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TIGER'S TALE: HOOKED ON WRESTLING
Feb 15, 2001; Tom Archdeacon DAYTON DAILY NEWS;
First girl grappler for Catholic school
First off, let's get one thing straight: No more "Pooh." From now on she wants to be called "Tiger."
"My godmother just didn't think it sounded right for everybody to me standing near the mat and yelling to me, 'Beat 'em up, Pooh!' " Ashley Rickman said with a grin. "She thought I needed to sound tougher."
That godmother was right. The Queen of Martyrs third-grader is tougher than her baby days nickname.
How tough?
"This year when two of her teeth got knocked out during a wrestling match, she didn't say a word until she got off the mat," Ashley's mom, Cheryl Rickman said. "It wasn't 'til she got over to her daddy for a hug and saw her blood on his shirt that there were some tears."
But what would you expect from a kid who has tough-as-nails "Stone Cold" Steve Austin as one of her heroes and says her own favorite moves are "the half-Nelson" and "the barbed wire?"
When it comes to least favorites, her list begins with dance class and cheerleading. She lasted two days in ballet. "I didn't like it," she said, "and anyway I got kicked out." As for cheerleading, she made it through her kindergarten season with a YMCA team. "She was more interested in the game than leading cheers," said David Rickman, her dad.
"Most of the time I cheered like this," Ashley laughed as she demonstrated a half-hearted flap of the arms while looking back over her shoulder. "They kept telling me to turn around, but I wanted to be out on the floor."
Now she is.
The 9-year-old, 91-pounder is a member of Chaminade-Julienne's C- J Eagle Youth Wrestling Program. Of the 20 kids ages kindergarten through sixth grade on the team, she's the only girl. In fact, she is the first girl wrestler competing for a Catholic school in the Miami Valley.
She is not the only girl participating in the Miami Valley Kids Wrestling Association. Among the 1,580 youth wrestlers, there are 15 girls. While many of the girls are better, some are bigger and several have more experience, Ashley is a grass roots example of a growing national trend in grammar school, high school and college wrestling.
In the 1989-1990 school year, 112 girls nationwide competed on boys high school wrestling teams and last season that number jumped to 2,475. This year, both Hawaii and Texas have girls high school wrestling teams and three colleges - Cumberland College in Kentucky, Morris College in Minnesota and Missouri Valley College in Missouri - have women's teams and offer scholarships.
Ashley's interest, as it turns out, didn't come from the pioneering programs for women, but from the beef and bluster productions of pro wrestling she saw on TV. Her dad - who wrestled at Wayne High School and later was a longtime coach of the seventh and eighth grade football teams at C-J - was homebound a few years ago after losing his right leg to diabetes.
"I was off work for two years," said David, now a computer technician for KeyBank. "When I was at home, I basically raised Ashley while my wife worked. And during that time, we watched plenty of wrestling on TV."
Cheryl, a warrant clerk at the Montgomery County Jail, wasn't as enthused as the rest of the household: "Oh, sure those guys are big and gorgeous - just like I like 'em - but it's all a show. Not that Ashley pulled any punches. She'd get David on the floor and then she'd jump all over her daddy."
When Ashley came home from school last year with a form to join the Northridge youth wrestling program, her parents didn't discourage her - just as they said they won't hinder their 2-year-old Belinda either. "For eight years they told us we'd never have children, so when Ashley came along she was like our miracle baby and we made quite a fuss over her," David said.
Cheryl shook her head and laughed: "Yeah, her first word was 'touchdown!' Her dad thought that was real cute, but it annoyed me."
The Rickmans said they try to keep Ashley well-rounded. She's in the Brownies, does volunteer work at the New Covenant Mission and regularly visits people at the Singing Woods nursing home. And yet sports - soccer, basketball, softball, even golf - have become her passion.
Wrestling, though, was a little more challenging than Ashley expected. In her initial season last year - with no experience or technique - she lost 20 straight matches. "At the first meet, she got pinned pretty quickly in three straight matches," David said. "That's when we had to go back home and set some realistic goals. First, it was just to last a round. Then make it through the whole match, next score points and finally to win one."
