Written By: Delaney Knipp

For ages, wrestling has been a pre-dominantly male sport, but for the Newport Harbor Wrestling program, the girls are some of the toughest competitors. Leading into the season, wrestlers spent every spare moment practicing techniques and pins in the gym as well as running stadiums and hills to get into the best shape for competition.
These are some of the incredibly dedicated athletes at Newport Harbor, and they show it in practice and matches.

Among these strong competitors are two girls, sophomore, Alina Aguirre, and senior, Cheyenne Stooks. These girls play to win, and easily hold their own against the other wrestlers around them. Stooks, having been on the wrestling team for four years, has overcome all boundaries and succeeded greatly in her sport. “I like wrestling the most because of the technical aspect and discipline that comes out of the sport,” said Stooks when she was asked what drew her into wrestling, “you have to be able to figure out situations on the spot and be willing to learn from mistakes.” Her love for the sport allows her to play hard and perform the best she can on and off the mat.

At Newport Harbor, all wrestlers are treated equally, as both the boys and the girls are given every opportunity to succeed. Stooks mentions how “surprisingly, we don’t get treated any differently than the guys” even though that wasn’t what she expected when she first started. Even though their teammates treat them with respect, there are still some hardships that go along with it. Aguirre says, “Cheyenne and I have both had an experience with a ref who wouldn’t call our pins or points we deserved, but for the most part people are nice.” Both wrestlers are now preparing for another great season.

The team as a whole is working on getting stronger for their upcoming December season. After beating CDM in their Battle of the Bay game, winning the Golden Singlet, and wrestling in the CIF championships, the team is looking forward to holding on to those wins and performing even better this year. The wrestling team is upping their practice intensity with the hope that this year, they will take home the wins in CIF. “It is always fun to have a goal to reach for,” says Aguirre, “this year our goal is to have a lot of wins!” Good luck to our sailor boys and girls, we are excited to see you compete!