Yes, But Can She Wrestle?

The big news around here the last couple of days has been the match in the state wrestling tournament...that didn't happen.  Joel Northrup of Linn-Mar of Marion drew Cedar Falls' Cassy Herkelman as his first-round opponent at the 112-pound weight in Class 3-A.   A boy wrestling a girl.  No word so far about Cassy's reaction -- by all assumptions, she was ready to go.  It all, however, presented certain challenges for Joel.  As a distant -- and even more dispassionate -- observer, I can sympathize with him.  Don't get me wrong; I am fully aware that High School wrestling between the sexes has been going on since the beginning of time, though typically in quieter, more covert and typically more perfumed settings; not hardly sanctioned, coached, or conducted in front of thousands of screaming fans.  Wrestling seems like an awfully slithery, grabby and feely contest that might best be confined to only the most affectionate or disinterested combatants.  That, apparently, was Joel's sentiment as well.  If you will pardon the pun, it just didn't feel right to him.


So, he forfeited the match.  


In a statement released accounting for his decision, Joel wrote:  “I have a tremendous amount of respect for Cassy and Megan (Black, the tournament’s other female entrant) and their accomplishments. However, wrestling is a combat sport and it can get violent at times. As a matter of conscience and my faith, I do not believe that it is appropriate for a boy to engage a girl in this manner."


His Dad went on to clarify, "He wants to win state, just like anybody else, but his convictions and his beliefs are stronger than his desire to win state."


Everyone, of course, is weighing in on the topic.  Some condemning the match-up as inappropriate by definition.  Some have scoffed at Joel's reticence.  I can't help but agree with Lori's Dad who mused that it was a lose-lose proposition for young Joel:  if he lost to "a girl" he would never hear the end of it; if he won, the victory would always -- implicitly -- carry an asterisk beside it -- "triumph over 'a girl'."  Whatever one thinks of the proprieties involved, it does seem sensible to just sit this one out.


I grieve for the guy.  Nobody wants to arrive at the state tournament and lose out on one's dream -- let alone in the first round.  But what saddens me more is the total absence of conversation about young Cassy's ability.  We don't know if she is talented or a pretender.  Typically match-ups are sliced and diced as the relative strengths and weaknesses are balanced.  In this case, we have learned nothing about her skill -- only her gender.  


Chances are, we knew that already.