Varsity Wrestler Maricar Ramos (right) competed against Yerba Buena High School at Terra Nova High School. She won her match with a decision of 8-5, placing her first in her weight class for the girls division.
By: Ashley Chen
Senior Maricar Ramos is an experienced wrestler on the Varsity Girls Wrestling team. She has won many medals at tournaments over her four years on the team, including first place at Terra Nova High School and second place at Hidden Valley High School.
“Originally when I first joined wrestling, I really doubted myself, but then it’s just a great feeling to just be around so many people who want to be there,” Ramos said. “There’s so many people who join a certain sport, and they’re like ‘Okay, I’m just doing this because of other people’ or ‘I’m just doing this because someone wants me to’ but every single person in wrestling is fueled by determination.”
Wrestling has helped her get over her insecurities, Ramos said. Even though there is a perception that wrestling is too difficult for girls, she knows that she just had to believe in herself, she said.
“[Wrestling] definitely changed me as in like body image,” Ramos said. “Freshmen year, there were a lot of insecurities but you get used to like ‘This is your weight class. Be proud of it.’ Of course, being more social with other people of all different ages and other schools [was another effect].”
For the past four years on the team, Ramos has been the only girl in the class of 2019, she said. Before joining the team, she really doubted herself since wrestling was the first and only sport she has ever done, she added.
“I wasn’t very fit, didn’t have a lot of friends joining wrestling, but then as I started exercising I met so many juniors and different people,” Ramos said. “A lot of the girls in the class of 2018 are who I’ve been looking up to. One of our team members from last year, Arriana Sotto, I really looked up to because she’s such a tiny girl but she beat everyone up, and she became a state qualifier.”
Her favorite match was in her sophomore year when she won a match during the team’s first tournament of the year, Ramos said. It was an amazing feeling having her hand raised, she continued.
She does not plan on competing in wrestling in college as a career, but possibly as a club, Ramos said. Unfortunately, there are many wrestling scholarships for guys and not girls, she commented.
“[The shortage of wrestling scholarships for girls is] really sad,” Ramos said. “You can really see how girls are changing their perception of wrestling over the years, and I really hope that changes the big picture. Since these past years, [those on the team are] mostly just guys, and there’s this perception that guys are mostly stronger than girls, and not many girls are joining because of that.”
Ramos encourages others to join the wrestling team, she said. “Even if you’re just a little bit interested, just go for it, because you never know you could actually do something great,” she said. “Because I completely doubted myself, and now, I’ve been here for four years.”