What's Up Magazines

As I was growing up in Western Pennsylvania, wrestling was part of my life. No, I didn't wrestle, but high school wrestling matches were about as big and bright as the Friday night-lights on the football field. In Pennsylvania we hosted standing-room-only matches at our school and our wrestlers were hailed as our heroes. Imagine my surprise when I walked into the Broadneck High School gym to see my son's first high school match and found that there was only one set of bleachers, sparsely populated...not even all the parents showed up! Was I in the wrong place? Perhaps. Maryland is known for lacrosse, not wrestling, but don't get me wrong, this sport is not dying in the Old Line State...as a matter of fact, it's making a resurgence.

Now, if I had walked into La Plata High School or Stephen Decatur High School in Berlin, Maryland, the scene might have been different. These schools have built their wrestling programs to a Western Pennsylvania standard. Winning helps (Decatur's record in the last 2 years is 40-3 and La Plata has an 88-13 record over 6 years); so does hype. Imagine if the sport got the same amount of hype as lacrosse?

"Wrestling does not have all the hype, glamour, and financial rewards that other sports have embraced," says former Broadneck High School Head Coach Marc Procaccini, who led Broadneck to 2006 county and regional dual titles. "Unfortunately, this exploitation is what has motivated many kids to play other sports today. Fortunately, wrestling for the most part has remained true to its humble old-school mentality."

Hype is not the only thing that has had a major effect on wrestling. There's also the United States law commonly known as Title IX: because colleges are mandated to provide equal monies for females and males, some sports programs (sports that draw smaller crowds) have been cut from major universities. One of those sport programs is wrestling, thus limiting the opportunity for high school graduates to participate in the sport on a collegiate level.

"With the sport growing in large numbers on the youth and high school levels, we should see the same growth on the college level; however, thanks to Title IX, we see the trend going in the opposite direction," says Kevin Gilligan, head wrestling coach at Stephen Decatur High School in Berlin, Maryland. "The sport on the high school level is growing. I believe it is the sixth most popular sport for high school athletes [nationally]. More and more youth programs are sprouting up and open tournaments have larger attendance numbers than they have in the past.

"Unfortunately, because of Title IX, wrestling on the college level is dying," says Gilligan. "I understand they [Congress] want equality in sports between men and women. I don't disagree with that-but must it be achieved by cutting other men's sports? That takes away from another demographic-it is also discrimination."

In Maryland college programs are shrinking, youth programs are growing, and high school wrestling remains stable with some schools barely having enough wrestlers to fill the bench. Why is the draw just stable at best? Perhaps it's because the sport demands a lot more effort and discipline from the student athlete than most other sports. It's a sport that's synonymous with dedication and discipline.

The Wrestling Psyche
When it comes to the wrestling psyche, all coaches weigh in and agree that even though the sport demands physical strength and conditioning, it also demands a great deal of mental toughness.

"The obvious benefits of wrestling are health-related, but I think it goes further than that," says Gilligan, whose Decatur team has won 63 straight district or conference matches. "Wrestling teaches young men and women self-discipline, toughness, and the ability to think quickly-all things important in life. The sport allows individuals to carry themselves with more confidence than they had before. It allows them to perform in a one-on-one environment, but also works toward the betterment of the team."

Wayne Hicks, head coach at St. Mary's High School and former Old Mill High School assistant coach, also believes it takes a special person to be a wrestler. Formerly a volunteer assistant coach at the Naval Academy, for 25 years, Hicks has seen many changes but he says the wrestling psyche hasn't changed over the years, even though the distractions have.

"Wrestlers are very goal-oriented people who don't let little setbacks affect them mentally," says Hicks. "They are willing to fight through things to accomplish their goals. And that determination to win is huge.

"There are very few other sports that are as intense as wrestling," says Hicks. "You have to get on the mat by yourself and wrestle an opponent with everyone watching you and I think the level of self-confidence that it gives you is unique in our sport."

Procaccini adds, "A wrestler must be a mentally tough, intrinsically motivated, and focused individual to be successful. An abundance of distractions are readily available to kids today, deterring them from achieving individual goals that they might have set out for themselves. The successful wrestlers are able to eliminate these distractions during the season.

"A lot of kids are looking for the eternal shortcut for everything and often they can be successful or get by doing that," Procaccini says. "In wrestling, the only way to be successful is through hard work. Wrestling promotes diligence and not simple-step solutions. One of the greatest benefits to wrestling is that it is an individual sport with a team concept. When you are competing on the mat, it is just you and your opponent. If you lose or perform poorly, there is no one else to blame, not the quarterback or offensive line. You are accountable for your own success."

Newly appointed Broadneck Head Wrestling Coach Scott Harrell points out, "There is a significant difference between kids who wrestle and a wrestler. To be a wrestler you must buy into a belief system that is built on dedication: dedication to yourself and the goals that you have set; dedication to your team, your coach, and what you're willing to bring to the mat every day in the practice room. Wrestlers are a different breed and, fortunately, most can adopt the necessary tools to be successful. You don't always have to be the fastest or able to jump the highest or even be the strongest to be a good wrestler. Generally, though, wrestlers do tend to be the most mentally fit.

"Other ideals wrestlers live by are sportsmanship at the highest level, respect, and humility," continues Harrell. "Wrestlers are taught to be gracious in both victory and defeat. The life lessons that are learned will give them the tools they need to succeed academically, professionally, and personally."

