Simison started wrestling in second grade. Third-oldest among four siblings, Simison’s family has spent a lot of time around the mat. Simison’s older brother Ashton Simison currently wrestles at Rio Grande University, and that’s whose record Naura Simison stated she was “trying to beat” in 2024-25.
“I would really just credit my dad and my mom because they were the ones that did take me out to wrestling clubs,” Simison said. “I think the first one I ever went to was the Shores Wrestling Club, and that was only my second year they took me out to that, so the more they got me around it — we even did offseason when I was younger. I just fell in love with it when I was young.”
Naura Simison won the sectional tournament at Greenview, placed third at Harrison districts and advanced to the state tournament for a second year in a row as a sophomore.
Greenon coach Daniel Trainer began coaching Naura Simison when he ran the Greenon Youth Wrestling Club, he said. There, the two forged a bond that continued throughout middle school wrestling to high school, where Trainer took over the position three years ago.
Trainer said Naura Simison is “always a hard worker,” and last season was a highlight for both of them.
“I was very proud,” Trainer said. “It’s just one win after another. She was just dominating each tournament we went to. I just can’t say enough about her. I mean, she just works super hard.”
Girls wrestling is growing across Ohio and the nation. According to Ohio High School Wrestling Coaches Association President Shawn Andrews, around 3,000 girls participated this year, up from 254 in 2020 when the sport was not state sanctioned.
Trainer said he hopes to see other girls wrestlers follow in Naura Simison’s footsteps.
“Our youth program is growing really good right now,” Trainer said. “We just keep the kids interested, having fun. Then you get to middle school, it gets a little bit more serious, and then high school, that’s when you start getting really serious.”
Naura Simison said her younger brother wrestles at the eighth-grade level. She also said a friend had a hand in getting her involved in the sport when they were younger, and Naura Simison wants to pay it forward also when serving as a mentor to younger girls wrestlers.
“I know I’ve influenced some kids, some of the guys even, to want to work on their self more, seeing me do great,” Simison said. “We had a little middle schooler. She has influenced some of her friends to join. So I have a lot of friends in my grade, not at my school, from other schools that have joined through watching me wrestle.”
It didn’t always begin with girls wrestling for Naura Simison, however. She wrestled boys up until she reached high school, she said, and she stopped cheerleading after middle school to focus on wrestling.
Now, when she hears that girls wrestling is among the fastest growing prep sports in Ohio, she’s proud to be among those creating paths for others to follow.
“I think it’s awesome,” Simison said. “I mean, I grew up wrestling only boys until my freshman year. (That) was my first season of girls. I was really excited about it then and I still am now when my dad tells me about the numbers like tripling or whatever, so I think it’s awesome.”
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