Freshman girls wrestler makes it to State
March 13, 2023
Ritenour’s wrestling team went from having only one girl on the wrestling team last season to having a first-year wrestling freshman make it to state.
“All of my girls worked really hard this year it’s pretty amazing to see the growth and improvement of the girls team this year,” Assistant Coach James Sellers said.
Freshman Julian Smith took third place in districts, which qualified her for State. Though she did not medal, she was the first freshman female wrestler to go to state in all of Ritenour.
“Julian Smith is a dedicated young woman who was very mentally strong and put her everything in her first year wrestling. She was very deserving of her spot in State,” Coach John Howard said.
The trip to State was not just beginner’s luck, Smith worked hard in practice and even stayed outside of normal hours to improve her craft.
“Ms. Smith was extremely hard working she never missed a day of practice or gave up. There were times she even stayed late to practice longer to get in that extra work,” Coach Howard said.
Smith is in disbelief about how fast she fell in love with a sport.
“Wrestling is something that never crossed my mind until I got into high school, so to think that my first year I made it to state is pretty insane. I’d like to think I deserved this, I always put my everything into each practice and each match. I’m really looking forward to next year; I’ll be doing everything I can to make it there again and to medal,” Smith said.