Takedown Report

Women’s College Wrestling News (2022) – # 1

TDR Editor’s Notes ; Catching up on the continually growing field of women’s college wrestling teams and opportunities. The following articles include the beginning paragraphs with a link to the rest of the article. Read on and keep supporting and following wrestling! Contact us at the Editor’s office at martinkfleming@gmail.com Blog # 2993 (10/16/21)
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1 } – Penn State Athletics: Barbour Opens the Door to Adding a Women’s Varsity Sport. Could it Be Crew or Rugby?
Sandy Barbour, the head of Penn State intercollegiate athletics, said she is open to the possibility of the university adding an additional women’s varsity sports team. The revelation came during her Zoom press conference on Saturday, after I asked her about the athletic program’s challenge — and legal responsibility — of meeting its Title IX obligations to provide equal opportunities for its women varsity athletes. Currently, Penn State has 16 men’s teams and 15 women’s teams. The 15 rank No. 2 in the Big Ten Conference. (Ohio State has 19 women’s teams and 18 men’s teams.) However, Penn State is the only school in the 14-member conference that has more men’s varsity teams than women’s varsity teams. “We need to keep working at it,” acknowledged Barbour, the VP for intercollegiate athletics who recently began her eighth year at the helm after being hired in late July 2014. “We need to really think about how we get to that better place in terms of proportionality. {TDR Note– How About Women’s Wrestling?} … rest of story at https://www.statecollege.com/penn-state-athletics-barbour-opens-the-door-to-adding-a-womens-varsity-sport-could-it-be-crew-or-rugby/?mc_cid=c4a5fbe2c1&mc_eid=2ef7cbca4b

2 } – Madison Angelito Named Women’s Wrestling Head Coach
KERRVILLE, TX: The Schreiner University Athletics Department has named Madison Angelito as the new Head Coach of the Schreiner University Women’s Wrestling team. Coach Angelito will be transitioning from being an Assistant Coach for the Schreiner Men’s & Women’s Wrestling teams, to the Head Coach of the Schreiner Women’s Wrestling team. 
A brief history on Head Coach Madison Angelito
Graduating from University of the Cumberlands, Madison gained her Bachelor’s in Public Health with a minor of biology. During her time in a Patriot singlet, Madison was a captain for her team, a five time All American (2x NAIA, 2x USA Wrestling, 1x WCWA) and a Mid-South Conference champion. Academically, she earned NWCA Scholar All-American, and Academic All Mid-South Conference twice. … rest of story at https://schreinermountaineers.com/general/2021-22/releases/20210824pc94dz?mc_cid=a69354e5be&mc_eid=2ef7cbca4b

3 } – CSC returns to campus with a new sport
Jeffery joins the Eagles coaching staff as head women’s wrestling coach and brings his own coaching and competing experiences from the mat.
Chadron State welcomes a new addition to its athletics’ program, women’s wrestling, and with it comes a new coach.  Chadron State College announced June 17 that women’s wrestling would be added to its athletics’ program. CSC now sponsors 14 sports, eight of which are women’s sports.  Following behind that announcement came another, Friday, Aug. 6, to announce the new program’s head coach, Alijah Jeffery.  “I’ve been here a little over a month and everyone’s been super friendly,” Jeffery said. “All the coaches and staff have been willing to help and show me how things run here. It’s nice to be a part of the Chadron family.” 
… rest of story at https://csceagle.com/2021/08/19/csc-returns-to-campus-with-a-new-sport/?mc_cid=a69354e5be&mc_eid=2ef7cbca4b

4 } – Women’s Wrestling Coming in 2022-23 Academic Year
SPRINGFIELD, Mass. (August 23, 2021) – The Western New England Athletics Department is excited to announce the addition of women’s wrestling come the 2022-23 school year. “Women’s wrestling continues to grow across the country and starting women’s wrestling is a great opportunity to provide an equal opportunity for young women who aspire to wrestle at the highest level,” said Lori Mayhew-Wood, the Associate Athletic Director and Senior Woman Administrator. “As the Senior Woman Administrator, I am excited to be able to offer other opportunities to women in sports. I am excited to be able to offer this opportunity at Western New England and for the University to have the opportunity to recruit nationally across the country to build the women’s program.” The women’s wrestling program will plan to start its inaugural season in the fall of the 2022-23 academic year with head men’s wrestling coach Mike Sugermeyer, tasked with recruiting the first official class this year. 
… rest of story at https://wnegoldenbears.com/general/2021-22/releases/20210824elljb8?mc_cid=a69354e5be&mc_eid=2ef7cbca4b

