Moore Girls' Wrestling Looking To Pin Down First Oklahoma State Championship

The inaugural Moore girls' wrestling team started with 25 members, all with zero wrestling experience.

“It’s crazy, none of us have ever wrestled before, and we’re already here," said Moore senior wrestler Nadia Alejandres. 

Here refers to the Lions finishing in the top position in the first girls wrestling regional competition. 

Moore won the west region, a testament not only to the girls' talent, but head coach Robert Washington’s recruiting efforts. 

“We’ve been blessed here at Moore High School to have a really good athletic group of girls in soccer and softball, so that was my main target, to infiltrate some of those kids who weren’t playing all the time on the field," said Washington.

As the season went along, with every take down, the girls took in more about technique, and Coach Washington watched them grow from a team of 25 rookies, to now regional and possibly state champions. 

Ninety-nine years after the first boys wrestling state champions were crowned in Oklahoma, girls will get a chance to compete for a title on the mat for the first time as an officially sanctioned sport. 

"It’s been a tough growth for them, but they’ve come along really well, and they listen and they learn so fast," said Washington. 

Come what may on the mats Thursday at the state championship, these girls have already made history, and broken barriers. 

“It’s showing, girls, they can do boys' sports and everything. I think it’s a really good step," said Moore senior wrestler Bridgette Morales.

“I tell them, they’re going to put a team picture up of you, you’re going to be the person that’s going to be there forever," Washington said. "You can tell your great grandchildren, 'mama wrestled at Moore, there’s our picture there at the fieldhouse.'” 

The state competition starts at 10:30 a.m. Thursday at the State Fairgrounds.