Submitted photo
Wy’east 7th-grader Catherine Kiyokawa wrestled well at last weekend’s USGWA National Championships.
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Softball Notebook: Wrestler strengthens Washington
State mat champ brings multisport talent behind plate
By STEPHEN A. NORRIS 4/14/05
SPECIAL TO THE POST-INTELLIGENCER
Kylee Bishop is just a 14-year old freshman but she already has plenty of experience breaking the hearts of many guys.
That's because Bishop -- the starting catcher for the Washington High School fastpitch team -- has been wrestling since she was in the fifth grade and during that time has pinned her share of boys.
"I've seen guys teased a lot by other wrestlers (after losing to me)," Bishop said. "I've seen some go behind their coaches and cry, and some of them get really mad if they lose. I've seen one or two guys refuse to wrestle a girl. They didn't think it was right and wouldn't do it."
This past wrestling season Bishop competed on Washington's boys varsity team at 161 pounds. She went to a girls' exhibition state tournament with more than 100 girls competing. Bishop won all three of her matches -- none going past than the second period -- to win the title in her weight class.
Bishop's addition to the Patriots' fastpitch team this season took a lot of pressure off Ericka Wallace. She had been playing catcher (and earned all-league honors) the past two seasons, but Bishop's addition allowed her to move back to her natural position at shortstop.
"She's a very strong girl," Washington coach Paul Souza said. "She came right up and filled that catcher spot easily for us."
Bishop, who also plays soccer, said the biggest difference between guys and girls sports is in the training and how each responds to losses.
"I hear a lot of girls complain about their arms and legs being sore and I just laugh," Bishop said, comparing the training aspect of the different sports. "Guys are a little more aggressive when they lose. They get really mad. They punch walls and throw things. You don't usually see that with girls. They are a little more subtle."
The Patriots are 2-0 this season and No. 4 in the P-I's Power Rankings. Souza said the team will have to play back-to-back games all season because their past four games were rained out.
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By Jim Evans
Daily Tribune Sports Writer
PUBLISHED: March 28, 2005
Hazel Park's Underdog Wrestling Club is more than tough enough
Us guys like to think we're tough. We lift weights. We sneer at people who cut us off in traffic. We spit into the wind. We wear black leather jackets, and hop on Harleys.
We fail to hold the door open for little old ladies. We mutter at the guy in front of us in the express checkout line for having one too many items. So what if it's a cane?
Oh yeah, us guys have squatter's rights on toughness. Oh yeah, us guys are totally delusional.
"We were at a tournament, and Audrey said to me `Look, that wrestler is a mommy!'" recalled Harold Bucher. "And I looked and there was a lady who was a national champion with a baby who couldn't have been more than six or seven months old. Her husband watched the baby while she wrestled."
Us guys could never handle giving birth. I heard once the pain is even worse than yanking out a nose hair. But giving birth and beating people on the wrestling mat, too? Heavens to Janet Reno, that is about as tough as a person can get.
There are some mighty tough young ladies hanging out at Hazel Park Junior High a couple of nights a week. They are members of the renowned Hazel Park Underdog Wrestling Club founded by Tom Davids in 2001.
Audrey Bucher is just one of seven girls who compete for the club. She's eight years old. The girls range in age from Ella Wilson, who is 5, to 16-year-old Katie McGhee. She's a junior at Hazel Park High School.
In between are Izzy Davids, 8; Bailee Powers, 9; Gabby Karam, 6; and Hailey Slivensky, 14.
There are upwards of 70 wrestlers in the club. The Underdogs are the reigning state AAU freestyle champs.
The girls recently competed in the United States Girls Wrestling Association National championships held at Lake Orion High School.
Bucher is the long-time coach at Berkley High School. He helps Davids and Mike McGhee with the girls' team. Davids was a state champion at Hazel Park High School, and later competed at the University of Michigan. McGhee is a former high school wrestler who is still involved in age group competitions.
