This past winter season, Haven introduced the new girls wrestling team. The team consisted of eight girls, seven of whom were freshmen and one sophomore, and was coached by Tony Gilliano and Paul Somaru.

The team finished as a top 10 team in District 1. Additionally, not only did the team have a successful time during the season, but the girls persisted through postseason as well, with sophomore Lane Harrington and freshman Kai Czaplicki qualifying for Districts, and Czaplicki earning the District Champion title. Both Czaplicki and Harrington qualified for Regionals, with Harrington moving forward to earn 6th place at States.

Loads of hard work led to their success, however. Aside from their daily training and workouts, the team had the additional challenge of recruiting new members and finding tournaments to compete in.

“It started off kind of rocky with just a few tournaments scheduled, but our coaches worked really hard and ended up getting us a lot more tournaments unexpectedly,” Harrington said. “We had a few less than the guys, but overall, it was a very well-rounded schedule.”

The turnout for the new team was also better than anticipated. Harrington confirms that the team itself was very well-rounded, allowing for a lot of learning potential throughout the entirety of the season. 

Czaplicki emphasizes the importance and excitement of each practice.

“I think the atmosphere was always really fun. Practice was never something I was dreading during the day, and neither were meets or tournaments,” Czaplicki said. “I think our coaches and our team made the atmosphere something to look forward to.”

The team aims to increase involvement in the sport, hoping to find aspiring girls wrestlers in both the incoming freshmen and current high schoolers.

“I definitely want to see more people on the team. We had about eight this year, which was still a lot for a first-year wrestling team, but I definitely think we can get more throughout the years that we have the team. Just more commitment and more love for the sport is all we can ask for,” Czaplicki said.

Overall, after the PIAA’s sanctioning of girls wrestling, Haven’s successful season opens the door to many more successful seasons down the line.

“Right now, women’s wrestling is the fastest growing sport in the country, and on top of that, PA is arguably the toughest state to wrestle in…as far as brand new programs go, it truly couldn’t have gone better,” Somaru said.