Last year, Ashley often broke into tears once she left the mat and was alone with her folks. The losing wasn't easy and, on a few occasions, neither was the scrutiny. At a Beavercreek tournament, a young boy wrestler kept needling her that she didn't belong. At another tournament, David said the father of a boy who beat her on points, "berated his son afterwards. He said, 'How could you let a little girl beat you up like that?' '
The positive responses outweigh the negative 20-fold, the Rickmans said. Cheryl told of a woman coach from Clinton-Massie who encouraged her daughter, as did an eighth-grade girl who wrestled for Butler.
While Northridge had girl wrestlers on its roster prior to Ashley, C-J had not and the coaches had to meet with the boys and review the ground rules. It helped that in her first meet with C-J this season, Ashley won two of three matches. Add in a forfeit win and she's 3-9. Her spunk has won her admirers, even the one boy on the team who taunted her early in the season. "He'd call me girlie-boy and push me down," Ashley said. "Finally, I pushed him back and after a while he just got over it. We're all teammates now."
That was obvious Tuesday night as she and her teammates practiced in the C-J wrestling room where a poster on the door pictures scowling Russian Olympian Alexandre Karelin and the words "Train Like A Mad Man."
Ashley wore a green and black singlet and black wrestling boots with pink socks. Soon her cheeks were flushed red from exertion and her short curly hair was damp. "'I used to have long hair . . . when I was a girl," she said with a grin. "Now, I'm a tomboy."
No one knows that better than Casey Naas, the St. Rita third- grader who stood next to her against the wall waiting for the coach to give instructions. That's when Ashley suddenly grabbed him around the head and gave him a couple of noogies.
Brandon White, a tall St. Rita fifth-grader, is often paired with Ashley during drills. 'She's pretty tough," he admitted. '"No one at C-J has ever lost to a girl and I don't want to be the first, but she keeps getting better."
In fact, she's getting good enough that, as she sat with her dad after practice, she informed him of a new challenge:
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Girls wrestling debut at state tournament ends with two pins
By DOUG ALDEN, AP Sports Writer
LINCOLN, Neb. 2/16/2001
Now that Elaine Blessen has made it to the state wrestling tournament, she wants something more than memories to take home next time.
"It's going to make me work myself even harder so I can place. That's my next goal," Blessen said Friday after getting knocked out of the tournament.
The 103-pound junior from Malcolm wrestled the minimum two matches and got pinned both times, but she did qualify, something no other girl has ever done in the 73 years of the tournament.
"It's not disappointing at all. I went out there and worked my hardest," she said. "I don't want them to look at me just because I'm a girl. I didn't do this because I wanted the attention. I did it because I'm just another wrestler. I was out there competing for a title."
Andy Lundstrom of Amherst ended Blessen's title run by pinning her with 59 seconds left in the third period of the opening consolation round. Blessen, who got a bloody nose in the loss, was trailing 11-0 when Lundstrom got her in a cradle and held her for the pin.
Rushville's Brett Hunter sent her to the consolation bracket with a first-period pin in the opening round Thursday.
"Yesterday, they all looked at me just as a girl, but when they saw me wrestle they got a different attitude towards me," she said. "I've had a lot of guys come up and congratulate me. There's also been some nasty glares. It's just part of the sport."
Malcolm coach Steve Schmalken said the glares and comments also came from coaches, which he found disturbing.
"This morning has been enough to make me want to hang up my whistle," he said. "We're supposed to take individuals and turn them into athletes no matter what sex they are."
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Fulp-Allen, Day first girl wrestlers to claim crowns
February 08, 2001
By Richard Motroni
Over the past few years, both Sarah Fulp-Allen of Half Moon Bay and San Mateo's Helaina Day have built impressive high school wrestling careers.
Recently, these two standouts achieved a special milestone that few other female wrestlers will ever touch.