"It took awhile to get accepted by the guys on the school team," said Katie McGhee, who's ranked seventh nationally at 144 pounds by the USGWA. "I think I had to work harder to prove to them I could take it."
McGhee has proven herself long ago. Her first victory as a Hazel Park High School junior varsity wrestler came last year at Avondale.
"I pinned him in the third period and it was really cool. It was the first time I had even beaten a boy."
Beating an opponent is definitely the point. There's another more important point, though: Beating back self doubt. There are still plenty of folks who say girls are not supposed to wrestle. They are supposed to be spectators, not participants. It is not girlish. It is not lady-like.
You tell me, what is a girl supposed to be like these days? What is a lady supposed to be like? Girls are catapulting into space. Ladies are dying on the front lines in the Middle East. They are running corporations and countries. There's not a CEO Barbie, is there?
Wrestling is just another opportunity for girls. Is there anything wrong with that, tough guy?
"I just look at it as an opportunity to get girls involved in something early," said Davids. "They learn to be competitive, they learn how to train and work toward a goal, and they learn to appreciate fitness. I want everyone who comes into the wrestling club, boy or girl, to take something positive from the experience. Some might become champions. Others might do better in school. Either way, it is a valuable lesson."
"But the female aspect of wrestling has really exploded. It has come a long, long way in just the last few years. The numbers are greater, the competition is better, and the techniques are much more advanced.
"The girls work hard. Wrestling is not an easy sport. We make them do the same things as the boys at practices. They do not want to be singled out," Davids continued.
"It's fun," said Izzy Davids, simply. "Arm and shoulders is my favorite move."
Arm and shoulders. Suger and spice. Sorry, not everything is nice in wrestling.
An arm menaces behind an opponent's head. Another comes across a prone body. A vice-like grip keeps everything tidy. Is there an American Girl doll who wears a singlet?
"I would go to tournaments with my Uncle Joe. I'd watch him and want to wrestle myself," said Bailee Powers.
Her signature move is the bear hug. Don't confuse it with hugging a teddy bear, though.
"Wrestling has been very empowering for Audrey," said Bucher.
Everyone in the Underdog Wrestling Club is tough. Both boys and girls. Get used to it. That's the message for us guys.
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Kiyokawa takes 2nd at Nationals
By DAVE LEDER
News staff writer March 26
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Submitted photo |
LAKE ORION, Mich. — Earning second place in the nation is no small accomplishment for any athlete.
But for Wy’east Middle School seventh-grader Catherine Kiyo-kawa, her performance at the March 19-20 United States Girls Wrestling Association (USWGA) National Championships was just the beginning.
By winning the girls middle school state championship on March 5 in Portland, Kiyokawa qualified for the national tournament. But once she arrived in Lake Orion, Mich., she realized that she was entered in one of the smallest brackets (128 pounds, four wrestlers).
“I would have felt better about finishing second if I got to wrestle against more girls,” said the 13-year-old three-sport athlete. “Even if I had won, it wouldn’t have been that big of a deal. But the whole experience was definitely worth it.”
Kiyokawa, who has been training with coach Bobo Umemoto at the Cobra Club in Portland, said she wasn’t sure at first if she wanted to go to Nationals. But after talking it over with her dad, Randy, she decided that it would be a worthwhile challenge for her.
“I didn’t think I was ready to compete at Nationals, but my dad encouraged me to keep going,” Kiyokawa said. “I had only been doing club wrestling for a month, so it was kind of intimidating. But I learned a lot and I’m going to try to go back next year.”
Kiyokawa believes she could have beaten her finals opponent, Katrina Collins of Michigan, but she got caught in a head and arm hold, which resulted in a pin.
However, Kiyokawa said she took away some consolation in the fact that she defeated a girl (Melissa Vernon of Michigan) who had defeated her the first day in round-robin competition. After losing by fall in Saturday’s round-robin competition, Kiyokawa came back and beat Vernon 7-3 to earn redemption.
“There was a lot of pressure on the second day, especially against the girl who had beaten me on day one,” she said. “But I was really focused on beating her the second time.”
