Our Blog

Bryson The Relentless Scoring Machine
Placing 5th at Kids FolkStyle National in Indiana going 4-2, Bryson has been a relentless scoring machine. Going 8-1 at Wildwood National Duals, placing 2nd he headed to the Mass. state wrestling tournament. Killa B…

Youth New Englands Recap
This weekend 16 wrestlers from Grit and Gratitude Wrestling Academy stepped on the mat at the Youth New Englands and every single one of them came ready to battle. There were smiles, tough losses, big…

Grizzlies Take The Mat At 12U/15U Massachusetts State Wrestling Tournament
Today, the Grit and Gratitude Wrestling Academy had 6 wrestlers travel to Gloucester High School to compete in the 12U/15U Massachusetts State Wrestling Tournament. Representing our 12U division: Ayden Garcia – 63 lbs Kaysen Beaulieu…

Grizzlies Compete In The 2026 USAW MWA 12U/15U Sectional Qualifier
This past Sunday, the Grit and Gratitude Youth wrestlers traveled to West Springfield High School to compete in the 2026 USAW MWA 12U/15U Sectional Qualifier. For several of our athletes, this was their first time…

Youth Grizzlies Compete For Individual Massachusetts State Titles
Today, the 6U, 8U, and 10U Grit and Gratitude Youth Grizzlies traveled to North Andover High School to compete for individual Massachusetts State Titles. The day was filled with outstanding wrestling, effort, and heart. We…

Grizzlies Hard Work Shines In Meet Victory
Wednesday night (February 4, 2026) the Grizzlies traveled to Central High School and faced off against the Agawam Youth Wrestling team in a dual meet. There were some very tough and even matchups but these young…

More Than a Tournament: A Weekend We’ll Never Forget in Fort Wayne
This past weekend, four of our Youth Grizzlies — Ayden, Naim, Micah, and Bryson — traveled to the historic War Memorial Coliseum in Fort Wayne, Indiana to compete at the USA Wrestling Youth Folkstyle Nationals.…

Grizzly Youth Wrestling Competed Their First Ever Dual Meet
Last Wednesday (January 14th) marked a historic moment for Grizzly Youth Wrestling as they competed in their first ever dual meet against West Springfield Youth Wrestling. With the bleachers packed with parents and fans, our…

Grizzlies Battle Falcons in Road Dual Meet
On January 21, 2026, the Grizzlies traveled to Minnechaug High School for a dual meet against the Falcons Youth Wrestling Team. Our young warriors stepped up to the challenge, showing grit, determination, and heart in…

Lady Grizzlies Beat the Streets
It was an early, gloomy Sunday morning at 7 a.m. On a day when most teenagers were sleeping in and enjoying a holiday weekend, six Lady Grizzlies gathered at 184 Stafford in Springfield, Massachusetts. Their…

Bryson Bryant at Summer Nationals
In July this past summer, Bryson Bryant, who has been wrestling for 2 years, competed in Summer Nationals in Atlantic City, NJ. He wrestled on 2 dual teams and was a national champ and name…

Tim O’Donnell G&G Short Film
Huge thank you to our dear friend Tim O'Donnell, Springfield College Wrestling Alumni, former Central Wrestling Coach, and now Emmy-nominated and award-winning documentary filmmaker! Tim came back to Springfield and spent the day with our…

Brother Sister Duo!
Today three grizzlies competed at the STCC tournament right here in Springfield, MA. Including the brother sister duo of Avi and Kaysen. Both competed with strictly business on their mind. But most importantly, had fun…

Puerto Rico National Team Member
Today Coach Jon Viruet marched his way to a gold medal defeating the returning Puerto Rico national team member not once but twice! Claiming himself as the new Men's Greco 77kg Puerto Rico National Team…

New Parent Viewing Room & Fall Session Opening Day!
Today Grizzlies fall session has begun for both youth and high school student athletes. In addition, we have upgraded and included a new parent viewing area. With seats, a big screen TV to view the…

The Merica Tournament
Today two Grizzlies competed at The Merica Tournament. Both Naim and Ayden took home gold in their weight classes! The future is so bright for these two young guys. In so many ways they light…

Mass Appeals Community Corner
For the month of July Grit & Gratitude Grizzlies had the honor of being highlighted as the Mass Appeals Community Corner of the month. Head Coach and Executive Director Darby McLaughlin had the ability to…

