Pa’ani Challenge pulls out all the stops

The wrestling tournament is almost an afterthought at Punahou’s Pa’ani Challenge this week, but once the girls hit the mat it turns serious.

The latest edition of the largest all-girls wrestling tournament in the country occurs on Wednesday and Thursday this week. Unlike other tournaments, weight classes are split into three levels to ensure each girl in the draw gets quality mat time regardless of ability.

Last year, 247 girls participated in the event. There are 330 girls entered from 36 different schools this year. The most populated bracket appears to be at 127 pounds, where 20 athletes are registered for the open bracket and another 10 in the novice.

There are only 17 girls total entered at 107 pounds.

Punahou athletic associate Boy Eldredge will kick things off at 1 p.m. on Wednesday with an annual clinic by Olympian Clarissa Chun to follow. There will be other presentations that day, including a talk with fellow National Women’s Freestyle Coach Emma Randall and a college/career fair. Randall is the only woman to earn USA Wrestling’s gold-level coaching certification.

The field is not set yet, but Roosevelt wrestlers Macy Higa and Xiaolin Mai will be going for the third Pa’ani gold of their careers if they make the trip down the hill. Only six other girls have won more than two gold medals at the tournament and Carly Jaramillo of Lahainaluna is the only girl to win four.

Asia Evans (Pearl City), Diamond Freitas (Lahainaluna), Kayla Guillermo (Castle), Iverly Navarro (Lahainaluna) and Breeane Takaesu (Pearl City) have all won three in their careers.

Evans, Navarro and Jaramillo are the only girls to win three golds in the highest division of the tournament. Mai can join that list.

Three Fuamatu girls have won the tournament, with Jennie Fuamatu trying to win her second to pass the single gold Janelle and Jacqueline have earned.

Lahainaluna has won the most championships at the tournament, which began in 2010, with 25. Pearl City is next with 21 followed by Campbell (14), Punahou (13), Molokai (11) and Kamehameha (10).

Wrestling begins at 5:30 on Wednesday and 8:15 a.m. on Thursday with the championship round scheduled to end at 3 p.m.

Here is a list of winners over the years.