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Girls wrestling has really been taking off all across the country.

Thanks to Helen Maroulis winning the first Olympic gold medal for the United States in women’s wrestling two years ago, the number of girls participating in the sport has skyrocketed.

Last year, Wyoming Seminary became the first high school in the Northeastern United States to have an all-girls wrestling team.

Now the whole state is getting in on the act.

For the first time in the 56-year history of the Pennsylvania Junior Wrestling Tournament, an all-girls division will be held.

On Friday and Saturday, the PJW Youth Tournament will be held at Mohegan Sun Arena for the second straight season. And being a part of history is something special for the area and a big step for the sport said Tom Traver, the event’s tournament director.

“I’m excited to see the girls involved,” he said. “I’d love to see more, but it’s a start.”

There is a total of 1,156 wrestlers competing this weekend with more than 150 females competing in 14 weight divisions ranging from ages Under-8 through 12.

Even though it’s a positive to see girls wrestling in the state’s youth tournament for the first time, Traver — whose son Tommy is currently a standout wrestler for Tunkhannock — has ideas on getting more young girls involved, but it’s not going to happen overnight.

“Wyoming Seminary is the standard now for girls wrestling in the area with (head coach) Erin Vandiver and (assistant coach) Adeline Gray,” said Traver, who is also Dallas Elementary School principal and director of elementary curriculum and instruction. “I think we need more elementary schools to offer girls programs and get support to begin. A lot of parents don’t want girls wrestling boys, so we need support to get girls programs off the ground.

“Twenty years ago, lacrosse wasn’t even thought of in Northeast Pennsylvania, and now it has exploded. Wrestling can take off in the same way.”

The tournament starts at 9 a.m. Friday and will likely wrap up around 8 p.m. Action on Saturday starts at 9 a.m. The semifinals are slated for 11:30 a.m. Saturday, with the finals and medal matches in each weight division beginning at approximately 4 p.m. The top eight place-winners in each weight will earn a medal.

In addition to the debut of the girls tournaments, there are also 25 weight classes in the boys divisions, with the same age groups as the females.

Of the more than 1,000 wrestlers competing this weekend, there are more than two dozen who are from Luzerne County schools, with all 13 Wyoming Valley Conference school districts represented, along with Northwest.

Pittston Area leads the way for locals with six wrestlers, while Hazleton Area (four), Berwick (three) and Wyoming Valley West (three) follow. Hanover Area, Nanticoke, Tunkhannock and Wyoming Area all have two entries, while Crestwood, Dallas, Lake-Lehman, Northwest and Wilkes-Barre Area all have one athlete competing.

Davis in Pittsburgh

Across the state, the 44th Annual Pittsburgh Wrestling Classic, formerly known as the Dapper Dan Wrestling Classic, will be held on Sunday with Luzerne County being represented for the first time in 12 years.

Wyoming Seminary’s Jack Davis, a resident of Hanover Township, will compete for the state and the county in the match, which features Pennsylvania All-Stars vs. the USA All-Stars.

On Sunday at Fitzgerald Field House on the campus of the University of Pittsburgh — where Davis will be wrestling in the fall — the event will start at 4 p.m. with the WPIAL All-Stars matching up against Iowa All-Stars. Following that dual, the main event will start at 6 p.m.

Davis, a two-time National Prep champion, will team up with notable PIAA champs such as Jefferson-Morgan’s Gavin Teasdale, a four-time state champion, and Montoursville’s Gavin Hoffman, a three-time state titlist.

Being the first from Luzerne County to compete in the event since Trevin Cowman in 2006, Davis racked up a career record of 138-24 for the Blue Knights and will face Montini Catholic’s Real Woods from Wheaton, Ill. Woods will wrestle for Stanford next season and is a three-time Illinois state champion with 156 career wins.

Davis will be the third wrestler from Wyoming Seminary to compete in the event, joining Eric Morris (2013) and Terrance Jean-Jacques (2011). He is just the 13th wrestler from Luzerne County to ever partake in the prestigious event.

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By Dave Rosengrant

For Times Leader

PJW Youth Wrestling Tournament

When: Friday and Saturday

Where: Mohegan Sun Arena

Admission: Adult two-day admission $25; Student two-day admission $15; Adult one-day $15; Student one-day $10.

Schedule:

Friday

9 a.m., round of 32

noon, round of 16

3 p.m., first round of consolations

4:30 p.m., quarterfinals

6:15 p.m., second round of consolations

Saturday

9 a.m., third round of consolations

10:15 a.m., fourth round of consolations

11:30a.m., semifinals and fifth round of consolations

1 p.m., sixth round of consolations

4 p.m., Parade of Areas

4:30 p.m., Parade of Champions

5 p.m., Finals, medal rounds and presentation of medals

Reach Times Leader sports at 570-829-7143 or on Twitter @TLsports