Kiyokawa experienced a similar scenario at the March 5 state meet at David Douglas High School when she defeated Jolene Crook-Meyers of Kent, Wash., in the finals after losing to her earlier in the day. Crook-Meyers also attended the National competition, placing fifth in the 136-pound division.
“Catherine’s strength is that she learns from her mistakes almost immediately,” said Randy Kiyokawa, an assistant coach at Wy’east. “She catches on so quickly that she can prevent certain moves the second time she faces someone.”
The 128-pound champion, Collins, defeated Kiyokawa on the first day with the head-and-arm move. But she was unable to apply it in the finals, and had to turn to another move to get Kiyokawa to her back. Kiyokawa said she did everything she could to avoid the fall, but she just ran out of steam.
“I was ready for her, but she was pretty good,” Kiyokawa said. “I could tell she was getting frustrated when she couldn’t apply her move, and that made it even harder for me to beat her.”
Regardless of the outcomes, Kiyokawa said she had a very memorable experience at Nationals. She may go back next year, but right now, she wants to focus on softball and lacrosse, her two other favorites.
“I just try to do my best at whatever sport I’m in,” she said. “Now that wrestling is over, I’m going to concentrate on softball and lacrosse. But I will probably keep wrestling next year.”
With one year of middle-school wrestling left, Kiyokawa knows she has time to decide if she wants to compete in high school. She plans to continue wrestling for the Cobra Club, and if she continues to progress, she could make a return trip to Nationals in 2006.
“The best part about it was meeting all the other girls,” Kiyokawa said. “The tournament was fun, too, but I liked making so many new friends.”
Her friend Rachel Hannen-Brown of Newberg also traveled to Nationals and took ninth in the 136-pound bracket. Natasha Umemoto of Portland was Oregon’s lone national champ, winning the 138-pound high-school bracket. A total of 700 girls participated in the two-day event.
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Catey Beatty, a West High School junior, placed second in the U.S. Girls Wrestling Association (USGWA) National Tournament held recently in Lake Orion, MI. The USGWA tournament is the largest female wrestling event in the world. Beatty was among 29 wrestlers in her weight class.
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Archambault ready for first national meet
By Dave Dyer
Staff Writer 4/18/05
Phillips Academy junior Kassie Archambault of Methuen is a little nervous, but she's hardly intimidated as she prepares for her first national wrestling tournament this weekend.
Of course, as a two-year starter wrestling against boys, Archambault is used to being an underdog. So it can't be any tougher when she competes at the Girls Wrestling Association Nationals at Lake Orion High School in Lake Orion, Mich.
"I know the competition is going to be tougher than what I've seen, but I'm hoping to place," said Archambault. "I think I have a pretty good chance of placing."
Archambault has good reason to be relatively confident, based on an excellent regular season for Phillips and an extraordinary postseason in girls competition.
For Phillips, Archambault was 13-11 against boys this year at 112 pounds, with four of her wins coming by forfeit. She had five pins on the season, one of which helped clinch a dramatic comeback win over archrival Phillips Exeter. She is 33-18 in two years for the Big Blue, having wrestled at 103 as a sophomore.
A runner-up in the New England girls tournament the last two years, Archambault has really stepped it this year against her own sex. She placed first at the New England girls tournament in Southbury, Conn., last weekend, going 4-0 on the day at 110 pounds (weight classes are different for girls).
That came one week after placing first in the New Jersey Girls Open with a 5-0 record. She has not lost against another girl this year.
"Kassie had a little trouble adjusting to the heavier weight (class) at the start of the season, but she's really come on strong," said Phillips coach Rich Gorham. "She is acknowledged by all of her teammates as one of the hardest working wrestlers in the room and has become a lot smarter wrestler."
Archambault, 17, admits that she is still not as strong as some of her foes, but said: "I think my technique is a lot better than it used to be. I'm getting better at takedowns and that's helped a lot."
