It’s fitting that Riverview Gabriel Richard has a nickname of the “Pioneers,” because in the early stages of girls wrestling being sanctioned by the Michigan High School Athletic Association, the Gabriel Richard girls program has certainly been a pioneer to help grow the sport among girls.
Since a girls division was created individually (team was created in 2025) in the 2021-22 school year, Gabriel Richard has done the following:
- Produced a two-time state runner-up in Rihanna Venegas.
- Finished ninth in the state as a team last year, with there being only one girls Division that features schools of all sizes.
- Has shown it can compete with bigger schools at various tournaments, including finishing third out of 27 teams at the Wayne County Girls Championships in January.
- Has a roster of six girls wrestlers that is bigger than a lot of Division 1 programs.
Has a wrestler in senior Jacey Barnabei who is on the cusp of reaching 100 career wins, which is a significant milestone.
Not bad at all for a small-school program that competes in the lowest enrollment Divisions in most sports, including wrestling…