MEEKER | With the high school wrestling season still months away, the Meeker High School girls wrestling team isn’t wasting any time preparing for what’s ahead. Focused on growth, mat time and team bonding, the Cowboys traveled to Gunnison earlier this month to take part in the Rocky Mountain Wrestling Western Colorado State Team Camp held June 13–16, 2025.
The team brought six wrestlers to the camp: Ruth and Micah LeBlanc, Jenna Pelloni, Lucy Munger, Emma Ford and Abi Amick.
Head coach Barny LeBlanc shared the team’s goals heading into the camp and reflected on the experience.
“Our goals for this camp were to learn and grow as well as get more mat time. The girls did a great job of learning and growing from both wins and losses,” he said.
LeBlanc noted the team had been working on new techniques in the weeks leading up to camp and saw improvement in how the girls implemented them during competition.
“The mat time was extremely valuable. We wrestled girls from across the country—Arizona, New Mexico and California—and we saw that we could hang with pretty much any team from those states,” LeBlanc said.
Over the course of the weekend, Meeker wrestled in 15 duals. Ruth LeBlanc and Emma Ford each lost only one match and were selected to represent Meeker in the All-Star Dual. Both battled hard but came up just short.
Ruth LeBlanc, who will be a junior this season and took fourth place at the Colorado state tournament as a sophomore, reflected on her time at camp.
“Overall the camp was super fun, and I felt like it was a major confidence boost—I improved a lot,” she said. “Competing in 15 duals was very fun but also exhausting! I was so tired, but that part of the camp helped me learn how to deal with being physically tired and come back mentally stronger.”
LeBlanc said being chosen for the All-Star Dual was a highlight of her weekend.
“Being in the All-Star Dual was very exciting! It was even more fun knowing that the pressure was off and it didn’t really matter, so I could just go compete for fun,” she said. “I’m very proud of the strength that Jesus has empowered me with! He has given me wrestling and a good build for wrestling as a platform, and it’s such a blessing to be a vessel for Him. The drive to push through soreness and tiredness was purely from Him, and I’m proud that I get to call Him my strength.”
Looking ahead to the 2025–26 season, LeBlanc said the experience has fueled her motivation.
“It brought me lots of confidence in my God-given ability—just to be able to take shots when I want to and be aware of my body position,” she said.
Coach Barny LeBlanc wrapped up the weekend proud of the team’s effort and growth.
“I’m super proud of all the girls’ efforts and especially their resolve to get better over the summer practices,” he said. “I’m super excited for the upcoming season and the success these girls are going to realize.”
While the Western camp and two weeks of summer training were the team’s only official offseason activities, Coach LeBlanc said that was intentional. By keeping the schedule light, the team can stay fresh and motivated heading into the fall.
With solid experience under their belts, strong leadership and a team-first mentality, Meeker’s girls wrestling squad is already laying the foundation for what could be a breakout season.