Hearl signs with Emmanuel University

Jamie Hearl helped set the bar for women’s wrestling at Mount Airy High School and beyond.

Hearl graduated with multiple All-American Honors, All-State Honors and Most Outstanding Wrestler awards. She also filled her trophy case with medals, plaques and even a sword – and it all began with a text she sent to her father Joey following her first-ever wrestling practice:

“It was really fun!!”

Hearl started her wrestling career as a freshman in 2021, and less than four years later signed her NCAA National Letter of Intent with Emmanuel University in Georgia.

“It felt like I was finally achieving a long-term dream of mine,” Hearl said. “I obviously want to thank my two sisters and my mom for all the times they sacrificed going on trips and making plans to be able to come and support me as I wrestled.

“I want to thank Cody Atkins for being there for me during rough times and helping me navigate into the aggressive wrestler I became. I want to thank the Collins Family for helping me get up for early practices, and Jake Fregia for teaching me in those daily practices. I want to thank coach JK Adkins for helping me every day in the weight room and helping me get stronger every day.

“And finally, I want to thank my best friend and my biggest supporter: Joey Hearl. My dad has been there through absolutely everything, and I don’t know where I would be without everything he has sacrificed and supported me through.”

Jamie said her dad tried to get her to wrestle throughout her childhood. While she didn’t want to wrestle growing up, Hearl said she was involved in “any sport you could think of,” including dance, softball, basketball and soccer.

She joined the wrestling team during the 2020-21 spring COVID season and never looked back.

“Her dad saw her passion and he was just as passionate about wrestling, so they were able to bond and that really helped her take it up levels,” said Mount Airy coach Cody Atkins. “Sometimes, when someone does a sport from birth, they hit a wall and reach their peak younger. But where she started as a freshman, she continued to improve every year. I honestly don’t think she has reached her peak yet, even as great as she is.”

Hearl was one of the founding members of Mount Airy’s women’s wrestling program and, over her four years, became an ambassador of the sport.

“I’ve definitely had my ups and downs over the course of my Mount Airy wrestling career including many injuries, cutting weight daily and being pulled from the mat for a mental health crisis,” Hearl said. “Through it all, I’ve had wrestling to lean on. I feel like being able to have such success in a program new to women’s wrestling gave me a gateway to inspire not only the future of Mount Airy women’s wrestling, but Surry County and North Carolina as a whole.”

Hearl only wrestled a handful of official matches for Mount Airy’s then-combined boys and girls’ team as a freshman. That number inflated to close to 40 as a sophomore. After being eliminated in the opening round of the 106-pound bracket in 2021, Hearl returned to the state tournament the following year and reached the semifinals of the 100-pound bracket – only losing to the eventual state champion.

Atkins said he always expected Hearl to wrestle in college if she wanted to. It was during her junior year in which that dream moved closer to reality.

“She improved by leaps and bounds from the past two seasons,” Atkins said. “She went to every tournament, camp and clinic she could find to continue to improve. The only thing we had to work on was confidence, which is something I had to really get her to do and believe she was the best.”

As Hearl’s confidence grew, so too did the number in the win column. As a junior, Hearl helped Mount Airy finish runner-up as a team at the inaugural women’s Midwest Regional Championship, which featured 47 teams from all four public school classifications. She captured the regional title at 100 pounds.

Hearl went on to finish 100-pound State Runner-up. She called her semifinal victory over the two-time defending state champion one of her best high school memories.

Hearl’s improvement on the mat put her on a clear path to becoming a collegiate wrestler. However, she said things were not that simple.

“I actually was torn on the decision to be a college athlete,” Hearl said. “While being treated inpatient for a serious mental health crisis back in October, our doctors tasked us with creating a ‘BIG Goal,’ we wanted to achieve after returning home. I sat and thought long and hard on what that goal would be, and eventually I came to the conclusion that I would compete in college wrestling as no female wrestler in the area had done.

“I felt that Emmanuel University was a good fit for me as they will allow me to be close to my family, especially my sister with special needs. They have a large focus on prioritizing their students’ mental health, and it also gives me a chance to help grow women’s wrestling with a community that supports me as an athlete.”

Hearl was able to compete her senior season and bulldozed through competition against both boys and girls. She helped Mount Airy win the first-ever Northwest 1A Conference Women’s Team Championship, and was also named Conference Wrestler of the Year and Most Outstanding Wrestler of the Conference Tournament. She went on to win the 107-pound Midwest Regional Championship and was named MOW of that meet as well – all while dealing with an injury.

Hearl wrapped up her time as a Granite Bear by finishing state runner-up at 107 pounds.

Hearl continued to rack up hardware outside of school wrestling as she never took an offseason. She earned 13 All-American Honors during her high school career by posting top finishes in events such as the Beast of the East Tournament in Delaware, Ohio Tournament of Champions and National High School Coaches Association (NHSCA) Nationals in Virginia.

Her accomplishments on the mat made Hearl a household name. She was recognized at tournaments across the country, was approached to have pictures taken, and was asked to speak after receiving awards.

“I feel like there isn’t a girl wrestler or girls coach that doesn’t know who Jamie is,” Atkins said. “She has made her mark in Mount Airy wrestling history, but also has had a lot of success nationally. She has become famous for her crazy hair colors and famous sharoo, taught to her by her father Joey, that made her go viral for a short period.

“I look forward to watching her compete in college; the sky is the limit. She left her name in the history books of Mount Airy wrestling, and I hope she does the same at the college level.”