DeLong gets excellence award

MHS 2020 graduate Charmayne Delong has been awarded the Tricia Saunders High School Excellence Award by the National Wrestling Hall of Fame. This organization recognizes and celebrates the outstanding achievements of those female wrestlers who demonstrate excellence in their efforts.

DeLong was evaluated on her sportsmanship, performance and success on the mat; grade point average (GPA), class rank, academic honors and distinctions; participation in activities demonstrating quality of character and commitment to community.

This award was first presented in 2014 and was named after four-time World Champion and women’s wrestling pioneer Tricia Saunders. Saunders was the first woman to be inducted as a Distinguished Member of the National Wrestling Hall of Fame in 2006 and into the United World Wrestling Hall of Fame in 2011.

For the last few wrestling seasons, Moorcroft area residents have read DeLong’s name and sports achievements on the school sports pages. She has been wrestling since third grade and has, in her high school career, wrestled at the state level for three of the last four years.

She is currently ranked # 15 in the country (under the auspices of the Preseason Girls National High School Rankings). She has also taken All American several times and qualified for Wyoming Boys State twice.

Penny Boardman, DeLong’s grandmother, spoke of her granddaughter’s dedication to her sport: “Being a female and wanting to wrestle in a smaller school district can be a challenge in itself when at that level it is mostly a male sport, but with Charlie Williams and the other coaches in the Moorcroft Wrestling Program as well as Cori Allison in the USA Wrestling Program, Charmayne was able to take that challenge and grow to be the wrestler she is today.  Having the support of her family, friends, team mates and the community helped in her success.”

She added that her granddaughter “was a big part in starting a female wrestling division during the Annual Moorcroft Mixer” as well.

DeLong graduated with her class Sunday afternoon, May 17. She did so with her Associates degree in Science through Eastern Wyoming College. She will be working on a degree in Sports Medicine at Indiana Tech with the help of a scholarship for an agreement to wrestle for the school in their women’s wrestling program.

Like so many other firsts in DeLong’s life so far, this first female Wyoming wrestler was also the first class 2020 commitment with Indiana Tech College when she signed on the dotted line nine months ago.

Of the 46 state winners of the Tricia Saunders Excellence Award, the national winner will be announced on May 26.