Competing in the first ever CIF sanctioned Girls State Tournament, Fulp-Allen captured the 104-pound championship and Day grabbed the 140-pound title, which gave both wrestlers the distinction of being the first girls California state champions in their weight classes.
The achievements capped off a tournament where 11 San Mateo county wrestlers placed within the top six.
Along with the state championship, Fulp-Allen was named the tournament's outstanding wrestler, which was in tribute to the way she dominated her opponents. Having won three matches, two by pin-fall, Fulp-Allen cruised to the championship match against Del Mar's Melissa Moore.
From the start, Fulp-Allen was in complete control, scoring four takedowns, a reversal and a near-fall for a convincing 12-4 victory.
Also placing for Half Moon Bay was Alisa Gammon taking third at 109 pounds and Brie Freeman (119) finishing sixth. Before entering the tournament, Day had compiled an impressive 15-4 record with all six losses against male competitors.
Undefeated against female wrestlers, Day retained that mark by dominating all four matches to claim the 140-pound championship. Day and Fulp-Allen are both ranked third nationally. Day's teammate, Nicole Williams, took an impressive second at 135 pounds and Lauren Yee (112) placed sixth. Burlingame was the county's highest-ranked team, finishing fourth overall.
Katie Isola was one win away from capturing the heavyweight division crown and took second. Elisa Tapia (121) and Adele Beaudreau (147) both placed third for the Bearcats, while Summer Bailey (125) finished fourth and Sarah McCune (132) took fifth.
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This wrestling champion is a ... girl
February 15, 2001
Half Moon Bay's Fulp-Allen earns rave reviews vs. boys IT HAD TO COME as a surprise to some.
Just imagine when the winner was declared at last Saturday's Peninsula Athletic League wrestling championship in the 105-pound weight category and the protective head cap was removed to reveal ... long red hair.
Sarah Fulp-Allen's long red hair, to be exact. In that moment the Half Moon Bay High sophomore not only became a newly crowned league champ but also a celebrated girl among the boys.
Now had you known a thing or two about Fulp-Allen's background, her latest win wouldn't have come as such a surprise. This is, after all, the same kid who won the inaugural Girls State Meet at 103 pounds a few weeks back and then was voted outstanding wrestler of the meet.
And she's the same kid who overcame a 6-1 disadvantage with a climactic near-fall at the buzzer to claim a 10-7 win in the league championships as well as the Lightweight MVP honors.
Only this time it was against bigger and stronger boys.
The kind Sarah's been competing with, and beating, ever since she first took up wrestling in fourth grade.
"It's fun beating boys because they're so much better than girls," Fulp-Allen said. "So when you raise up to their level and actually beat them it's kind of fun."
Fulp-Allen beat her first boy the very first time she ever climbed onto a wrestling mat. She was 9 when she competed in her first tournament in Livermore before winning an overwhelming 20-2 decision.
"And the other kid's dad told him to go easy on me," Fulp-Allen said. "I ran into him again a couple of years later and he pinned me in like, 10 seconds."
Fulp-Allen's father is wrestling guru Lee Allen, who has dedicated the majority of his life to coaching the sport.
Allen spent 25 years coaching at Skyline College before retiring in 1994. He now helps out at Half Moon Bay and coaches girls with the Peninsula Grapplers, a County club team.
The former 136-pounder competed in the 1956 and 1960 Olympic Games, the latter of which he took eighth place in.
Allen's best showing was fifth place in the 1961 World Championship. The veteran also worked as an assistant coach for the U.S. in the '72 and '76 Games before heading up the Greco-Roman program for the '80 games.
"Wrestling's my life. I've been brought up in it with my dad since I was little," Fulp-Allen said. "He's practically lived in the gym and we were always there with him. I'll probably do it for the rest of my life."
While Fulp-Allen aspires to make the 2004 Olympic team and contemplates a coaching career, this weekend she'll have to worry about the Central Coast Section championships at Independence High.
Although it'll be her first time in CCS, Fulp-Allen is used to wrestling in high stakes tournaments with her Peninsula Grapplers experience.
