Penny Hastings, The Chronicle , October 12, 2001

Swimmer Caitlin Gleason discovered, during the occasional game of football in high school, that she likes physical contact. Today, her skill in the water, combined with the desire to mix it up, makes her a valuable player on the Santa Rosa Junior College women's water polo team.

Rosalie Simonitch, coach of the Elsie Allen High School's girls rugby team, says her sport combines physicality and camaraderie, which appeals to many girls. A former player on the Lobo Rugby Club (not an interscholastic team), the 20-year-old Simonitch says, "Rugby is a collision sport -- it is football, without the pads."

Plus, there's a tradition of congeniality following each match.

"We may be rivals during the game, but once it's over, everyone relaxes and parties together," Simonitch said. "We leave our aggressions on the field. I really like that."

Because there are no other girls teams in the county, the Lobos have to travel to Marin and other Bay Area schools to find a game.

Young women like Gleason, 20, and Simonitch are typical of girls and women branching out into nontraditional female sports, including wrestling, lacrosse,

ice hockey and football-- sports traditionally reserved for males because they were considered too rough for the "gentler sex."

But many girls today, accustomed as their brothers are to playing sports since age 5 or 6, take their inclusion for granted. Indeed, they may be unaware that their opportunity to compete in sports at all is fairly new. In some of their mothers' -- and certainly their grandmothers' -- generations, girls and women were considered too frail to run the length of a basketball court, jump over hurdles or engage in sweaty physical competition -- the fear being that they would injure themselves or become less feminine.

Since 1972 and the passage of Title IX, the legislation mandating equal rights for females in public education (including athletics), more and more girls have entered the sports scene, causing schools to increase funding and facilities for girls sports from grade school through college.

While some team sports -- such as soccer, softball and volleyball -- are played at all levels in Sonoma County, women's water polo is still in its infancy. SRJC coach Jill McCormick, whose team has tripled in size in the past year, finds it hard to find experienced players because there are only two high schools in Sonoma County -- Ursuline and Sonoma Valley -- that sponsor water polo programs.

"Other colleges in the Bay Valley Conference have more feeder high schools that offer water polo," McCormick said. "It's a real challenge for us to compete."

McCormick, in her second year as women's water polo, swimming and diving coach at the college, spends a large part of her time teaching the dynamics of contact sports to girls who join the team, many of them members of the swim team.

"If I have a swimmer who's physically strong and aggressive, I can teach her pretty quickly," she said.

But it's not only swimmers who can learn the game.

"A potential player should have the basics of swimming and be fit and able to 'egg beater' (tread water) for extended periods of time. Above that, a knowledge of team sports and overall athletic ability is important."

Not everyone takes to water polo. McCormick says, "For girls who have never played a contact sport, the physicality -- the shoving and pushing and bumping -- can be scary, especially in the water." She teaches them how to defend themselves and stay in control.

For girls who want to wrestle or play football, their only option is to tryout for a boys team.

Tracy Green, Santa Rosa High School football coach, says that although he's never had a girl on his team, he isn't against it. "I'd treat her just like anyone else," says Green, now in his fourth year at Santa Rosa. "She'd have to adhere to the practice and workout schedule. I certainly wouldn't go out of my way to make it harder for her."

Obviously, though, in a game where size counts, most girls are at a disadvantage when playing against boys. Several teams in the past, including Healdsburg High School, have had girls on their football squads, but they have been few and far between.

Gil Schmidt, wrestling coach at Napa High School, says he's seen an increase in girls' interest in wrestling and mentions several girls on past teams.

"They did well," he recalled. "One even won a major tournament for us."

While there are no girls wrestling teams in the area, the growing number of girls participating on boys teams has been an incentive to organize all-girl wrestling tournaments, not only locally but nationwide.

Most experts believe that playing on a girls team that has resources equal to that of the boys team is the best environment for girls, but not all high schools sponsor girls teams in all sports.

Denyse Caven, 40, played on one of the few all-girls soccer teams in Santa Rosa when she was growing up, but there wasn't a girls team at Montgomery High School when she got there in the late '70s. A "Title IX baby," she tried out for -- and made -- the boys varsity team at Montgomery High in her junior year.

"People on the sidelines would point at me," she recalled, and say "There's a girl on the field!"

