2026 Southern Plains Regional Championships Preview: 2,400 Wrestlers Descend on Oklahoma City

The 2026 Southern Plains Regional Championships open today at the Oklahoma City Convention Center, and the numbers tell the story: 2,411 registered wrestlers, 279 teams, 24 divisions, and three days of Freestyle and Greco-Roman competition that will determine who qualifies for the 52nd Annual USA Wrestling Junior and 16U National Championships in Fargo this July. Top-six finishers in 16U and Junior divisions earn automatic Fargo qualification — and the brackets this weekend are loaded.

Oliver Pulliam of Best Trained is the highest-rated wrestler in the field. Pulliam carries a 2498 overall rating on a 107-4 record with a 2108 freestyle rating, and he is registered at 126 in the Junior Freestyle division. Close behind him is Emily Beckley of Broken Arrow Wrestling Club (2490, 114-3), who enters Junior Girls Freestyle at 145 with a 2079 freestyle rating that makes her one of the most dangerous girls wrestlers at the tournament. These two represent the elite tier — wrestlers whose ratings suggest they should cruise into Fargo qualification.

The girls side of the bracket is remarkably deep. Zaylyn Woods of Spartan Mat Club (2476, 115-4) enters 16U Girls at 130 with a 2002 freestyle rating. Ki'Morah Cathey of Hurricane Wrestling Academy (2468, 34-1) is registered at 140 in both 16U Girls Freestyle and Greco-Roman with a 2184 freestyle rating — the highest freestyle rating among all girls in the field. Kyrstan Perez of Westmoore (2439, 67-1) brings an absurd one-loss record into Junior Girls at 105. Mabel Rogers of Rogue Warrior Wrestling (2447) enters 16U Girls at 115, and McKenna Wilson of Hurricane Wrestling Academy (2406, 49-4) adds to what looks like a dominant Hurricane squad. In total, more than 460 girls are registered with over 630 individual entries across Freestyle and Greco-Roman divisions — a number that would have been unthinkable even five years ago.

On the boys side, Ryatt Rodden of Primal Wrestling Academy (2438, 134-9) enters 16U Freestyle at 132 with a 2037 freestyle rating and is one of the most experienced wrestlers in the field. Lazarus McEwen of Mat Demon Wrestling Club (2458, rating) is registered at 120 in both Junior Freestyle and Greco-Roman. Thunder Page of South Central Punishers (2387, 113-13) enters Junior Freestyle at 165 with a 2031 freestyle rating. Jaegar RomanNose of Position Wrestling (2385, 84-6) is a returning Southern Plains competitor at 106 in 16U, and Jace Renfro of Seneca (2383, 84-3) enters Junior at 190. The Junior Freestyle division alone has 420 registered wrestlers — the deepest bracket at the tournament.

The team battle could be just as interesting. Black Fox Wrestling Academy and Greater Heights Wrestling lead the registration count with 61 wrestlers each, followed by MoWest Championship Wrestling (47), Husky Wrestling Club (46), and Shelton Wrestling Academy (45). Wichita Training Center, despite a smaller delegation, brings some of the highest-rated individual talent — including Everett Joyce, who is coming off a strong folkstyle season. Oklahoma leads the state representation with 257 wrestlers, followed by Texas (178), Missouri (116), Kansas (98), and Colorado (84). Ten states are represented in the field.

The schedule starts tonight with Greco-Roman weigh-ins at 4:00 PM and 16U and Junior Greco-Roman competition at 6:00 PM. Saturday features the remaining Greco-Roman divisions in the morning, followed by Freestyle weigh-ins and 16U/Junior Freestyle sessions starting at 3:00 PM. Sunday wraps up with all remaining Freestyle divisions wrestling to conclusion. For full registration data, division breakdowns, and wrestler profiles, check the event page on MatMetrics.