Every wrestler on the team is a rookie.
Nearly half the members are freshmen.
Natomas High School didn’t even have a Girls Wrestling Team last year.
But don’t feel sorry for the Nighthawks’ nine girl grapplers – what they lack in experience, they’re making up for with hard work, practicing about two hours a day and carving out a reputation for success in tournaments region-wide.
The lady Nighthawks finished 5th out of 35 teams last month in the Women’s West Coast Tournament of Champions, and 3rd out of 25 teams days later in the “No Guts No Glory” tournament hosted by Natomas High.
“They get better every week,” Coach Jeremy Arsich said, adding that the team is made up of many hard workers, not one huge star. “They’re doing really well. I’m very excited about how they’re doing.
“I’m also proud because these girls are trying something new and giving it everything they’ve got,” he said. “They’re enjoying it, that’s the best part, they’re really having fun.”
Last year, Natomas High had only one female wrestler, so she practiced with the boys team. This year, the newly formed girls team never takes the mat with boys – neither in practice nor competition.
Juliana Gutierrez, 14, said she joined the team because “I thought it would be fun to try something new, something that I haven’t tried before.”
Rashanique Adams, 16, describes herself as a tomboy. She thinks it’s fun to get banged around or to smash an opponent to the mat.
“It keeps me in shape and out of trouble,” Stephanie Gandara, 14, said of wrestling. “And we have study class, so I get my homework done.”
Besides Gutierrez, Adams and Gandara, Nighthawk girls wrestlers include Lizbeth Luna, Jordyn Kennedy, Jacqueline Navarro, Viviana Quintana, Mireya Carrillo and Jasmine Arciga.
As wrestlers, the girls learn things they can use throughout their life, including discipline, dedication, self control, goal-setting, practice, and the importance of brushing it off, and trying again if they get knocked down or defeated in a match, Arsich said.
“It’s really becoming a family, and that’s what you want to see,” Arsich said. “That’s what makes high school amazing, that’s what makes high school sports amazing. They build these friendships and bonds that they’ll have forever.”
