Mount Vernon girls wrestling to host first home invitational Feb. 1

Girls’ wrestling has been quietly growing at many high schools around Ohio, including Mount Vernon.

While there have been individuals like Vanessa Oswalt and Emma Rinehart who have participated in the sport at Mount Vernon, they usually had to wrestle on the boys’ team. Enough girls showed interest in the program that a team was formed three years ago, and they began wrestling in girls’ tournaments across the state.

Now, that Mount Vernon team is getting its first opportunity to showcase its skills in the inaugural Mount Vernon Girls’ Wrestling Invitational on Sunday, Feb. 1, beginning at 10 a.m. at MVHS’s Energy Field House.

“It’s just really nice to be able to host our own tournament. I know for the past three years we’ve been going to other places. It’s just nice to have one at home, just showcase our team and how much we’ve grown together,” said senior Mahayley Laverick.

“It’s great to have it here. It feels like a big accomplishment — from Mount Vernon being only two girls at one point, to having a big enough team to host their own tournament,” said junior Ash Brokaw. “(It’s nice) being able to wrestle at your hometown with your family and not having to travel an hour.”

Wrestlers from 20 schools are expected to attend, including Pickerington North, Clyde and Licking Valley, which all had wrestlers reach state last year, and Medina Highland, which is coached by Mount Vernon alum Aaron Boucher.

“As of right now, 20 (teams are) confirmed, which was my goal. We’ve got some decent teams coming in,” said Mount Vernon coach Jay DePolo. “Aaron Boucher, I used to wrestle with him, coaches at Medina Highland, and they are coming down. That’ll be kind of neat for him, coming full circle. We’ve got some good teams coming in.”

“I think it represents Mount Vernon really well, getting to showcase our team as well as bringing in good wrestlers from other teams. I think it’s really exciting to have that toughness here. I’m excited that we get to bring that energy here,” said senior Khadija Ndow.

Both Laverick and Ndow began wrestling when the team was formed and are now in the middle of their senior seasons. Laverick had thought about wrestling prior to that, but Ndow was a swimmer and only came out thanks to the assistance of friends like Laverick.

While they are still relatively new to the sport, they feel it has helped them grow both on the mat and off. They have taken a strong grip on the leadership reins and are hoping to impart some of the wisdom they have learned in the sport to the younger wrestlers like sophomores Evelyn Martinez, Massilyn Ricketts and Alivia Zimmerman, and freshmen Jessi Blas-Perez and Luci Parker, as well as girls in the Little Stingers program or even just thinking about joining the sport.

“I have no regrets starting as a sophomore, but there are some things I think I figured it out as I went, it definitely helped being so mentally tough,” Ndow said. “I would say to the younger girls, the earlier you start the better. It’s not really about how long you’re in it, but it’s about your hard work. You get to build on it every time. The more you get to do it, the more consistent you become.”

“I just say (to younger girls) just stick with it,” Laverick said. “If you’re starting off young, you’re really setting yourself up for something amazing. It’s a tough sport, it’s really hard mentally, but it’s really rewarding.

“With the mental toughness, you’re able to say I made this, I got through this. I’ve been in tears at practice before because of how hard it was, but I got to the end of the season, I was like, ‘wow, I made it. I didn’t quit’. I made it through the season, and it felt really great to be able to say that.”

In its first two years as a team, two individuals already made names for themselves on the mat for Mount Vernon. Rinehart finished seventh in the state in 2023, while Brokaw finished third in ’24 and was state champion last winter. Two others (Alivia Zimmerman and Zara Schoonover) advanced to district competition a year ago and this year, the Jackets have several that are ready to take that next step, which begins with the home invitational on Feb. 1.

“Good things are coming and this is just one step to it, one step further to that we’re going to take to get there,” Ndow said. “I’m really excited to see how everyone does, how everyone performs, because it is about what they’ve done at practice, everything they’ve done to prepare on and off the mat. It’s your mentality off the mat, at home, what you’re eating. All of that is going to be showcased here.”

“I think the main goal is to just put a good look out for Mount Vernon. … Not many people know that Mount Vernon is a big girls’ program. I feel like it would be great to show other girls what there is to offer and build our girls’ team next year,” Brokaw said.

DePolo hopes to see a huge crowd at Energy Field House supporting his team.

“It’s exciting. Come support these girls. They’ve been working hard. They’ve earned their spot, they’ve worked hard to get where they’re at, come support them. See what girls’ wrestling is all about. It’s just as high level, just as intense, just as much fun to watch,” DePolo said.