How three South Shore girls wrestlers got All-American status: 'Such a special moment.'
In order to claim All-American status, a high school wrestler must finish in the top eight their respective weight class at the NHSCA (National High School Coaches Association) National tournament in Virginia Beach, Virginia.
Three girls from the South Shore did exactly that.
One of the selections stamps the end of the storied career of Middleboro High senior Ayla Goldman. One paces Silver Lake junior Lindsay Laws, of Halifax, for an impressive finish to her's. And one debuts Scituate High freshman Sara McLaughlin's high school resume with an eye-catching bang.
Goldman placed fifth in the 145-pound class, Laws placed seventh in the 165-pound class and McLaughlin placed third in the 114-pound class. All three were no-brainer selections for our wrestling All-Scholastic teams.
Training partners did it together
Goldman wrapped up her bout and stood on the podium to be recognized as an All-American. Just moments later, Laws did the same.
It was a career-first for each of the pair. They have trained together since approximately the seventh grade at Dungeon Training Center in Lakeville and the club's three previous South Shore stops (Quincy, Hanover, Whitman).
“It was exciting," said Goldman, who will attend UMass-Amherst in the fall. "Lindsay was right next to me. So, I went, then, the match right after me, she went. Then, a big hug after. ... We are best friends. We were put together (early on) because we were the only girls in the room, and we’ve been friends since. We go out outside of wrestling and I talk to her all the time. I think wrestling brings us closer. It’s something to bond over.”
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“I thought being an All-American would be the best thing ever, but being an All-American with your best friend is that much better," Laws said. "It was such a special moment. I wouldn’t trade it for the world.”
Goldman finishes her high school career as a four-time finalist in the MIAA All-State tournament with a 60-45 record as a three-year captain of the Sachems. Laws, who is one year younger, is still building on a career that is already highlighted by two MIAA state championships and a record of 27-19 (13-19 against boys, 14-2 against girls).
“They just took to the sport all the way around,” said their longtime trainer, and Dungeon Training Center owner, Russ Lindsay. “They know a ton about the sport. They are students of the sport. It shows in everything they do. The discipline they have, the dedication, the commitment, it’s going to take them far in life. And I don’t just mean wrestling. In everything they do.”
Laws began wrestling in fourth grade, after her older brother Grant, then a state champion wrestler at Xaverian, used her "as a practice dummy," she recalled. He now plays along the defensive line on the Bucknell University football team, standing 6-foot-3 and 280 pounds as a sophomore.
“That’s how it started,” Laws said with a laugh. “And I didn’t hate it.”
Goldman doesn't remember exactly when she started in the sport, but noted a memory of watching at a local club with her dad around age 10 and taking to the mat herself shortly after.
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Laws said achieving the All-American status was a goal in place all along: "I mean, how often can you say two training partners both become All-Americans?”
“It was the last thing we were going to do together," said Goldman, just weeks away from her graduation from Middleboro High. "It was nice we could both be successful in that manner.”
“They did a great job," said Lindsay, who attended the meet in Virginia Beach and witnessed the ceremony first-hand. "I’m extremely proud of both of them. I’ll always wish them the best in their futures.”
McLaughlin named an All-American ... as a freshman
Yes, you read that right.
The Scituate High wrestler who was, twice, crowned an all-state champion at 111 pounds without giving up a point, and claimed a Division 3 Boys South Sectional championship at 113 pounds this year (the second girl in Massachusetts' history to do so), added another accolade to her growing list. At 14 years old.
“The biggest thing I say about Sara, and I’ll say it until I’m blue in the face, is her grit, toughness and unwillingness to lose. ... She just has that different mentality," said Scituate coach Kevin King. "She’ll run a kid 15 feet across the mat until they break. You see kids, they don’t want to be there anymore when they wrestle her. It’s just not fun. (Her mentality) is rare. Incredibly rare. I’ve never seen anything like it.”
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McLaughlin owned a 44-8 mixed record this winter, and has already surpassed 60 career wins through her eighth and ninth grade campaigns.
The McLaughlin family is well-connected with Spartan founder and CEO Joe De Sena, and McLaughlin has done its events during the offseason in years past. The company is most renowned for its "Spartan Race," which, according to the website, is described as "the hardest race on the planet (that) will make you physically fit, mentally strong and more resilient." A kids version is offered for ages 4-14.
“It was one of the most mentally-taxing things you can ever put a human through, let alone a kid. And everyone folded. She was one of three kids who finished the race, and she was 11 at the time," King said. "It’s crazy. She just could not be broken. She’s built different.”
“I can see how (the success I've had) is surprising to other people, but for myself, I look at all the opportunities I’ve had," McLaughlin said. "Like, Joe De Sena and Coach King, they’ve put so much time and effort into me that it seems like this is where I should be at with everything, and all the opportunities that I’m so grateful for.”
“It’s been a lot of time and effort," she said. "That’s for sure.”
McLaughlin began wrestling at age 10 when her father, Brian, a former wrestler himself, got her brother into the sport within the Hingham youth program under coach Damien Bogle. Again, that was just four years ago.
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“I tried it out and really fell in love with it," McLaughlin said. "I’ve tried a bunch of different sports before, and wrestling was the one that really stuck with me.”
Also among her career notes, she is currently ranked in the USA Wrestling Top 30 females in the country. Of the 30, McLaughlin is the second-youngest. She was also voted this year's All-State Most Outstanding Wrestler and Division 3 State Placer winner (sixth at 113 pounds), which she became the third girl to place at boys states in Massachusetts' history.
“She’s literally winning a lot of these matches against boys by being meaner and tougher. That," said King, is something "you can’t teach.”
“(Becoming an All-American) just shows how the work really pays off, but it also motivates me," McLaughlin said. "Next year, hopefully I’ll do better and I’m striving for new goals and accomplishments.”
Only girl in the gym
Goldman, Laws and McLaughlin each recounted memories of being the only female wrestler in the room in the early days of their careers.
Each have now ascended within the sport they love, one they now see as growing.
“It was a lot different when I started," said Goldman. "I was on the team with all boys.”
“It was a little scary," she said. "When you see the big guys, a few big football players, the seniors and the people older than you that know what they’re doing, it was scary.”
When Goldman was a freshman, there was only one other girl on the Middleboro High team. This past season, there were two more.
And, she said there was a good turnout for the National Championships in Virginia Beach.
“It’s nice to see it grow so much because it’s a lot of girls stepping out of their comfort zones, trying new things and meeting new people," Goldman said. "Everyone I met has been so nice and supportive of everyone else. It’s a growing community.”
McLaughlin said she is trying to recruit her friends to the mat.
“Honestly, one of the most important things for me is just getting girls out there," McLaughlin said. "When I first started, there was one girl in the room. And I’ve been in rooms where there were no girls. It’s great to see there are girls teams and clubs out there to participate in. The competitions are growing.”
King noted girls wrestling is one of the fastest-growing high school sports in the country.
"Sports, they develop. I think Sara is doing this at a great time," King said. "She's becoming an ambassador and I think she's going to cement a lot of records."
This article originally appeared on The Patriot Ledger: Three South Shore high school girls wrestlers named All-Americans