Today's girls have a hard time comprehending such a scenario. After all, they grew up watching the U.S. national team win the Women's World Cup in 1999 and the Olympic gold medal in soccer in 1996 and 2000. They've had role models largely denied to earlier generations.

Yet, not all girls who have the opportunity want to play all sports. SRJC's Gleason said: "I signed up for the water polo class with a friend. She dropped it because it freaked her out to be shoved under the water. I have to admit, it was pretty intimidating at first. But, it's really exciting."

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Casey on path to repeat as girls wrestling champ

staff reports

BINGHAMTON -- Binghamton High junior Wendy Casey has only one step
remaining in her effort to repeat her United States Girls Wrestling Association
title.Casey, who competes at 135 pounds, won the gold medal in the USGWA New
York state championships Sunday at T&T Wrestling Facility in Schenectady.
That gave her a berth in the national tournament, March 23 and 24 in Lake
Orion, Mich.

She will compete in tournaments in Virginia, West Virginia and
Pennsylvania in preparation for her national title defense.

"I think her chances are very good for a repeat title," Binghamton
junior varsity coach Kevin Pendergast said. "She's got a lot of strength and
she's very technically sound. She's very well-rounded. She's got a 98 overall
average in school, as well as all her athletic success. That's one of
her strengths."

Casey notched a 5-3 decision over Stephanie Shaw of Waterford, Conn.,
to complete a three-match, round-robin sweep at the USGWA New York state
championships. It was her third straight state title.

Nearly 100 wrestlers from the East Coast region took part.

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Wrestling experience lends to life experience

It was a bright, chilly morning in February. I awoke with a sore throat and large butterflies in my stomach. In a few hours, I would be standing among some of the top wrestlers in my section of the state, with my hand raised to my heart, singing the National Anthem, and ready to compete. Being the only girl wrestler to qualify for the Wisconsin State Sectional Wrestling tournament made me more determined, hardworking, and self-confident as an individual.

Being the first girl wrestler in my conference was not always easy. I had been to a few wrestling meets to watch my brother wrestle, but at those times, I would usually sit in the stands, eating popcorn, talking to friends, and commenting on the guys that looked good in their tight, spandex uniforms. I first began to wrestle when I was a sophomore in high school. My parents were shocked to hear I wanted to join the team. Their little girl was going to be wrestling boys, and perhaps cutting weight (a worry due to a past eating disorder in middle school). My dad told me, “If you go out for the team, there is only one rule. You can’t quit. You are going to stick it out the whole season.” My coach was relentless, but willing to give it a try. His philosophy, as he told many reporters, “I don’t believe males and females should wrestle after they have hit puberty.” My friends and peers were in a state of awe.

I didn’t get any special privileges being a girl wrestler. In all honesty, I felt like I had to work harder than the guys on the team. I wanted to prove to the team, coaches, and public that I was going to make it and succeed. In the mornings, I would get up and run. Because I was a cross-country/track runner, the running part wasn’t as tough as fighting with the alarm clock in the morning. After the morning jog, I would come home, shower (shave the legs so I wouldn’t spike my partner), eat a healthy breakfast, go to school, weigh myself in, and start the day. After school was practice. We lifted weights every Monday, Wednesday, and Friday to build strength, speed, and stamina. After the weight room, we headed to the mats where we would drill, learn moves, drill, live wrestle, drill, and condition (a variation of sprints, push-ups, sit-ups, jump rope, over-unders, buddy stair climbs, etc.). I wasn’t given any special attention. I did what the team did and that was that. No privileges, no breaks. My determination grew stronger day by day to become a “respected” wrestler. At the end of my third season, my coach stated to all at the sports award assembly, “We don’t consider LeeAnn a girl, and we don’t consider her a guy. We consider her a wrestler.”

By my junior year, cutting weight became a part of my wrestling routine, which didn’t help me become less physically and emotionally strained. I was determined to drop down to 103 pounds, and halfway through the season I had accomplished my goal weighing 98 pounds. I felt by competing in a lower weight class, I would have a better chance of making it farther. Spending my sophomore year wrestling varsity 125 pounds (10 pounds over my actual weight) and getting my butt literally kicked, I felt I would be better off wrestling at 103. And I had been. I had taken fourth in my conference, and beat out the third place finisher in our conference to place second at the Wisconsin Regional Wrestling meet. I was one of the two wrestlers at 103 to qualify for the sectional tournament. I was the only girl.

