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Going to the mat Sophomore girl is on the wrestling team to help keep in shape during the winter.
THE INDIANAPOLIS STAR
January 04, 2000, Tuesday
CARMEL, Ind. -- Leslie Harvey's blond, braided pigtails fly through the
air as she summons all the
strength, speed and agility in her stick-thin, 100-pound body to pin her
opponent.
Her opponent is a boy, and he wins this practice match. That's OK with
Harvey, however, because there
will be other wins on other days. Most important is that she gets to keep
her spot in the male-dominated
sport of high school wrestling.
Harvey, a 15-year-old sophomore, wrestles as the only girl among the more
than 50 Carmel High School
wrestlers.
She knew she would be scrutinized when she joined the team last year and has
earned the respect and
support of her teammates, coach Andy Simon said.
"She's not afraid," he said. "She's physical."
But Simon was nervous when Harvey approached him about joining the team.
"I was scared," he said. "It was something we'd been preparing ourselves
for. We'd seen it in other
schools."
Wrestling coaches estimate there are probably about one dozen high school
girls who compete in the state,
although the Indiana High School Athletic Association does not keep track of
that number. There are two
female wrestlers at Hamilton Heights Middle School.
Harvey's teammates Tom Hughes and Vinnie Bonacorsi both wrestle in her
103-pound (or less) weight
class. They said it was strange competing with her in practice matches at
first, but they both quickly
adapted.
"Everybody just treats her like a guy," Bonacorsi said.
Harvey lacks interest in being labeled either a pioneer or a trailblazer.
She has no particular feminist
message to share and is humble about her skills, knowing she can do better.
Now, she chooses not to
keep track of her win/loss record.
For Harvey, becoming a wrestler was a way to remain active in the winter
before track season started.
She actually started the sport while in middle school near Gary.
"It seemed like fun, like something I could do," she said.
Her parents were skeptical at first about letting their daughter wrestle.
They've since warmed up to the
idea -- and had to remember that they always told her she could accomplish
anything if she put her mind
to it.
"So when she decided she wanted to wrestle, I couldn't backtrack," said her
mother, Judy. Her son,
Chris, a seventh-grader at Clay Junior High School, now wrestles, too.
Wrestling also helped Leslie Harvey meet people when the family moved to
Carmel a year and a half ago.
"You have to get involved in something, otherwise you won't meet people
except in your classes," she
said.
Harvey is actually involved in several other somethings, including weekday
morning Scripture readings
with her church group and weekly operatic voice lessons.
So in the opinion-heavy world of high school, what do Harvey's friends think
of her wrestling?
"They think I'm weird, but they thought that before I wrestled," she said.
The hard part is when she practices six days a week, and then a male
opponent at another school chooses
to forfeit the match rather than wrestle a girl.
"We put her out there, and if they want to wrestle her, they do, and if they
don't, they don't," Simon said.
The boys at other schools seem to fear the teasing they may face whether
they win or lose to a girl.
Undeterred, Harvey plans to try to win a varsity spot on the team next year.
Later, she hopes to wrestle in
college.
"I like being in shape a lot."
-------------------------------------------
Kristen Jewett is missed
Coach Will Rely On Individual Efforts From High School Wrestlers
Wiscasset Newspaper Aaron C. Miller 12/19/99
Wiscasset Looses To Monmouth Academy In Season Opener
Left with only eight wrestlers on his team, Coach Shawn Guest is relying on individual talent to pull through Wiscasset High School's wrestling season this year.
Last year's senior wrestlers, T.J. James, Colton Tlumac, Mark Sleeper, Mark Ward, and Kristen Jewett have left a large gap which will prove tough to fill for Guest.
In addition, Tyler Nichols, Ryan Durgin, Ryan Ward, and Kyle Jellison did not return to the mats this season.
At Saturday's home match against Monmouth Academy, Wiscasset lost by one match, 48-36. Because of the small number of wrestlers, the Redskins gave up six forfeits.
Although the path to the MVC State Tournament might prove to be a rough one, Coach Guest is looking for the best out of what he has.
"Our big thing for us will be the individual talent this year," Guest said. "If they want to succeed, they will."
Last year senior T.J. James grabbed first place at the KVAC State Tournament -- the only wrestling champion Wiscasset High School has ever seen. In addition, senior Kristen Jewett, the team's only female wrestler, wrestled to a second place finish at the regional tournament and snagged fifth place at the states.
Jason Grey, who is wrestling for Wiscasset this year, had a promising season last year by placing second in the states. This year's talent came as no surprise to Guest.
"It's about what I expected," Guest said. He said is looking forward to watching veterans like Paul Rines, Jeremy Balducci, Jason Grey, Curt Theriault and Steve Ward to excel this season.
"Steve Ward this year is aggressive and is going after what he wants," Guest said. "He has always been passive in the past. Steve and Jason, Paul, Curt, and Jeremy could all be at state championships this year. They've been there before -- they've got experience and know what it is all about."
The Redskin wrestlers will battle Boothbay and Hyde on Wednesday, December 15, (after press time).
Individual Results 112 pounds: Wiscasset's Jason Grey pinned Monmouth's Nate Scott in 1:22. 130 pounds: Wiscasset's Paul Rines pinned Monmouth's Ryan Audet in 2:24. 140 pounds: Monmouth's Steve Varney pinned Wiscasset's Clinton Kibben in 48 seconds. 145 pounds: Monmouth's Matt Weymouth pinned Matt Reed in 5:19. 152 pounds: Wiscasset's Jeremy Balducci pinned Dale Cunningham in 1:06. 160 pounds: Wiscasset's James Crawson pinned Monmouth's Steve Turcette in 1:47. 171 pounds: Wiscasset's Steve Ward pinned Monmouth's Bryan Jiradin in 37 seconds. 275 pounds: Wiscasset's Curt Theriault won by forfeit.
