News Page
March 27th, 2001
Amberle Montgomery 13 year old female wrestler from Maple Valley, traveled To Kingsport,
Tennessee over March 16 - 18, 2001 to compete in the Amateur Athletic Union "La Femme
Nationale" Women's Folkstyle, Freestyle, and Greco-Roman National Championships.
Amberle won all three National Titles for the second year in a row.
In Freestyle, Amberle took first place by pinned every opponent in the First round and she
received the outstanding wrestler award for the Freestyle Tournament.
In Folkstyle, Amberle took first place by pinned every opponent in the First round at an average of 40 seconds a match.
In Greco-Roman, Amberle took first place round, she received the Outstanding wrestler award for the Greco-Roman Tournament.
Amberle pinned every opponent in the first round except for her last match, where she won 10-3 over a very good girl from Oklahoma.
Amberle only yielded 3 points on her road to the Triple Crown.
Amberle wrestles for Eastside Wrestling Club in Bellevue, Washington and Tahoma Junior High.
This is Amberle's 2nd year in a row for winning this prestigious Triple Crown award!
Congratulations from Washington State Wrestling Association Amberle!
------------------------------------
THREE UM-MORRIS WOMEN WRESTLERS CLAIM
ALL-AMERICAN HONORS AT UNIVERSITY NATIONAL CHAMPIONSHIPS
wrestling USA 4/3/2001
Evanston, IL - Three UM-Morris women wrestlers claimed All-American
honors in the fifth annual USA Wrestling University National Championships
held at Northwestern University in Evanston, IL on March 30-April 1.
Junior Katie Downing (Pendleton, IN) placed second in the 149 pound weight
class. Downing defeated Megan Williams of Missouri Valley College with a
fall in 1:50, then captured a 4-0 decision versus Kaci Lyle of Missouri
Valley.
In the finals Downing lost a 9-1 decision to Toccarra Montgomery of the
Sunkist Kids Wrestling Club to earn the silver medal and All-American honors. Downing
and Montgomery are the top two talents in the United States at this weight.
Downing defeated Montgomery in the finals of the Keystone Open and Montgomery bested
Downing in the finals of the FILA-Manitoba Open.
Sophomore Samantha Branka (Lincoln Park, MI) came back from an opening round
loss to US National Team member Dominique Smalley 13-9, to place third in
the 165 pound weight class. In the consolation finals Branka defeated Anne Waddell
of Cumberland College gaining a fall at 1:30. Branka who placed 5th in last
years event, is currently ranked 5th at the Senior Olympic level in the United
States.
Freshman Alexandra Augustin (Naples, FL) placed 7th at 136 pounds to earn
her first freestyle All-American honors with a fall in 1:24 over Lisa Bethke of
the United States Marine Corp.
Also competing, but not placing in the championships were freshman Katie
Ross (Greensboro, NC) and senior Crystal Metz (Little Falls, MN) at 123 pounds.
Metz especially had a tough draw, faced world silver medalist Patricia Miranda of
Stanford University and former national champion Aimee McNabb of Missouri Valley
College.
"Overall, we wrestled the best as a team all season," noted coach Doug
Reese. "It was a tough tournament, but I liked our aggressive style. We made some
technical and mental mistakes that we will work on in the next couple of weeks, but I
can't say enough for the heart that the team showed."
The Cougar women are wrapping up the season in two weeks when they compete
in the U.S. Women's Senior Open in Las Vegas. The top eight place finisher in
the event then qualify for the World Team Trials in hopes of making the US
National Team in Cincinnati, OH in late June.
-------------------------------------------
FAMILY TEAMS FOR WRESTLING SUCCESS
Tuesday, April 3, 2001
By PAUL DANZER, Columbian staff writer
Melissa Simmons had a national championship within her reach.
It slipped away in the second round of her title match last weekend at the United States Girls Wrestling Association tournament in Lake Orion, Mich.
"She was up by two and I was on top and had a suicide cradle and started to take her over to try to pin her, and she kicked out and had me in a head and arm," Simmons said.
That turn of events ended the title hopes for the Ridgefield student. Vanessa Oswolt, an Ohio eighth-grader, pinned Simmons in the second round of the 130-pound weight class.
A seventh-grader at View Ridge Middle School, Simmons was in the middle grade of the division for grades 6-8 at the national tournament. In 2000, she placed fifth in the tournament as a sixth-grader.
"Last year, I learned that not all things turn out as you like," she said.
