On Thursday, MSU director of athletics, Andy Carter announced women’s wrestling will be added to the Beavers’ sports program.

“We will lead the state’s public higher education landscape with this addition as MSU will become the first among the 11 North Dakota University system campuses to have a women’s wrestling team,” Carter stated in a press release. “The timing is also perfect as the North Dakota High School Activities Association just a few weeks ago announced that girls wrestling would be added as an officially sanctioned sport for the first time beginning in 2021-22.”

The Minot State University department of athletics has been working with external consultants during the past year in a comprehensive and rigorous review of the department’s overall Title IX compliance. The federal Title IX Act of 1972 impacts all aspects of higher education, but specifically within athletics it requires that institutions provide equitable treatment of student-athletes in three specific areas: athletic participation opportunities, proportional availability of athletic scholarships for males, and females, and equal treatment of male and female student-athletes.

Women’s wrestling is recognized by the NCAA as an emerging sport for women. The designation is intended to help schools provide more athletics opportunities for women and more sport-sponsorship options for the institutions, and also help that sport achieve NCAA championship status.

North Dakota will be the 30th state in the nation to have sanctioned high school girls wrestling – joining neighboring states, Montana and South Dakota. The addition of women’s wrestling also fits well within the department’s existing athletic infrastructure used by men’s wrestling. A national search for the inaugural women’s wrestling head coach will commence immediately and plan to begin competing with an inaugural season in the 2022-23 year.

Meanwhile, current MSU men’s wrestling coach Evan Forde offered his support for the new addition to the Beavers sports program.

“The rapid rise and advancement of women’s and girls’ wrestling in recent years have made a tremendous impact on our sport,” Forde stated. “The addition of a women’s program here at Minot State University is very exciting. I am proud of our administration and University for their decision. This program will support the continued growth of the wrestling culture on campus and in the community of Minot.”