As I stepped off the bus at Dodgeland High School, my stomach began to ascend into my throat. What I was about to experience would be one of the most rewarding and unique experiences in my life. Every qualified wrestler had to line up in order of weight class, starting from 103 pounds through heavy weight, to check in and receive locker assignments. Since I was wrestling 103 pounds, I was one of the first in line. When it came my turn to check in, the woman behind the table looked at me, raised an eyebrow, and crisply told me that cheerleaders could go straight into the gymnasium. Cheerleader? I don’t think so. My coach, after hearing this, clarified that I was in fact a wrestler and I had qualified for the 103 pound weight class. Sure enough, my name was on the roster, but no facilities were prepared for me to change and weigh-in. Eventually they found a quaint, cluttered closet that was the size of a handicap bathroom stall. Talk about high-class treatment.

After weigh-ins, I joined two of my teammates on the mat for a pre-match warm-up and pep talk from my coach. Wrestlers and spectators all throughout the gym made noticeable stares, curious as to why a girl was wrestling. I paid very little attention to the unintentional scene I was making, and concentrated on focusing on my moves and mental preparation. Unfortunately, I didn’t feel like wrestling. My throat was aching very badly and I was starting to get a large headache. What could I do? I had to suck it up and ignore the pain.

My first match was vital. If I won, I moved on. If I lost, I was done. The wrestler that I was to face had a record of 26 wins, two losses. To say I was going to have it easy would definitely be a lie. My coach could tell that his record intimidated me, but reassured me that the record of the wrestler couldn’t predict the outcome of the match; that was in the hands of the wrestlers themselves. With that in mind, I was ready for my match. I warmed up, and sooner than I expected, I heard my name being called over the intercom. “And on mat two, at 103 pounds, is LeeAnn Sorchy with a record of 12-13 and Jonathan Silverman with a record of 26-2.” It was time for me to do what I had come there to do.

I hustled out onto the mat. My mom, brother, friends, and teammates were cheering me on in the stands from up above. The referee assigned me the red ankle band. I grabbed the band quickly, hustled to the side, strapped it on, and jumped up and down a few times to pump the adrenaline through my veins. With one last look at my coach, I came to the center of the mat and looked straight into the fierce eyes of my competitor.

With a blow of the whistle, the match began. We circled around the mat, lining up shots, and concentrating on each other’s moves. A few head grabs here, and a few pushed there. Suddenly I shot in, but my opponent quickly countered my move. Before I knew it, we were both on the mat struggling for control. Points were awarded back and forth, but eventually my opponent got the best of me. The match came to an end. I had lost by a technical fall. I came to the center of the mat, congratulated my opponent, congratulated his coach, and walked off the mat with my head high. My coach met me at the edge of the mat, and threw his arms around me. With tears in my eyes, he told me “You may not have won today, but you have more heart than any wrestler I have ever coached. You are an outstanding wrestler, and don’t forget that.” All who had come to watch me greeted me with congratulations and big hugs. Feeling pretty sickly, my mom and I decided to leave the meet early. The next day, after visiting the doctor, I was diagnosed with strep throat.

I continued my wrestling career all throughout high school. My senior year, I wrestled at 112 pounds and ended with a 13-13 record. I was unsuccessful in qualifying for sectionals, losing my second place match at regionals, 10-9. I came back to win the third place finish, and was able to stand tall and proud on the podium in front of thousands of spectators. That same year, I wrestled at an all-girl Wisconsin State Tournament put on by USGWA (United States Girl’s Wrestling Association). It was a unique experience, since I had never had the opportunity to compete against my same gender. That day, I became the 115-pound Wisconsin State champion.

As I look back on those three exhilarating years, I realize how much pain and hard work I had put into my wrestling career. I went out for the team with very little knowledge, and came out with some of life’s most important lessons. I truly believe that any goal is obtainable if you just work hard, put in the effort, and never give up. Life gives us its challenges, but those are to only make us stronger. Nothing comes easy in life. Wrestling was not easy, and if I could do it over again, I would not blink twice at the opportunity. Wrestling has helped me become a much stronger and determined individual inside and out.

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