Multiple Marietta High School student athletes qualified for the Georgia High School State Wrestling Tournament, marking a major milestone for a program in the midst of rebuilding. Among them, female seniors Valerie Bowman and Alena Jones stood out, placing fourth and sixth in their respective weight classes and helping highlight the rapid rise of Marietta’s girls’ wrestling program.
Their success reflects more than just individual achievement; rather, it signals a shift in the program’s momentum and a growing presence for girls in a traditionally male-dominated sport. In recent years, Marietta’s wrestling program has placed a stronger emphasis on expanding opportunities for female athletes, and this season made that progress impossible to ignore. What was once a small group is quickly becoming a competitive and committed team who cares not only about their own successes, but the success of their teammates as well.
“Girls wrestling is the fastest growing sport in the nation right now. We went from having two female wrestlers last year, to now having six,” Marietta’s head wrestling coach, Coach Carthers, said.
That growth didn’t happen by chance. For Bowman and Jones, success came from years of discipline, consistency, and a commitment to improving every aspect of their performance. Bowman, a move-in from Oregon who began wrestling her freshman year, has spent four years steadily building her skills and confidence on the mat.
Outside of regular practices, Bowman pushed herself further by attending additional training sessions at the Level Up Wrestling Center in East Cobb, where she focused on refining her technique and building endurance. Those extra hours played a crucial role in preparing her for higher stakes competitions, such as the state tournament..
“For me, I would go very hard in practice by pushing myself past my limits and focusing on my techniques to make sure I was doing the moves right,” Bowman (12) said. “Me and the rest of the girls would stay behind after normal practice to work on stuff that we didn’t get to do in actual practice, as well as doing strength training like pull-ups, bear crawls, and jump rope.”
At the beginning of the season, Bowman put in a lot of pressure on herself to win every match. However, as the season progressed, she learned that success isn’t just only about physical ability—it also requires a strong mindset and the ability to be patient with yourself in order to grow.
“I started telling myself I needed to get a bit better each time,” Bowman said. “Once I took that pressure off myself and remembered that I enjoy this sport and that it’s fun, I started doing better.”
Jones, who has wrestled for two years, brought a similar level of focus and determination to her season, ultimately earning sixth place at state. She described the final stretch leading up to the tournament as one of the most intense parts of the year.
“Leading up to state, training became more intense and focused,” Jones said. “Practices were faster paced, conditioning was harder, and we drilled our best setups and finishes repeatedly.”
In addition to practices, Jones dedicated time to studying match film and prioritizing recovery, allowing her to compete at her best when it mattered most. Her attention to detail and ability to make small adjustments proved crucial in close matches.
“This season I worked on my confidence and mindset the most. I also improved my conditioning and cleaned up small technical mistakes,” Jones said.
On the mat, both wrestlers developed distinct strategies that played to their strengths. Bowman focused on setting up takedowns through fakes and strong hand fighting, while Jones controlled the pace of her matches and stayed consistently on the offensive. Their performances at state reflected not only their preparation, but also the steady growth of the program behind them.
“This group of wrestlers just fell in love with competing, they all wanted to get better rather than just win, which helped us get to the level we needed to be,” Coach Carthers said.
Now, both athletes hope their success will have a lasting impact beyond their own high school careers. As pioneers in Marietta’s girls wrestling program, they hope to inspire the next generation of female wrestlers to step onto the mat.
“I hope that my legacy of being one of the four girls in Marietta history that placed at state is to get more girls to join this sport and bring more attention to it,” Bowman said.
Jones hopes to leave a similar mark.
“I hope to leave behind a legacy of resilience and leadership. You don’t have to start early to succeed—you just have to be willing to put in the work,” Jones said.