5 } – Bryce Killian Named as Emmanuel College Women’s Wrestling Head Coach
Killian comes from a Conference Carolinas background as he wrestled at King University before becoming their assistant coach for the previous two seasons.   
While a student athlete, Killian had an outstanding career at King. He became the first Tornado to represent King at the NCAA Division II Wrestling National Championships in 2016 and proceeded to return in 2017 and 2018. Additionally, in both ’17 and ’18, Killian was an NCAA All-American. On the academic side, Killian received recognition as an Academic All-American in 2017.   
After graduating with a BA in Business Administration from King in 2018, Killian went on to pursue a Master of Business Administration. After receiving his MBA in 2019, he accepted the position of Head Assistant Wrestling Coach. Now, Killian is excited to transition into a head coaching role and continue to build his legacy within Conference Carolinas. 
… rest of story at https://portal.nwcaonline.com/articles/NWCA_News/Bryce-Killian-Named-as-Women-s-28-9-2021

6 } – Montreat Athletics Adds Women’s Wrestling Program
MONTREAT, N.C.— Vice President of Enrollment Management and Athletics, Jose Larios, announced Cabinet’s recent approval to add women’s wrestling as a varsity sport at Montreat College beginning in the fall of 2022. Current wrestling assistant coach Norman Manning will be the first head coach of the women’s wrestling program, while Jake Britt, the head wrestling coach, will serve as the assistant coach for the program and the Director of Wrestling for the college.  
The sport, which became an NAIA invitational sport during the 2018-19 school year, consisted of 21 teams when it was first recognized by the association. Following three years of growth, there are now 38 schools that sponsor women’s wrestling in the NAIA. These wrestlers compete for individual national championships in ten weight classes and a team championship based on individual wrestler finishes. Double elimination format is used at the championships to determine the top six wrestlers in each weight class, who earn NAIA All-American honors. … rest of story at https://montreatcavaliers.com/news/2021/9/14/womens-wrestling-montreat-athletics-adds-womens-wrestling-program.aspx?mc_cid=0b274c55e9&mc_eid=2ef7cbca4b

7 } – Women’s Wrestling Releases Full Schedule! Includes First-Ever Home Match
The Gothic Knights, in Their Second-Ever Season, Will Host ESU at the JMAC on Feb. 6, 2022
JERSEY CITY, N.J. — The New Jersey City University women’s wrestling program, along with acclaimed head coach Elena Pirozhkova, have officially released their first-ever full schedule for the upcoming 2021-22 season, which begins on Nov. 7, 2021. NJCU, which only competed in two events during its first official season due to COVID-19 restrictions, now looks forward to a full slate of 16 events throughout the upcoming season. The highlight of the year comes on Sunday afternoon, Feb. 6, 2022, when Jersey City hosts the program’s first-ever home competition as Division II East Stroudsburg University comes to the John J. Moore Athletics and Fitness Center (JMAC) for a traditional dual match.
NJCU, which returns a pair of All-Americans in sophomores Sandra Guerrero (West Orange, N.J./West Orange) (191 lbs.) and Naomi Henry (Brooklyn, N.Y./Wingate Educational Campus) (130 lbs.), as well as another national qualifier in sophomore Johnae Drumright (Trenton, N.J./Trenton Central) (109 lbs.), kicks off it season on Sunday, Nov. 7, in East Strousburg, Pa., for the ESU Open. The Gothic Knights then return to East Stroudsburg the following Sunday, Nov. 14, for a quad-meet
… rest of story at https://njcugothicknights.com/news/2021/9/14/womens-wrestling-releases-full-schedule-includes-programs-first-ever-home-match.aspx

