A Winning Combination

The following story takes place sometime before Covid hit.

Mackenzie Douglas, fierce competitor that she was, felt a little sorry for Noah Santos, wrestling for Mount Saint Albans Academy. In the last period of their freestyle wrestling match, she put Noah on his back and pinned him. The crowd in the Upperco High School gym exploded in applause. "Way to go Mackenzie!" She shook her head, watching Noah slink away in humiliation. No matter, she was more than ready to accept the high-fives from her teammates, all of whom were boys.

This wasn't supposed to happen. In fact, the reverse was supposed to happen. When boys wrestled girls, it was the boy who normally won, many times by pin. It wouldn't have happened if enough girls were interested to form high school wrestling teams of their own. But there wasn't, and therefore the relatively few girls interested in wrestling at the high school level had no choice but to compete with boys in order to make the team.

Mackenzie was one of those girls. She had been athletic from an early age. First there was soccer, then gymnastics, then wrestling. Her dad was a former college standout and she had an older brother who wrestled in college. Both were onboard with it, and they began coaching her when she was still in middle school. By age fifteen, she was wrestling boys AND girls at the local Y. By age eighteen, months into her senior year, she felt confident enough to go out for Upperco's wrestling team. Coach put her on second string. Then, first-stringer Brian Dunlevy sustained a season ending injury, giving Mackenzie the top spot at 62 kilos. She had finally got her chance.

Noah Santos had been her first "victim," and he wouldn't be her last. She won her next two matches, pinning one boy and out-pointing another. Mackenzie was strong and quick; she had superb technique and she was on a tear. She had defeated three male wrestlers in a row. Already confident going into the season, her confidence soared. Could she actually wrestle her way to an all-state championship? "You're doing great, but don't get too big a head just yet," coach advised her. "Cautious optimism is the way to go."

She kept that in mind while training the way she normally did: hard. She lifted weights to keep her strength up, did miles of roadwork and sparred with her male teammates in practice.

She went into her fourth match against Evan Corday, another eighteen-year-old senior who wrestled for Glenelg High. Like Mackenzie, he was thus far undefeated. Days before the match, Mackenzie got word through coach that Evan was thinking of forfeiting the match. Wrestling a girl was beneath him, he had said, a common refrain from male wrestlers. Some of them did forfeit rather than compete with girls. But then he changed his mind. Not knowing Evan personally, Mackenzie was curious why he had decided to go ahead. But then it didn't really matter. The match was the thing and the match was on; it would be held at Upperco.

Even before seeing her opponent, Mackenzie knew she'd need superior technique in order to win. This wasn't early middle-school, where girls could hold their own against boys because the superior upper-body strength that most boys developed later on had just begun. Girls that beat boys in high school faced opponents that were either weaker than they, had inferior technique, poor stamina or all of the above. Noah Santos and the two other boys she had beaten were mediocre. Evan Corday was another matter. Last season, he had ranked third in the state. And his so far undefeated season this year had all come at the expense of male opponents. In fact, Mackenzie would be the first girl he had ever faced.

*****

This won't be a walk in the park, Mackenzie thought, jumping around to warm-up and watching Evan in his red spandex singlet warming up across the mat, along with the rest of his Glenelg teammates. She and Evan weighed about the same, though they sure didn't look the same. Evan was about two inches taller, around five-foot-five, lean and hard. She could see the well-defined muscles in his arms, the way his biceps stood out. Mackenzie was built like your proverbial fireplug, though she was far from overweight. Her legs were thicker than Evan's, though not necessarily stronger. Something else, too: Evan was cute. She had no business thinking that right before a match, but she couldn't help it. He had dark brown hair that crept just over his ears and worn without a part. He also had an impish, mischievous look about him that she found alluring.

Mackenzie tucked her braided, dirty blond hair under a net, trying to purge any social thoughts from her mind. In minutes, she'd be mixing it up with this kid. Coach Gabe Patterson, standing directly behind her, said, "Okay, Kenzie, you know what you've got to do. Try to take him down in the first minute, score first and early with a big two points. That'll shake him up." Now thirty-eight, he was an Upperco alum and former wrestler for the school.

