Joy Castellucci: Gloucester’s rising star wrestler

When most people think about wrestling, they think about a hot, sweaty gym full of boys beating on each other, but times are changing, and women’s wrestling is gripping the nation — and Gloucester — one pin at a time. 

Women’s wrestling became an official NCAA sport in January of 2020, enabling them to have their own divisions at the high school level. Before that, there were a few big tournaments that had all-girls divisions, but with not nearly as many girls competing in a normal weight bracket, leading to some of the brackets having a 15-20 pound weight difference. 

Growing up, she remembers watching Morgan Pennipede and Bailee Millitelo wrestle for Gloucester High School. 

“When I was back home during Thanksgiving break and saw all the girls on the youth team, I was like, oh my gosh, this is so amazing,” Militello said, now a Division 1 wrestler at Sacred Heart University. “It’s really cool to watch and see that where I started was only the beginning, and there is such a big future for women’s wrestling.” 

Although Castellucci watched them growing up, her first inspiration was National Wrestling Hall of Fame member Marisol Nugent, who is currently training to secure a spot on the Olympic team.

“There are moments that you believe that you can’t do it for yourself,” Nugent said. “Do it for her, do it for the little girl watching you, do it for my little sister, who came to every single one of my tournaments my senior year of college. “