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In-line with the campus strategic plan of increased enrollment in our female population, this Fall, Pitt Johnstown will make history as the Women’s Wrestling team will compete in its inaugural season. One of the young women who will be leading the way as a trailblazer is Ms. Tamara Humphries. Tamara, a Pittsburgh native, was a highly sought after recruit because of her dynamic and explosive approach in her matches. Nicknamed “The Firefly” and already with Tik Tok and social media accounts boasting 94k+ followers, she chose Pitt Johnstown because of a strong connection with Coach Shane Valko and a shared love of the campus. She said: “I chose UPJ because it feels like a place where hard work is noticed, a place where I can create something bigger than myself and be supported.” Prior to being hired at Pitt Johnstown, Coach Valko, a UPJ Alumni and former NCAA Champion, owned/worked at the gym that Tamara trained at for years.
This year, the Pitt Johnstown coaches made an intentional effort to cast their recruiting nets a little further, with their energies paying off in not only the largest class ever with 115 new student-athletes enrolling this term, but one of the most unique and diverse classes to step foot on campus. This year’s class represents a 47% increase over the previous year and the 115 student-athletes features 38 students coming from out of state (33%), 12 international students (10.4%), and 46 women (40%). Our class now has world representation from countries as far away as Australia and New Zealand, to Italy, Spain, England, and Argentia, and as near by as Puerto Rico, and Canada. These students add to the already rich culture on our campus, and are making immediate impacts in their respective arenas of competition. Out-of-state and female student-athletes particularly stood out with increases of 216% and 92% respectively over last year’s numbers. The prospects are good that these numbers will continue to rise next year as we will be taking part in our first seasons of both Men’s and Women’s Swimming and our new coaches will have a full year of recruiting under their belt.
Tamara would often have difficulty getting to and from practices and Shane would either personally pick her up or arrange for her to get there. Through her social media presence, she even caught the eye of NBA legend and worldwide celebrity, Shaquille O’Neal, who discovered her need for transportation. Shaq is known to have a heart for the underprivileged youth and recently the sport of women’s wrestling, and ended up purchasing a car for Tamara to help her with her travels to and from Pitt Johnstown. Her story was recently featured on KDKA News in Pittsburgh.
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