Looking toward the mat, Mackenzie, in a blue singlet, nodded as she swung her arms and legs around, trying to keep warm and shake of her pre-match jitters. She would indeed try to take him down. Ref Les Phillips, a tall black man and former wrestler who also taught math at Upperco, waved the wrestlers onto the mat. Hazel eyes, Mackenzie noticed about Evan as she faced him in a crouch. Seconds later, she was tying up with this hot-looking boy who had considered forfeiting their match. Beneath him to wrestle her? She'd show him different.

They went toe-to-toe, grasping onto each other's hands and wrists, moving backwards, forwards and laterally, feeling each other out, testing each other's strength. Then, per coach's advice, Mackenzie lunged forward, aiming for one of Evan's legs. She grabbed it, then lifted it up. They were both standing, with Evan hopping around on one leg and Mackenzie trying to trip him off his feet. Finally, she managed to hook a foot behind Evan's knee, and down he went, with Mackenzie on top, which earned her two points. Now all she had to do was turn him on his back. But, in the process of doing that, he found a counter, which landed Mackenzie on HER back, long enough for a near fall and two points, before she managed to turn on her stomach. They stayed locked in that position long enough for the ref to blow his whistle.

Determined to earn another takedown, Mackenzie again tied up with Evan, looking for an opening, with a half-minute to go in the first period. She didn't find one, but Evan did, lunging forward, then grabbing both her legs for the takedown and another two points. He was now leading the match.

In the brief rest between periods, Mackenzie conferred with Coach Patterson. "He's stronger and faster than I thought," she said.

Coach rubbed her shoulders. "You're strong and fast, too, Kenzie. If you win the coin toss, take bottom position." Mackenzie knew why—it would give her a chance to escape and thus earn herself a point.

She won the toss, did as coach advised, and a split second after the go signal, she was on her feet, fighting to break free of Evan's grasp. But she didn't have to fight too hard because he let her go, giving away the point. He must be awfully confident he'll beat me to do that, she thought.

Once again, they were on their feet, tying up, moving and probing. Mackenzie knew that shooting for a takedown could be risky, especially when your opponent expected it. But, being behind, she felt she had nothing to lose. Thus, she shot for one, which Evan easily countered by flattening out on her back, and then spinning around to her rear to gain control. That gave him two more points and a six to three lead.

Mackenzie was growing weary by the start of third period. She figured that only a pin would now give her the match, and she was running out of ways to execute one. It was obvious to her why Evan took third in states last year and was thus far undefeated this season. This time, he took bottom and escaped by standing up, then peeling off her weary arms to break free. Moments after they faced each other standing, Evan went for a double-leg takedown, which landed Mackenzie on her back, struggling to avoid the pin. He had one arm locked between her legs, the other wrapped around her neck, with his legs splayed out to the side. She twisted and bridged to keep her back off the mat, while Evan applied greater pressure. Mackenzie had never been pinned before and she was determined not to let this kid be the first one to do it. But his superior strength proved too much. The sound of the ref hitting the mat was the worst sound she had ever heard.

She was near tears, standing in the middle of the mat, the ref between her and Evan, raising his arm. Tears flowed when coach hugged her and her teammates gave her sympathetic backslaps. "You'll get him next time, Kenzie."

Then, to her surprise, she came face to face with Evan Corday, who had stepped over to Upperco's side of the mat. "You gave me one hell of a match," he said. He reached out to her.

She wiped her eyes, then slipped off her ear protection and hair net before taking his hand. "Thanks. Now I know why you placed so high in states last year." She managed to smile through the sting of her loss—a loss tempered by an attraction that she couldn't deny.

He looked back to his side of the mat, then turned to face her. "Look, do you have a few minutes to talk?"

"Um, I guess so," she said, taken by surprise. Another match was already in progress and she wanted to be there to cheer on her team. "But just a few." She glanced at coach for approval and he waved her on.

He led her over to the gym's entrance, just a few feet from the bleachers, filled with mostly family members of the wrestlers. "Look, I know we're on rival teams and all that," he began, "but maybe we could get together and practice sometime. Not a real match, just to work on our moves and maybe exchange ideas about training and all."

She pressed a hand against her chest, drawing a look of incredulity. "You want to practice with ME?! Evan, from what I heard, you almost forfeited our match."

