Former Pennsylvania wrestler, coach says Texas doing girls wrestling right

[TomM]

Former Pennsylvania wrestler, coach says Texas doing girls wrestling right

http://www.mcall.com/sports/varsity/mc-spt-part4-district11-girls-wrestling-other-states-1130-story.html

By Tom HousenickContact Reporter
Of The Morning Call
Fourth in a series

Chris Potter and his daughter, Macayla, drive home together most days after wrestling practice from Cypress Ranch High School in Harris County, Texas.

Macayla, a freshman, is not the team manager. She doesn't hang around waiting to hitch a ride from her dad.

She is one of nearly 20 girls on Potter's Cypress Ranch girls wrestling team, one that finished third last year in the Texas state girls team duals. Her dad also coaches a 26-member boys team.

"It's awesome here," Chris Potter said. "Girls practice together, wrestle each other. Our numbers are growing."

Texas is one of a number of states that conduct girls-only state wrestling tournaments. Girls participation in the sport in Texas is growing, with Potter doing his part.

It is something he hopes happens in his native state of Pennsylvania.

The Lower Merion High School and Trenton State (now College of New Jersey) graduate spent six seasons in charge of Pocono Mountain East High School's boys wrestling team through 2013.

Potter had a few girls on his PM East teams. His daughter spent two seasons in the Pocono Mountain youth program before the family relocated. But he said divisiveness was a problem.

"Most of the girls I had [while coaching in Pennsylvania] quit because guys tried to beat the crap out of them to get them to quit," Potter said.

"[In Texas], I've had no issues in my five years. No girl has been hurt for that specific reason. No [girl] has been groped inappropriately. No one thinks that way."

During his first year in Texas, Potter started a middle-school girls wrestling program at an inner-city Houston school, then coached for a season at nearby Huntsville High School. He then took on dual coaching responsibilities at Cypress Ranch, which is 30 minutes northwest of Houston.

The quality of wrestling by boys and girls in Texas was behind what he was accustomed to in Pennsylvania. The girls' desire to improve, however, was evident.

"Coming into it here, the technique is raw, a lot of headlocks," he said. "But once you teach them some technique, they tend to pick it up really fast.

"A lot of girls down here have taken the opportunity to excel at a nontraditional sport for women. They've embraced it. Girls are easier to coach. They listen, absorb things quicker. They don't have bad habits that have to be fixed."

District 11, which includes the Lehigh Valley, the Poconos and Schuylkill County, is attempting to build toward what Texas, California, Hawaii, Alaska and others have in high school girls wrestling. Schools have made a concerted pitch to girls this fall to let them know they are welcome in the wrestling room.

Advocates for girls wrestling say the sport is rich in tradition for building self-confidence, teaching discipline and self-defense.

Potter said a senior on his Cypress team is a perfect example of what wrestling can do for any high school student.

"This girl, she will never wrestle for my varsity team, ever," Potter said. "She started coming to summer workouts and lost 15 pounds. She's getting through practices. She does everything we ask. She toughs it out, doesn't complain.

"What it's done for her psyche is tremendous. She walks around with her shoulders up. She has a boyfriend. She has confidence in herself. It's amazing to see."

Cost and opportunity also work in wrestling's favor. No equipment is needed, just a pair of shoes and a T-shirt to start. A recent rule change doesn't require competitors to wear a singlet.

There are dozens of colleges offering scholarships for female-only wrestling programs. Women wrestle in the Olympics.

"I can't find any reason why girls shouldn't have the opportunity to wrestle," Potter added.

Potter has seen dedication lead to varying amounts of success for his female wrestlers.

Nia Miranda won the 144-pound title at July's Cadet Women's Freestyle National Championships in Fargo, N.D. She beat East Stroudsburg's Jillian Bruno on a tie-breaker in the semifinals.

Pennsylvania remains a hotbed for high school boys wrestling, but is in catch-up mode on the girls side. Based on last season's numbers, District 11 would have enough to field one all-girls team.

Many of its coaches are trying to change that.

"We're getting to the point where there's no stigma attached to the sport for girls," Stroudsburg coach Sean Richmond said. "There's a lot more acceptance.

"The biggest goal of every coach is to grow the sport, get more eyes on the product. If you make it a more enjoyable experience, then they'll come back and the sport will continue to grow."

It has been found that girls who are part of a mostly-boys wrestling team are helped by joining with another female who can serve as a workout partner and confidante.

That is happening at Nazareth with Tyra Klump, Dana Harris, Melina Ronca and Emily Simpson.

VIDEO: PM West's Cameron Fitzgerald is all in on wrestling
Cameron Fitzgerald found a compatible sport for her personality.
Perhaps, it will get to the point where a positive experience by a girl, such as Pocono Mountain West's Cameron Fitzgerald, will get her brother out for the team.

Girls participation nationally in wrestling remains on the rise while high school and college male wrestling programs have taken hits in recent years.

If competitors can take a page from high school wrestling in Texas and other progressive states, perhaps the tide can run in the same direction for both sexes.

Ron Tirpak, in his second year as East Stroudsburg North's head coach, has been an advocate for female wrestling on all levels for decades. He is a video analyst for the USA National Women's Freestyle wrestling team.

The former Millersville University All-American doesn't want to see the sport die in part because of stubborn attitudes among its male leaders.

"Coaches who continue to not accept women's wrestling will go the way of the dinosaur," Tirpak said.

"If we can get enough acknowledgment and a concerted effort to have stronger programs with men and women, it will generate more interest. Otherwise, [high school wrestling] will go the way of college wrestling."

thousenick@mcall.com

Twitter @TomHousenick

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