Charli Raymond’s dominance of girls wrestling continued Saturday in St. Paul, as the Simley junior nabbed her fifth individual state title, along with the Spartans’ team titles she has contributed to along the way.

In the 118-pound title match, Raymond delivered a tech fall victory over Roseville senior Anica Barze, who had a phenomenal campaign that ended with only the lone defeat to Raymond.

“I knew going into the match that it was going to be a tough match,” Raymond said. “But as long as I stayed in my position, got to my ties, it wasn’t going to be close.”

That’s not overconfidence, it’s the reality for Raymond, who delivered an undefeated season and remains a step ahead of her in-state competition. That feat grows more impressive with each passing season.

Raymond won the first ever girls state championship five years ago. The sport has only grown since then, with paths to championships proving more treacherous than ever before.

Apple Valley’s Cassy Gonzales wrestles Luverne’s Cece Rock during the 155-pound match of the Class 3A individual championship match of the State Wrestling Tournament at Grand Casino Arena in St. Paul on Thursday, Feb. 27, 2025. Gonzales won the match to take the state title. (Craig Lassig / Special to the Pioneer Press)

Cassandra Gonzales of Apple Valley won her fourth state title Saturday. The previous three came with relative ease.

But Gonzales had to fend off Luverne’s Cece Rock via sudden victory to win this year’s 155-pound title match. Rock knocked off Centennial’s Nora Akpan – a defending state champion in her own right – to hand Akpan her lone loss of the season in what proved to be a bracket of death.

Such things didn’t exist years ago, when only four wrestlers reached state in each weight class and many of them only had a few matches to their name. Now girls are logging 30 matches a season, constantly honing their skills and gaining strength – a prerequisite to merely keep pace with their contemporaries.

Stillwater’s Audrey Rogotzke, right, wrestles Bertha-Hewitt/Verndale/Parkers Prairie’s Elora Wagner 148-pound match during the girls individual championship match of the State Wrestling Tournament at Grand Casino Arena in St. Paul on Thursday, Feb. 27, 2025. Rogotzke won her match to take the state title. (Craig Lassig / Special to the Pioneer Press)

Stillwater’s Audrey Rogotzke won her third state title Saturday to wrap up her high school career. It came in a 6-4 decision in the 148-pound division. Easy runs to titles are becoming a rarity in the sport.

Never was that more evident than in the 142-pound title match, where Eagan junior Taniah Borney upset St. Michael Albertville freshman Emma Antoni with a first-period pin. It was only the second loss of the season for Antoni, who cruised to a state title as an eighth-grader in 2025.

Borney, who entered the week ranked ninth in her weight division, was pinned twice in last year’s state tournament, and she suffered an ankle injury earlier this season in a match against Antoni that kept her off the mats for a month. She had a goal of winning state … next season.

Eagan’s Taniah Borney wrestles St. Michael-Albertville’s Emma Antoni during the 142-pound match of the girls individual championship match of the State Wrestling Tournament at Grand Casino Arena in St. Paul on Thursday, Feb. 27, 2025. Borney won the match to take the states title. (Craig Lassig / Special to the Pioneer Press)

But when Antoni went for a first period takedown with her legs, she was caught off balance, and Borney threw her down to the mat and stuck her for the pin.

“It felt like a lucky moment in my opinion,” Borney said. “I used my own technique to catch a move that could’ve ended badly for me.”

Instead, it ended in glory.

“I was stunned. I don’t know, it was like a lot.  It didn’t feel real, and it’s still hard to believe right now. It’s a lot of emotions,” she said after the match. “When it happened, I was looking at everyone and it was a very emotional moment for me, but I’ve wanted it. I wanted it so bad, and that’s what gave me the drive to do it.”

Borney joked in a post-match streaming interview with Neighborhood Sports Network that she originally joined the sport “kind of as a joke” with her friends. But she quickly became good at it, fell in love with it.

Stories such as hers continue to pop up in the state as the pool of girls wrestling talent consistently grows wider and deeper. Which leaves only one path for those currently atop the sport to stay there.

“As the sport has grown, it’s definitely been like, ‘OK, I’ve got to work harder, I’ve got to keep it going. I can’t back off now,’ ” said Raymond, who will pursue title No. 6 next winter. “It’s still really fun.”

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