BUFFALO, N.Y. (WKBW) — Buffalo State Athletics announced the launch of a new women's wrestling program at the university. It is the latest school in the SUNY school system to launch a women's wrestling program and the fifth college in New York State with a team. The sport was recognized as an emerging sport by the school in 2022 which paved the way for the program's creation.
Buffalo State has already locked in seven commits to the program as recruitment began immediately after the school announced the program's addition to its athletic department.
Women's wrestling is one of the fastest-growing sports in America across both high school and college levels. 41 states now recognize it as an official championship sport at the high school level with 17 of those states recognizing the sport within the last three years. In 2022, the New York State Public High School Athletic Association called the sport an emerging sport.
With such a high rise in the sport's popularity, Buffalo State Athletic Director Rene Carlineo thinks the addition of the program is coming at the perfect time.
"It’s huge, especially in a sport like wrestling that traditionally has been a male-dominated sport. People are excited to see women’s wrestling," Carlineo said. "I think we already have a lot of excitement on campus, in the community, ready to actually watch our matches take place. I think it will bring great energy to the department, great energy to the institution and I just can't wait for it to get going."
Buffalo State joins Alfred State in Allegany County, which has a successful women’s wrestling program. The Pioneers are gearing up to compete at colleges in Pennsylvania and Michigan.
“At Alfred State, the balanced number of sport offerings align well with our strategic efforts to provide even more females with the opportunity to compete on the ASC campus,” said athletic director Jason Doviak. “We are committed to our current and future Alfred State student-athletes enabling them to achieve their goals both in and out of the classroom."
Just three years ago in Lancaster, we brought you the story of Trista Blasz. She was not allowed to wrestle for the Lancaster JV's wrestling team. Now, Trista is a varsity wrestler at Lancaster High School.
The Bengals Women's Wrestling's inaugural season is the 2024-2025 winter season.
An earlier version of this story incorrectly identified Buffalo State as the first SUNY school to offer a women’s wrestling program. We apologize for this error.