Last year, the sophomore finished third out of 22 girls in her division in the United States Girls Wrestling Association National meet in Michigan.
But more important, Fulp-Allen is a lightening rod for what will soon become a girls wrestling phenomenon.
"When girls see other girls wrestling at their school they want to follow," Fulp-Allen said. "They get interested when they see them or hear about somebody they know doing it."
Fulp-Allen's father, meanwhile, has dedicated himself to helping girls wrestling. After starting the girls program at Peninsula Grapplers, Allen was pleased to see his team secure a national title in 1999.
"The girls program is my primary interest," Allen said. "There's still not enough opportunities for girls to wrestle against other girls, but there will always be opportunities for talented girls like Sarah to wrestle against boys."
Well, maybe not always.
"It's kind of sad because I only have two more years left of wrestling boys," Fulp-Allen said. "After high school it's all girls."
And the boys -- at least the ones in the PAL -- can't wait.
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Fulp-Allen claims state girls' title
02/15/01
Mark Foyer
Sara Fulp-Allen has amassed an impressive résumé in her wrestling career. To add to that list of achievements was winning the 104-pound title at the initial CIF-sanctioned Girls State Wrestling Tournament, held Feb. 3 in Vallejo. Fulp-Allen was named the tournament’s Most Valuable Wrestler. Fulp-Allen was not the only wrestler from Half Moon Bay High School to participate in the event. Alisa Gammon finished third at 109 pounds, and Bri Freeman took sixth at 119 pounds. A total of 67 girls participated in the tournament. Helaina Day from San Mateo High School also came away with an individual title, winning the 140-pound division. Fulp-Allen arrived to the tournament both nervous and tired. She was tired because she had already participated in two dual meets earlier in the week. The nerves came from the fact that she was one of 12 girls participating at the 104-pound division. Whatever nerves she had were not a problem, as she won her first two matches by pin. Both of those pins came in the first round. That set up the title match against Melissa Moore from Del Mar High School in San Jose. Fulp-Allen dominated Moore, eventually winning the match 12-4. "I was happy to have won it," Fulp-Allen said. "I was so tired that I was glad to be done with it. I was able to relax and enjoy the rest of the tournament." Since this is the first-of-its-kind tournament, Fulp-Allen, along with Day and the other winners, can claim a special piece of history. There will never be another first-time winner in a State Girls’ Wrestling Tournament. "It’s a special win," Fulp-Allen said. "I am proud of that win." But on the other side of the coin, she has done other things that have impressed her just as much. "It’s not the biggest win of my career," Fulp-Allen said. "But I’m happy to have won it."
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HMB wrestlers win 4 individual titles
02/15/01
Mark Foyer
Saturday’s Peninsula Athletic League Wrestling Tournament was a long day of wrestling. But at the end of the day, no one from the Half Moon Bay High School team could find much to complain about. "We could have done better, but I’m satisfied," said Cris Serrano. "It was a successful day for us." The Cougars finished second in the team competition, trailing Terra Nova 257.5-232. On the individual side, all 13 wrestlers that the Cougars entered in the tournament placed. Leading the way was Sara Fulp-Allen (105 pounds), Josh Brown (127), Nate Rey (142) and Serrano (217) all of whom won individual titles. Fulp-Allen was named the Most Valuable Lightweight Wrestler of the tournament. Sam Temko (137), Mike Asche (147), Kyle Torre (191) and Roy Cockrell (heavyweight) were all second. Steven Steinhoff (154) claimed third in his weight classification, with Ben Gammon (121) and Ronny Melo (162) both finishing fourth. Those wrestlers all qualified for the Central Coast Section Tournament, slated to take place Feb. 23-24 at Independence High School in San Jose. The top four finishers in each weight classification at CCS will move on to the state tournament, slated to take place the following weekend in Stockton. Daniel Ho was fifth at 114 pounds, with Nick Rey taking sixth at 132 pounds. In Friday’s junior varsity tournament, Half Moon Bay finished tied for third with Hillsdale, trailing only Mills and champion Terra Nova. Bri Freeman won the women’s 119-pound division; Malia Nolan was