Wasatch High School girls’ wrestling coach Hailey Corona grew up wrestling against boys because girls’ teams weren’t sanctioned in Utah until the 2020-21 season.
Now, the wrestling team is 40 girls strong, and 21 of them competed at the 5A state championships Feb. 14 and 15. They walked away with the team title. Eleven of the wrestlers placed in their weight classes, including three second-place medals and four third-place medals.
Corona praised the team for its performance and thanked the community for cheering on the group.
“Having a supportive school and community that has really gotten behind girls’ wrestling has been really awesome,” she said.
Wasatch County celebrated the victorious team with a fire truck parade down Main Street. The boys’ wrestling team – which finished second in the state this season – was waiting at the high school for them.
“There were lots of cars that were lining Main Street and cheering us on,” Corona said. “And the boys’ wrestling team was cheering us on when we pulled into the high school.”
Corona said it can be lifechanging for girls to participate in sports: she said they learn confidence, discipline and accountability as part of a team.
“It’s really cool for me as a coach to see the development that the girls have from day one of when they start wrestling to where they’re at now,” she said. “It’s a night and day difference, how the girls hold themselves.”
Seven seniors on the team will graduate this spring. Corona said she’s excited to welcome ninth graders from a new middle school wrestling feeder program next season.