In addition to her contributions on the mat, Archambault has become a role model for the Big Blue. Because of her leadership, according to Gorham, Phillips had five girls on the team this year, an increase of three. One of them, freshman Rachel Cohen from Pennsylvania, will join Archambault at the nationals, competing at 114 pounds.
"She has emerged as a team leader," said Gorham. "She has been key to the development of the other girls."
Also an excellent student, Archambault plays the bagpipes in the Clan MacPherson band and was recently named winner of the school's prestigious Lauraunt Fellowship for summer independent study. Last summer, she spent a month in a program in Russia.
Her exact plans for the upcoming summer are unclear but that's understandable. Her focus, for now, remains on the mat.
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Girls take to mat for USGWA Alaska Wrestling Championship
By Ben Stuart
Staff Writer 4/10/05
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The past, present and future of women's wrestling converged on a mat in the Homer High School gym Sunday at the 2005 Alaska Girls State Championships.
For the 19 wrestlers who competed, the United States Girls Wrestling Association meet provided an opportunity to learn from the best in the sport and compete against their peers.
Homer Olympian Tela O'Donnell held a wrestling clinic for the participants before the meet, and said she enjoyed teaching techniques and strategy to the younger wrestlers.
"It's really a lot of fun," O'Donnell said. "I feel like I'm part of something big."
In high school in 2000, O'Donnell finished sixth and Skyview's Melina Hutchison finished third at the 4A state championship.
They were the first-ever female place-winners at a state tournament.
The following year, as a sophomore at West Anchorage, Iris Mucha became the first girl from Region 4 to qualify for the state tournament.
Since then, Mucha wrestled at the 2004 U.S. Olympic Team Trials, wrestled in college and is currently the No. 6-ranked U.S. Senior Women's wrestler.
Sunday, Mucha shouted encouragement and gave advice to the younger wrestlers from the sidelines.
She also wrestled against O'Donnell and Chugiak's Melissa Apodaca.
The sport has come a long way for girls since Mucha was in high school, she said.
Already at a disadvantage in terms of strength, especially at the upper weight classes, Mucha said, coaches rarely pushed girl wrestlers or taught them the technique required to compete.
"During high school girls get beat up by the boys," Mucha said. "It's neat seeing girls compete against their equals and against others that have gone further with the sport," Mucha said.
Today, many coaches expect more from their girl athletes, and the added attention is beginning to show.
For instance, Melina Hutchison's two younger sisters — Michaela and Hannah — both wrestle competitively.
Michaela, a freshman at Skyview, finished third this season as a 103-pounder at the 4A State Tournament, and beat all-comers at Sunday's Alaska Girls State Championship.
Ten-year-old Hannah beat 6-year-old Grace Wiggins from Anchorage to take the 52-pound title
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In some circles, however, girls wrestling boys — and sometimes beating them —, is still controversial.
Homer wrestling coach and Sunday's event organizer, Chris Perk, said much of that stigma has evaporated as girls participate more.
"I think it has (lessened) for sure, especially with their being more girls wrestling and doing well such as Michaela," Perk said. "Some people still do not believe it is right though."
While the foundation of girls wrestling has been laid by pioneers such as Melina Hutchison, O'Donnell and Mucha, the future of girls wrestling has yet to be written.
By the time Hannah begins competing at the high school level, for instance, girls wrestling could be a separate sport from boys wrestling.
Perk said he sees the benefits of having all-girl wrestling tournaments.
"I would like to see ASAA adopt, as they have with hockey in Anchorage, all-girl competitions in the state," he said.
"(Girls wrestling) seems to be booming on the college scenes. I could see it in a couple of years getting a state tournament hosted by ASAA."
Until then, girls will compete against the boys and other girls in high school, and against girls in tournaments like Sunday's.
Either way, they are competing, and learning what it takes to compete against the best.
In one of the matches Sunday, Chugiak's Melissa Apodaca lost 15-0 to Olympian O'Donnell.
After the match, however, Apodaca's confidence was unwavering.
"I think it was mental," Apodaca said. "She's the same (weight class) as me. If I try hard enough, I could beat her."
