By MADISON UNDERWOOD
Sheridan High School Student
Editor’s note: The Sheridan Student Column is brought to readers by Sheridan High School’s 10th grade Accelerated English class, taught by Alicia Burnell.
Women’s wrestling is undeniably one of the fastest growing sports currently. From the 2023-24 season to the 2024-2025 season, the number of high school women wrestlers increased by almost 10,000 athletes, and that number is only going up.
So you may be wondering, what’s so special about this sport? Why this massive increase in athletes?
Throughout history, wrestling has been seen as a male-only sport. Though it is still primarily male-dominated, that’s slowly taking a turn. As schools grow, there becomes an increase in high school girls willing to participate in this high-demanding sport. A lot of people see wrestling as “too hard for girls” or “not womanly enough,” but with that backlash, more and more athletes take on the criticism.
See, wrestling is one of the only full-contact sports, making it very physically demanding. Many wrestlers believe that this sport is 90 percent mental, which as one of these athletes, I agree. Along with the long, hard, and draining practices, it takes an incredible amount of mental toughness. Not only do you have to be strong against the judgement of others, but the judgement of yourself, and the will to keep going. Most people quit after one practice, some quit after a week, but the ones who stay develop the most resilience a person can have. A common wrestling quote is “Once you’ve wrestled, everything else in life is easy,” and it’s 100 percent true.
Now, what’s happening in the wrestling community with this large growth?
Last season was the first year for the sport to be sanctioned by the IHSAA, and this was huge! Women’s wrestling officially made itself a high school sport, sponsored by the state, making it a massive step for the program. This shows the rapid growth of the sport. Tournaments now have upwards of 300 registered athletes. Nearly every school has a women’s wrestling program now, in comparison to the past where women’s wrestling was a rare occurrence.
This past weekend, a tournament was held with nearly 60 teams and around 430 wrestlers. That’s a lot of athletes! The growth of women’s wrestling goes beyond high school though, with more and more college athletes each year.
Women’s college wrestling has also seen a rapid growth in athletes and college teams. In the 2024-2025 season, Norwich University, Manchester University, McDaniel College, West Liberty University, and this season, Penn State Altoona, have all formed teams. The NCAA staff is also working with the women’s wrestling committee to establish the first championship for winter of 2026.
Ultimately, the wrestling community is undergoing a large change. With the increase in female athletes each year, the community’s growth is not going unnoticed. Tournaments are larger, teams have more people, and current athletes are paving the way for younger generations to get involved. The women’s high school wrestling program is undeniably one of the fastest growing sports currently. The mass increase in athletes brings hope to everyone that one day women’s wrestling will be as popular as other sports.
Maybe even one day, it will overtake men’s wrestling, but until then, the number of athletes will continue to grow and it will not go unnoticed.