He nodded. "Right, I did. Look, I'm still not used to the idea of girls wrestling with boys. But from the way you wrestled today, I think one day I might be okay with it."

She felt flattered but tried her best not to show it. Drawing a scolding look, she folded her arms against her chest. "One day?"

He chuckled and shrugged. "Okay, maybe today, I don't know. But I think we both could improve if we practice together."

She was skeptical to say the least. "Hmm...is that so?" Skeptical she might be and sexist he might be, yet she couldn't resist his offer. "Well, okay, but where? I mean, I think our respective schools would find it highly inappropriate during the middle of wrestling season."

"My family has a membership at the Y. We could go there."

"So does mine. In fact, I used to wrestle there."

"Cool."

He gave her a hug, a closeness that felt very different than what she felt just minutes before. Now she could actually enjoy the manly scent of him, his strong arms wrapped around her. Did he have an ulterior motive? If so, she could think of one that had little to do with wrestling, one that she kind of wanted herself. Nah, couldn't be. "Okay, Evan, it's a date. Well, not a date date. That is, well, you know what I mean."

"Right. Not a date date. We'll go Dutch," he joked. "So we'll exchange numbers after this match."

*****

The Y had two fifteen-by-fifteen-foot wrestling rooms that looked basically the same. Gray and blue matting covered most of the floor space and green padding covered all four walls. Evan lay on the mat in full sweat suit, doing stretching exercises, waiting for Mackenzie to show. He looked forward to this. Mackenzie had been right. Well, sort of right about an ulterior motive. Evan found female muscle hot and sexy, so long as said female had a cute face, and "Kenzie," as he'd heard her called, most certainly did. Blue eyes, lovely skin and a warm smile. And legs—those big, powerful legs might crush him if she ever got to scissor him, he reckoned. Sex aside, he also wanted to help her become a better wrestler, despite the fact that they went to rival schools. No, he hadn't fully accepted girls wrestling on predominately boys' wrestling teams. Even so, he admired her courage, her scrappy attitude.

He glanced at the wall clock on this Saturday afternoon, noting that ten minutes had passed on their agreed meeting time. Had she decided to back out? Then, moments later, he saw her enter carrying a white equipment bag and wearing long spandex stretch pants, a sports top and wrestling shoes.

"Sorry I'm late," she said, dropping her bag on the wood floor that bordered the mat.

"I thought you might have chickened out," he quipped, shooting her a smart-ass grin.

She cocked her head to the side. "Ha ha. No, we girls don't forfeit matches."

He liked her quick comeback. "Touché."

She got down on the mat and stretched with him. "Speaking of forfeiting," she said, "there's something I'd like to know. Why did you ultimately decide to wrestle me?"

He had anticipated her question and had a ready response. "Because, number one, I thought I might look worse forfeiting the match as opposed to going ahead with it. And number two, being the scrappy competitor that you appear to be, I figured you'd hate to win by default."

"You are correct, bully boy." She sprang to her feet, grabbed one of his ankles, dragged him a couple inches across the mat, then pounced on him. "Two points!"

"Ohmygod, I've got a surprise attack artist here. Now what?" Getting up on all fours, he said, "Okay, Kenzie, now watch this magnificent escape."

She jumped on his back, hooked her feet in front of his thighs and grabbed both his elbows. "Go ahead, I'm just getting warmed up."

First, he peeled off one of her hands, then rolled over, putting her on her back, with his back against her front. Quickly, he spun around, reversing their positions and leaving her vulnerable for a pin. "One point for an escape, two points for a near fall!" he cried. "You ARE one scrappy chick," he said, his face so close to hers he could have kissed her if he wanted to. He did want to but didn't. He skipped the pin and let her up.

They both laughed between deep breaths from their brief exertion. Then she said, "By the way, only my close friends call me Kenzie."

"After that, I'd call myself a CLOSE friend." He watched her bend over and laugh some more, apparently taking what he said in the spirit she sensed he gave it. This was a girl who had it all, he thought. Not only was she cute, she knew how to have fun in this sport that she also was seriously passionate about. He also liked the way she could mix it up verbally as well as on the mat. Plus, another thing he knew from their match at Upperco—she smelled good.

He grabbed a towel from his gym bag and wiped his face. Then: "Okay, time for some serious practice."

