Year 9: A Season Worth Sitting With
- manginit
- Feb 27
- 4 min read
A few days after the State Tournament, a friend sent me a text that I haven’t stopped thinking about:
“You’ve poured your heart and soul into this program and to place at state so early in your career is a testament to you as a coach and a program!”
I sat with that for a minute.
Because in the middle of the grind, we don’t always zoom out. We’re thinking about the next match, the next lift, the next correction. We’re solving problems in real time. We’re just trying to get better.
But that message made me pause.
We are only nine seasons into this program’s existence. Nine years ago, this was a handful of girls, borrowed mat space, and a vision.
There were no banners.
No expectations.
No tradition yet built.
To finish 2nd in the state — to place multiple girls on the podium — this early in a program’s life is uncommon.
And that realization made me reflect.
Now that the mats are rolled up and the adrenaline has settled, there is finally space to sit with what this season truly was.
It was special.
Not because it was perfect. Not because it was easy. But because it represented growth — real, measurable, undeniable growth — in a program that is still so young.
When we started this journey, we had belief before we had evidence. We talked about training like an elite Texas program before anyone else saw us that way. We acted like one before the results caught up.
This year, they did.
2025–2026 Season Highlights
11 District Placers — most in program history
9 Regional Qualifiers — most ever
4 Regional Finalists — most ever
3 Regional Champions — most ever
3 State Placers — most ever
2 State Finalists — most ever
2 State Champions — most ever
2nd Place Team Finish at State — highest in program history
Those numbers aren’t just milestones. They are evidence.
Evidence of early mornings in the weight room. 6:00am Performance Course sessions with Coach Voth.
Mindset Wednesdays with Coach Tillman from Z Wrestling.
Match Reflections.
Injuries.
Setbacks.
Tears.
Comebacks.
They represent girls who chose discipline when it would have been easier not to.
And what makes me most proud isn’t just the medals.
It’s the depth.
Every single girl made the podium at District.
Every regional qualifier won a match.
We weren’t top-heavy — we were deep.
That tells me our culture is working. Our foundation is strong.
Gratitude
Programs like this are never built alone.
Coach Dudley was everything our team needed this postseason — steady, encouraging, calm under pressure. The full-circle moment of him being part of the last Flower Mound team to finish 2nd in the state as a student and now helping lead this one was not lost on me.
Coach Voth and those early mornings.
Coach Tillman and mindset work.
Teachers extending grace during tournament season.
Counselors advocating.
Administration supporting.
Athletic trainers who practically lived in our room this year.
It truly takes a village. And ours showed up.
I was honored to be voted Region 1-6A Women’s Coach of the Year. But awards like that are reflections of buy-in. Of culture. Of collective belief. Coaches don’t accomplish things alone — programs do.
To my fellow coach army — you know who y’all are. Some are Jags and some are rivals. You have helped sharpen my leadership, challenge my thinking, and build my character. It is powerful to know that even in competition, we are building each other. I am grateful to not walk this profession alone.
Coach Davis — my dad — and Coach Mendoza, whether you realize it or not, you shaped how I lead, how I prepare, and how I believe. The standards you modeled, the toughness you demanded, and the belief you carried into rooms long before results showed up… that foundation lives in this program. This season is as much yours as it is mine.
To my parents — thank you. My mom, for listening to every groan, every tear, every frustration-filled phone call throughout the season. And both of you, for always giving me rational advice when emotions run high. Your perspective and steadiness have grounded me more times than you know.
To my husband — thank you for holding down the fort with our two wild, amazing boys while I travel and pour into children that are not biologically mine but feel like they are. I know you’re ready for me to take the reins back this offseason… and I’m ready too. I could not do this without you.
Papa Dan — we literally could not function without you. Who would be there to watch the boys when we are pulled away? Thank you for always stepping in.
Above all, I am grateful for my faith. There were moments this season when leadership felt heavy and I questioned whether I was enough. My faith steadied me, grounded me, and reminded me that I am never carrying this alone.
Proud — But Not Satisfied
We are proud.
But we are not satisfied.
Success can make you comfortable.
Comfortable programs regress.
We know how easy it is to fall off the ladder.
So we go back to work.
Back to development.
Back to discipline.
Back to hunger.
Year 9 raised the standard.
For a program still in its infancy, what happened this season is remarkable.
But it is not the ceiling.
The season is over.
The climb continues. 🐆💛
