Gold medalists: KC grapplers shine at Aztec wrestling meet

By Quentin Jodie
Navajo Times

FARMINGTON – The Kirtland Central girls added a pair of individual gold medals to its wrestling room.

KC junior Kayliana Chavez and freshman Hailey Robinson won their respective brackets on Saturday during the Clash at the Coliseum girls wrestling tournament at McGee Park in Farmington.

Robinson won the 135-pound weight class as she upped her record to an extraordinary 29-1 record. In the finals, the KC grappler earned a fall over Ignacio’s Krysten Neil in the second period.

“There was no pressure,” Robinson said of entering the Aztec High tournament as the top-seeded wrestler in her weight class. “I felt like I just needed wrestle my match, so it was just another tournament.”

Chavez, meanwhile, had some early jitters when she reached the finals at 145 pounds. She also earned a fall, as she pinned Socorro’s Maria Ruiz Jaquez in the second period.

“(The match) wasn’t tough, but I got nervous because I’ve never wrestled her before,” Chavez said. “I started telling myself, ‘Don’t worry about her, even though I’ve never wrestled her.’ I think it was getting that negativity out of my head.”

The KC wrestler improved her record to 25-4 overall. Three of her losses came at the 2026 Conflict at Cleveland. Chavez came up short in the semis to Sandia wrestler Neviah Valera-Marquez by a 9-4 count.

She then dropped her next two matches, losing to Morenci, Arizona wrestler Taytum Porter by a 6-1 decision in the consolation semis and Las Animas, Colorado grappler Bree Tyler in the fifth-place match by a fall.

“Nothing was easy there, but I think I did pretty good,” Chavez said of the results at the Cleveland meet. “Last year, I placed eighth and this year I took sixth. I feel like I’m ready for state. I wrestled some tough girls there.”

Chavez is looking to improve on her sixth-place finish at state from her freshman and sophomore seasons.

“I want to get better before the regional tournament, and I want to try and win a state title,” said Chavez when asked what she’s hopes to accomplish this season.

The KC wrestler knows that Valera-Marquez will be one of her biggest competitors at state as the Sandia junior placed second at last year’s state tournament.

“I think I did OK, even though I was down by points,” Chavez said of her match with Valera-Marquez. “I just want to get better, and I hope to see her again at state.”

Robinson is also seeking to better her sixth-place finish at state from one year ago.

“My expectation is to place higher than sixth, and possibly win a state championship,” Robinson said.

Her only blemish this year happened during the finals at the Conflict at Cleveland. Robinson was pinned by Cleveland’s Heaven Guevara, who owns a 35-1 record.

“She’s the only girl that I’m having a problem with wrestling,” Robinson said. “I lost to her in the championship match.”

Looking back, Robinson says she didn’t expect to make the Conflict at Cleveland finals. Nonetheless, she was looking to make the podium.

“When I got to the finals, I knew who I was facing,” she said. “I tried my best, but I feel like I can improve on my footwork. I feel like I need to take more shots, instead of waiting on her to shoot at me.”

Get instant access to this story by purchasing one of our many e-edition subscriptions HERE at our Navajo Times Store.

 

---