Successful start to first sanctioned girls’ wrestling season in Iowa

The enthusiasm in Erin Kirtley’s voice is almost palpable.

The Iowa Girls High School Athletic Union Associate Director exudes excitement when discussing the progress girls’ wrestling has experienced in a short time as a sanctioned sport in Iowa.

“I do think it is nice to hear about things going well for a lot of people or people having good experiences because you want to be able to do things well,” Kirtley said. “Obviously, this is a really big opportunity for us to showcase how serious we are about taking on this sport and what we understand it means to the state of Iowa and to the girls who have been participating, the girls who came before them and a future generation.”

The participation and support has swelled to unimaginable levels, expanding to almost 200 schools and 2,500 athletes in the first half-season as a girls’ varsity sport. The IGHSAU announced its plans to become one of 36 states to sanction wrestling in February and interested has exploded.

“The first half of the girls’ season has been great,” Cedar Rapids Kennedy Coach Craig Mallicoat said. “There is a lot of excitement from the girls, coaches and fans. The girls, from all schools, are showing exponential growth every time they step on the mat.”

Numbers increased astronomically once the opportunity was provided for high school students. Kirtley said she hoped for 1,500 to 1,600 in the inaugural year, which would have been a bump of close to 600 wrestlers that were involved in boys’ programs last season. In the back of her mind, she held aspirations of maybe between 1,800 and 1,900.

Kirtley was told to expect a drop off, but overall participation has increased from the 2,300 at the start of the season.

“People were talking that you’re really going to crash and burn after this,” Kirtley said. “Great. Get excited. Have your first two weeks and then a lot of people will run their girls off and it’s going to be too hard for them.

“I’m like, ‘No, they’re continuing to bring their friends’ and girls are great recruiters.’ Girls will surprise you in so many good ways and that’s what we continue to see.”

Iowa USA Wrestling Women’s Director Charlotte Bailey has been a staunch wrestling advocatefor many years. She said the numbers aren’t surprising, but are a drastic difference compared to five years ago. Bailey added that Missouri’s experience in sanctioning wrestling was a strong indication of what to expect. She noted how much Iowa girls compete.

“They love representing their communities and their schools,” Bailey said. “What we had to do was break down barriers, change the culture and make space. IGHSAU sanctioning was the perfect next step to bring more Iowa girls to the mat.”

Mallicoat mentioned Kennedy recently added a wrestler, boosting the roster to 25. Prairie had just two girls’ wrestling last year and have gone from 22 to 25, according to Hawks Coach Zach Becicka.

Cedar Rapids Jefferson has a storied wrestling tradition. The J-Hawks boast an IWCOA state champion in Chloe Clemens, who won the 120-pound at the first event in 2019. Jefferson has a strong contingent of wrestlers, earning their first dual win at home against Dubuque Wahlert on Dec. 15.

“First and foremost, it has been a pleasure getting to coach these young ladies,” said Jefferson Coach Vicki Hlubek, who leads the program with her husband, Justin. “Our goal was to get as many girls interested in wrestling as possible this first year. Our team has 18 girls who have shown so much growth and potential for the sport of wrestling and we’re expecting to get more girls out next year, too.

“We’re excited to see this sport grow and become a strong tradition here on the Westside.”

Officials have had to adapt on the fly already this season. Kirtley mentioned the month leading up to November it was hard to get a feel for participation. She was a bit overwhelmed – six hours worth of roster work on trackwrestling.com – when she realized there 191 programs.

The higher numbers forced a reconfiguration of regional meets. The original plan was for four super regionals at Tyson Event Center in Sioux City, Iowa Events Center in Des Moines, Alliant Energy PowerHouse in Cedar Rapids and Luther College in Decorah.

Earlier this week, IGHSAU announced it would hold eighth regionals with two at each of the original sites. Cedar Rapids will host Regions 5 and 6, while Luther welcomes Regions 7 and 8. The top four at each weight of each regional advance to the first IGHSAU state tournament Feb. 2-3 at Xtream Arena in Coralville.

“Just all these back and forth conversations,” Kirtley said. “We finally landed on eight regions within our original four locations. I think we feel good about that, too.”

Kirtley praised IGHSAU Executive Director Jean Berger for the opportunity and applauded a flexible and dedicated advisory committee. Such groups meet annually, tackling issues and improvements in the offseason. She said this committee has met two to three times already and held almost a half-dozen Zoom meetings.

“They have been good about what we need and how can we (help),” Kirtley said. “They understand my line of thinking and what the (IGHSAU) is trying to accomplish. They’ve been really good about getting creative with our process and do what is best for where we are at in the sport, right now. I really appreciate them.”

The first half of the season has been a learning experience. Fixes have been made as the season progresses and suggestions for change have been noted for next year. Kirtley said the growth could lead to multiple classes, rankings and even more duals as early as the 2023-24 campaign.

“This season has set up for so much more already for next year and the year after,” Kirtley said. “Those are the things that I get really excited and encouraged about.”

Events haven’t been an issue for most. Just about each Metro program has held its own tournament in the first half of the season. Prairie standout Mackenzie Childers had more than 20 matches before winning a title at her home tournament last Saturday. Vinton-Shellsburg’s Chloe Sanders won a championship Saturday at Prairie and followed with a tournament title Monday at Iowa City Liberty.

Independence held a tournament the opening weekend of the season. They had 549 matches in a packed gymnasium with three generations of some families in attendance.

The Lightning had more than 10 teams and 143 competitors, who wrestled in 232 matches consisting of varsity brackets and a junior varsity scramble. Mount Vernon fans gave the Mustangs a standing ovation when they won their first home dual on Dec. 8. Liberty and Iowa City High closed action before the holiday break with a boys’ and girls’ doubleheader dual swept by the Little Hawks.

“The first half of the season has been an adventure,” Bailey said. “I don’t think every community was equally ready for the explosion in numbers or the early start to the season. Overall, I like what I’m seeing for mat time and I especially enjoy seeing so many schools getting dual team competitions on the schedule.”

Some concerns included practice space for boys’ and girls’ programs. Coaches have worked together. Some share space and some have separate facilities. Others alternate between morning and afternoon workouts.

Liberty Athletics Director Mike Morrison said the start has gone well under the guidance of Lightning Coach Derek Coorough.

“We have 11 right now, but initial numbers in our junior high indicate it will be more,” Morrison said. “Our only real challenges center on practice logistics for our teams and scheduling. Both issues shouldn’t be too difficult to overcome over time.”

Becicka said the communication from IGHSAU to coaches has been good and efficient. He also said he didn’t expect to have any duals this season, but has seen a full dual lineup all but once. Becicka would like to see a change in tournament groupings.

Currently, they are separated into beginner, average, good and excellent divisions. He said it is good for this year but would like to see wrestlers pooled by weight classes, regardless of skill, to make seeding easier at future regional tournaments. Becicka said he would like to see State Duals for girls, a weight added between 155 and 170 and multiple classes based on school size.

“We have to find a way to get more schools on board,” Becicka said, “and educate them on why they should have girls’ wrestling.”

Kirtley said there have been hiccups. Some of the scramble competitions have fallen short of the high standards of herself and the IGHSAU. She receives regular complaints, but officials are addressing the problems they encounter during the season. They are continually working to create the best experience for all involved.

“Nobody has higher expectations than me, in terms of what they want this to be and know it can be,” Kirtley said. “I’ve been critical of it and myself in it, but then that helps me prepare for when things get hard.

“We’ve had our hard moments. We’re just going to keep rocking and rolling through it.”