Grit & Gratitude History
This past week Grizzlies very own Samantha Bertini Made history being the clubs first Fargo All American. She ended the day strong with a 5-2 record earning her 4th place and the right to call…

Girls Northeast Regionals
Lady Griz and Ludlow High School freshman, Samantha Bertini, can now add 2023 Northeast Regional Champion to her already impressive resume. Keep your eyes on this one!!!! #champ #girlswrestling #grit #gratitude

Mayor Sarno’s Support
https://www.wwlp.com/news/local-news/hampden-county/mayor-sarno-to-announce-the-11th-round-of-arpa-funding/amp/?fbclid=IwAR25frbNukCLhXwVj-pH2fSylUduKQb9g0XHcz6Iozp5mzulEGOViFE16og&mibextid=Zxz2cZ Mayor Sarno’s support for our organization is a testament to his commitment to see the youth in our community thrive. We realize this award comes with a great deal of responsibility. The leaders of…

Spartan Duals
Today both the Grizzlies Middle School and High School team competed in its first ever dual tournament. This was a big step forward for the club and shows the progress we have made in the…

Fight For Vets!
Today Grizzlies BJJ crew attended Fight for Vets Grappling Super Fights at Springfield Central High School. This was a charity event set to raise money for veterans and the Grizzlies put on a show. Bringing…

Thunderbirds Hockey Game
Thanks to Jose Escribano we were able to secure a night at the Thunderbirds! We were able to give out 15 free tickets to club members and even made it on the jumbotron! Thank you,…

King Of The Mat
Today two Grizzly Wrestlers headed to the King of The Mat Wrestling Tournament. Both finished first in their respective weight classes and were crowned kings of the mat! Huge congratulations to Naim and Kaysen for…

WesternMass News Features Charlie Soffen
WesternMass News did a story on Grizzlies very own Charlie Soffen! Click the link and check it out. https://www.westernmassnews.com/2023/02/25/springfield-wrestling-studio-helping-area-student-athletes-succeed-mat/

MA Girls State Championships
With our Lady Grit girl program still continuing to grow our very own Samantha Bertini of Ludlow High School took home the gold at the MA Girls Highschool State Championships. Not only did she win…

MA State Championships
Grizzlies took on MA Middle School State Championships today. Competing with all the best Middle School kids around MA Charlie Soffen made Grizzly history. Winning not his first but 6th Massachusetts state title! Following that…

Western MA Championship
Couple Grizzlies competed at the Western MA Middle School Championships Today. They battled hard and all came home with some hardware! Grizzlies very own Charlie Soffen took home the gold dominating his competition. Beckett Leclair…

Agawam Youth Tournament
Grizzlies took Agawam by storm today! Bringing an army of 15 kids. Setting a record number of competitors for us in one day. We had lots of hardware coming back to the den once the…

MA Youth States
Today was a huge day for our youth Grizzlies! Each and every one of them battled strong at the MA Youth State Championship Tournament. At the end of the day, we brought home a total…

Spartan Battle of Champions
This Sunday Grizzlies youth and middle school team attended the Spartan Battle of Champions Wrestling Tournament. Again, all the kids gave and outstanding performance! Each and every kid wrestled their heart out. It's truly amazing…

Its Official!!!
Today is a significant day for our club and one that will surely have a huge impact on the growth and development of Grizzlies as a whole. After a two year wait (Grit & Gratitude…

USAW Girls Kick Off Classic
This past Sunday was the USAW Girls Kick Off Classic Championship Tournament! We had one girl compete in this competition and had one champ. Huge congratulations to Samantha for winning this competition. She is now…

Jim Day Tournament
Another Successful day this Sunday as the Grizzlies walk away with four champions at the Jim Day Youth Wrestling Tournament Hosted at Berlin High School. We went 4/4 this weekend having everyone who competed taking…

Natick Tournament
This Saturday the Youth Grizzlies traveled to Natick Youth Wrestling Tournament. Leading the Grizzly pack was Coach Chris and Coach Micah. Huge thanks to them for helping the kids this weekend! Another week another outstanding…

Chelmsford Tournament
This Sunday we had six kids compete at the Chelmsford Youth Wrestling Tournament. At the end of the day Grizzlies brought home two 1st place finishers and four 2nd place finishers. Ayden Garcia (48-50lbs) and…

Tap Cancer Out World Grappling Day Fundraiser
Yesterday was and amazing day and excellent turnout for the event we hosted. (Tap Cancer Out World Grappling Day Fundraiser) We had over 50 people come in and out throughout the day from all around…

