Second-year Fort Calhoun High School girls wrestling coach Lilly Gossman is set to become a hall-of-famer this summer.
The Nebraska Scholastic Wrestling Coaches Association (NSWCA) announced its 2025 inductees Friday with Gossman among the five competitors to be recognized June 13 at Boulder Flatts in Grand Island.
“It's emotional,” she said. “That's all I can say.”
Before the NSAA instituted girls wrestling as a sanctioned sport, Gossman was the first Nebraska girl to qualify for and compete during a high school boys state wrestling tournament. The Malcolm Clipper achieved the feat in 2001.
“It was a long journey, so it's very, very surreal,” Gossman said, sharing her appreciation for the environment the girls currently have in their sport.
The FCHS program leader is set to be inducted alongside Omaha North's Brittney Taylor-Roberts, who was the first Nebraska girl to earn her spot in the boys' finals, as well as competitors Bradley Cooper of Ogallala, Grand Island Northwest's Blake Fruchtl and Rick Hasenpflug of Creighton.
Other 2025 inductees include coaches Matt Bruggeman (Gretna), Shane Allison (Valentine), Roger Smith (Gordon), Robert Oliver (Meridian) and Les Painter (Pierce) as well as wrestling contributors Terry Wragge (Pierce), Mark Koch (Twin River), Jim Garfield (Central City and Aurora) and Jackie Brown (Papillion-La Vista South). Official Steve Faber of Gibbon will be inducted June 13 as well.
Another Calhoun wrestling coach, former coach Jim Meyer, was inducted into the same NSWCA Hall of Fame in 2023.