One of nine girls on a team from Oregon at the national tournament, Melissa Simmons has enjoyed her share of success on the mat.
Four times she has won her weight class in the girls division at the Oregon Wrestling Classic, held in December in Corvallis. Twice she has claimed regional titles at the Northwest Collegiate-style championships for girls.
It began when Melissa was in kindergarten and her older brother Kyle joined the Ridgefield Wrestling Club.
"I went to sign up my son, and she was tugging on my pant leg asking if she could wrestle, too," Kim Simmons, her father and coach, said.
Melissa said she was attracted to wrestling for what it wasn't.
"Before I wrestled, I tap danced and I didn't like that," she said.
Kent Bailo started a national wrestling championship for girls four years ago. When Kim Simmons learned of it, he formed a team of girls from Oregon. He plans to work toward fielding a team from Washington state next year, but his ties to wrestling in Portland made that the place to start, he said.
The existence of a national tournament for girls reflects growing interest in the sport, Still, wrestling both collegiate and freestyle remains a predominantly male sport.
Wrestling against the boys during the middle-school season in the fall, Simmons went 6-2. A wrist injury kept her out of the district tournament, and limited the amount of preparation time she had before the nationals.
"I think wrestling with the guys has helped her develop," Kim Simmons said, noting that female workout partners are scarce for 5-foot-7 seventh-graders.
Melissa said her edge against boys is experience and psychology.
"At regular tournaments. guys usually get overconfident against me," Melissa said. "When I go to (girls) nationals, we're all basically the same."
Wrestling girls is in some ways more challenging, she said.
Girls, she said, tend to depend more upon leg strength. Boys usually have more upper-body strength.
That difference requires a change in technique, she said. Against boys, she relies more on patience and counter-attack moves to avoid getting caught at a strength disadvantage.
Against girls, she is more aggressive.
"Last year (at nationals) I learned that I have to shoot," Melissa said, using the wrestling term for an attacking move used when both wrestlers are on their feet.
Taking a more aggressive approach didn't come naturally, she said. "When I was little, I would shoot and I would always ended up with my face in the mat."
In Michigan last week, shooting paid off.
In the first round, she pinned Brittany McKinnon of Minnesota in 40 seconds. In the semifinals, the attacking strategy produced a 15-0 technical fall over Beth Larowe of Michigan.
Reaching the national finals was a solid step forward, Melissa and her father said, especially after the wrist injury limited her training until three weeks before the tournament. Reaching the finals also upped the expectations for 2002.
"By next year, as an eighth-grader, she should win it," Kim Simmons said.
-----------------------------------------------
Heckman earns All-American status;
MT senior fourth at girls' national wrestling tourney
4/4/2001 Lancaster Newspapers, Inc.
Barry Decker
Jessica Heckman made her third trip to the Girls' National Wrestling
Tournament, and for the second time she returned as a high school
All-American.
Heckman placed sixth in the fourth annual Girls' National Tournament held in
Detroit on March 23-24.
"Much can be said about this model high school senior," said Jan Minnich,
her coach. "Her character traits are ideal."
Minnich described her as honest, compassionate, diligent, intelligent,
humble, sacrificing, athletic, and accepting of others. Also, he said that
she is "highly respected by all who know her."
Her leadership qualities were recognized by her Manheim Township team and as
a result, the boys chose her as a team captain.
"Although she competes against boys in the regular season (December -
February), her motivation is geared to preparation for the girls-only
tournaments which are held in early spring," Minnich said.
This is evidenced by her success in the Pennsylvania Girls' Championships at
McCaskey High School, which Heckman won two times.
"Jess is not shy about rigorous exercise," Minnich said. "She participated
as an individual against teams in our annual school triathlon last spring."
According to Minnich, she completed the entire event in a "remarkable time,"
only 10 minutes longer than it took the team consisting of varsity wrestling
coaches to complete it.
The event was a compilation of a half-mile swim, a five-mile cross country
bike ride, and a three-mile cross country run.
Heckman began wrestling in fourth grade after watching her brother wrestle.
"I believe the biggest attraction is the intensity," Heckman said. "There
are not too many sports that can challenge and teach you something new every
single day like wrestling does."
Nationals was the high point for the senior wrestler.
"This year I was really excited because I knew it was my last time to go as
a high school student," she said. "It was great."
Friends and coaches accompanied her to Detroit. After weighing in, the group
went to dinner. Rachel Groft, another wrestler, ate with them.
