Bachman earns state wrestling bid
MFL MarMac junior Kennedy Bachman is headed to the girls state wrestling tournament. She qualified after placing first at 100 pounds at the Class 1A regional at Crestwood on Jan. 30. (Photos by Audrey Posten)
Charlotte Koether, who qualified for state last year as a freshman, just missed a return bid this time around after placing third at 125 pounds.
Bulldog freshman Aaliyah Corcoran placed fourth at 105 pounds.
By Audrey Posten | Times-Register
MFL MarMac junior Kennedy Bachman is headed to the Iowa High School Girls Athletic Union state wrestling tournament. She qualified after placing first at 100 pounds at the Class 1A regional at Crestwood on Jan. 30, becoming just the second Bulldog girls wrestler ever to win a regional title.
Bachman, who has a record of 38-3 and is ranked third in the state, earned three falls en route to first place. After pinning Osage’s Brynnlie Havig in the finals, she cried tears of joy while embracing coaches Brent Pape and Shawn Morrissey.
“It feels amazing that all my hard work is paying off and it’s showing on the mat,” Bachman said afterward.
A year ago, there were tears of sadness when Bachman placed just outside the top two state qualifying spots at a brutal regional. She said that feeling motivated her even more.
“I don’t regret last year, not making it, because it made me realize what I need to work on. It built me as a wrestler to have a bigger jump into this year. Even freshman year not making it to state, I don’t regret that, because it’s really built me as a person and who I am as a wrestler,” Bachman explained.
Pape could see that drive in the offseason and as the current season progressed.
“Kennedy Bachman is a special individual who has skills up and down the board. It’s not just a wrestling talent, it’s the drive that this young woman has,” he said. “She set her sights last year, and I can’t even total the amount of hours she has put in. She went for it, and she earned it.”
“She is raising the game. She is shaping our team and leading the girls. I couldn’t be more proud of her today,” he continued.
As one of few upperclassmen on the MFL MarMac team, Bachman has embraced a leadership role previously held by sister Mackenzie, a state qualifier who graduated last year.
“I like being a leader,” she said. “I like helping those around me and being able to help people in the practice room with technique and stuff. It means a lot to me.”
Bachman feels like she can relate to everyone in the room because she’s been there herself.
“I’ve been the wrestler coming in, not knowing anything, not knowing technique. I’ve been the wrestler losing matches to someone I shouldn’t be losing to,” she shared.
She also knows what it’s like to be on the outside looking in.
Teammate Charlotte Koether, who qualified for state last year as a freshman, just missed a return bid this time around after placing third at 125 pounds. After losing by sudden victory to Cheyanne Smith of Starmont in the semifinals, Koether won her next two matches by fall, but Smith’s loss to Lauren Adams of Osage in the finals dashed her hopes of a wrestle back for second place.
Bulldog freshman Aaliyah Corcoran also suffered a semifinal loss at 105 pounds. A fall in the consolation semis advanced her to the third-place match, where she was pinned by Taelynn Bass from New Hampton/Turkey Valley. She placed fourth.
“Aaliyah and Charlotte remind me of me,” Bachman said. “Aaliyah’s me my freshman year and Charlotte’s me my sophomore year.”
Pape said his heart goes out to Koether and Corcoran as well as the other wrestlers—Veda Torkelson (120 pounds), Alydia Abel (135), Isla Henkes (170) and April Upton (190)—who did not place at the tournament but gained valuable experience.
“The one thing I’ve said all the time is we are a young team. We are up and coming and the future is bright,” he said.
He believes the sky is the limit for Bachman too. She’s gotten a taste of victory, but there’s more to come.
Bachman will continue training this week. Getting in the right mindset is important as well, she said.
“I have everything else. I have the gas tank. I have the technique. It is just a matter of me showing up and going and getting what I want,” she said.
Bachman’s goal is to place sixth or better.
“I can definitely reach that goal if I show up on the mat,” she said.
The girls state wrestling tournament is Thursday and Friday, Feb. 5 and 6, at Xtreme Arena in Coralville. Class 1A action will begin at 10 a.m. on Thursday. Bachman is the fifth seed at 100 pounds.
