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FEMALE ATHLETE SAYS IT'S LIKE ANY OTHER SPORT AND HAS ALREADY SHOWN WHAT SHE CAN DO WITH A 25-7 RECORD
| Friday, Feb 8 2008 9:50 PM
Last Updated: Friday, Feb 8 2008 9:56 PM
Yes, Frontier High freshman Alex Gomez fits a relatively rare description: "Female wrestler." But she's much more concerned about the second word than the first. "To me, I'm just another wrestler," said Gomez, who's full name is Alexandrea. "It's like the only thing I know. People, they're like, 'No way, you're a girl wrestler?' But to me, it's just like any other sport. I'm just doing what I love."
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Gomez, the Titans' starting 103-pounder, does it well. She's 25-7 on the season with 17 pins and went undefeated in Southwest Yosemite League duals this season. She's the likely favorite in today's SWYL tournament at Centennial.
Gomez was ranked No. 10 nationally for her weight class by the United States Girls' Wrestling Association. Only one other girl from California is listed in any weight class.
And she's among Frontier wrestlers, most of whom never competed before high school. Gomez, meanwhile, won a USGWA national championship last spring at 101 pounds in the Middle School Division. She pinned all three opponents in that tournament.
"She's just a gift to have in our room," Frontier coach Kirk Moore said. "I'd never coached a girl before, but I talked with my coaches and with my team, and I said, 'She's not a girl. She's a wrestler. And we're going to treat her like a wrestler.'"
No problems so far. Gomez has fit in perfectly with the rest of the Titans, who made a surprising run to an undefeated SWYL dual season this year.
"She looks at it and says, 'I'm one of the guys,'" Moore said. "She jokes with them, talks with them, and she's with them just as much as anybody. And she has some girly things she does, but really, she's not any different."
And Gomez, who won the Cotton Classic in Shafter earlier this season and has placed in four other tournaments, is ready to make a run at the California Interscholastic Federation state tournament, Feb. 29 and March 1 at Rabobank Arena -- just like any other California wrestler.
"I've had my obstacles and stuff -- some people thought girls shouldn't be wrestling," Gomez said. "But I just don't let them get in my way."