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WRESTLING: Blessen first female wrestler to qualify for state tourney
BY TODD HENRICHS Lincoln Journal Star
2/14/2001
MALCOLM - The first time she ever competed, a short-sighted referee told Elaine Blessen that wrestling wasn't a sport for girls.
Rest assured that official won't be on the mat this week when the 73-year-old state tournament officially goes coed.
By placing fourth Saturday in the D-1 district, Blessen became the first girl in Nebraska wrestling history to qualify for state. Her short-cropped hair up in pig tails and wearing blue fingernail polish, the Malcolm junior smiled wide knowing she proved one official and hundreds of other naysayers wrong.
"It is a big deal," said her coach, Randy Page. "She's the type of kid who makes you want it for her. She works hard. She sets her goals high and follows through."
Blessen dreamed of competing in the state meet the many times her older brother Michael wrestled against her at home. Michael, the oldest of Todd and Kathy Blessen's five children, was a fourth-place finisher at the Class B state meet in 1998.
"He'd show me how to do stuff, and then if I could counter his move, he'd get mad and wouldn't show me anymore," Elaine said.
It must be guy thing.
Blessen fully understands. When the first boy she wrestled against in practice last year threatened to quit the team at Columbus Lakeview, she volunteered to quit instead.
"I felt bad having a guy quit a guy's sport," she said. "I didn't want to feel responsible knowing that he quit because of me."
Even Elaine's mother is compassionate toward those who chose to heckle her daughter during matches.
"I just put myself in those parents' place," she said. "If my son got beat by a girl, I would be offended, too. That's the way a lot of parents are."
Her clinching victory Saturday was met not with a raucous ovation but instead a chorus of applause. Well wishes followed from those who crowded around Mat 1 to watch.
All day, Blessen's bid was the talk inside the gymnasium and the back hallways of the Malcolm gym. Seeded fourth among the eight entered at 103 pounds, Blessen began with a 9-1 win over Ben Blecha of Humboldt/Table Rock-Steinauer.
Bothered by a shoulder injury that forced her to sit out the conference tournament last week, Blessen defaulted her semifinal against second-ranked Thomas Hiatt of Harvard. Rested and amazingly relaxed, she dominated the consolation semifinal against Ryan Garbers of Palmer.
In her 17-5 win, she scored near-fall points four different times, more than enough to raise the eyebrows of opposing coaches and wrestlers alike. She's 12-12 overall but has placed in every tournament this season.
"She wrestles tough," said East Butler freshman Dylan Spatz, an 8-2 winner over Blessen in the consolation finals. It was their second meeting this system.
"The first time, it was rather awkward," he said.
Her father's medical concerns forced the Blessens to move from Columbus last summer. Malcolm Coach Steve Schmalken welcomed Blessen, warning only that she'd be treated like everyone else on her new team. She wouldn't have it any other way, even balking when coaches ordered a different-cut singlet than worn by the teammates. Many are her closest friends, including Malcolm qualifiers Josh Blum, Ira Horne and Travis Liesveld.
Girls have qualified in other states and can be found on several teams throughout Nebraska. Blessen has befriended and encouraged many at different tournaments, telling them "you've just got to push yourself harder and don't get down on yourself."
She hopes her qualifying for state will be an inspiration to them but isn't at all worried about the attention. It's something her first-round opponent must deal with as well.
Just imagine yourself in the packed Devaney Sports Center, a proud young man not wanting to be taken down or - gulp - put on his back by a girl.
"The person who wrestles her in the first round is going to go through something they've never gone through before," Page said. "At least Elaine's been through it all year."
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PREP WRESTLING: Blessen's presence causes changes
2/13/2001
Elaine Blessen's locker room has doubled as the women's bathroom at some tournaments this season.
Such treatment, however, wouldn't befit the first girl to qualify for the Nebraska state wrestling meet.
Officials with the Nebraska School Activities Association said Blessen, a junior at Malcolm, will have her own locker room at the Devaney Sports Center beginning Thursday morning. Weigh-ins were also adjusted.
"You do have to make some accommodations, but we've planned for this the last few years," NSAA administrative assistant Bob Colgate said. "Once more girls began to wrestle, we expected this wouldn't be far behind."
Blessen will be assigned a smaller women's staff locker room and her weigh-in will be conducted by a female member of the NSAA staff within the same time frame of her male counterparts.
At most meets this season, Blessen waited until last to weigh-in.
Colgate said officials were still working to determine a suitable warm-up area, although Blessen will be able to work out on the mats Thursday morning. Hers will be the first Class D match called at 8:30 a.m. -¤Todd Henrichs
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From the Bleachers
2/12/2001
Mother Nature tends to have her own schedule when it comes to weather.
Last week's winter blast wound up wreaking havoc upon the high school sports landscape at precisely the wrong time of the year, especially if you are involved in wrestling.
Districts were held last week and, with the exception of Class A's four districts, are scheduled as two-day events to avoid the possibility of a wrestler having to wrestle more than five times in one day.
