No grappling with decision to wrestle
Moore went to mat for Greater Lowell
W hen Jen Moore walked into her first practice session as a freshman for the wrestling team at Greater Lowell Technical High, she was the only female on the mat. That wasn't tough. Nor was hearing about the intense and strict training regimen, or shaking off negative comments from doubters.
No, the toughest part was applying her makeup before school each morning.
"Oh, I was so sore, I couldn't lift my arms up above my shoulders," Moore said with a laugh. "I was pretty much sore that entire season. I went in to the first practice and coach said if I could stick it out, I could stay. The next morning, putting on makeup was the toughest thing, because my arms hurt so much."
Moore recently completed her fourth season with the program, competing in the 135-pound class. The Gryphons senior this month competed in the Massachusetts State Open tournament, followed by the New England Girls Open, earning a pair of runner-up finishes. On Saturday, she will travel to Michigan to wrestle in the National Girls Open.
A cross-country runner in the fall and a member of the outdoor track team during the spring, Moore was seeking to compete in the winter when she initially approached Greater Lowell wrestling coach Tom Cassidy.
"It doesn't matter who you are, where you come from, guy or girl," Cassidy said. "If you win, you're in. If you can beat the guy on the other side of the lineup as you, you're on the mat. That's all I care about. She did everything I asked her, she doesn't mind getting dirty, and she just took to it and seemed to like the sport."
As a freshman, she competed at 119 pounds. Her sophomore season, she finished with a winning record, and her junior year, she was invited to her first all-girls state tournament.
In that competition, she had a one-point loss to an opponent nearly 10 years her elder. A week later, she returned the favor and beat the same grappler.
"It shows you how she is," Cassidy said. "She worked her butt off that week and came back to win against the same person. We really didn't have a chance to see how she matched up against other girls until that tournament. That's when we really saw how good she was."
Though she may be smaller and perhaps not as strong as her male counterparts, Cassidy said Moore was probably the smartest wrestler he has coached the last four years. Perfecting technical moves and spending hours in the weight room every day, Moore began gaining the respect of her once-apprehensive teammates.
The doubters were quieted once Moore began winning matches, and opponents who once refused to wrestle her then welcomed the challenge.
Still, she faced critics.
"I hear it from my parents or friends who hear it from other people," said Moore, who plans to attend Salem State College and continue wrestling for an all-girls state team. "It takes twice as much strength for a girl to wrestle, because girls naturally have less muscle. They should be impressed with any girl who goes out and does it. I'm proud of guys who wrestle against girls and have good sportsmanship about it. I just want to wrestle. It should be the same if you're watching two guys or a guy and a girl wrestle."
While Moore has completed her high school career, freshman Emily Lovell just finished her first year on the mats for Tyngsborough High. Like Moore, Lovell is the only female wrestler in the program.
And like Moore, she embraces the challenge.
"When I first walked in to practice, the guys looked at me like, 'What?' But, as time went on, we got closer and now, I'm like their little sister. At first, I thought maybe I shouldn't be doing this because a lot of people had negative things to say. But I'm having fun, the team wants me there, so who cares?"
Lovell initially considered wrestling as a joke with a group of her girlfriends. She was the only girl to show, however. When she reported to Tyngsborough head coach Jim Tansey, he said that he would treat her the same as any of his wrestlers.
Wrestling at 112 pounds, Lovell earned her first varsity win this season. In the Girls State Open, she placed fifth in her weight class. Lovell also played for the junior-varsity soccer team in the fall and is a sprinter on the outdoor track team.
Though her parents were initially surprised, Lovell wrestled each match with both parents cheering in the stands. "My mom was like, 'What? After all these years of being a girly-girl, you want to wrestle?'
"My dad was a little worried about it being with guys, but they were both supportive the whole season. My boyfriend wrestles, too, and he thinks it's cool that I'm doing this. I could probably beat him if I really wanted to." 