University of the Cumberlands (UC) Women's wrestling team traveled to Cleveland, Ohio to compete in the 2011 Asics Women Freestyle Championships. Some of the top contenders for the entire sport competed at this tournament in both the men and women's Olympic style of wrestling.

Christen Paysee (Fullerton, CA), made sure to make a name for herself when she competed in the tournament earning a 4^th place finish, which was the highest finish for the Patriots. Her only losses were in the semi-finals match in the 67kg weight class and the final match of the tournament for 3^rd and 4^th place.

The Patriots had three individuals place in the top 6 of the tournament. At 51kg Gabrielle Henry (Columbus, OH) was able to bring home a 6^th place finish. Injured early on, Henry fought back to advance to the consolation rounds of the tournament.

Cianah Hee (Honolulu, HI), after fighting through 6 grueling rounds of competition, was able to come away with a 6^th place finish in one of the bigger weight classes of the tournament.

"Overall, the girls wrestled hard," said UC Head Women's Wrestling Coach Alaina Berube. "They made a few mistakes that cost them key matches but they wrestled some opponents that they haven't faced yet which, I think, will be big for us when we get to world team trials. We know where we need to improve so we can be better next time."

The Patriots will be back on the mat at the ASICS University Nationals in Akron, OH on April 20^th.

For more information on the women's wrestling team and Patriot athletics visit http://www.cumberlandspatriots.com/.