When Chelsea Fuller and her family moved from Butler to the Slippery Rock school district two years ago, she was looking for another sport to play.

Already an accomplished soccer player, Fuller wanted to do something different. It didn't take long for her to find just the sport to whet her appetite for something off the wall.

She chose wrestling.

Yes, wrestling - a male dominated sport and not one for he faint of heart. That didn't matter to her. It didn't matter she knew little about the sport. It didn't matter that she could be outmuscled because she weighed just a bit more than 100 pounds.

So what? Fuller asked. She slipped into a singlet, strapped on her headgear and gave it a whirl anyway.

Now in the second year of her wrestling career with the Rockets, Fuller boasts of a 13-11 career record and an ever-growing appetite for the sport.

"She does care - she hates to lose," said Slippery Rock coach Fred Powell. "She likes the combat. I think she likes the combativeness of the sport."

Of Fuller's 13 wins, most have come by forfeit. Of her 11 losses, most have come by pin.

But the junior provides Powell with some valuable flexibility. Fuller can fill the 103-, 112- or 119-pound weight classes.

"She's a selfless competitor," Powell said. "She'll do whatever she is asked to help the team."

She has also been a trailblazer. Her sister, Ashley, is wrestling in eighth grade and Noel Previty, also an eight-grader, is part of the Rockets wrestling program as well.

Chelsea has taken an active role in trying to help both become better wrestlers.

"(Ashley) wanted to try it," the older Fuller said. "She's done pretty well. I'll usually show her some things. In practice, it gets pretty competitive between us. I try to push her."

Ashley concedes defeat to her older sister on a regular basis during their personal contests, either on the mat in practice or on the carpet in their living room.

It's all part of the learning experience for Ashley, who is getting a considerable head start in the sport.

"If we learn a complicated move in practice and I don't understand it, Chelsea will help me at home," Ashley said. "Chelsea has her way with me most of the time."

Last week against Maplewood, Chelsea had what appeared to be a pin in the 103-pound match, but the referee didn't award her one, much to the great displeasure of the crowd, the coaches and Fuller.

"There's nothing you can do about it," she said. "People are like that sometimes. They don't want to think a girl can beat a guy."

When it comes to wrestling other females, Chelsea has had much more success.

She wrestled in Fargo, N.D., in the nation freestyle tournament this summer for females and placed eighth.

"It's different wrestling against girls than it is against guys," she said. "Guys are much stronger in the arms, so you have to wrestle them differently.

"Wrestling against guys definitely helps me when I wrestle against girls."

Ashley also has enjoyed some success on the mat in her first season. Last week, she pinned a male opponent in the junior high match.

Like her sister, she didn't concern herself with being a female in a male-dominated sport. She just considered herself a wrestler, plain and simple.

"I did it because I could," Ashley said. "I don't know how good I can be, but I want to keep doing it through my senior year."

Powell is intrigued by Ashley's potential.

"Ashley is very aggressive," Powell said. "She pinned a male wrestler last week and she went out and dominated him. It was exciting to see her be able to outwrestle a male."

Previty is no stranger to taking on the opposite sex in male-dominated sports. She also plays football.

"I don't care what anyone thinks," Previty said. "When I decided to wrestle, it was just something I wanted to try. Then people started telling me I couldn't do it, so that made me want to do it even more."

Previty has had only two matches, but she has experienced the sport enough to know she wants to keep doing it.

And she said she also knows she has a lot of work to do.

"From working with Chelsea, I know I need to get a lot tougher," Previty said. "I need to practice, practice, practice and lift weights. I have a lot of motivation to do this."

Powell is happy to see his three female wrestlers sticking with the sport.

It's not easy. All three have encountered opposition. They simply shrug it off.

"They are totally committed," Powell said. "They don't shy away from anything I ask them to do. When I ask them to do something, they don't back off."