Ep. 1 of ‘Earned Not Given:’ Video series launches on Montague girls wrestling

MONTAGUE — In Montague’s wrestling program, the seven girls who compete as “Lady Mat Cats” are respected and valued members of the Wildcats’ overall squad.

The girls often compete in their own events, but they practice every day with Montague’s boys wrestlers.

CatchMark SportsNet is launching a new video series on Montague girls wrestling called “Earned Not Given: Lady Mat Cats, On and Off the Mat.” The first of three episodes publishes today (Feb. 5, 2024) and it’s called, “Forged Bonds.” In the process of iron sharpening iron, bonds are forged.

In this first episode, we introduce Montague wrestling coach Kris Maddox and the four seniors who are part of the Wildcats’ girls wrestling group: Trisha Beckman, Abby Thommen, Savannah Winkleblack, and Emma Pendell. We shed light on how they got into wrestling, why they continue to do it, and how empowering it is.

Episodes 2 and 3 will be released in the coming weeks and you’ll be introduced to Montague girls coach Andrew Nold and the other three members of the Lady Mat Cats: Junior Ava Pelton, and freshmen Zaniya Meza and Reid Thommen.

The Lady Mat Cats have some big competitions on the horizon. On Sunday, Feb. 18, they’ll be competing at the individual regionals with berths in the March 1-2 MHSAA state finals at Ford Field on the line.

Watch Episode 1 in the video at the top of this story.