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But girls wrestling is on the rise, not just in Virginia but around the country. Participation has more than doubled since the 2021-22 school year, according to the , eclipsing 64,000 athletes.

In the Old Dominion, the number of girls wrestlers has increased more than 133% in the last three years, according to the Girls currently compete with boys on a singular team, but the sanctioning of girls wrestling as its own varsity sport is not far away.

Several girls wrestlers in the Timesland area have gotten on the ground floor of the sport鈥檚 growth and given it legitimacy. While many of them will compete, and win, among boys in the Class 1-6 state championships, they鈥檙e also gearing up for the third installment of the all-girls open championships being held Wednesday and Thursday in Glen Allen.

Before those championships commence, let鈥檚 meet the delegation of girls wrestlers from Southwest Virginia contending for titles this week and helping grow the sport.

Isabella Hill

School: Grayson County

Grade: Senior

Weight Division: 138

Season Record: 19-12

What to know: Won the girls open state championship at 145 pounds last year ... Won the Zone 1 Girls Qualifier ... Placed fourth at the Region 1B/C championships

How did you start wrestling? 鈥淚 started wrestling in October of 2022, my sophomore year. I wanted to wrestle for a while, but when I found out girls would have their own state championship that year, I decided to try it.鈥�

What do you enjoy most about wrestling? 鈥淚 love being on a team that is always supporting each other, traveling to new places and being able to compete individually.鈥�

How do you feel about the rise of girls wrestling as a high school sport? 鈥淚 think it鈥檚 great. Every sport should have the opportunity for girls and boys to compete. It gives girls a chance to excel at another sport.鈥�

What would a state championship mean to you? 鈥淲inning a title would be a level of excitement that I would remember my whole life. I would feel an immense amount of overwhelming joy and validation for all the effort put it.鈥�

Maggie Page

School: Radford

Grade: Senior

Weight Division: 152

Season Record: 6-4

What to know: Placed third at the girls open state championships last year ... Won the Zone 1 Girls Qualifier ... Placed third at the Three Rivers District Tournament

How did you start wrestling? 鈥淚 started wrestling my sophomore year. I started wrestling because my coach kept on asking me over and over again to join his team. I eventually caved in and figured out that I love this sport and want to become the best I can possibly be.鈥�

What do you enjoy most about wrestling? 鈥淭he friendships that this sport brings me. Everybody becomes a family, and that really is one of the greatest things about it. The wrestling in general is great also. It gives me something to look forward to do but it also gives me personal challenges. The greatest feeling is when you have been working so hard and finally see the results you have been working towards.鈥�

How do you feel about the rise of girls wrestling as a high school sport? 鈥淚 feel so happy that so many girls are wanting to come out and wrestle. Wrestling truly brings so many people together.鈥�

What would a state championship mean to you? 鈥淲inning states would honestly be so awesome. I have been wanting to win states ever sense I started wrestling. It is a dream of mine that I am hoping to make true this coming states. Having that ring would prove to everybody and myself that I did this and that I put the effort in that was needed to succeed.鈥�

Serenity Shearer

School: Lord Botetourt

Grade: Junior

Weight Division: 145

Season Record: 18-2

What to know: Reached the Round of 32 at girls open state championship last year ... Won the Zone 1 Girls Qualifier ... Won the Louisa Ladies Invitational in January

How did you start wrestling? 鈥淚 started wrestling in eighth grade, wrestling originally in the 152-pound weight class. What piqued my interest was the year prior, seeing in the yearbook two girls in the picture. Before this I did not know that the sport was open to all genders, originally thinking it was a male-only sport.鈥�

What do you enjoy most about wrestling? 鈥淢y favorite thing is the community built, from building friendships with teammates and going to girls tournaments and getting to meet other girls who want to see the sport grow just as much as you do.鈥�

How do you feel about the rise of girls wrestling as a high school sport? 鈥淚鈥檓 excited to see the growth of the sport. In my first year wrestling back in middle school, I was the only girl in the room, so getting to watch the growth is great, from being the only girl in the room to now having five girls on our team, with three of us qualified for states.鈥�

What would a state championship mean to you? 鈥淎 state championship would mean the world to me, showing that all the offseason work has really paid off, especially looking back to eighth grade and seeing the growth in my wrestling, strength, and confidence. This sport has formed who I am now and I wouldn鈥檛 change anything.鈥�

Alannah Vest

School: Cave Spring

Grade: Senior

Weight Division: 165

Season Record: 9-3

What to know: Reached the quarterfinals of the girls open state championship last year ... Won the Zone 1 Girls Qualifier ... Placed third at the Lady Cat Invitational in January

How did you start wrestling? 鈥淚 started wrestling during my sophomore year of high school. My mother married a man who was an MMA fighter, so I grew up with two older brothers, Ashoka and Kalek Wagner, who had also grown up wrestling. My stepdad always told me that I should wrestle or start boxing, but I wanted to be a girly girl. He is why I started.鈥�

What do you enjoy most about wrestling? 鈥淎s I matured and watched my brothers wrestle, it made me want to start wrestling. It seemed like fun. One of my favorite things that I am leaving with is the memories I created. The hard work I put myself through led me to have the strength to keep going.鈥�

How do you feel about the rise of girls wrestling as a high school sport? 鈥淲atching women鈥檚 wrestling become so popular as a high school sport is amazing, though I wish it was sanctioned when I first started wrestling. It makes me happy to see little girls start their wrestling journey and knowing that one day those girls will be a state champ or an Olympic wrestler. Watching it grow is a bittersweet process, knowing my journey will be over.鈥�

What would a state championship mean to you? 鈥淔or me to be a state champ would mean the most to me. I have put in hard work to be where I am. The long sweaty practices, the muscle aches, the tears would be finally worth it. The stress of self-doubt would no longer be a thing if I won. Making my family proud, my stepdad and my coaches, would be a memory I would want to remember forever.鈥�

Alliya Walker

School: Grayson County

Grade: Freshman

Weight Division: 100 girls/106 boys

Season Record: 25-8

What to know: Won the Zone 1 Girls Qualifier ... Won the Region 1B/C championship ... Won the USA Girls Midwest Nationals in October in Indiana

How did you start wrestling? 鈥淚 was 5 and I started wrestling when my older brother Justin was at practice and I was forced to come to his practice and watch, but then my dad was like, how about you get out here and wrestle? And I wanted to, and dad called mom and mom was like no, but secretly I was already on the mat wrestling.鈥�

What do you enjoy most about wrestling? 鈥淚 enjoy wrestling the most when it鈥檚 a big match and everyone is cheering and it鈥檚 all like a big family.鈥�

How do you feel about the rise of girls wrestling as a high school sport? 鈥淚 enjoy the grow of women鈥檚 wrestling.鈥