Team Michigan defeated Ohio 63-7, but the inaugural interstate exchange carried significance far beyond the final score

By J.R. Casarez |  Ohio vs. Michigan Girls Wrestling Exchange

Girls from Michigan and Ohio compete inside the gym at University of Detroit Jesuit High School and Academy during the inaugural interstate exchange on Sept. 12.

DETROIT – The final score showed a dominant performance by Team Michigan. The setting told an equally important story.

On September 12, University of Detroit Jesuit High School and Academy hosted the inaugural Ohio vs. Michigan Girls Wrestling Exchange, bringing together accomplished champions, emerging athletes, coaches and wrestling leaders from both states for a full day devoted exclusively to girls wrestling.

U of D Jesuit is an all-boys school. Yet for this event, its wrestling room, gymnasium and platform belonged entirely to girls and women.

Organizers believe it may have been the first all-girls event of its kind hosted on the U of D Jesuit campus. Whether officially the first or not, its significance was unmistakable: an institution dedicated to educating young men opened its doors to celebrate the strength, leadership and accomplishments of young women.

More Than a Venue

U of D Jesuit has become an important partner in Beat the Streets Detroit’s work to expand wrestling throughout the city. The school regularly hosts practices, camps, clinics and community events, providing athletes from Detroit and surrounding communities with access to a consistent, high-level training environment.

Hosting the exchange was another example of that commitment. The school did more than provide a building. It helped create a stage for girls wrestling and demonstrated that supporting the growth of the women’s side of the sport is a responsibility the entire wrestling community can share.

Team Michigan’s national-level experience showed throughout the dual, while a young Ohio team continued to challenge accomplished opponents.

Michigan Brings a Loaded Lineup

Led by Beat the Streets Detroit and Michigan Wrestling Academy, Team Michigan entered the dual with state champions, national qualifiers, Fargo All-Americans and some of the most accomplished young female wrestlers in the country. That experience showed as Michigan defeated the younger Ohio team, 63-7.

At 100 pounds, Team USA Youth Olympian and U.S. Beach Wrestling national champion Piper Fry earned a victory by fall. Ella Giallombardo, a 2026 Fargo qualifier and MHSAA state qualifier, delivered one of the most exciting performances of the dual at 105 pounds. After falling behind early, Giallombardo rallied and secured a pin late in the second period.

Zoe Zondervan, a 2026 Fargo qualifier, earned a technical fall at 120. Dundee freshman Emma Mantei followed with another technical fall at 125 after winning both the boys and girls divisions at the 2026 MYWAY State Championships.

At 130 pounds, MHSAA state qualifier Libbi Jacobs added a technical fall. Fargo qualifiers Eden Dean and Catie Cooper each recorded victories by fall, while 2026 MHSAA state champion Olivia Kemp, bumping up from 160, made her freestyle debut and earned a decision at 190 in one of the dual’s most competitive matches.

Michigan’s Depth on Display

McKenzie Mantei, Addison Wenkel, Anna Burma and Arianna Manuel also collected victories by forfeit. Mantei placed fifth at the 2026 Fargo Nationals and finished second at the MHSAA State Championships, while Wenkel was a 2026 MHSAA third-place finisher and district and regional champion.

Michigan’s delegation was headlined by Romeo’s 2026 U17 world champion Kaili Manuel. The three-time Fargo champion, three-time MHSAA champion, two-time Super 32 champion and former U16 Pan American champion did not compete in the dual, but her presence added another level of international experience to an already accomplished group.

Michigan’s roster also included Fargo qualifier Madiba Richardson, MHSAA state placer Emmaline Kouw, state qualifier Cat Warlick and Fargo and MHSAA state qualifier Ava Ciolac.

Anna Burma of Fowlerville has her hand raised after a victory at U of D Jesuit. Michigan won the dual, 63-7.

Ohio Accepts the Challenge

Ohio entered the exchange with a much younger and less experienced team led by Beat the Streets Cleveland. Several Ohio athletes were freshmen. Some were only in their first or second year of wrestling, and several were competing in freestyle for the first time. They never backed away from the challenge.

