ASHLAND — The wrestling mats at Ashland High School are about to get a little more crowded.
The Ashland City Schools Board of Trustees approved a girls’ wrestling team at the high school for the 2025-2026 school year during its regular meeting Tuesday.
Superintendent Steve Paramore said the sport was offered at both the middle school and high school as a club team this year. But, the high school didn’t have enough girls to field an Ohio High School Athletic Association squad.
A large class of middle school wrestlers changed that.
Paramore said around 14 girls wrestled at the middle school last year. Another seven participated in the high school’s club wrestling program.
Girls’ wrestling is the fastest-growing high school sport in the country, according to reporting from the Associated Press.
“I actually watched a couple girls’ wrestling matches last year, so, they get after it,” Paramore said.
“It’s just something that’s growing in our district. Obviously, our boys’ wrestling team has been pretty prolific over the years and several of these are siblings, and we will look to make that a varsity team.”
He said the school doesn’t anticipate too much of a cost to start the squad. The high school already has wrestling rooms and equipment. Paramore noted girls will likely wrestle at several of the same times and tournaments as the boys’ team.
The girls will still have to fundraise, like other sports teams do.
The district hasn’t hired a coach for the team yet. Paramore said the position will be posted when Ashland City Schools is looking to hire a coach.
But, he said the school has had coaches at the club level and he anticipates they’ll have interest in continuing to coach.
