In the 2020s, it’s rare for a new high school sport to begin, and it’s rare for athletes to be taking a program to new heights, but that’s what juniors Aleia and Lillian Fenberg are doing for Durango High School girls wrestling.
Girls wrestling is a young high school sport, with the first Colorado High School Activities Association girls state wrestling tournament taking place in 2021.
Therefore, there isn’t a lot of tradition and role models in a program as young as Durango High School and for the Fenberg twins. But the twins are becoming role models and trailblazers, looking to take girls wrestling in Durango to another level at state, potentially becoming only the third and fourth Durango girls wrestlers to place at state.
The Fenbergs are part of an impressive, but young, Durango girls wrestling squad. The team has no seniors, but has four strong juniors in the twins, Marie Baker and Keelyn Reynolds who are leading the way with state aspirations. The squad also has three freshmen, Lucy Larsen, Timber Zink, Haidyn Albrecht and a sophomore, Sydney McAllister, who have a ton of potential and have put together some impressive results.
“The team this year is super special,” Aleia said. “Also, because we're older now and we're more leaders, it's been so much fun to just grow relationships with these new girls, especially because ... they're really good for their age, especially because they have so many more seasons here.”
Even with all these talented wrestlers, the twins stick out on the mat with their combination of aggressiveness, athleticism and technique, which has been a successful duo for the Fenbergs.
Aleia won at the Western Slope Showdown in Montrose, the Warrior Classic in Grand Junction, the Rocky Mountain Girls Invitational in Pagosa Springs and a few local tris and duals. Lillian won at the Rocky Mountain Girls Invitational, the Clash at the Coliseum in Farmington and at a few local tris and duals
“I’ve known them for a while and their older sister, Brooke, wrestled, and they just followed with her,” Durango girls wrestling assistant coach Beth Hermesman said. “I’ve seen them since they were freshmen, and they’ve really stepped into their own. You can see them really working through everything that the coaches give them. They are becoming leaders, and they take the work we give them and run with it.”
The twins come from a wrestling family, with their father, Moss, wrestling in high school and now is an assistant coach for the Demons. The twins have four siblings, with their older brother, Jacob, and older sister, Brooke, wrestling for the Demons.
Aleia and Lillian were inspired by seeing Brooke wrestle and started in middle school in seventh and eighth grade. They tried other sports in middle school like volleyball and basketball, but weren’t very good. Once they started wrestling, they realized they were naturally gifted in it.
In 2023-2024, the twins made their debut on the high school and impressed immediately, with Lillian making it to state as a freshman. The sport has grown so much since then, with the twins noticing tournaments with more schools and bigger brackets in each weight class in the last two years.
“You can totally see a difference, because there used to be a big gap between beginner girls and then girls who wrestled with only boys, so they're really good … but now that there's girls teams, there are more of that middle range, and I feel that's kind of where we are,” Lillian said. “So you're meeting girls who are more at your level.”
The sport has grown enough at the high school level that the twins don’t feel the old societal norms about wrestling being a boys’ sport and that girls shouldn’t be competing. The twins feel a lot of support from their friends and classmates, as girls wrestling has become normal. They feel like some older people can be a little judgmental because of those old norms, but the Fenbergs haven’t had anyone be judgmental to their faces or tell them to their faces to get off the mat.
Support also comes from each other. Despite Aleia wrestling at 130 pounds and Lillian wrestling at 140, the two practice together all the time and know each other’s moves so well.
Aleia can help Lillian to work on riding, staying on top of her opponent on the mat and keeping her legs running. The twins can support each other with their eating habits to make sure they make the weight they want and are at their best while they’re doing it.
All the work and support from teammates, new head coach Ryan McGrath and the wrestling community has paid off for the Fenberg twins. After a lot of success this season, they want to get back to state and place for the first time.
After Lillian went in 2024, Aleia went last year with Baker. Lillian was so close to getting back to state last season, but she was disqualified from regionals in the semifinals. She was in tears afterward, knowing all her hard work wouldn’t lead to state. It also affected where she was seeded in brackets during this season, and where she’ll be seeded in brackets in regionals in a few weeks.
Lillian used the disqualification as motivation to get better in the summer. She, Aleia, and Baker are ready to place at state, which would be a big deal for them and for the program, setting themselves up to be role models for the younger Durango girls wrestlers.
“We learn more from them than we teach,” McGrath said. “They're carving out of space for themselves in a sport that a few years ago, women were very scarce in it and couldn't compete in. You couldn't buy a girl's uniform 4 years ago ... They've come a long way in a very difficult landscape ... and they’re doing a great job.”
bkelly@durangoherald.com
