Building a Foundation: St. Paul Girls Wrestling Caps Off Promising Inaugural Season
In what many might call a season of learning, grit, and growth, the St. Paul Girls Wrestling team wrapped up the 2025 winter campaign with its eyes set firmly on the future. Led by Head Coach James Potter, the squad entered the season with youth, inexperience, and determination—and walked away with a strong foundation laid, valuable experience gained, and a clear trajectory for success.
While the wins didn’t come easily, and the season had its fair share of growing pains, Coach Potter believes the season went just as it should have for a team in its formative stages.
“It went as expected,” he shared. “We were really young and inexperienced. We started slow, but with each practice and competition, you could witness the growth in all the girls throughout the season.”
A Team of Firsts and Fighters
With no seniors on the roster, St. Paul’s girls wrestling team was made up entirely of underclassmen, many of whom were stepping onto the mat for the very first time. That meant the focus was less on chasing championships and more on building a culture of hard work, resilience, and continuous improvement.
One standout in both performance and leadership was Katie Oakley, whose work ethic and dedication to the team elevated not only her own development but also that of her teammates.
“Katie was impactful with her work ethic and leadership,” said Coach Potter. “She took on more ownership of the team as the season went on.”
Joining her was Alexis Galusha, one of only two wrestlers on the team with prior wrestling experience. Alexis became a role model for the rest of the squad—someone who demonstrated firsthand how experience and technical skill can shape the outcome of a match.
“Alexis helped set the bar,” Potter explained. “She showed the team what they could achieve with hard work and time.”
Turning Points and Confidence Builders
Although the early part of the season came with understandable struggles, the turning point came during the Lou Platte Conference meet. It wasn’t necessarily a dominant showing in the standings, but it was a critical moment in the team's emotional and mental development.
“I think that meeting really helped demonstrate to the girls that they had closed the inexperience gap that was noticeable at the beginning of the year,” said Potter. “They realized they could compete.”
That confidence carried into the latter part of the season and was evident in how the team began taking more control, not just in matches, but in their commitment to the sport. Wrestlers like Delaney Jennings and Anne Stepanek, alongside Oakley, began embracing leadership roles, setting the tone in practice, and encouraging their teammates.
Adversity and Accountability
The season wasn’t without setbacks. One of the biggest early blows came when Annie, one of the team’s two experienced wrestlers, suffered an injury before the season began. Her absence was keenly felt in the opening weeks, but her return just before conference play injected a much-needed boost to the team.
“She wrestled really well for missing the majority of the season,” said Potter. “She didn’t miss a beat.”
The challenges continued at the district tournament, where three of St. Paul’s wrestlers fell just short of qualifying for state, losing in what’s often called the “heartbreak round,” a match where a win punches a ticket to state, and a loss ends the season.
“That stung,” Potter admitted. “But I know they weren't satisfied with that outcome. I’m confident they’ll be hungry next year.”
No Seniors, No Ceiling
With no graduating seniors, the St. Paul program stands in a unique and advantageous position. Every athlete will return with a full season of experience under her belt, and according to Coach Potter, the reinforcements are already on the way.
“We return everyone,” he said. “And we’ll be adding five new freshmen to the team next year—all with at least a year of experience or more.”
That bodes well for a team that already showed rapid improvement over a single season. The return of key wrestlers combined with an influx of experienced freshmen positions St. Paul as a team to watch in the years ahead.
Eyes on the Offseason
Coach Potter isn’t letting off the gas as the offseason begins. While some programs treat the spring and summer as a time to rest, Potter sees it as a critical development period. The goals? Technical improvement and athletic development.
“We’re working to get the girls to camps,” he said. “Camps will help them sharpen their technique and give them exposure to different styles. And beyond that, we want to improve their overall sports performance.”
Strength training, agility work, and conditioning will all be part of the program’s offseason plan, with an eye toward building more complete athletes who can outlast and outwork their opponents next year.
Looking Ahead: A Culture Taking Shape
It’s clear that this is just the beginning for the St. Paul Girls Wrestling program. What started as a young and untested team has evolved into a group of wrestlers who are not only gaining skill but also embracing the mental toughness and camaraderie that define great teams.
Coach Potter has fostered a culture centered around effort, growth, and resilience. The girls aren’t just learning to wrestle—they’re learning what it means to be part of something bigger than themselves.
“The energy is there. The buy-in is there,” said Potter. “It’s exciting to know this is just the start.”
Where to Find the Numbers
Fans and followers of the team can keep up with individual match results and team statistics on Track Wrestling, where the performance of each athlete is tracked in detail throughout the season.
Final Thoughts: The Beginning of Something Special
In sports, success is often measured in wins and losses. But for St. Paul Girls Wrestling, success in 2025 was about laying the groundwork for a sustainable and competitive program.
From learning the basics to holding their own at conference meets, from heartbreaking district losses to the return of key athletes, the journey was packed with lessons, growth, and promise.
With an entire roster returning, a talented freshman class incoming, and a coach dedicated to year-round development, the ceiling for this team is nowhere in sight.
“We’ve only just begun,” Potter said. And based on what we’ve seen, we believe him.
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