second in the women’s 114-pound division. Steven LaMascus (142) and Dan Silveria (147) won their respective weight classifications. Matt Antone was second at 217 pounds, and Joey Moreira finished third at 160. On Feb. 6, the Cougars fell to Terra Nova 38-22 in the final dual match of the season. Fulp-Allen, Brown, Nick Rey, Mello and Serrano all won their matches for the Cougars. Fulp-Allen, the crowd favorite, rallied to win her title match in the final seconds. Trailing Hillsdale’s Jordan Felix 7-5, Fulp-Allen got a reversal to tie the score. She then placed Felix on his back with only seconds left in the match. Time ran out before she could record the pin. But she was rewarded three points for the near fall when the horn sounded, giving her the win. "Comebacks are more exciting," Fulp-Allen said. "He was good in the beginning, then slowed down." Being named the Most Valuable Lightweight Wrestler of the tournament shocked her. "There were a lot of good lightweight wrestlers here today," Fulp-Allen said. "I did not expect to get it." Among the good lightweight wrestlers was Brown. He was able to beat his opponent in the finals 17-6. But the match was a difficult one for Brown. Brown is still suffering from the lingering effects of the flu, which turned into bronchitis. He had to miss the Feb. 1 dual match against Burlingame because of the illness. "I could not wrestle near my fullest," Brown said. "But now I have two weeks to recover until CCS." While he was happy with winning the title, he sees taking the PAL crown as the first step to bigger things. "This is a stepping stone to CCS, which is a stepping stone to the state meet," Brown said. Like Fulp-Allen, Rey scored his match-winning points in the final seconds. With the score tied 6-6, Rey was able to get an escape from Woodside’s Steven Lorenzo with 12 seconds left to get the win. "I had never seen him before," Rey said. "I heard he was a strong guy. I did not expect this to be an easy match." It wasn’t. Lorenzo got the match’s first take down. But Rey was able to tie the score, thanks to two technical violation calls on Lorenzo for illegal clasping. Each violation netted Rey one point. The match went back and forth until, with 12 seconds left, Rey was able to escape from Lorenzo for the winning point. Had the match ended tied, the two would have battled in overtime. "I did have enough for the extra round," Rey said. Serrano did not need to worry about going the extra round. He pinned his opponent 89 seconds into the match. It was his third pin of the day. "I did not force anything," Serrano said. "I let things happen. Everything happened sooner than I expected it to." While there was some disappointment in finishing second in the team competition, the Cougars do have respect for Terra Nova. "I knew it would be close for the team title," Rey said. "The match could have gone either way. Terra Nova is a good team."
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Girls gain foothold in wrestling Growing number compete in county
By RON SNYDER 2/16/2001
Jessica Guzik is not a name known to most who follow high school wrestling in the county.
She won't be stealing any of the headlines away from such wrestlers as Old Mill's Adam Dayton or Chesapeake's Matt Eveleth at this weekend's county championship. However, the 16-year-old's impact on the sport may be felt for years to come.
Guzik is one of a growing number of females who have tried out _ and lasted_ through an entire high school wrestling season.
This season, female wrestlers have held roster spots on junior varsity teams at Arundel, Severna Park, South River, North County and Meade. While their records are nothing to write home about, their involvement in the maledominated sport has started to garner attention. As many as seven girls competed this winter for county junior varsity teams.
The 112-pound starter for North County's junior varsity team, Guzik has been the most successful of the county's female wrestlers, compiling an 8-5 record. She is the sixth seed in this week's county JV tournament and should compete for a starting varsity position next season.
"I'm not out to prove to anybody I can do this," said Guzik,16 and in her third season with North County. "I'm in this because I love the sport and the feeling you have when you win."
Guzik has also shown that while she may be small, her heart and determination is just as big as the largest heaveyweight.
"I think nothing of it when she goes out there," North County wrestling coach Jim Grim said. "She can hold her own on the mat and has great balance and toughness."