Women's wrestling debuts at home with resounding success

For more than a year, Jake Short has been developing and nurturing his plan for the newest athletics program at Grand Valley — women’s wrestling.

Short, who was named the first head coach of the emerging squad in August 2023, said he felt an immediate connection to GVSU from his first visit.

The collective work of Short, his wrestlers and the Grand Valley Athletics Department came to fruition on November 16. The Lakers hosted their inaugural dual meet, taking on Northern Michigan at the Fieldhouse Arena.

Grand Valley got the win, beating the Wildcats, 42-6, in front of an enthusiastic crowd of nearly 600 supporters.

“It was crazy to see so many people show up and see how much everyone was excited to come out and see us,” said GVSU’s Sabrina Nauss, who defeated NMU’s Clarissa Wangen by fall.

“The energy in the gym was just amazing. It was so cool to see that validation for all the work that we’ve been putting in and see how much support we have from the school.”

Wrestling has seen a rebirth on campus since it was announced in 2021 that men’s wrestling would return, and a women’s program would follow.

The return of wrestling was sparked by the generosity of the Harris family, namely John ’77; his wife, Diane ’76; his brother Tom ’80; and his wife, Tammi. The family’s $3 million donation initiated the building of the Harris Family Athletic Complex, a 22,280-square-foot extension on the northwest corner of the Fieldhouse Arena. 

“It’s very exciting to see the development that has occurred in women’s wrestling,” said Harris, a member of the Grand Valley Athletics Hall of Fame and the National Wrestling Hall of Fame.

“Women’s wrestling has played a very important and historic role in the advancement of all wrestling. In my view, in this day and age, you can’t start a program without doing both.”

It may be the Lakers’ inaugural season, but they are not short of talent. 

“I was fortunate enough to get some athletes right away in the transfer portal,” Short said. “And then I had an awesome recruiting class, and these girls don't act like typical first-year students. They're coming out and they want to dominate and win matches. So it's pretty awesome to be able to almost feel solidified out here in a very short period of time.”

Katerina Lange was the No. 1 ranked high school wrestler in the nation and was also Ms. Minnesota her senior year. Lange transferred to Grand Valley after winning a 2023 National Collegiate Women’s Wrestling Championship at Augsburg University.  

Nauss was unbeaten in four seasons at Brighton High School, winning four state championships and ranking as the nation’s top high school wrestler in her weight class. 

Nauss, Elleni Johnson, Skylar Little Soldier and Aaliyah Grandberry also earned All-America honors at the prestigious and competitive USA Wrestling Junior and Cadet National Championships in Fargo, North Dakota. 

Then, there’s Sage Mortimer, who won gold at the Under-23 World Championships in October in Albania. It was the second major title for Mortimer, who also won a national title at the 2023 USA Women’s Senior Nationals.

“It's just an awesome experience for women's wrestling,” Short said. “I've been to many, many women's college dual meets, and this one was pretty impressive. The turnout was unbelievable, the energy was unbelievable and hopefully we've created a little bit of a fan base that will want to come back.”