By Naomi Rivera-Zuganelis, Staff writer
The number of women participating in male dominated sports has gone up significantly in the last four years, with a 17.5 percent increase in girls on high school football teams alone, according to Shape Magazine.
“I was kinda iffy about [joining the football team] but then I told my mom about it and she really wanted me to do it. I thought I had the ability to become a kicker,” said Chloe Masi, an Indian Trail sophomore who played on the junior varsity team as a kicker in the 2015 football season.
The stigma against girls playing high contact sports has been around for ages, men play football while the girls cheer them on on the sidelines.
Coincidentally, cheerleading has a higher rate of injury. Shape Magazine reported that there are 2.68 injuries per competitor in cheerleading and 1.96 injuries per player in football.
“Some people were funny about [me playing football, but] my family was really supportive about it,” said Masi.
Football isn’t the only sport with a rise in female competitors. The National Federation of State High School Associations stated that there is more than 10,000 female wrestlers competing at the high school level in the United States.
“I got into wrestling because my older brother was a state qualifier [when he was] in high school, I always got a rush of excitement watching my brother wrestling and so I wanted to try it out myself,” said Casey Rice, a former female wrestler who graduated from Bradford High School.
States like California, Washington, and Hawaii all have female high school wrestling teams and there are more than 20 American colleges with female wrestling teams, according to USA Today High School Sports.
“Being on a team of mostly boys you would think I felt left out, but I didn’t. It was one of the most fun times of my life,” said Rice.
“I say do it. It’s very good for your mental health,” said Brooke Masi, a senior at Indian Trail and a former wrestler of four years, when asked what her advice to girls thinking about joining the wrestling team.
In the 2015-2016 season, there were 73,076 women registered with the United States of America Hockey.
“When I tell people I was a hockey player, their reactions are always ‘you don’t look like you play hockey’ or ‘that’s a man’s’ sport,’” said Abby Larson, an Indian Trail senior who played hockey for eight years.
In Minnesota alone, there are 200 high schools and 23 colleges that have their own female hockey teams.
“My advice to another girl that plays on a guys team would be to not let the influence of others stop you from doing what you love,” said Larson.