Molly Leaf loves wrestling. The Donegal eighth-grader is in her third season of the sport, but this year has been especially important to Molly. After wrestling on a boys' team in the elementary school program and last year, she joined Donegal's new all-female wrestling team this year.

"I absolutely loved getting to wrestle with a team of such amazing, talented girls," Molly said. "There are many different challenges to overcome with a new growing sport. I love that girls' wrestling continues to grow because it is such an amazing sport and community of people."

Donegal has had a girls' wrestling program at the elementary level for several years. Last year, Molly became the district's first female wrestler at the junior high level, and now the district offers girls' wrestling teams at both the junior high and high school levels.

"It is definitely a growing sport, and we are excited to see the team grow," said Tiffany Sullivan, president of the wrestling booster club. "While Donegal only has a small team of 10 high school and junior high girls, we are anxious to see the team grow as our seven elementary girls join the Donegal girls' team in a few years."

Donegal will showcase girls' wrestling at a tournament at the high school on Saturday, March 2, beginning at noon. "This will be the first only girls' tournament that the Donegal Wrestling Booster Club has hosted," Sullivan said. "The idea came from our elementary coach Scott Drace. Scott wanted to give our young girls an opportunity to have time on the mat with other young girls learning the sport."

The tournament will feature elementary-age girls, and the public is encouraged to attend to cheer on the athletes while learning more about the sport.

The junior high and varsity girls' wrestling team just wrapped up a successful inaugural season, said coach Liam McWilliams, despite the fact that many of the girls were new to the sport.

"It took a little bit to get going, but after a few of them stepped on the mat against real competition, it opened their eyes as to what they needed to do to succeed," he said. "I always told the team that as far as this year goes, I do not care if they win or lose, only that they improve upon their losses as well as victories and get better."

That's exactly what happened, he shared. "I enjoy looking back to the first day of practice and thinking about how much every single girl has improved," McWilliams said. "Every girl should be proud of how they did this year, no matter if they won or lost, because they are the ones that are paving the path for Donegal girls' wrestling."

Harlee Fenicle, a fourth-grader, encourages other girls to try the sport. "Step out of your comfort zone and challenge yourself at succeeding in the toughest sport," she said. "And, of course, be better than the boys." She plans to continue wrestling into high school, noting that she's loved wrestling since she started the sport as a kindergartner.

Molly said that wrestling has taught her three important lessons: Don't give up, work hard and be a good teammate. "Overall, wrestling has faced me with many challenges, emotions and life lessons," she said. "That's why I love wrestling."

Although the wrestling season wraps up in March, information will be shared in late summer about the 2024-25 season. For more information, contact the Donegal athletic department at 717-492-1232 or follow "Donegal Wrestling Booster Club" on Facebook.