-place finishes and one third-place finish.

Rio Rancho was third in the standings, with Josiah Neri (126) and Jacari Smith (190) netting two first-place victories for the Rams.

Rio posted 147 points, behind second-place Volcano Vista’s 195. The three podium finishers, along with seventh-place Eldorado, were the only four teams to post two or more first-place victories on the weekend. 

RR’s Hennigh, Cleveland girls perform at Regionals

A week later, it was the girls' turn to take on regionals. Hosted at Cleveland High, the Storm finished second in a competitive statewide field, being the only team to register four first-place finishes in the meet.

Chloe Bradley (105), Eloise Woolsey (155), Heaven Guevara (135) and Miranda Stewart (120) won their divisions, taking a run at first-place Volcano Vista. Volcano was able to sneak out the 221-204 win thanks to two first-place and three third-place finishers. 

Much like the boys' side, the Storm and Hawks will be the top teams to watch out for in the state tournament.

For the Rams, an 11th-place finish did not deter freshman Sophia Hennigh. Another stop on her dominant first-year campaign, Hennigh went 4-0 on the weekend and tallied three pins enroute to the 110-pound division title.

She will look to cap off the season with another big weekend. This time, in the Rio Rancho Events Center.

Career milestones

In the midst of their season successes, both teams have had individual milestones to celebrate.

Via his third-place weekend at Metros, Rio Rancho’s Eli Archibeque reached the 150-win mark for his high school career. After winning a state title in the 107-pound division last year, Archibeque will look to add more wins to his column in search of another championship.

For Cleveland, the last month was filled with career firsts. For the girls, Eloise Woolsey crossed 100 career wins at regionals, joining teammate Heaven Guevara in the 100-club, hitting 150 wins earlier in January. 

On the boys' squad, Elias Martinez and Matthew Mascarenas both earned their 100th wins, while Roman Luttrell continues his career tear with his 200th victory. 

Luttrell now has a 202-11 record in his Storm run, adding 132 falls to his name. He is now 42-0 on the season, and as the Storm faithful will tell you, he is not done yet.

'Now, we wait'

With the boys regionals still to come, the state championship drawing and brackets will not be released until Feb. 16. Four days later, doors will open to the Rio Rancho Event Center, on what should be an incredible weekend of high school wrestling.