After only two years of existence, the girls wrestling program at Gilmer High School continues to thrive.
In year one, Candelaria Velasquez became Gilmer’s and Georgia’s first girls state champion.
This spring, 2020 GHS graduate Karina Gonzalez made history when she received and accepted a scholarship to wrestle at William Penn University in Iowa.
Gonzalez discussed the feat in an interview last week and noted the outpour of support she has received.
“I’m so honored and I worked really hard to achieve this,” she said. “I just want to make a difference in life. I feel so honored, especially after receiving so much support from the community that I didn’t see before.
“I help out a lot at my church, but seeing the support from other people ... they told me I’m making history and to keep fighting for what I want. That’s been really awesome, and I’m honored to have that support in this community.”
Gonzalez said she garnered interest from at least eight colleges and landed one scholarship offer aside from William Penn. She was not able to take any official visits as most are far from Ellijay.
“When I first talked to the coach (Tucker Black), he said it was the first year starting the program and that it wasn’t a big school,” Gonzalez recalled. “Ever since I started talking to them it just felt like family.”
The upcoming season will be William Penn’s first for girls, which will make for a familiar situation.
“The girls program just started at Gilmer and it (William Penn) felt new,” Gonzalez said. “I feel like I’ll learn more because its a new program and they’re all learning. It’s not a very big program.”
Gonzalez did not explore the option of wrestling at the collegiate level until midway through her senior season.
“I talked with coach (Josh Ghobadpoor) about it and he asked me if I wanted to wrestle in college, but I didn’t think I’d have the chance,” she said. “I didn’t think I was that good. After we talked more about it, I thought, ‘Well, I really enjoy wrestling and it’s something I really want to do.’ We started the process and that’s when I decided I really wanted to do it.”
College wrestling will be another new chapter for Gonzalez, just like her time at GHS. She was not on the wrestling team in its inaugural season, but decided to join as a senior.
“After Candy won state, I had always wanted to do it but just thought it was more of a guy’s sport and no one really supports it,” she said. “After Candy won, I decided I really wanted to try it out, and I pushed myself to do it. With it being brand new, I was kind of scared and nervous.”
Gonzalez’s mom was a bit apprehensive as well. She eventually came around and offered some words of encouragement.
“My mom (Josefina) didn’t want me to do wrestling at first because she thought I was going to get hurt because I’m a real clumsy person,” Gonzalez said. “When I finally told her it was something I really wanted to do, she stuck by my side. She told me, ‘No matter how hard it is, if you’re going to start something you can’t quit.’”
While girls have wrestled in Georgia for years, they never had their own GHSA division prior to 2018. In most cases, girls had to wrestle boys.
Now there are more high school tournaments specifically for girls, but with the sport still in its infancy, there are less throughout the season compared to the boys.
As a team, Gilmer’s female wrestlers won one regular season tournament. Gonzalez kept her season going and qualified for state after winning the sectional tournament.
At state, she was under the bright lights of the Macon Coliseum and wrestled in front of the largest crowds of the season.
“I was really nervous because I didn’t know what to expect,” she said. “At sectionals, it was much smaller and it was only against three girls. State was a big change. I think I prayed all the way there on the way from the hotel. When I finally walked out there I thought, ‘Is this really happening? Am I really here today?’
“When I got out on the mat for my first match I remember coach saying, ‘Karina, you need to breathe,’ because I guess I wasn’t. It was a really good experience to get out there and try to win.”
Gonzalez won her first two matches before a loss in the semifinals.
“I think overall I did pretty good,” she said. “I was upset because I wanted first place, but I worked really hard and was undefeated most of the season. I only lost against a guy, then I pinned a guy the next week. Against girls, I had not lost a single match before state.
“After losing that first match (in the semifinals), I was devastated. It was heartbreaking.”
Gonzales went on to post a 1-1 record in the consolation bracket for fourth place in Class 4A’s 152-pound weight class.
Gonzalez finished the season with a 16-2 record against girls and discussed her time at GHS, saying, “With wrestling I learned I can do anything I put my mind to do. Even if it’s hard I can do it if I stay focused and pray about it. I think it was a really amazing experience.
“Coach (Scott) DeGraff was a lot easier on us, and coach Ghobadpoor pushed us the way he would push the guys. They all pushed us to be better and told us to fight for what we want. One thing that really stood out was after I lost my first match at state, coach (Brent) Berry came up to me and gave me a hug. He said, ‘I see a big future in this sport for you. Just keep working hard and it’ll open a bunch of doors.’”
Gonzalez has not selected a major but is exploring immigration law.
“With all the stuff going on ... my mom came here to give us a better life and she did it as a single mother,” Gonzalez said. “With three kids and working everyday to give us what we have now, I want to make her proud. Seeing little kids pulled away from their families (after crossing the border into the U.S.), I want to give them a chance to be with their family.”
William Penn is a private university, and its season begins in October. The Statesmen compete in the National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics as members of the Heart of America Athletic Conference.