No discussions yet on if girls wrestling will come to Havre High

Earlier this month, the Montana High School Association announced a big addition to the sports landscape in the state. The MHSA board passed the addition of girls wrestling as its own sport, starting next season.

With the All-Class State Wrestling Tournament just a week away now, it will be the last state tournament without a girls division inside the First Interstate Bank Arena in Billings.

Girls wrestling will be a winter sport. Female wrestlers will be able to compete against male or female opponents during the regular season, according to the committee's implementation plan. Proposed weight classes will be 103, 113, 126, 138, 152, 170 and 205 pounds. The postseason will not include girls divisional tournaments, and the state tournament will consist of one classification.

There are 75 high school girls wrestling this season, according to MHSA executive director Mark Beckman. 

"There's a big interest in girls wrestling across the country, and we're sort of just following the leads of other states that have implemented it," Beckman told 406mtsports.com on Monday. "Now that they know that they can go through the regular season and then there will be a girls-only tournament, all comers, at the Metra(Park), I think that you're gonna see some more come out (for wrestling)."

What this means for Havre High, at this point, remains to be seen, according to longtime Blue Pony Activities Director Dennis Murphy.

"We haven't discussed adding any new sports at this time," Murphy said. "First, we would take a look at need, and that's something we will probably do later in the year. Then obviously, when talking about adding any new programs, that's something that requires our school board approval."

Even with the rise in girls joining high school wrestling teams, Havre hasn't had a female wrestler participate on the Blue Pony squad in recent years, so, it's unknown if the interest for girls wrestling as an added sport would even be there, which is something Murphy said he will continue to monitor.

Of course, then, if girls wrestling were added, a boys sport would need to be added as well, or an existing girls sport would have to be taken away. The MHSA also approved boys power lifting as a sanctioned sport that schools can add if they choose to add girls wrestling, but, as Murphy pointed out, no school is required to add the new sports. Currently in Class A, Billings Central is the only school that offers every single sport available, prior to the announcement last week of girls wrestling and boys power lifting.

"Again, we haven't had any discussion onit at this point," Murphy said. "But it is something that I'm sure will be looked at down the road."