High school varsity girls wrestling has found its way to the western side of Pennsylvania.

The North Allegheny School Board approved the addition of a girls wrestling program at its meeing Wednesday night. NA becomes the fourth high school in the state to adopt a program.

The other three — Easton, J.P. McCaskey and Executive Education Academy — are all on the eastern side of Pa.

Tigers assistant boys wrestling coach Dan Heckert will be the girls head coach. Heckert has been one of the coaches spearheading the Sanction Pa. task force promoting girls wrestling in the Keystone State.

“It's a trendsetting moment for North Allegheny to be on the cutting edge, to say we're not waiting for someone else to do it. We're going to do it and do it successfully,” Heckert said in a prepared statement.

Butler and Seneca Valley are among the schools in North Allegheny's section in boys wrestling.

“North Allegheny is the model of consistency in all of its athletic programs,” Butler athletic director Bill Mylan said. “I think this will start a trend in the WPIAL. More schools are going to follow suit.”

Mylan is hopeful Butler will be among them.

“It's something we've talked about,” he said of the Golden Tornado adding girls wrestling. “We've had girls in our elementary and junior high program who we've lost at the high school level.

“Their bodies physically develop and it becomes difficult for them to compete against boys. They deserve their own team.”

With the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic, Mylan said he has not approached the school board about the subject.

“Some time this upcoming school year, we will discuss it,” he said. “I'm hoping to see us get a team together in time for the 2021-22 school year.”

Seneca Valley athletic director Heather Lewis won't put a timetable on the Raiders forming a team, but said “it's definitely on our radar.”

“I love wrestling and I want to see our girls get that opportunity,” she said.

Lewis added that she and Raiders boys wrestling coach Kevin Wildrick have discussed the formation of a program. Their plan is to develop it from the elementary school level on up.

“We want a system in place so girls who get into the sport can keep going with it,” Lewis said. “Once we get started, we want the program to sustain itself over time.”

Lewis would put no timetable on the formation of a girls mat program at Seneca Valley.

“With the pandemic, I can't give an answer there,” she said. “When we're in position to add sports, that one will definitely be under consideration.

“North Allegheny got it started. I can see other schools forming teams and this gaining steam in the WPIAL, for sure.”

North Allegheny plans to have six to eight girls on its first varsity roster next season.

Two prestigious high school tournaments — Powerade at Canon-McMillan and Mid-Winter Mayhem at Indiana University of Pa. — will feature a girls division this year.