Chloe Stevens earned a technical-fall victory for Ohio at 115 pounds, while Ohio freestyle state champion Olivia Fox won by decision at 170. Fox also stepped forward for additional exhibition competition.

Throughout the dual, Ohio forced Michigan’s experienced lineup into physical and competitive exchanges that were not fully reflected by the final score. The Ohio lineup included Madeline Kutis, Mya Webb, Delencia-Marie Jackson, Chanielle Carter-Sparks, Kylia Cole, Nia West, Tamiya Whittsette and OHSAA state placer Johanna Bogan.

Ohio was also forced to overcome a frightening setback during the clinic when one of its top-ranked heavyweight wrestlers suffered a broken arm in a freak fall while drilling. The injury removed one of the team’s strongest competitors from the dual and left Ohio open at heavyweight.

Even from her hospital bed, Ohio’s injured leader remained connected to her teammates, watching the dual live on FloWrestling and cheering them on from afar.

Champions Become Mentors

The exchange began with a clinic that put developing wrestlers directly on the mat with accomplished athletes and coaches.

The Ohio athletes regrouped, supported their injured teammate and continued competing. Michigan’s experience ultimately controlled the dual, but Ohio’s willingness to step into difficult matchups became one of the defining stories of the event. Its wrestlers earned victories, battled through adversity and gained experience that cannot be recreated through routine practices.

The exchange was designed to be more than a dual meet. Before the competition, wrestlers of different ages and experience levels participated in a clinic led by an accomplished group of athletes and coaches from both states.

Michigan’s clinicians included Kanata Richardson, a 2026 USA Wrestling Folkstyle national champion, 2025 MHSAA state champion and two-time Fargo All-American; 2026 Fargo national champion Lillee Denson; two-time MHSAA champion and 2026 Fargo finalist Belicia Manuel; three-time MHSAA champion and Beach Wrestling world silver medalist Maddie Hayden; and 2026 Fargo All-American Mya Brandenburg. Together, the five wrestlers represent an exceptionally accomplished group within Northern Michigan University’s impressive incoming freshman class.

Ohio was represented by another member of that incoming NMU class. Kandice Spry helped lead the Ohio side of the exchange. The Ohio native is a three-time OHSAA state placer, 2025 state runner-up, U23 World Team Trials All-American, NHSCA All-American and two-time Folkstyle Nationals All-American.

Beat the Streets Cleveland Head of Coaching and Mentoring Anthony Spooner also helped guide the Ohio delegation and support the developmental mission of the exchange.

The clinic allowed young wrestlers to learn directly from women who have competed at the state, national and international levels. They were not simply watching champions from the stands. They were drilling with them, asking questions and sharing the same competition floor.

A Rivalry Used to Build the Sport

The inaugural exchange paired interstate competition with fellowship and a shared commitment to building girls wrestling.

Michigan and Ohio share one of the most recognizable rivalries in American sports. The exchange used that rivalry to create excitement, but its ultimate purpose was collaboration.

Beat the Streets Detroit, Michigan Wrestling Academy and Beat the Streets Cleveland brought the two wrestling communities together for competition, athlete mentorship, leadership development and relationship-building across state lines.

For Michigan, the victory demonstrated the remarkable depth of girls wrestling developing across the state. For Ohio, the exchange provided a young team with the opportunity to face nationally established competition, endure adversity and return home more experienced.

For U of D Jesuit, the event continued a growing commitment to supporting wrestling throughout Detroit, even when the athletes being served do not attend the school. That may be the exchange’s most lasting message.

An all-boys school recognized the importance of girls wrestling and chose to help lead its growth. Young Ohio wrestlers accepted a difficult challenge rather than avoiding it. Michigan’s champions used their success not only to compete, but also to teach and give back.

The score belonged to Michigan. The valor belonged to Ohio.
The stage belonged to the girls.

And the heart of Detroit made it possible.

Photos: Morris Richardsson