With the 2006 state tournament a thing of the past, one Kodiak wrestler still had a title shot. Sophomore Michelle Canete (18-15 in 2005-06 against varsity and JV girls and boys) was the island’s lone representative at the United States Girls Wrestling Association (USGWA) Alaska Girls Wrestling State Tournament in Sitka last weekend.

Canete, who wrestled in the 112-pound weight class this past season for the Bears, had dropped to the 105-pound division for the tournament, but came back up to the round robin 110-class due to a lack of competitors in the lighter bracket. She won her first match over Katie Conner of Homer 14-4, who had pinned her earlier in the season, then Canete beat her by two in their second meeting.

This advanced her to a showdown with Wasilla’s Ashlee Parker, who also had pinned Canete in a previous encounter this season. Although she didn’t win, Canete came just one point short.

In the words of Kodiak High head wrestling coach Pat Costello, who accompanied Canete on the trip, “She hit an outstanding arm drag to single leg, followed all the correct procedures, but when going to finish the move made a small mistake and lost the takedown and the match.”

In her final match, Canete went up against Tera Sabitionous-Murray of Colony, impressing not only Costello but Chugiak head coach Tom Huffer. She won that match as well, securing second place.

Canete became the third Kodiak wrestler to place top two in state this year.

She only started wrestling a few years ago in the eighth grade. After watching her cousin Brandon’s practices and impressed by the demanding workouts involved, she decided to try it herself. Canete said she also enjoys basketball, but the schedules created conflicts for doing both, so she stuck with the blood and sweat of the mat room.

The tournament was part of the USGWA (www.usgwa.com), an organization committed to female wrestling from elementary school through and beyond college. April 1 and 2 will be the ninth USGWA National Championships in Lake Orion, Mich. In 2005, 622 girls participated in this event. The Sitka meet had about 60 girls by Costello’s estimate, 30 to 35 in the seven-weight class high school division. Wasilla High sent a meet-high eight girls and a pair of coaches to the southeastern town.

USGWA director Kent Bailo estimates there are 4,000 to 5,000 girl wrestlers in the United States, with about half in Texas where, like in Hawaii, it is an athletic association sanctioned sport. Six colleges currently offer women’s wrestling including Pacific University in Forest Grove, Ore.

Bailo states girls’ wrestling is the fastest growing high school sport for females in the nation. Costello pointed out that about 13 years ago girl wrestling got its start but fizzled, but now has some new momentum behind it towards school and social acceptance. He added Kodiak would be interested to host an event such as Sitka just had in the next couple years.

But the trip to Sitka was far more than just a wrestling tournament. Canete met and even sparred with Olympic wrestlers Tela O’Donnell and Sara McMann. O’Donnell hails from Homer and McMann was a silver medallist in the 2004 Games in Athens. According to Costello, Canete was the only girl to take advantage of the one-on-one opportunity to work with world-class wrestlers and gain valuable advice from two of the best. In a telephone interview, Canete explained at length how she learned from McMann to improve her bottom positioning on starts.

On the way to Sitka, Canete had the chance to hang out with another top grappler, the 2006 Alaska State Champion at 103 pounds and fellow 10th-grader Michaela Hutchison of Skyview High. Hutchison is ranked No. 2 in the country in female high school wrestling and is the only female to ever beat all the boys and win a high school state championship. Chugiak’s Melissa Apodaca is ranked fourth nationally in the 130-pound class.

The girls visited a petting zoo and a chocolate factory as part of a tour, as well as taking in the history of the area. The educational benefits of the trip included a whale-watching voyage and a stop at a rehabilitation facility for birds of prey called the Raptor Center.

“I liked it a lot,” Canete said. “It’s a lot like Kodiak but warmer. It was about 50 degrees.”

Michelle is the daughter of Raul and Natividad Canete. Raul was a Kodiak High School track star in the mid-1980s.

Canete and KHS teammate Jimmy Eggemeyer have another chance to compete this year, at the Arctic Winter Games in Kenai next month. Like the trip to Sitka, their efforts are not part of the regular school athletic budget and are funded independently. If you would like to make a contribution toward their travel expenses, please contact coach Pat Costello, 486-2099, or e-mail alaskanpat@hotmail.com.