Wrestling will join golf as a coed varsity sport in fall 2016 after participating as a Club Team for the past two years. As members of the National Collegiate Wrestling Association (NCWA), the Henry Ford College Wrestling Club has experienced success at local, regional and national levels and has fielding participants in the NCWA National Championships each year, according to the announcement.
Head Coach Grant Mackenzie will remain on staff and is poised to lead the wrestling team in National Junior College Athletic Association (NJCAA) competition next year.
"I'm proud that HFC will elevate our wrestling club (NCWA) to Varsity status (NJCAA)," Mackenzie told InterMat. "The Detroit area is a great place to create a collegiate wrestling program."
"I'm the first-ever NCWA coach to create a club team from scratch and elevate it to varsity."
In addition to adding varsity wrestling, Henry Ford College will bring back its women's volleyball program after a three-year hiatus. Volleyball will join basketball and softball as the third women's sport offered at the college. The college hopes to introduce a volleyball coach in November.
"It was always our intention to bring our volleyball program back," said Athletics Director Rochelle Taylor. "We are excited that the budget deficit experienced at the college several years ago has been resolved and that our administration supports year-round opportunities for women student-athletes on our campus."
With the addition of these new sport teams, Henry Ford College will offer seven NJCAA sports in 2016-17: baseball, men's and women's basketball, golf, softball, volleyball and wrestling.
"Through the growth of the HFC athletics program, the college demonstrates to current and prospective students its commitment to the comprehensive educational welfare of student-athletes," said Taylor. "We have an opportunity to foster athletic competitiveness, leadership development, community involvement and campus integration on a larger scale, creating a well-rounded and successful student-athlete."
Henry Ford College is located in Dearborn, Mich. Founded in 1938, HFC is a two-year college with approximately 13,000 students.
Recommended Comments
There are no comments to display.
Create an account or sign in to comment
You need to be a member in order to leave a comment
Create an account
Sign up for a new account in our community. It's easy!
Register a new accountSign in
Already have an account? Sign in here.
Sign In Now