By DIANE GASPER-O'BRIEN

Hays Daily News

Sammie Gonzales glanced at the constant stream of wrestlers running by on the mats during Thursday evening's practice at Gross Memorial Coliseum.

Nervous? Yes.

Ready for tomorrow? Oh, yeah.

Ah, the mixed emotions of qualifying for your first Kansas State High School Wrestling Championships.

Especially when this Sammie is a girl.

Gonzales, a sophomore at Lakin High School, made history for her school when she wrestled in this morning's first round of Class 3-2-1A State Championships.

Gonzales, the first girl to qualify for state for Lakin, was one of more than 200 high school wrestlers, but the only female wrestler, in Hays at this weekend's 3-2-1A state meet, which will continue today and Saturday.

Gonzales lost her first 103-pound match to Leon-Bluestem freshman Clint Solis, but she didn't go down without a fight.

The taller, lankier Solis came out strong against the 5-foot-1 Gonzales and jumped out to a 13-2 lead after two periods.

But Gonzales wasn't done.

Solis got sick between the second and third periods and had to leave the mat. When he returned, Gonzales showed why she entered the tourney with a 24-9 record.

With Solis in an obvious weakened state, Gonzales went after him hard to start the period and got him on his back for a two-point near-fall. But Solis had just enough strength to get away and hold on for a 17-6 win.

Next up for Gonzales is Sabetha sophomore Eddy Roggenkamp in the first round of the consolation bracket at 4:30 this afternoon. Roggenkamp lost by a technical fall this morning to Phillipsburg sophomore Chris Ceman.

According to the Kansas State High School Activities Association, only four girls have ever qualified for a KSHSAA state wrestling meet.

And Gonzales said she has heard that one has won a state match.

"I'd like to try to get one win," she said.

Gonzales won the girls' state championship with the Kansas Krusaders, the official team women's wrestling program of USA Wrestlng-Kansas, as a seventh-grader and has done well in national girls' competition for several years.

But this is different for Gonzales, who finished third in a tough weight bracket at last week's WaKeeney regional to earn a trip to state.

"I thought if I brought the best that I could (at regionals), I could make it to state," she said. "Now I'd like to win one here."

Notice to the rest of the 103-pounders at GMC: Gonzales brought her best this weekend.

"She's strong, and smart, too," a fan said this morning while watching Gonzales' first-round match.

She gets plenty of training in her own home.

Gonzales got interested in wrestling when her two younger brothers, Alex and Dalton, started competing in the Lakin Mat Crew Wrestling Club as youngsters.

One of her classmates, Tayler Frederiksen -- the daughter of a former wrestler who now referees wrestling -- talked Gonzales into giving the sport a try, and she gets plenty of competition at home against 125-pound Alex and 115-pound Dalton.

Now, Lakin has four girls on the high school team. And they give their male counterparts plenty of competition.

"I don't treat (the girls) any differently," said Larron Hurst, Lakin's coach. "They're wrestlers. I have coaches come up to me and ask how to treat the girls. I say, 'Treat them like a wrestler.' "

Fredriksen wrestled on the junior varsity team at 112 pounds behind state qualifier Dalton Davis, a freshman who entered state with a 32-2 record and won his first-round match this morning.

Wrestling against the boys, the girls say, definitely helps when they go to the girls' meets.

"Boys are stronger," Gonzales said.

"But girls are more flexible," Fredriksen said.

"And," Fredriksen added with a smile, "strength doesn't always beat out technique."

"Most go out easy, and you have to show them," Gonzales said.

Gonzales has at least one more chance to show them and possibly get that elusive state win for the girls.

From Hays, Gonzales will travel to McPherson for Sunday's Kansas U.S. Girls' Wrestling Association State Championships.

Of course, she is looking forward to that.

But girls' state will have to wait. If she wins this afternoon, Gonzales will advance to the second round of the consolation bracket Saturday morning.

Win or lose today, Gonzales will be at GMC Saturday to support teammates Davis and junior John Lynch, who is competing in the 135-pound division.

If she has her way, though, Gonzales will be in full gear herself come Saturday morning.

Reporter Diane Gasper-O'Brien can be reached at (785) 628-1081, Ext. 126, or by e-mail at dobrien@dailynews.net.