The sound of determination in the gym roars as the girls’ wrestling team prepares for an intense year. The Hoover girls’ wrestling team has become a sport for girls within these past few years.

The head coach of the team is Mr. Nick Gamble, who coaches players Amanda Byler, Dakkoda Smith, Ava Wenger and Bella Heddleson. Girl’s wrestling hasn’t been at the same level as boys’ since there aren’t as many players on the team.

“My long term goal is to build it to equal the men’s program,” Gamble said. “I want to provide ladies an opportunity to compete and learn the life lessons wrestling has to teach.”

The first girl to ever join Hoover’s wrestling team was Hoover alum, Jordan Palmer, and she joined about six years ago.

“She is currently entering her sophomore year at John Carroll,” Gamble said. “She was a national qualifier for them as a freshman. At NC, she was a two-time state placer. The main struggle the coach has had has been that there haven’t been enough participants. Jordan Palmer was the only girl on the team for four years.”

This year, the four ladies on the team, Amanda, Dakkoda, Ava and Bella are ready to make a difference now and in the future.

Ava Wenger, a sophomore on the wrestling team, has a big goal for this season, which is to get on the podium and get the top three.

“Some of my biggest challenges are the grueling practices every day and having no rest days,” Wenger. “Doing that from doing nothing has been a big struggle. Even though she has a few struggles, she has had amazing achievements. She has been able to pin her first match in every tournament so far.”

Isabella Heddleson, a Hoover senior, has just started wrestling this year. She enjoys this sport because it helps her relieve any stress outside of wrestling.

“Having a sport to be able to just focus on the sport, not whatever other stressful parts of your day you’ve had,” Heddleson. “You have to really focus on the move we are learning, so there are no other opportunities to think about something else. According to Coach Gamble, practice can be a little difficult at times, especially if they miss a practice. A Hoover sophomore, Dakkoda Smith, is enjoying this season so far, and excited for the future. She thinks the season so far is pretty successful and although it isn’t easy, she believes “it’s going pretty good.”

“I enjoy the support from my coaches and I enjoy the support from my teammates,” Smith said. They may have a small team, but that doesn’t stop the support.

“I like having a very small team to compete with because we can focus on them and cheer them on!” Wenger said. “Although the team is small, the team is still able to cheer each other on, just as loud as any other team.” Student Amanda Byler, a Hoover sophomore, decided to join this year with her friend, Ava.

“I love the team itself, I love that we can talk and I love that when we go to matches, I can connect with the girls from other teams,” Byler said.

Each player has their own unique reasons as to why they decided to join the team.

“I always liked contact sports and doing hard physical activity,” Wenger said. “Plus all my cousins also wrestle so I wanted to be able to practice with them. Doing any everyday physical activity can make a difference for now and in the future.

“A career in law enforcement/FBI really pushed me to start wrestling,” Heddleson said. “A Lot of what happens in the FBI academy is learning self-defense, so having a background in wrestling would let me have the upper hand over other applicants.”

The supportive team helps the girls be able to enjoy the sport even more.

“It helped me mentally, and physically, and I love the people,” Byler said.

The season is going great so far, all the girls will be awarded varsity letters in their first match. “The ladies are off to a good start,” Gamble said. “They beat the ladies they should and lost to the more experienced girls.”

Isabella Heddleson works hard to achieve her goals.

“A personal goal for this wrestling season is honestly just to win,” Heddleson said. “As much as I joined for the fun of it, I would love to win and show other girls that wrestling is fun and that it isn’t just a guy’s sport.”

Wrestling has impacted the girl’s lives not only physically but mentally.

“It has allowed me to make different friends, and let me be someone that I wish I had with the younger girls,” Heddleson said. “It has and is currently showing me that struggling means that you’re learning.”

This sport has really helped make these girls closer, especially being all of their first years, and also due to the fact that there is a small number of players.

“It has definitely improved my mental health because the whole sport is all about improving yourself so getting fit and having to work when I don’t want to has made me feel better about life in general,” Wenger said.

Wrestling is a sport for these girls that means a lot to them and is a big part of their lives.

“I love the energy around wrestling,” Heddleson said. “When you walk into a tournament, the energy is unreal. Hearing the parents and other spectators cheer for pins is such a cool thing to be around.”

As the girls’ wrestling team continues to grow, they inspire everyone just by being a part of this team.