8 } – Leistikow: 5 thoughts on Iowa athletics adding women’s wrestling
IOWA CITY — The stories of a young Tom and Terry Brands wrestling each other in their basement in Sheldon are legendary, just like the twin brothers’ eventual resumes would become at the college and international level. But annually as kids, Tom and Terry faced one of their fiercest opponents — a cousin, Misti. She was a year older and lived in Wyoming but would stay with the Brands family in northwest Iowa for about two months each summer. “She used to beat the holy hell out of Terry and I. She was a fierce competitor,” Tom Brands, a 1996 Olympic gold medalist and now in his 16th season as the University of Iowa’s wrestling coach, told The Register. “We were best friends, but she would take us both apart. Many little brothers that have big sisters have that story.” … rest of story at https://www.hawkcentral.com/story/sports/college/columnists/chad-leistikow/2021/09/23/iowa-adding-womens-wrestling-hawkeyes-tom-brands-spencer-lee-gary-barta-title-ix/5827072001/?mc_cid=c8d872c70f&mc_eid=2ef7cbca4b

9} – Univ. of Iowa women’s wrestling announcement part of Title IX lawsuit settlement
‘While the timing may be challenging, the decision is awesome’
IOWA CITY — The University of Iowa has reached a settlement with the female athletes who sued it alleging violations of the federal Title IX gender equity law, and that agreement is among the reasons UI Athletics announced Thursday it’s adding a Hawkeye women’s wrestling team. “As part of the Title IX lawsuit settlement, we agreed to add a women’s sport,” UI Athletics Director Gary Barta said Thursday during a news conference. “And our decision was to add the sport of women’s wrestling.” Hawkeye Athletics had been considering the idea for years, Barta said, noting growing national interest in the sport while more women are attending colleges. “We always have been committed to Title IX, we continue to be committed to Title IX, and as we were looking ahead at those two trends — the emergence of women’s wrestling and the growing trend of more women enrolling in college — this just looked like, at that time pre-COVID, like this was something that we would be doing at some time in the future.” … rest of story at https://www.thegazette.com/higher-education/university-of-iowa-has-reached-agreement-on-settlement-terms-in-female-athletes-title-ix-suit/?mc_cid=c8d872c70f&mc_eid=2ef7cbca4b

And Adding women’s program at University of Iowa, a storied wrestling powerhouse, called ‘game-changer’ for sport
IOWA CITY — Ella Schmit, a senior from Bettendorf, is Iowa’s top high school female wrestler right now. She’s a two-time girls’ state champ, a Junior All-American and, last year, she qualified for the boys’ state tournament — and won a match, too. Ever since she “started walking,” she says, Schmit has also been an Iowa wrestling fan. Her family has held season tickets for years, spending winter weekends watching the Hawkeyes at Carver-Hawkeye Arena. “I remember sitting there thinking about how cool it would be if Iowa had a women’s wrestling team,” Schmit told the Register, “but it never occurred to me that it could become a reality.”
That reality happened on Thursday. The Hawkeyes announced they are adding a women’s wrestling program to their athletics department. Iowa is the first Division I Power Five school to add women’s wrestling. … rest of story at https://www.desmoinesregister.com/story/sports/college/iowa/wrestling/2021/09/23/university-iowa-adds-womens-wrestling-team-first-power-five-school-hawkeyes/8419547002/?mc_cid=255db46f2a&mc_eid=2ef7cbca4b

10 } – The impact of Iowa Women’s Wrestling
The University of Iowa made an announcement yesterday that was heard around the wrestling world. Iowa Athletic Director Gary Barta announced that the University of Iowa will be adding women’s wrestling as an intercollegiate program.  The search for a head coach will begin this fall and competition will begin in the 2023-2024 season.
The massive reaction on Social Media has shown just how important of an announcement this truly is.  Women’s wrestling has been exploding in popularity and is gaining more and more of a fan following in the United States and around the world.
Iowa Head Wrestling Coach Tom Brands: “This is important to a lot of people for a lot of reasons,” said Iowa head wrestling coach Tom Brands. “This is historic. This needed to happen and it’s appropriate that it is happening first at the University of Iowa.
… rest of story at https://iowawrestlingblog.com/2021/09/the-impact-of-iowa-womens-wrestling-2/?mc_cid=255db46f2a&mc_eid=2ef7cbca4b

