Being the only girl on an all-male sports team is no easy task.

Hannah Twomey had to fight gender stereotypes when she made the decision to join the wrestling team last year as a freshman, she said. Twomey’s inspiration to the join the team was her senior brother’s dedication to the sport.

“It’s a hard sport for people to understand unless they do it,” Twomey said.  “Wrestling boys isn’t as weird as people think.”

Since wrestling opponents are determined by weight class, Twomey wrestles people of similar size to her.

Freshman year, Twomey placed sixth at NCS for her weight class. Now a sophomore, Twomey hopes to place fourth or better at NCS in February and to qualify for the state competition.

Twomey said her relationship with her teammates is just like any relationship sports teams share.

“My teammates treat me with respect because we’re all working towards the same goal,” Twomey said.

However, Twomey has faced instances of prejudice. Last year she approached an opponent to inform them that they would be facing off.

“He replied with, ‘Yes, finally I’ll win a match!’” she said. “Then I won.”

Twomey encourages any girls who are interested in wrestling to try out for the team.

“It’s a good use of your time because it’s such hard work but also rewarding.”