CHADRON, Neb. – The 2025-26 women's wrestling season will get underway this weekend with Chadron State participating in the "Battle of the Rockies" Open in Great Falls, Montana, hosted by the University of Providence (NAIA).

The campaign is the fifth in the history of the CSC women's program and the first under new head coach Sammy de Seriere, who moves up to the head chair after two seasons as the program's lead assistant. 

After a landmark season which saw a program-record three wrestlers win a match at the national tournament and CSC's first-ever women's wrestling All-American crowned in Esther Peters, the Eagles have some national recognition ahead of the season. 

Chadron State has three individually-ranked wrestlers in the NWCA's individual top 10s at each weight class – Peters (No. 5 at 207), Piper Cadden (No. 6 at 131) and Rylee Balcazar (No. 9 at 110). 

All three qualified for the national tournament last season, with Peters and Balcazar each going 3-2 for Chadron State and Cadden going 2-2 as a member of Fort Hays State, where she wrestled for two seasons before transferring to CSC for 2025-26. 

Boosted by those individual rankings, Chadron State is tied for No. 10 nationally in the NWCA Preseason Poll and finished third in the RMAC Preseason Poll. Both of these marks are the highest that CSC has ever been ranked before the season.

The Eagles have a whopping seven athletes on their roster who have a national tournament qualification berth on their resume. Alongside Peters, Balcazar and Cadden, 103-pounder Brianna Vollendroff and 180-pounder Ella May Shevlin also made the national tournament last season. 

Junior and 103-pounder Mana Chanthasone and redshirt junior Ana Rojas-Zamora, who last competed at 123 pounds two seasons ago, are both national qualifiers from the 2023-24 season. Rojas-Zamora redshirted last season and is slated to return to competition this Saturday while Chanthasone is likely to redshirt this year.

The Eagles have several other returners with experience. Senior Shania Wear at 117 pounds is a two-time RMAC placer (sixth in 2023-24, fourth in 2024-25) while also being the two-time defending RMAC Summit Award winner (best GPA in the conference). 

A pair of talented freshmen from last year are back as seasoned sophomores. Sicily Frates placed third in the RMAC at 180 pounds during her true freshman season and was fifth in regionals, one spot out of national qualification. Regan Rosseter, despite not making her debut until the second half of the season, established herself at 138 pounds and placed fourth at the RMAC Championships.

De Seriere and assistant coach Giovanni Cassioppi have brought in a talented freshman class to add to the Eagles' firepower. Some are likely to make their Eagle debut this Saturday, including Gunnison, Colorado's Isabella Crown and Roscoe, Illinois's Angelina Cassioppi. 

With women's wrestling under the NCAA for the first time this season, NCAA eligibility rules will now permit freshmen to appear in up to five tournaments/competition dates without burning a redshirt year of eligibility. Other freshmen include Kaysville, Utah's Eliza Davis and Omaha's Rowyn Wiltgen.

The Eagles have two non-freshman newcomers – Cadden, a redshirt sophomore, and junior Nevaeh Leonard, a transfer from Southeast Community College in Nebraska.