Parnell sisters battle nation's best at War of the Roses wrestling tournament

Twenty-six years ago, AlyssaBeth Parnell began wrestling with the U.S. Girls Wrestling Association. Now, she watches her daughters compete nationally.

Continuing the family legacy, the Parnell sisters — Ireland, Dublin and Maeve — competed at the War of the Roses Girls National Tournament on Oct. 4-5 in Columbus, Ind. The event featured duals and individual competitions. Representing Pennsylvania in the 60-team dual were Dublin and Maeve for PA West and Ireland for PA West National.

Both Dublin and Maeve placed for PA West, which finished ninth in the competition. Ireland did not place for PA West National, which landed in 12th, after she stepped up in weight to fill a lineup spot for the team.

In individual competition, each girl competed in a different age and weight bracket. The highlight came from the middle sister, Dublin, in the 10U, 60-pound division.

“This year, we were unsure that Dublin would be able to compete due to a broken arm,” AlyssaBeth Parnell said.

“She got her cast off about two weeks prior to this event. The Monday before the event, with just three practices, her physical therapist advised ‘absolutely no wrestling’ due to the fracture in her arm not being completely healed. We were sure that this year would not be her year to win a national title.”

But Dublin Parnell — who had promised to concede if she had any pain, like she did in her lone loss in the duals event — had other plans. She dominated her way to the championship round, winning by tech fall (2:57), decision (4-0) and a pin in the semifinals. Her championship opponent was Evangeli Bali of Mayhem WC Gold, a Tennessee state champion in both the folkstyle and Greco Roman divisions.

“Dublin (had) been runner-up and taken third at this event in years past,” AlyssaBeth Parnell said, “both years taking one loss to the No. 1 ranked girl in the country.”

Now, it was Dublin Parnell’s chance to be the best.

After giving up an early takedown in the first period, Dublin Parnell was able to recover in the third with a takedown of her own with three seconds left. Neither side could break the tie until the final overtime when Dublin won the national title by sudden victory (5-4) in a rideout.

“(Dublin Parnelll winning) was both exciting and emotional, as (she) worked so hard at being a national champion and fell short in years past,” AlyssaBeth Parnell said.

The Parnell success story didn’t end there though.

Ireland, AlyssaBeth Parnell’s oldest daughter, was wrestling undersized in the 14U, 75-pound bracket, but that didn’t stop her from competing hard.

In her opening match, Ireland Parnell was pinned (1:57) by Josie Wisecup of Team Ohio Blue Terriers. In the consolation bracket, she advanced on a 14-3 decision before facing off against Wisecup again in the third-place match. After 2:24 of wrestling, Ireland was pinned again, finishing fourth in her division.

“She wrestled tough, holding her own in the open division, losing only to the same girl twice,” AlyssaBeth Parnell said.

The youngest of AlyssaBeth Parnell’s daughters, Maeve, wrestled in the 8U, 50-pound class. In Maeve Parnell’s opening match, she lost by decision (2-1).

“Taking a first-round loss meant that making the podium would be a long and hard-fought battle,” AlyssaBeth Parnell said of her youngest.

But Maeve Parnell was ready for that battle.

She moved her way through the consolation bracket, pinning one opponent (1:52) and beating the other two by decision (14-2 and 12-0). Maeve Parnell was then pinned (1:29) by the eventual third-place winner Olivia Nekolite of Nebraska Wrestling Academy. The youngest Parnell rebounded in the fifth-place bout, though, and won by decision (3-1).

“Maeve … shocked us with her grit and perseverance,” AlyssaBeth Parnell said. “Overall, I’m incredibly proud of how each of my girls handled themselves on the national circuit.”

Asked about the girls’ future in wrestling, AlyssaBeth Parnell said, “none of them see an end in sight.”

“Each of them have goals to perform on the national and international level someday, while Dublin dreams of being an Olympian,” she said. “All three girls talk about wrestling in college some day. Ireland and Maeve both just know that they want to wrestle at the collegiate level, but don’t have a preferred college in mind. Dublin has always dreamed of being an Iowa Hawkeye someday, so she has her sights set on that. Until then, we will just continue to work hard and have fun doing it.”