One wrestler who succeeded is 2006 Anne Arundel County wrestler of the year, Bubby Graham, who is now a senior at Annapolis High School. Last year the 152-pound junior swept county, regional, and state competition for a second straight year, ending his season with a 32-0 record. Graham has an 85-8 mark in three seasons with the Panthers. Coaches and wrestling peers agree that Graham's dedication to the sport is unmatched and is the mark of a true wrestler.

Making Weight
While the true wrestling psyche may not have changed over the years, high school wrestling rules have changed. You won't find wrestlers jogging in rubber suits to drop five pounds the day before a match as you did years ago. As of last year, the National Federation of State High School Associations (NFHS) mandated that wrestlers may not lose more than 1.5 percent of their weight per week and must maintain body fat of at least seven percent for boys and 12 percent for girls. The schools must monitor all weight-loss plans weekly.

The NFHS also approved another rule concerning the amount of weight wrestlers are permitted to gain during consecutive days of competition. Previously they were allowed to gain one pound per day. Now they are allowed a maximum of two pounds, regardless of the number of days of competition. This rule was established to prevent wrestlers from shedding pounds to reach a lower weight class and then bulking up after the competition begins. Other changes through the years have led to some dangerous moves and holds being banned or made illegal.

"I think that from a universal standpoint wrestling has come a long way regarding the health and safety of the athletes," says Harrell. "With all the new regulations for weight loss as well as a new mindset for fitness, the stigma about weight loss, which has plagued wrestling for years, is no longer such a major issue."

The athletes who participate in the sport are also changing. There has been an increase in the number of minorities and girls participating and excelling in wrestling over the past few years.

A Woman's Place
There is a place for females in high school wrestling, albeit a small space. According to the NFHS, there are about 5,000 high school girls wrestling across the United States. It's not easy being a girl in a male-dominated sport, but girls who want to wrestle have little choice. At last count, only three states had established formal high school wrestling programs for girls. Maryland is not one of them.

Speaking of Maryland, recent Arundel High School graduate Nicole Woody became Maryland's first female to win a district title, last year. Woody, one of the nation's top female wrestlers, is now working her way toward becoming an Olympic team member-one of her ultimate goals. Some say Woody paved the way for more local females to become involved in this demanding sport.

Broadneck senior Sarah Majerowicz wrestled her sophomore and junior years. Exposed to wrestling her whole life via her dad and brothers, Majerowicz became a Broadneck team manager and stat girl her freshman year and claims that's when she really started to appreciate the sport. She went out for the team in her sophomore year.

"Being one of only a few female wrestlers was just normal to me," says the pretty, petite, and strong Majerowicz. "I've always known that's the way it would be. It felt good to know I was one of the few girls that could survive and excel in the sport, but it also kind of saddened me that more weren't interested in wrestling. I wish that the idea of being on a guy's team wouldn't discourage girls who are capable. Personally I liked being on an all-guys team because I feel like it's just that much tougher and I really just got along better with guys. The guys on the team were brothers to me. On a girl's team, you might not get the same level of difficulty or the same morale, though it would make for a more level playing field."

Not surprisingly, some wrestling parents are opposed to females wrestling with males. The moves alone could be construed as sexual harassment in the making. Parents of male wrestlers argue that wrestling a girl just goes against the grain. Many say that the girls have an advantage because the boys don't want to push or pull too hard for fear that they could hurt the girls-something they've been taught not to do.

Parents of female wrestlers say that the girls have little choice. Girls who want to participate in this sport have to go against the grain and have to be prepared to take the pain. Girls who choose to participate also know that high school boys are often physically stronger than they are because of their genetic makeup, forcing the girls to become more technically proficient (to their benefit).

Majerowicz agrees that her biggest challenge was keeping up with the fitness level of her male teammates. "I can't run as fast or as long as a lot of them and most of them are much stronger than I am-well, not all of them," she says with a smile.

"I've definitely proved I am a wrestler," she says. "And my coaches didn't treat me like a girl; they treated me like a wrestler."

Stayin' Alive
While it used to be a "fallback sport" for many Maryland high school athletes, wrestling is changing big time thanks to junior league levels that have remained strong in this area. Walk into the U.S. Naval Academy's wrestling facility or a local high school's auxiliary gyms and you'll see kids of all shapes and sizes running laps, pumping pushups, practicing takedowns, crawling on the ground, yelling, and sprinting along the sidelines.

"Youth wrestling has grown tremendously over the past 10-15 years," says Harrell, who also helps head up Cape St. Claire Youth Wrestling, a club-wrestling program for kids six to 15. "People are willing to travel to seek new and more challenging competition. Kids are now starting to wrestle way beyond the end of the season. Kids are competing as individuals or part of an elite wrestling club in national-level tournaments."

"They know so much more about wrestling," says Hicks. "When I was young, most of the kids didn't start wrestling until high school. Now they start at a junior level. That's not to say that kids can't come into the program in high school, though. However, it is increasingly rare-most of the kids come into high school wrestling with some sort of youth or junior league under their belts."

What will be the future of wrestling on a national and collegiate level remains to be seen, but at a high school and youth level participants are optimistic. In Maryland wrestling may never take the place of lacrosse and football, but it will continue to be successful with the dedication of wrestlers, ex-wrestlers, coaches, and fans.

Renee Houston Zemanski is the mom of three wrestling boys. Her son, Houston Zemanski, was named All-County and won the Anne Arundel County championship at 112 lbs. last year.