As a parent of a dedicated South Jersey Girl wrestler, I am deeply concerned about the current state of girls wrestling qualifiers. The logic behind adding qualifiers for the girls bracket is unreasonable and exclusionary. Last year, most of the girls brackets in states were not even close to full.

The goal should be growing girls wrestling, not excluding potential participants. The most pressing concern is the complete exclusion of South Jersey in any of these girl qualifiers. This decision places an unfair burden on South Jersey parents and wrestlers who are just as committed to their sport as their North Jersey counterparts.

Furthermore, this decision undermines efforts to promote gender equality in sports by limiting opportunities for female athletes from certain regions. According to Women's Sports Foundation data from 2018, New Jersey ranks 41st out of 50 states when it comes to high school female sports participation rates (Women's Sports Foundation). We should be working towards improving this ranking rather than implementing policies that could potentially worsen it.

We urge you to reconsider your decision and include South Jersey in future girl wrestling qualifiers - because every girl deserves an equal opportunity regardless of where she lives or trains. Please sign this petition if you believe that all young athletes should have equal access to compete at state level competitions.