Lisbon Schools will be offering a junior high girls’ wrestling program this winter.
Lisbon activities director Brandon Horman explained that girls’ wrestling has seen an increase inmomentum across the state after the Iowa Girls High School Athletic Union sanctioned the sport at the girls state wrestling program last winter.
“Currently, we have between nine and 18 middle school girls interested in wrestling,” Horman said. “That interest level at the middle school level is pretty intense, and we feel it is best to give our young girls the opportunity to see if this is a sport they want to pursue at higher levels.”
The school currently has a sharing agreement with Mount Vernon to allow high school girls interested in the sport to wrestle with the Mount Vernon girls’ wrestling team, similar to the Mount Vernon-Lisbon cross country team and other shared sports between the two schools.
Horman said they will operate this similar to how the boys’ wrestling program is offered – boys have their wrestling season first, then switch to a basketball season. With this program, girls out for basketball can complete their season Dec. 12 and then pivot after winter break to a girls’ wrestling program.
Superintendent Autumn Pino said this was a proactive move that could help build a robust program for Lisbon, who is already well known for wrestling in the state.
Horman said uniforms for wrestling will be makeshift this season, and will investigate full uniforms next season.
Horman said Lisbon is in an ideal situation to start a junior high wrestling program, as there are a number off other programs starting in the corridor, including Mount Vernon and Solon, which will give the girls teams to wrestle against, as well as with some other Tri-Rivers conference schools that are exploring their own programs.
Board member Allan Mallie asked if practices would be co-ed or how that would be organized?
Horman said the goal would be that girls only wrestle with other girls, boys only wrestle with boys.
“Because we’re in a hybrid environment at the moment, if a school offers a girls’ wrestling program, they wrestle with the girls’ wrestling team,” Horman said. “If they don’t and don’t have a co-op agreement and a girl’s only option is to wrestle with the boys’ team, it’s up to both teams at a meet come to an agreement on how to treat the situation.”
Horman said if the numbers interested continue at the middle school level, this could become a feeder program for Lisbon to develop their own girls’ wrestling team at the high school level.