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The Division I boys and girls state wrestling championships began Thursday at the Williamson County Ag Expo Park with seven local wrestlers competing in the girls tournament.

The matches for the first two rounds of each division were contested Thursday with St. Andrew’s-Sewanee’s Verena Pate and Melanie Val, the defending state champions in their respective weight classes, both advancing to the semifinal of their bracket.

Pate opened the 126-pound bracket by pinning Riverdale Ja’Keythia Gooch in 2:57 for a solid start to the day.

Pate’s next match in the quarterfinals against Seymour’s Angelina Slingluff would last a similar amount of time before Pate recorded a pin in 3:04 to advance to the semifinals on Friday.

Val started off her run in the 114-pound division with a pinfall victory over Pope John Paul II’s Kylie Reeves in 5:01 to move on to the quarterfinals.

Val and Oakland’s Jamilynn Burton went a full three rounds in the quarterfinals with Val getting the win in a 6-3 decision to continue on to semifinals.

Franklin County High School’s Alyssa Archer won her first match in the 100-pound division as she caught Oakland’s Molly Cole for a pin in 44 seconds.

However, Archer took a pinfall loss in her next match to Dobyns-Bennett’s Alivia Ryan in 5:33 as she moved down to the consolation bracket.

Sewanee’s Stella Wilson also made it out of the first round of the 132-poundbracket with a victory as she pinned Union County’s Kenlei Johnson in 3:12, but Wilson then lost to Clarksville’s Lilli Cobb in a 9-2 decision for her first loss of the event.

Franklin County’s Zulema Martinez took a quick loss in her opening-round matchup as two-time state champion Ella’lina Gonzalez pinned her in 36 seconds to begin the 114-pound bracket.

Sewanee’s Hadlee Hale went up against Clarksville’s Brooklyn Whiteside in the first round of the 138-pound bracket with Whiteside pinning her in 1:08.

Franklin County’s Shelby Sells rounded out the local performances at the tournament as she fell to Rossview’s Katelyn McMillan via pinfall in 1:01.

The state tournament will continue Friday at the Williamson County Ag Expo Park with the state semifinals and four rounds of consolation-bracket matches scheduled. The tournament is scheduled to resume at 10 a.m.