Carroll wrestling history was made last year when Bayley Trang stepped onto the mat. After three grueling matches, the then-sophomore earned the first state title ever for the girls wrestling program after battling back from a 5-0 deficit to win 7-5.
It’s hard to believe that just a year earlier, Bayley was originally cut from the varsity team. When she did eventually make the roster later that season, she placed fourth in district and didn’t place in regionals. The disappointment that followed fueled endless hours of practice, which paid off in spades — Bayley is now nationally ranked and has the potential to be a three-time state champion.
“Bayley has really put in a lot of work,” Carroll head wrestling coach Joe Hathaway says. “It’s kind of cliche, but nobody really sees all the hours, energy, time and sacrifice that go into winning at a high level.”
With an endless drive to succeed, high expectations for herself and humility to boot, this young wrestler is making a name for herself in the sport she loves.
DISCOVERING THE SPORT
When Bayley was in middle school, her mom Brittany enrolled her and her brother in jiu-jitsu, wanting them to learn self-defense. After several years of practice, the siblings made the switch to wrestling.
“I actually encouraged it,” Brittany says. “There are more opportunities in terms of scholarships to be able to wrestle in college versus jiu-jitsu.”
Bayley continued to embrace the sport from there, joining the Dawson Middle School wrestling team, twice becoming a middle school state champion.
“I’ve known Bayley for quite a while,” coach Hathaway says. “She and her family have been around our youth program and part of the youth wrestling scene here in the area for a while.”
Wrestling in middle school gave Bayley the foundation and the experience she needed heading into high school.
“It helped me mentally because I got to go against different people in different schools,” Bayley says. “It helped prepare me for high school because it was sort of the same structure.”
But her entrance into the high school wrestling scene didn’t begin the way she hoped.
“The intensity level was way higher because there’s more on the line,” Bayley says.
On the JV team, Bayley worked hard to improve her technique. And after just a few months on JV, Bayley successfully challenged to be on the varsity team.
“It felt great because I feel like people expected me going from middle school into high school to be on the varsity team,” Bayley says. “So making that really boosted my confidence.”
After the high of making the varsity team came the low of Bayley’s freshman postseason performance.
“I was very disappointed because I expected more from myself,” Bayley says.
But she didn’t let that disappointment serve as a roadblock. Determined to improve and come back better than ever, Bayley took private sessions during the offseason to hone her offense and other areas where she was weaker and eventually began practicing 10 hours a week outside of school.
With hours of practice under her belt, Bayley went into her sophomore year hungry to prove herself.
A SEASON OF SUCCESSES
Beginning her sophomore season in late 2020, Bayley started making an impression in several wrestling tournaments. In November 2020, she finished eighth at the 2020 USA Wrestling National Preseason Nationals in Des Moines, Iowa and first at the 27th annual Mark Peck Westmoor Open in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma, followed by a third-place finish at the USA Wrestling Girls Folkstyle Nationals in Coralville, Iowa in March 2021.
“With her sophomore year, I think all that gelled together — the additional training really made the difference in terms of what she was able to do,” Brittany says. “It was really good to see all the hard work that she put in really [come together] in her sophomore year.”
Through her extra training, Bayley learned what her wrestling strengths were and leaned into them during matches.
“She’s not the strongest wrestler. She’s not going to be the fastest wrestler, and she’s not the most athletic,” Brittany says. “But she’s really good [with her] fundamentals and being able to work with what she has.”
No matter who may have stood on the other side of the mat, Bayley was able to assess her opponent and wrestle accordingly, whether that meant beating them out using her speed, strategy or strength.
“Knowing that you’re not going to be as fast as the [other] girl, what do we need to do to make sure you can counter that?” Brittany says. “I’m really proud that she’s able to strategize and be a very cerebral wrestler.”
During the district meet, Bayley wrestled her way to a district championship, was named the District 4-6A Girls Most Outstanding Wrestler and helped her team earn second place. A week later, Bayley was named the Region 1-6A Champion after a 9-6 come-from-behind win against a Haltom wrestler, once again helping the girls finish second overall.
Then it was time for the state meet.
“Obviously we had high expectations for her,” coach Hathaway says. “We knew that she was going to be a contender at that level.”
Wrestling an opponent from Katy Morton Ranch, Bayley fell behind 5-0. But as the match continued, Bayley’s training and confidence started to kick in. Forcing the match into overtime, Bayley pulled off another come-from-behind finish to win 7-5.
“It was nerve-wracking because I’ve never been in that situation before,” Bayley recalls. “But my coaches really helped me, because throughout the week before, they really prepared me for everything that would happen.”
Stepping on the podium and accepting the gold medal, Bayley became a state champion and earned the first-ever state title for the girls wrestling program since it began in 2002, according to the Dragon Sports Network.
“She’d always had the ability and had put in the work to do it — it was just believing in herself in those moments to really make it happen,” coach Hathaway says. “It was really cool to see her be able to do that, especially two weekends in a row.”
From a freshman season that started with getting cut and ended in regionals to a sophomore season that ended with a state championship, Bayley’s hard work paid off in spades.
“I’m really excited because now people are more aware of my name,” Bayley says. “[This season] is just going to be more exciting.”
ONWARD AND UPWARD
Now in her junior year, Bayley continues to collect wins. She took third at the 2021 USA Wrestling Preseason Nationals in October, an improvement over her eighth-place finish last year. Then the girls team earned back-to-back first-place finishes at the Texas Women’s Classic and the Trojan Classic before finishing second at the CyFair Invitational.
But Bayley’s success isn’t just limited to the region or state. In the January 2022 rankings released jointly by USA Wrestling, FloWrestling and the National Wrestling Hall of Fame, Bayley was ranked the No. 10 girls high school wrestler in the country in her weight class of 112 pounds.
“She’s one of the top female high school wrestlers in the country,” coach Hathaway says. “It’s not something that happens very often, to have a sophomore come out and win a state title and have an opportunity to be a three-time state champion, so that’s a pretty big accomplishment.”
Yet, you won’t find Bayley bragging or showboating. Her mind is simply focused on the sport.
“She’s pretty humble and softspoken,” coach Hathaway says. “And I think that’s how she prefers it — just to keep her nose down, stay out of the spotlight and keep working.”
And keep working she does. At the district meet on Feb. 5, Bayley won the district championship in her weight class and helped the girls team earn first place for the first time since 2006. Dragon wrestling then took second at the regional competition before Bayley won her second back-to-back state title in mid-February.
“I think a lot of [the work] has been on the mental side of things,” coach Hathaway says. “The work ethic and the time has never been the issue. It was just really believing in herself.”
No matter how the rest of her high school wrestling career pans out, the pressure to win isn’t coming from Bayley’s coaches. They just want her to do her best.
“It’s taking [the matches] one at a time,” coach Hathaway says. “There’s really no pressure to live up to anything.”
With a love for the sport, the talent to succeed and the drive to go far, Bayley’s wrestling career is just getting started.
“[Wrestling] is very important to me because it’s a place where I can get my mind off of everything else and just enjoy doing stuff with great teammates, great coaches,” Bayley says. “It’s just very enjoyable to me.”
Bayley also has another aspect of life to begin thinking about: college. While most of her plans are up in the air, she doesn’t intend to stop wrestling, eyeing to continue the sport wherever she lands post-graduation. In the meantime, she’ll continue to have family movie nights and hang out with her little sister when not busy with the sport.
“It’s really exciting to see her achieving at such a high level because it’s what you preach to the kids. If you put that time and energy in and have a little faith in it, that it’ll pay off for you,” coach Hathaway says. “It’s really cool to see it paying off for her.”