Ben Stuart can be reached at ben.stuart@homernews.com.
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4/17/05
Wrestling is a sport mostly associated with boys and men, but it is becoming increasingly popular among the female population. Veronica Carlson, an Indian Trail Junior High eighth-grade student, has found success in it. Ronnie, as friends and family affectionately call her, has earned the United States Girls Wrestling Association's national champion title for the 136-pound weight division at a meet held the weekend of March 19 in Michigan.
She began her wrestling career last year on the school team, although her mom, Sherri, was apprehensive at first about her daughter's new sport.
"I was totally against it, but I went to every meet," Sherri said. "I made sure I knew the fastest way to the hospital.
"This year, I know what she's doing," she said. "I'm really impressed."
Ronnie's seventh-grade season was cut short when she suffered a broken nose during a match, and Sherri was proud to note her daughter finished the match. With the eighth-grade season over, she finished with 15 wins and four losses.
IT wrestling coach Dave Pytko was excited for his only female wrestler.
"I think it's outstanding," Pytko said. "She knows it's a sport and whatever she needs to succeed, she does — she puts in so much hard work and dedication."
After the IT season ended, Pytko reopened the doors to the wrestling gym for Ronnie to practice for her first USGWA meet March 6, when she took home the Iowa state champion title. The following weekend yielded Ronnie the title Indiana state champion and Illinois state champion.
For now, Ronnie is involved with track and will keep in shape during the summer swimming on the Addison Frogs swim team and lifeguard camp. She said she gravitates toward individual sports.
"The competition is always good, there's an adrenaline rush," said Ronnie. "Wrestling, too, you're testing yourself — only you can decide who wins."
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Lady Vikings win three titles at Body Bar Nationals
Thursday, April 14, 2005
By Chris Allen/Sports Editor
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SAN DIEGO -- The Missouri Valley College women's wrestling team got a taste of the competition it will face at the U.S. Senior Nationals later this month in Las Vegas, and could feel better about it.
The Lady Vikings claimed three individual championships and sent three others into the finals of tough weight classes Friday at the FILA Body Bar University Nationals in San Diego. For a young Valley squad, being able to hold their own with veterans was uplifting.
"Even in our losses, we closed the gap," remarked MVC head coach Carl Murphree. "By Vegas time, we may be able to knock them out."
Junior Brooke Bogren cruised through the 59 kilogram class, downing sophomore teammate Julie Duarte in the finals, and junior Kelly Branham finished first among the three Lady Vikings in the 67 Kg division.
However, freshman Brittany Jones of Plugerville, Texas, notched her most impressive win to date by defeating Kuu Johnson of the U.S. Olympic training program, ranked sixth among U.S. Seniors in the TheMat.com's latest poll, 3-0, 4-0, to earn a gold medal.
"She surprised some people who hadn't been watching closely," Murphree said.
Freshman Rachel Billerbeck (63 Kg) won two matches -- including a 7-0, 3-0 decision over No. 8 Laurin Daniels of Menlo (Calif.) -- before being pinned in the finals by former Valley grappler Ashley Sword of the New York Athletic Club, ranked sixth. Sophomore Erika Chew (55) also won twice before losing a decision in the title match to No. 3 Marcie Van Dusen of the Sunkist Kids.
Freshman Sadie Kaneda (48) pinned two foes in the first round and was second in a round robin after losing to fourth-rated Laura Felix of California State-Bakersfield. Sophomore Maika Watanabe had to settle for third place at 51 kilos after losing to No. 3 Jenny Fong of the Sunkist Kids, due to beating fifth-ranked Cheryl Wong of the Dave Schultz Wrestling Club in the trophy bout.
Sophomore Clarissa Calibuso (55) and freshmen Tanya Miyasaki (51) and Maria Dunn (63) also picked up a pair of wins during the meet.
"We're right where we want to be," Murphree declared. "We've made some big strides.
"We haven't peaked yet," he added. "But I don't want to peak yet."
At least not until the April 28 tourney in Vegas.