Wednesday I attended my first wrestling match of the winter and my blood was boiling, to say the least. While to most sports fans winter means basketball, less civilized grunts such as myself prefer a matted floor to the hardwood.

The first match of the evening sparked an ever prevalent debate about participation in this sacred sport. Homer’s Billy Tackett pinned Jonesville’s Ciara Brown in less than 30 seconds at 103. Ciara, in case the name didn’t tip you off, is a girl.

Many wrestling purists believe boys and girls should not compete against each other for various reasons. Whispers and groans can often be heard coming from the stands whenever a team has a female wrestler. One reason that usually emerges from such clamoring is that girls shouldn’t wrestle because they run a higher risk of injury.

This argument is valid … to an extent. The average female naturally has a higher body-fat percentage than their male counterparts. In a sport where a few pounds can be the difference in being elite and average, this higher body fat percentage puts women at a decided disadvantage. This isn’t sexist, it’s science.

There are, however, huge discrepancies in strength between opponents regardless of their gender, and it’s an inherent risk that injury could occur no matter who is out on the mat. So, to this argument I say, let them wrestle.

You’ll rarely go into a gym where a boy and girl are wrestling and not hear at least one fan proclaim in disgust, “that’s just wrong,” referring to the grabbing and twisting that occurs. Some feel it is sexually inappropriate for high school co-eds to engage in such a manner while competing in sport.

I shoot down those who argue this point for the same reason I ignore people who say that wrestling is “gay.” For either argument to be true, one must view the sport as a sexual act rather than what it really is, a fierce competition between athletes. Whether the participants are male, female, gay, straight or anything in-between shouldn’t matter because they’re not trying to get to second base, they’re trying to win a match. The problem lies in these fans’ perspective so, again I say, let them wrestle.

Regardless of the advancements society makes for equal rights, and no matter how many Hillary Clintons and Cristina Fernandez de Kirchners there are out there, no male will ever be comfortable losing to a girl, and this is why female participation is so hotly contested. All members of the “He-man Woman Haters Club” don’t want girls in the tree house not because they have cooties, but because they don’t want to lose to them.

I was fortunate enough to witness - and even more fortunate to never compete against – Katrina Betts. The daughter of an ex-AAU national champion, Katrina perfected her father’s signature headlock and sent many a teammate of mine through the rafters while I was in high school. She was mean, strong, fast and - worst of all - she was drop-dead gorgeous.

If you think that any of these factors kept me or my teammates from ridiculing those unfortunate enough to fall to the beautiful Ms. Betts, you seriously overestimate us.

Yes, we would ride, rib and poke fun at those who lost to her, but our ignorant exacerbation of a negative social stigma should not keep anyone from going on the mat. If a wrestler really doesn’t want to lose to a girl, I’d suggested hitting the weights and practice room, and avoid losing the old fashioned way.