Holmes wrestler encourages others to step onto the mat

Freshman Finley Bartlett is representing Holmes Junior High in the upcoming 2025 women’s wrestling year. 

As a wrestler, Bartlett said a lot of work goes into the sport. Bartlett has been wrestling for three years, with her motivation originally stemming from her older sister, Emerson, and friend Rachel Tiendrebeogo. 

“I’ve improved and learned new things,” Bartlett said. 

She said a typical practice starts with a warm-up, then heads into a detailed explanation and practice of specific moves, and at the end, conditioning. She said conditioning is one of the hardest things about the sport this year, with a close second being the “mental aspect.”

“It’s a lot of work,” she said. “You put in a lot of hours, and you don’t get a lot. It’s definitely a high-risk, high-reward kind of thing.”

Bartlett’s favorite thing about wrestling is the people. 

“The community and the people you meet are really great.” She said runner up for rewards of wrestling is how in-shape wrestling gets her. 

Bartlett has a general enjoyment of wrestling as well. 

“I just like wrestling,” Bartlett said. “ I feel like it’s definitely a good way to get your anger out, too, because you’re throwing people.”

She said that her goal this year is personal improvement. “It doesn’t matter if I’m making a small or big improvement because I’m just focusing on getting better.” 

Bartlett encouraged others to try wrestling too. “Do it. It might sound scary, but do it.”