Judge says Pa. girl wrestler allowed on boys’ team

[DonViejo]

Source: ASSOCIATED PRESS

WILLIAMSPORT, Pa. (AP) — A federal judge is allowing a central Pennsylvania seventh-grader to be a member of the all-boys wrestling team at her middle school.

U.S. District Judge Matthew Brann says in a ruling Monday that the Line Mountain School District failed to justify its reasons for preventing girls from wrestling with boys.

The school district says there are psychological, physical and moral risks for girls wrestling boys, but Brann says the district did not present any expert testimony or examples to support those claims.

Brian and Angie Beattie of Herndon filed a lawsuit last year, saying their daughter Audriana was being denied the opportunity to wrestle because of her gender. The girl’s attorneys, Terry Fromson and Abbe Fletman, issued a statement praising the judge’s decision.

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Read more: http://www.salon.com/2014/01/14/judge_says_pa_girl_wrestler_allowed_on_boys_team/

[tjl148]

1. To late....

Dang it, I was a wrestler in HS 50 years ago so why did they wait so long to get the girls in there?

[Niceguy1]

2. I wonder if she realizes

Hands end up on different places where you don't expect them when your wrestling and how's that going to work with a girl?

[markpkessinger]

4. Not to mention . . .

. . . that boys, when wrestling, often experience . . . er . . . involuntary anatomical responses . . . would think that could be quite embarrassing for both the boy and girl involved!

[Niceguy1]

5. the exposure to the liability

for the school must be huge. I wouldn't want to wrestle girl not because she's a girl but due to the possible consequences of an unintentional act on the mat.

[blackspade]

6. Having wrestled in JHS...

Not much differently.
I'll tell you that hands always end up in unfortunate places.
Honestly though, your not really thinking about that.
Your concentrating on not getting pinned.

The before and after, well, it's not like erections don't happen in all male sports.
Although cups make this a painful short lived phenomena...

[Brickbat]

11. I'm guessing she's aware of that.

[we can do it]

14. Nice try. It goes both ways.

[liberal_at_heart]

3. There were two girl wrestlers on the team my son was one. One ended up quitting because of a

mental illness she was having problems with. The other girl went on to win an award during the champion meet at the end of the season.

[LeftyMom]

8. The rest of the country is weird. There were girls wrestling here when I was in school,

and it wasn't even a new thing.

I swear, I worry about the rest of you people.

[Capt. Obvious]

10. BUT OH MY GOD

didn't you see up thread that hands end up on girl parts! Lawsuits! Something!@

[cyberswede]

12. Agree

There's a girl on my son's 7th/8th grade team. She has wrestled both boys and girls on opposing teams. Nobody thinks anything of it.

Our 8th grade quarterback is a girl. Phenomenal athlete.

[Blue_Tires]

13. +1

our high school team had a girl on the squad 20+ years ago...

and this was a very traditional, conservative catholic school...

[NeoGreen]

9. My daughter wrestled on the boys' team...

... from 8th grade to 11th grade.
She didn't wrestle her senior year due to a change in coaches and maybe a little senior "itus".
She is preparing to start her 2nd semester at college and is doing very well in the honors program on her way to become a Veterinarian.

She loved it and misses being a wrestler.

She has always said she had a great experience and never once did any one of the boys on her team, or even on the opposing teams, say or do anything to make her uncomfortable just because she was a girl. Practices were hard, but they were hard for everyone equally.

Unfortunately, my wife and I can't say the same for a few parents.

On rare occasions we would hear a visiting parent openly deride the team because there was a "girl" wrestler. We would let them know quietly but firmly that "that is our daughter out there and we are proud of her" and to make it clear that she earned the right to be on the team.

Of course I'm not perfect. The hardest matches to watch were the ones where she was wrestling another girl. There were at least 3 others when our school would host tournaments.

[24601]

15. Culver Acedemies (Northern Indiana) has an exceptional girl wrestling against boys. She's a senior

now. As a Freshman, she was 52-2. As a Sophomore, she went to the boys Indiana State Championships. Internationally, she wrestles other women and took Gold for the US at the Pan Am games.

http://news.culver.org/?p=1361

[AngryAmish]

16. I wonder what the Undertaker would say about this

That said I would not wrestle a girl. Can't win.

[alphafemale]

17. Girls can be very competitive in wrestling.

They have been for years. Girls have been on wrestling teams for over 30 years. (That I know about.) This is still a debate?