She drew a look of mock incredulity. "You mean what we just did wasn't serious?" In response to his comic frown, she said, "Okay, all seriousness aside, I'm ready."

They went through the motions of the sport's basic moves and counter-moves, whizzers, suplexes, ankle rides, cross-faces, sit-outs, roll overs and such. Evan took top, then Mackenzie. From the standing position, they practiced takedowns, single-leg and double-leg. He gave her pointers on what she could have done in their real match that might have at least kept her off her back. "I'm telling you this at the risk of possibly losing if we ever meet again." he said. Then, with his index finger over his mouth, he whispered, "Don't tell my coach."

"Oh, I won't," she said as they sat next to each other, backs against a wall, arms wrapped around bent knees. "Although I might tell MY coach."

He was having fun with this tongue-in-cheek repartee. He liked this girl, so full of fun, yet highly competitive when she had to be. "Mind if I ask a question, one that has nothing to do with wrestling?"

"As long as it's personal." She grinned and slapped his arm, as if she had gained some sort of one upmanship. "Bet you never expected that, did you?"

"You're right, I didn't. And it is personal. Do you ever let your hair down? Literally, I mean. Do you unbraid those braids of yours?"

"You can do better than that," she teased. "I thought you were going to ask...oh, never mind. Okay, yes, I let my hair down. And after I change, I'll show you. If you'd like to see."

"I would. And maybe we could get a coffee or something when we leave here."

"Yes to that, too."

*****

Well, maybe this WAS kind of a date date after all, Mackenzie thought while showering. No complaints. She liked this guy, liked him so much that she could have kissed him during their practice session. She had little doubt that he felt something for her also, something that went beyond half-nelsons and suplexes. Another guy might have got offended over her remark about girls not forfeiting matches. But Evan took it in stride. She could joke with him, a refreshing change from her last boyfriend who was like, so SERIOUS. She wondered where this was going as the warm jets of water poured down her body, strong and firm but still feminine to the core. She closed her eyes to avoid the sting of shampoo on her hair that flowed down her back, now loose and braidless.

After dressing in green corduroy slacks and a ski sweater, she used a blow dryer to fix her hair in the simple style she normally wore it when away from the mat—bangs in front and parted in the middle, with the back dropping just below her shoulders, ends flipped slightly up. Carrying her gym bag and her coat over one shoulder, she left the ladies changing room, walked up a flight of stairs, and then into the lobby to find Evan sitting on one of the faux leather sofas wearing a blue warm-up suit, a different suit from what he wore during their practice.

She approached him, curious what he might say about her hair. She assumed his smile meant he liked what he saw. When he stood up, she let him reach out and flip a finger across her bangs. "Nice," he said.

His hair was still damp, she noticed. "Don't you have a hair dryer? It's cold outside. I'll lend you mine if you'd like."

"I'll be okay," he said, holding up the ball cap he'd brought. "Starbucks is only a couple blocks away. We can walk."

It WAS cold outside. January was the coldest month in the Eastern part of the country. They walked fast along the sidewalk, gym bags slung over their shoulders, huddled against the biting northwest wind. Mackenzie slipped her arm into his. "Mind if I do this? We'll be warmer that way."

"Don't mind at all," he said. When they got about a half-block from Starbucks, he stopped and faced her. "Mind if I kiss you?"

"Um, gee, ah, no," she stammered, surprised but excited. Wrapping one arm around her, he pulled her close.

She closed her eyes, feeling the strong warmth of his body. He might be a tiger on the mat, but his kisses were as gentle as a baby's blanket, she thought. "Wow, that was quite nice," she said when they parted. "I look forward to more."

They walked into a Starbucks that wasn't too crowded at this time on a Saturday afternoon. Both ordered hot chocolate, then hung their coats on the back of their chairs. "I didn't expect that at all," she said. "The kiss, I mean."

"One of my more impulsive moves," he said. "I've made plenty of impulsive moves in a match, as I'm sure you have."

She nodded. "And that was one I had no counter for. Well, at least a counter of resistance. I went with the flow."

"By the way," he said, after their order arrived and they took a few sips, "what did you think I was going to ask you, besides how you wear your hair?"

"Oh, something about my sex life," she giggled. "Don't most guys want to know that?"