#WomensWednesday: Augsburg seeks to extend its wrestling excellence to the women’s side

Augsburg Women's Wrestling graphic courtesy of Augsburg Athletics, from its Instagram page.


Augsburg University is a well-known quantity in the world of men’s college wrestling. The 2019 NCAA Div. III National champions, the Auggies have won 13 national titles in its history and is considered a top contender year after year after year.


Guess what? Augsburg is also looking to be a national power in women’s college wrestling, as well. The head women’s wrestling coach Max Mejia leads his team into its first-ever competition at the Waldorf University Open on Saturday, November 9.


With women’s college wrestling exploding, and the NCAA voting later this year to consider giving the sport Emerging Sport Status, there is a ton of excitement, not only at Augsburg but across the nation. Augsburg is jumping in feet first, based upon the quality of its first recruiting class, featuring some of the best high school wrestlers in the nation.


“Anytime you see a program with a tradition of excellence, as on the men’s side we have as 13-time national champions, you know that program will be supported by the administration, the athletic director and all the way up to the president. They are willing to do what it takes to support your program to be the best it can possibly be. That is a leg-up we have on everybody. The girls know that when they come here, Augsburg is committed to excellence, especially in wrestling,” said Mejia.


A prize catch for Augsburg was Cadet World champion, Youth Olympic Games champion and generally considered the No. 1 recruit in the nation, Emily Shilson from Minnesota. Augsburg had some advantage, in that Emily’s father Chad was an Augsburg wrestler. But there was much more that went into Emily’s decision to pursue college excellence near home and help launch a new program.


“She feels comfortable here, growing up in the Twin Cities area and training at PINnacle, being with the Storm. The key to that is vision. When you talk to anybody involved in our program, it is clear to see our vision. We are trying to create a program that develops the country’s and the world’s finest women leaders. What that entails is excellence in everything. That always starts in the classroom. For someone like Emily Shilson, she wants to know she can have the best training available to her. We had to get working on an RTC, and bring in partners, residents, coaching to supplement what we are doing here. We are pursuing excellence in everything. That is exactly what Emily was looking for,” said Mejia.


The larger vision is apparent even today, as Shilson is competing for the United States at the U23 World Championships in Budapest, Hungary, even before she has stepped on the mat in an Augsburg singlet.


The rest of the Augsburg recruiting class is also impressive, including Cadet World Team member Vayle-Rae Baker of Pennsylvania, 2019 Junior Nationals champions Gabby Skidmore of Wisconsin and Kaylee Moore of Washington, plus age-group All-Americans Faith Tuttle of Minnesota and Marlynne Deede of Utah. Add in transfers Melissa Jacobs of Minnesota from Umpqua CC, Bel Snyder of Minnesota from Jamestown University and Savannah Vold of Minnesota from Waldorf University. Minnesota freshman Kahlea Jolly is also on the roster. It is not a large team yet, but has extensive experience and talent coming in.


Even with many well-known athletes, Augsburg is a first-year program mostly led by freshman. There should be some growing pains, as expected, but the Auggies have a chance to make an immediate impact on the college scene if the season goes well.


“We are not looking to place this or that. We are looking for everyone to do the best that they possibly can. When that does come together, it will turn into team titles. When we talk about our wrestling goals, we want World Team members, we want Pan Am Team members, we want girls to qualify for the Olympic Trials. Those are outside of the school, but those are end goals. When we are wearing the Augsburg singlet, we want to out-perform everybody. We want to match our 10 best girls against their 10 best girls and out-perform them. We are focused on the process, get better at everything and performing our best. Something we can control is our team GPA, which is a goal, that we want to win as a team. We are brand new, mainly freshmen. Maybe, other teams might have more girls that can score more points. We want to be the best we can possibly be,” said Mejia.


Without a competition to date, Mejia can only measure the team based upon their early season training, as well as the transition that the athletes are making to being NCAA student-athletes.


“Things are going great. You always have nicks, bruises, things you don’t plan for. Midterms just happened. Some are learning what it is like to live on your own. From a training standpoint, we have had a great preseason. Our technique looks crisp. Our girls look like they are in the shape they need to be right now in the season. Keep in mind that this will be the first time for a lot of these girls that they will do a full season. It’s a long season in college. As a coach, being around different programs, we are exactly where we need to be. They are exceeding my expectations,” said Mejia.


Augsburg is in NCAA Div. III, which does not offer athletic scholarships. As college women’s wrestling continues to advance and more scholarship programs are added to the field, it may play a bigger factor in recruiting. Mejia, who wrestled NCAA Div. I at a non-scholarship program at Harvard, understands this situation and how to make it work.


“That is where your vision becomes even more important. We are not recruiting just because these women are great wrestlers. We are recruiting the whole package. I am looking for the right lifestyle. I am looking for the academics. I am looking for the character. Our school offers really good academic packages. Those are the kind of women I am looking to keep in the program and try to get. That vision, with an RTC, with high-level coaching, with high-level academics, becomes even more important. I am comfortable with this. I have seen it before, I have lived with this. It will affect things long term. When you look at our vision, and what we are doing already, I believe people may be willing to take a little more risk financially,” said Mejia.


What kind of style does Mejia want to see in his Augsburg women wrestlers when they step out on the mat this year and in the future?


“We are working on a lot of technique. We are very technical. Our girls should be in great shape. I am looking for them to be relentless. Every coach has their style. As we go through the season, we will see the kind of things I enjoy working on. We do a lot of individual work, so each girl has her own flavor. This is to be determined. We haven’t even been on the mat yet. Each woman brings in her own things. I want us to be known for great character, great academics and great people. On top of that, we are going to get after it. That is what we want to be known for as a program,” said Mejia.


Mejia is excited to be part of the process of starting a new women’s program and helping fuel women’s wrestling’s growth on the college level and beyond.


“There is high demand for wrestling at the collegiate level. What I am excited for right now, each of us who are involved in the sport have a role to play. The part I am looking forward to the most is what I have a background in. My father was a coach, my mother was a coach. My mother wasn’t a wrestling coach but she coached volleyball and softball. I have been around coaching my entire life. I am identifying a bunch of leaders in the sport who are going to become coaches and influence the sport even more. There are programs being added left and right. Being able to develop more women coaches who have wrestled collegiately is going to be amazing and crucial. It is a very exciting time to be here, and it will keep getting better and better,” he said.