Wrestling. When I think of that word, I think of so many things.
I think of the 11-year-old me sitting in front of the TV, watching Helen Maroulis win gold for the United States of America during the 2016 Rio Olympics. I think of strong, powerful women who are capable of doing the most amazing throws, takedowns and pins.
When I think of wrestling, I dream of becoming a wrestler competing at the highest level, putting my blood, sweat and tears into the sport. I think of the worst moments of my life and how wrestling brought me out of them.
When I was in fifth grade, my teacher went around the room and asked us what we wanted to be when we grew up. Most people said doctors, nurses — and when it got to me, I said I wanted to be a UFC fighter.
Growing up, I loved Combat Sports from the WWE to boxing to the UFC. I loved it all. In my senior year, I had an option between a grad party filled with my friends or driving three and a half hours to go watch an MMA fight — I chose the fight.
I never thought that dream could be mine. The first time I asked to join a wrestling team, I was in 6th grade. By the time I was in 12th grade, I asked to join a wrestling team for the final time.
Despite women’s wrestling being the fastest-growing sport. In 2022, High School girls’ wrestling was still relatively unknown. I knew that dream was potentially over for me. I had offers to play tennis at a small college despite hating the sport.
So, I decided to do pageants and jujitsu. Wrestling began to fade in the back of my mind until the summer of 2024.
After surviving an abusive relationship, I decided to pick back up on my childhood dream of becoming a mixed martial arts fighter. I was still competing in Miss America local scholarship competitions, where my service initiative focused on teaching young girls martial arts to prevent sexual assault and domestic violence.
One day, I was tabling for my Miss America service initiative when I got an offer I could not pass up. I was approached to sign on and wrestle for Oakland University’s newest club team. Despite Oakland University having a D2 wrestling team from 1971 to 1985, it gained a club team again from 2000 to 2010.
There had never been a girl to wrestle for Oakland until now.
On June 23, Oakland University became an official club team through Oakland University, Recreation and Wellness and the National Collegiate Wrestling Association – this time, we decided to have a woman at the Forefront.
One of my mottos that I have tattooed on me and written on my mirror is “For her,” which honors the girls who paved the way for us to wrestle in high school, college and at the world level.
It shows gratitude for our younger selves and our childhood dreams that we can accomplish through this sport. And lastly, it’s a reminder of why we do it for the future of wrestling, so all girls have a place not only on the mat, but an opportunity to wrestle for Oakland University.