Copyright Lewiston Morning Tribune
MOSCOW — Moscow Middle School wants to lead the charge in making girls wrestling a popular sport among Idaho youth. This year, the school started its first all-girls wrestling team and 37 students joined the roster, according to coach Matthew Haley. “Moscow Middle School decided we wanted to have a program that was dedicated to growing the sport,” Haley said. Haley’s team held practice Thursday, a day after taking on Sandpoint’s girls team in a dual at the MMS Bear Den. One of his assistant coaches helped pioneer girls wrestling in the region. Skyla Zimmerman was a two-time state champion wrestler at Moscow High School, and Haley credits her with boosting interest in girls wrestling locally. Zimmerman said it’s their goal to have as many of the MMS girls compete in high school. She hopes the sport will grow enough that one day Idaho will have a separate and sanctioned bracket for girls wrestling at its state tournament. “I think our girls are going to be a huge part of that,” she said. Zimmerman said some of her wrestlers may have an opportunity to compete in college. “All these girls have so much potential,” she said. Eighth-grade wrestler Solveig Hunter said she is excited to be involved in that journey “I think it’s really cool, and to be part of the start of the sport growing even bigger is such a unique experience, to see how all these girls are stepping out of their comfort zones to do amazing things,” Hunter said. Confidence was a word that came up often when the wrestlers talked about their experience on the new team. “It made me so much more comfortable and confident,” Hunter said. Eighth-grader Taylor Edwards said she has always been shy, but wrestling has helped her gain self-confidence. The same goes for sixth-grader Hazel Luvaas, who is wrestling for the first time this year. “I wanted to see how strong I could be and how tough I could be,” Luvaas said. Luvaas and her sixth-grade teammate Piper Carr, who plays five other sports, both said they enjoy the thrill of pinning their opponent. Zimmerman said the coaches wanted to foster a “big family atmosphere” and the girls spoke fondly of how nice their teammates and coaches have been. It will likely be a raucous atmosphere on Monday when MMS hosts other regional schools during the “Queen of the Mat” tournament. That event takes place 3-7 p.m. at the Bear Den. Kuipers can be reached at akuipers@dnews.com.