Judging by what happened Friday, when many districts -- including districts involving all six teams in the News-Times coverage area -- were forced to postpone Friday's action, it would appear the Nebraska School Activities Association should sit down and come up with an actual "Plan B" for situations such as this.
Because of the postponements, districts in this part of the state were forced into a one-day cram session. And a change was made in how the tournament was to be conducted that presents some ethical issues.
In those weather-delayed districts, the NSAA had district hosts use the old "follow-the-leader" rule, where first-round losers would be eliminated if their opponent lost in the quarterfinals. If they won, that wrestler would be back in the tournament and would move into the second round of consolations.
While I'm not a big fan of the rule, I would not be so concerned about it had the ruling been applied to all 12 of the district tournaments in the three lower classes.
The problem is . . . some of the districts out west and in the northeastern part of the state were able to run their Friday matches as scheduled and run as a traditional double-elimination tournament. Meanwhile, several districts are running under a different set of rules.
In the grand scheme of things, the ruling change probably had little effect on those that qualified for state. It's very difficult to lose your first-round match at districts and come back to win four straight matches to qualify for state. But that still doesn't make the NSAA's decision correct.
The NSAA needs to have an alternative plan for situations such as last week's. Some of the coaches and tournament administrators I talked to said that the main office was asked about a "what if" situation earlier in the week, since the stormy weather was forecast days ahead of time. The response was more of a think-about-it-when-it-happens shurgging of the shoulders.
Let's hope that such a scenario doesn't present itself again next year. Every wrestler, regardless of skill level or state-qualifying chance, deserves to wrestle under the same set of rules, not a make-it-up-as-you-go hodgepodge that denies all wrestlers across the state an equal opportunity to qualify for the state's biggest tournament.
* * * * *
And while we're on the subject of equal opportunity, here's to Malcolm 103-pound junior Elaine Blessen, who became the first girl to qualify for the state tournament after finishing fourth at the D-1 district in Malcolm on Saturday.
And for those cavemen in the audience who think a woman's place is in the kitchen and not on a wrestling mat . . . welcome to 2001. Put the club down and join the rest of us in the 21st century.
While I am not all that comfortable with girls wrestling boys (and would be even more uncomfortable if it were my daughter doing it), I believe it is time that the wrestling community embrace the idea of girls competing in the sport and that we begin moving toward adding girls wrestling as a high school sport in Nebraska.
The great thing about wrestling, much to the dismay of those who would like to Title IX the sport into oblivion, is that wrestling is a sport that can cross all kinds of lines, including gender.
Blessen's journey into the state tournament should serve as an inspiration to high school girls. Hopefully, it will help open up the doors to more involvement in the sport by both sexes.
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Malcolm Girl Qualifies for State Wrestling
BY STU POSPISIL 2/11/2001
WORLD-HERALD STAFF WRITER
Elaine Blessen of Malcolm will be the first girl to compete at the Nebraska high school state wrestling championships.
Blessen qualified for state in the District D-1 tournament held Saturday at Malcolm. She finished fourth at 103 pounds, losing a consolation final to Dylan Spatz of Brainard East Butler.
She will join 831 boys in the three-day state meet that begins Thursday at the Bob Devaney Sports Center.
Elsewhere in districts Saturday:
Gretna gave three-time defending Class B state champion Omaha Skutt something to think about in advance of state as the No.2 Dragons won District B-2 at West Point by 2041/2-200 over No.1 Skutt and qualified 12 wrestlers to Skutt's 6.
Class A No.1 Millard North qualified 13 of 14 wrestlers - the most by any Class A school - in winning A-3 on the Mustangs' mats. Millard North went 4-5 in finals matches.
No.2 Papillion-LaVista had six district champions among its 11 qualifiers in beating No.5 Omaha Burke 2031/2-1761/2 in District A-1 at South Sioux City.
No.3 Lincoln Pius X in A-2 at Lincoln Northeast and No.4 Kearney in A-4 at Grand Island were the other Class A district winners.
Billy Alley of Lincoln Southeast, top-ranked in Class A 171, failed to qualify for state from District A-4.
Class B's other district team champions were Plattsmouth in B-1 at Auburn, Aurora in B-3 at Central City and Lexington in B-4 at Ogallala. No.8 Lexington beat No.3 Gering and No.4 Alliance.
Class C No.1 David City Aquinas beat No.3 DeWitt Tri County 239-211 for the District C-1 title at Valley, with Aquinas qualifying 12 and Tri County nine.
Rushville qualified 12 in winning District D-4 at Sutherland.
Bracket Assignments
The Nebraska School Activities Association made its annual draw Saturday that pairs the 832 wrestlers in the state tournament into 16-man brackets.
Three plans are used to seed the athletes. Bracket assignments for all classes for the following weights:
Bracket 1: 112, 135, 160, 171
Bracket 2: 103, 125, 130, 215, 275
Bracket 3: 119, 140, 145, 152, 189
District champions meet fourth-place finishers - from districts other than theirs - in the predetermined bracket assignments. Runners-up, likewise, meet third-place finishers. The bracket plans rotate the pairings among the four districts.