"After the meal, we relaxed, went swimming, and did what girls like to do--
have fun," Heckman said.
The morning of the tourney, Heckman got up early and went to the pool and
sauna to relax before the competition.
That day she won one match and was paired in the other one with her friend,
Groft. "I lost to my friend," Heckman said. "She is a very tough freshman
wrestler."Groft finished third at Nationals."
"We warmed up together as we did the entire tournament," Heckman said. "We
went to the mat together, joked around a little with each other, but once
the whistle blew, we both got very serious."
Groft won the match 4-1. And the girls handled it in a "cool" manner.
"I felt she was one of the best opponents that I could ever have," Heckman
said. "Right after the match, we put our arms around each other, and headed
back to our seats."
Heckman was pleased with her effort. "I felt completely happy about my
performance," she said. "I finished sixth and I felt that is where I should
have been." The top eight are designated All-Americans.
Hard work has paid off for the Manheim Township senior.
Her awards include being a two-time state champ, 1999 North East Girls
Wrestling Tournament champion, fourth place at the 1998 Blue Streak
Tournament, second place at the 1999 Blue Streak, first place in Colonial
States, three National Titles and other numerous elementary trophies.
She intends to go to college and is seeking one with a girls' wrestling
program.
Heckman has also participated cross country, swimming, volunteer work, art
and sambo, as well as attending the Lioness Seminars.
She credited Minnich (her high school coach), McCaskey coach Jon Mitchell
and coach Wes Mendez, as well as her family (parents Ted and Patti Heckman,
sisters Tracy and Amyand brother Travis) and friends for her success.
Her advice to other girls who are thinking of wrestling is "Hard work will
pay off."
"You have to want to succeed at the sport for yourself," she said. "You will
gain confidence and the reassurance that you can do anything that you put
your mind to. And you will learn much about yourself in the process.
Minnich said, "She constantly pushes the limits of her own personal
potential. Others recognize these admirable qualities, and she received our
annual Labone Wrestling Award, given to the individual with the greatest
character traits."
-----------------------------------------------
Women's Development forum at US Nationals
garyabbott on April 05, 2001
USA Wrestling will conduct an open forum on the development of women’s wrestling during the U.S. Women’s National Wrestling Championships in Las Vegas, Nevada.
The forum is scheduled for Friday, April 13, after the morning session of women’s wrestling action, at approximately 11:00 a.m. It will be held at the MGM Grand Hotel, the site of the competition, in Studio Room 4.
The forum will be led by Gary Abbott, USA Wrestling’s Director of Special Projects. Abbott has been assigned to work on the development of women’s wrestling for USA Wrestling, and has been setting up opportunities for those interested to help form a national strategy.
Parents, athletes, coaches, fans and wrestling leaders are invited to give their input about the development of women’s wrestling . Opinions about the best strategy to help fuel the growth of women’s wrestling on all levels will be discussed.
A number of new initiatives will be discussed, including an organized effort to have women’s wrestling named as a NCAA emerging sport.
USA Wrestling has already conducted open forums at two major events this spring. Four-time World Champion Tricia Saunders of the Sunkist Kids conducted a forum at the USGWA National High School Championships in Lake Orion, Mich., March 24. Mike Duore, USA Wrestling’s Head Women’s Coach, conducted a forum at the University Nationals in Evanston, Ill., March 31. Both forums were well attended and productive.
At least one more open forum is scheduled for this spring, at the USA Wrestling FILA Junior and FILA Cadet National Championships in Dayton, Ohio, June 1-3.
All interested in this issue are invited to attend these meetings if they can. Those who have opinions and input are also encouraged to visit TheMat.com, and post their thoughts on the Women’s bulletin board.
“USA Wrestling is committed to providing everyone in wrestling a chance to have input in the formulation of a national strategy for women’s wrestling,” said Gary Abbott, Director of Special Projects. “We encourage all people who can attend one of our open forums to share their ideas with us.”
Women’s wrestling is one of the fastest growing segments of the sport, and has shown growth on many levels. More and more young girls are competing in America’s schools, and are looking for other opportunities to test their wrestling skills.
The U.S. Women’s National Championships will feature the best Senior-level women wrestlers in the United States, battling for coveted national titles and All-American honors. This is also the qualifying event for the 2001 World Team Trials, set for June 22-24 in Cincinnati, Ohio. Over 100 of the best women freestyle wrestlers in the nation are expected to participate.