And Who will coach the University of Iowa women’s wrestling team? Here are 7 potential candidates
IOWA CITY — The next step in the construction of the Iowa women’s wrestling program is perhaps the most important one. Who’s going to be the coach? “We will hire a coach, the best coach in America,” Iowa wrestling coach Tom Brands said. Iowa athletics director Gary Barta offered mostly similar thoughts when asked what he’s looking for in the program’s first coach. He also said Brands, and Deputy Director of Athletics and Senior Women’s Administrator Barbara Burke, will be involved in the hire. “I don’t know how to answer it other than we’re going to go find the best coach,” Barta said. “We want to win championships. We’re going to look for the coach that we think can get us there. … rest of story at https://www.hawkcentral.com/story/sports/college/iowa/wrestling/2021/09/24/university-iowa-womens-wrestling-team-coach-clarissa-chun-jessica-medina-usa-wrestling-nate-engel/5820078001/?mc_cid=255db46f2a&mc_eid=2ef7cbca4b

11 } – Breaking: Iowa Adds Women’s Wrestling
Iowa announced Thursday that it will add women’s wrestling, becoming the first Power Five conference school to add the emerging sport. Iowa dropped a historic and sport-changing news release Thursday morning with the announcement that it will launch a women’s wrestling program, becoming the first Power Five conference school to adopt the emerging sport.  The Hawkeyes are joining Presbyterian and Sacred Heart at the Division I level and 44 other NCAA-affiliated women’s programs. Combining the NAIA and junior college squads, women’s wrestling is now up to 100 programs. 
The newest, though, is unquestionably the biggest.  While the sport has seen exponential growth in recent years, women’s wrestling has been waiting for a Power Five conference school to take the leap and lead the pack. Iowa’s decision to press forward first could be the falling domino that creates a tidal wave of momentum at the major college level. … rest of story at https://www.flowrestling.org/articles/7156213-breaking-iowa-adds-womens-wrestling?mc_cid=c8d872c70f&mc_eid=2ef7cbca4b

And Iowa adds women’s wrestling more from fear than from being fair
By Pat Harty
IOWA CITY, Iowa – At least Gary Barta didn’t try to sugar coat it or provide spin. Iowa’s Athletic Director looked directly at the media on Thursday and admitted what seemed obvious: The University of Iowa will become the first Power Five school to have women’s wrestling mostly because it had no other choice. If Iowa hadn’t agreed to add women’s wrestling, it would’ve faced an ongoing Title IX lawsuit that was filed by four female members of the UI swimming and diving team, accusing UI of violating Title IX by not offering equal athletic opportunities for men and women. The lawsuit was field after Iowa had announced the elimination of four sports, including women’s swimming and diving, due to financial shortfalls caused by the COVID-19 global pandemic. The women’s swimming and diving team has since been reinstated, while the three men’s sports that were eliminated – tennis, gymnastics and swimming and diving – appear to have no chance of being reinstated. … rest of story at https://hawkfanatic.com/2021/09/23/iowa-adds-womens-wrestling-more-from-fear-than-from-being-fair/?mc_cid=c8d872c70f&mc_eid=2ef7cbca4b

12 } – Women’s wrestling club opens new doors for incoming, current students
Outside on an eighty-degree September afternoon, Francesca LoPresti ’25 and Sofia Doroshenko ’25 are trying to explain the “Gable grip.” The “Gable grip,” known by other names, refers to an overhand/underhand wrestling grip where athletes tuck their thumbs in. According to LoPresti it is especially difficult to escape from. The name comes from famed 1970s wrestler Dan Gable, but now evokes images of University of Minnesota wrestler Gable Steveson — his namesake — who won a gold medal in Tokyo this summer in the men’s 125 kg freestyle competition. Steveson, however, is not why we are talking about the grip. LoPresti, Doroshenko and Anna Andreasen ’23 are the three founders of the women’s* wrestling club at Macalester, currently in its first year. Though in name it is a women’s club, Andreasen clarified that it is a queer- and trans-welcoming space. … rest of story at https://themacweekly.com/80078/sports/womens-wrestling-club-opens-new-doors-for-incoming-current-students/?mc_cid=255db46f2a&mc_eid=2ef7cbca4b

October 17, 2021 - Posted by The TakeDown Report | Uncategorized