Tamaqua head girls wrestling coach Dave Holmes knows his sport that was state sanctioned three years ago has made progress, but there are still some hurdles to overcome.

“The biggest thing is getting parents to overcome the idea that girls should not wrestle,” emphasized Holmes, whose program is in its fourth year. “Society still is having trouble embracing that idea.”

Despite some stigmas, girls wrestling in Pennsylvania has incurred a significant growth spurt since the state was sanctioned.

Local girls wrestling programs will participate in the District 11 individual championships at Freedom High School Saturday and Sunday. Besides Tamaqua, Jim Thorpe, Lehighton, Palmerton, Northern Lehigh, Panther Valley and Pleasant Valley have teams.

Some of those teams already have made their mark, while others are in their infancy stages. Panther Valley senior Brenda Banks will be gunning for her fourth straight state title, and has posted an incredible 100-2 record.

In spite of low numbers, Holmes sees a steady uptick in interest. The Blue Raiders currently have five wrestlers on the varsity level, six on the junior high unit, and 10 at the elementary level.

“I think the sport is still growing,” stated Holmes, who has a varied coaching background that dates back to 1981. “It makes no difference what sex you are. Being in wrestling has made me a better person.”

Tim Robb, who was the former head boys wrestling coach at Panther Valley and has coached since 1991, has watched his squad evolve in the first year of the program.

Jim Thorpe has nine varsity girls and can’t field a full lineup.

Robb noted there are four girls interested in junior high, and his varsity girls plan to help recruit there.

“We didn’t have any experience or a feeder program,” said Robb. “We are learning how to wrestle, and that has had a learning curve. Losing isn’t easy, but the girls have dealt and grown with it.

“They have also learned by watching the boys. We’re not worried about winning, and we want to build a culture and a program.”

Lehighton is in its second year, and its program is certainly burgeoning. The Indians have 20 girls on their roster filling their lineup, and 11 on their junior high team. They also have increased their number of matches.

Head coach George Ebbert, a former head boys coach, sees the sport as a primer for the opposite team in the school.

“In my opinion, the state of girls wrestling is booming” exclaimed Ebbert. “Not only has it taken off like a rocket, but it also has revitalized boys wrestling. Most boys have started to come back because they don’t want to be shown up by the girls team.

“The grit and determination needed by boys to be successful is now being shown by girls. It has forced boys to work harder.”

Palmerton recently won a Colonial League title, and the Blue Bombers posted an unblemished 7-0 league record.

Head coach Josh Rake is in his third year at the helm, and has 13 girls on his roster and 10 in the youth program. Rake has been pleased with the sport’s overall progress, as it’s provided an outlet for many girls seeking a sport.

“Girls wrestling is in a great place, but I’d love to see it keep growing as quickly as it has been,” said Rake. “I’d hate to see it slow down and plateau at this level, and I don’t think it’s surprising to see how much it’s grown so far. Everyone who has wrestled knows how great of a sport it is, and how much it prepares you for anything in life.

“It’s not surprising that former wrestling dads want their daughters to wrestle. What is surprising is how many girls that used to not play sports have found a home with wrestling; it just shows how great wrestling is. Wrestling is a sport that is inclusive of all body types and sizes. We as coaches need to continue to advocate for the sport and get more girls to come out and try it.”

Northern Lehigh is in its first year on the mats, and the Bulldogs have 17 grapplers in the mix. They surprisingly produced an overall 7-3 slate this year.

Yet, head coach Junior Ortiz, who has had stops with the Northern Lehigh and Palmerton boys teams, has taken his team’s success in stride.

“I think we’re a little further ahead than I originally thought we’d be, considering how many girls we have who were completely new to the sport,” said Ortiz. “What’s been helpful is the fact that we had a pretty sizable number of girls come out this year, which gave us the benefit of having enough practice partners.”

Like other teams, crossovers to the boys program have helped.

“I have to give a lot of credit, not just to my assistant coaches, but also to our boys team and coaches, who have been helpful in allowing the girls to shadow their practices to see how traditional wrestling practices are run, which gave them an idea of what to expect,” added Ortiz.

Ortiz had welcomed how the girls have taken stock in themselves.

“Overall, I’m very pleased with the strides we’ve made this season and with how well the team has bonded,” he said. “Our motto is ‘Pride, family, and team,’ and I think the girls have really tried to live up to that and embrace it.”

Panther Valley head coach Kris Nalesnik, who also coaches the boys team, has mentored the Panthers over the past four years.

With Banks’ success, Nalesnik is extremely confident his 12-girl lineup and budding youth program — and the sports’ state — can reach another level.

“Brenda has brought awareness to our program that you can only hope to see,” boasted Nalesnik. “Our lineup is almost completely full, and we have almost as many girls in our youth program now as the boys.

“I can’t wait to see what the future holds, not just for our program but for girls wrestling as a whole.”

*******

The schedule for this weekend’s girls wrestling District 11 championships, as well as the ones for regionals and states, are as follows:

DISTRICT 11 GIRLS WRESTLING CHAMPIONSHIPS

PIAA District XI Individual Girls Wrestling Championships

Presented by St. Luke’s University Health Network

Location: Freedom High School

Dates/Times:

• Saturday, Feb. 14 – 1 p.m.

• Sunday, Feb. 15 – 9 a.m.

Advancement:

The top three wrestlers in each weight class advance to the regional tournament. Regionals will feature eight wrestlers per weight class.

Schedule

Saturday, Feb. 14

• Skin checks & weigh-ins: Noon

• Coaches meeting: 12:30 p.m.

• Pigtails: 1 p.m.

• Preliminary round

• Quarterfinals (no earlier than 2:30 p.m.)

• First consolation round: 3:30 p.m.

Sunday, Feb. 15

• Skin checks & weigh-ins: 8 a.m.

• Coaches meeting: 8:30 a.m.

• Second-round consolations: 9 a.m.

• Semifinals/third-round consolations: 10 a.m.

• Consolation semifinals: 11:30 a.m.

• Parade of Champions: 1:50 p.m.

• Finals & consolation finals (two mats): 2 p.m.

Upcoming Championship Dates

Regionals:

Quakertown High School

Feb. 22

PIAA State Championships:

Giant Center

March 5-7

Tickets

• $10 at the door (all sessions)

• $8 advance tickets via Hometown Ticketing (available until one hour prior to each session)