The PSD Stars wrestling team currently has 30 girls from six different schools. Fossil currently has one wrestler for PSD this season, while two girls are out this year due to injuries.
Junior Nora Johnson began wrestling this year and competes at the varsity level, with plans to continue next year. Johnson joined because she was interested in combat sports and had friends who wrestled.
“I’ve made so many friends; there’s so much encouragement from all the girls on the team. It’s really fun to be in a room where all the girls are very strong, self-aware, and committed to a sport that isn’t usually a girls’ sport. It’s a very comforting and happy environment,” says Johnson
Varsity head coach Desiree Kendall has been with the Stars for the past eight years and believes wrestling is the most fun sport.
“I really enjoy having girls from multiple schools because I think that anything that brings our high school students together as one community is really great for not only our immediate community, but the communities that they go out to eventually in their lives,” says Kendall.
Girls’ wrestling may not be a mainstream sport, but it is rapidly growing.
“We started with maybe six or seven, and then it grew a little bit every year. Then we had massive growth in the last two years,” says Kendall.
Despite the growth, many people still have misconceptions about girls’ wrestling.
“People say that girls are dainty and fragile, and they’re not willing to work hard and put effort into this sport since it is a brutal sport. From what I’ve seen and experienced, that’s not true. Girls have a lot of fight in them, and they are actually meaner than boys,” says junior Natasha Hartman.
Hartman started wrestling in elementary school and will continue through her senior year. She did not wrestle this year due to a shoulder injury after the 2024 state tournament.
“I joined because I love combat sports, and I wanted to break the gender norms, because at that time, girls’ wrestling was not popular,” says Hartman.
Freshman Shyla McCarty joined wrestling in eighth grade because she needed something to do in between volleyball and softball seasons.
McCarty is a team manager this year while recovering from a knee injury. Her responsibilities include cleaning mats, helping coaches, and recording meets.
The next tournament is Saturday, January 31. The rest of the schedule is available on Poudre High School’s website.