Maddie Ngo didn’t start wrestling until her sophomore year at Newton North HS. Two years later, she was a varsity captain, had won State and New England championships, and was named Massachusetts Public School Female Wrestler of the Year.
Now, Ngo is making Newton North history as the school’s first female wrestling recruit. After being accepted to Columbia University, she was offered the opportunity to wrestle for the university’s women’s team.
Ngo initially turned to wrestling after spending years as a competitive rock climber. She said she was looking for a different outlet and quickly became drawn to the sport.
“Wrestling was interesting and exciting for me,” Ngo said.
After her first season, Ngo began taking wrestling more seriously. She joined the varsity team as a junior and became increasingly involved in the club wrestling scene, where she met other female wrestlers.
“There aren’t many female wrestlers at North,” Ngo said. “So having [the club members’] guidance …really introduced me to all of the ins and outs of the sport.”
One of those wrestlers was Freya Munshi of Newton South HS, whom Ngo said helped introduce her to the sport and its community.
Ngo said she was also attracted to wrestling because of the team environment.
“I kind of just really enjoyed it, and I liked the team aspect, which was something that I hadn’t experienced as much before [in rock climbing],” she said.
By her senior year, Ngo had earned a spot among Newton North’s team captains. Wrestling coach John Staulo said her teammates selected her unanimously rather than holding a formal vote.
“Everyone just agreed that, you know, Maddie should be a captain,” Staulo said. “A good leader by example. She doesn’t have to be a yeller and screamer. She’s always helpful and encouraging to all the teammates and inspirational, just by doing the things she was doing.”
Ngo’s leadership was matched by her performance on the mat. Staulo said she finished the season with a winning record against the boys and performed well in girls’ competitions before winning the MIAA Division 1 and MIAA All-State Championships in her weight class.
“She actually had a winning record against all the boys, and did well in the girls,” Staulo said. “And then when it came to the States, she did really well. She won the States very easily.”
Ngo continued her post-season success by winning the New England Interscholastic Girls Championship in her weight class.
In July, Ngo was named the 2026 Public School Female Wrestler of the Year by the Massachusetts Chapter of the National Wrestling Hall of Fame.
For Ngo, her rise in wrestling has coincided with the rapid growth of girls’ wrestling. She said that competing alongside other female wrestlers has helped her appreciate the sport’s growing community.
“I hit [wrestling] at a really exciting time for the sport,” Ngo said. “It’s really exciting to see other people being introduced to it.”
She said the intensity of wrestling is part of what makes the sport particularly meaningful.
“I think for girls, it’s definitely distinct because the emotions when you wrestle are so high,” she said. “The feeling of working really hard for something, and the feeling when you win and when you lose, all that — just seeing people dedicate themselves to that process, I think is something really amazing.”
At Columbia, Ngo will join the women’s wrestling program, which is currently a club sport and is scheduled to become a varsity sport during her sophomore year.
Ngo said she is excited about the opportunity and praised Columbia coach Emma Randall for her work developing the program.
“Coach Emma is absolutely phenomenal,” Ngo said. “She’s really invested in everybody on the team and in the club in general. It’s no accident that they’re going D1 now. It’s been a lot of work behind the scenes by her and countless others.”
For Staulo, Ngo’s accomplishments are a reflection of the qualities she has demonstrated throughout her time at Newton North.
“She’s going to have a great future, on and off the mat, whatever she chooses to do,” he said. “I know that because of her work ethic and her resourcefulness and her innovation.”