Iowa signs Hays, a Pan American champ, Final X participant
The University of Iowa women's wrestling program has signed Brooklyn Hays, one of the nation's top young wrestlers.
Hays, a Pleasant Grove, Utah, native, brings an extensive international resume to Iowa City. Ranked No. 2 at 68 kilograms by Team USA for the 2025-26 season, she has been a member of Team USA for three seasons and owns titles at the 2025 U23 Pan American Championships in Queretaro, Mexico, and the 2024 Senior Pan American Championships in Acapulco, Mexico. She also earned a silver medal at the 2025 U23 Pan American Games in Asuncion, Paraguay, placed fifth at the 2024 U23 World Championships in Tirana, Albania, and placed 15th at the 2025 Senior World Championships in Novi Sad, Serbia. She has been training full-time at the U.S. Olympic & Paralympic Training Center in Colorado Springs and competing for the Titan Mercury Wrestling Club.
Hays previously competed at Augsburg University in Minneapolis, where she earned 2023 NCWWC All-American honors as a freshman with a sixth-place finish at 170 pounds. She did not take to wrestling until her sophomore year of high school at Pleasant Grove, where she went on to win two Utah state championships and a national freestyle title in a rapid rise through the sport. She was named the top girls wrestler in Utah Valley during her junior high school season in 2021-22 and also won a state championship in powerlifting. Her career goal is to become a pediatrician, and she is the oldest of eight children.