State Schedule
Classes A and D will be the first to wrestle this year at the state wrestling tournament at the Bob Devaney Sports Center, starting at 8:30 a.m. Thursday.
They will finish two rounds in the championship bracket - with quarterfinal winners guaranteed of placing at state - before Classes B and C take to the eight mats at 4:30 p.m.
Tickets are $6 for adults, $4 for students. Tickets good for the entire tournament are $25 for adults, $15 for students, and will be sold Thursday at the Sports Center. No reserved seats are left for Friday night's semifinals or Saturday's finals.
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Lakeview girl living dream as wrestler
By DAMON J. VOGT December 10, 1999
TRAILBLAZER -- Lakeview freshman Elaine Blessen, in the locker room before the Vikings' wrestling practice Thursday, has broken the gender barrier as the first Lakeview female ever to wrestle at the high-school level. She and her Lakeview teammates are scheduled to compete Saturday at the North Bend Invitational. Telegram photo by Todd Stepanek
COLUMBUS -- When Lakeview High School sophomore Elaine Blessen was 4 years old, she watched her older brother, Mike, wrestle for the first time.
The day is permanently etched in her memory. It was the day that the energy of competition overwhelmed her and the day she made up her mind she was going to be a wrestler.
"I've never felt like that about any other sport. It was my brother's first meet and all I wanted to do was get out there and wrestle, too," Blessen said.
With the support of her mother and father, Kathy and Todd, and the growing support of a vocal Lakeview student body, Blessen has bucked the odds and earned a spot on this season's Lakeview varsity wrestling team at 103 pounds.
"I don't have a problem with her being a part of this wrestling team. As long as she comes out and works hard, we'll accept her as one of us," Lakeview coach Dave Prokesh said.
"She's serious about what she's doing, and she works very hard. There's a good possibility that she might win a few matches this season. She has good mat sense and good technique. She's a very sound wrestler."
On Dec. 3, one of Blessen's dreams came true as she, adorned in Lakeview blue and white, competed at the varsity level for the first time in the Lakeview Invitational.
Although she was pinned in both the matches she wrestled, she was pleased with her effort. It took East Butler wrestler Trent Coufal 4 minutes and 29 seconds to end the semifinal match. Then Blessen battled Kody Knopik of Fullerton for 3 minutes before Knopik subdued her for third place in the tournament.
Blessen has joined a growing number of female athletes in the state who are stepping over the gender barrier and competing in athletics previously dominated by high school boys.
Nebraska School Activities Association Associate Director Rex Jones said it hasn't been easy for females to find their places in predominately male sports, but he said his office has no qualms about female participation.
"In 1986, the Board (of Control) approved the first competition in the state for a girl. She played football on the Winnebago football team," Jones said.
"Our regulations do not restrict female participation in male sports unless the same sport is offered separately for girls."
In February 1988, Stephanie Saint, a student at Omaha St. Joseph's, filed a suit in federal court against the NSAA for barring her from competing in high school wrestling.
She alleged that if she was not allowed to wrestle, she would experience irreconcilable harm. The judge agreed, issuing a temporary restraining order against the NSAA and allowing Saint to wrestle.
After the restraining order was served, the NSAA board then voted to allow Saint to wrestle.
Blessen may not be the first female to wrestle her way to the varsity mat, but should she accomplish her personal goals, she would permanently etch her mark in high school wrestling in the state.
"I want to be the first girl wrestler to make it to state. If I get fourth at districts, I'm in," Blessen said. "I think I can do that."
If Blessen's success is measured by the amount of excitement she has stirred among her teammates and within the student body, she is already a hit.
"If she wants to be out, that's more power to her," 171-pound senior wrestler Bryan Goedeken said. "She is breaking new ground here at Lakeview, and most of the kids are behind her."
James Heibel, a 189-pounder who qualified for state last season, echoed Goedeken's sentiment.
"Nobody has a problem with her being out there," Heibel said. "In fact, it's kind of amusing to watch her."
"Everybody supports her. Most of the kids came to the school to see her wrestle last week," Goedeken said.
Lakeview freshmen Shana Chamberlain, Eric Aerni and Haley Hilger and sophomore Kendra Fittje all voiced support for Blessen.
"I think it says a lot for her," Chamberlain said. "She doesn't care what other people think and does what she wants to do."
They agreed that Blessen has a competitive nature, which will serve her well when competing against the boys.
Blessen's father said wrestling has been in his daughter's blood since she was a little girl. He said Elaine didn't go out for the team as a freshman so the family could focus on Mike during his senior year. Mike wrestled his way in the state tournament to a fourth-place medal in Class B at 119 pounds last season.
The elder Blessen said his daughter hasn't had an easy road, but her work ethic has carried her through.
"Some of the guys really picked on her at first, but they changed their attitude when they saw her wrestle," Todd Blessen said. "They go at her 100 percent in the wrestling room. She's just one of the guys on the mat."
Todd Blessen said no matter what happens through the course of the season and the rest of her high school career, he will always be proud of his daughter.
"There were a couple of people that were negative until the first meet, then they saw me wrestle and realized how serious I was," Elaine Blessen said.
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