(6-16-20) The Illinois High School Association (IHSA) Board approved a recommendation to begin an Individual Girls Wrestling State Series beginning in the 2021-22 school year.
IHSA Executive Director Craig Anderson:

“I commend the Board on their vision to further the IHSA mission by continuing to seek out more participation opportunities for high school students in Illinois. Participation in high school girls wrestling has grown significantly over the past few years, and we expect this announcement will only help increase that momentum here in Illinois. Our staff will use the lead time in the 2020-21 school year to best decide how the IHSA Girls Wrestling State Series fits within the current wrestling state series structure, including the dates and locations of each level of the tournament.”

According to the 2018-19 NFHS High School Athletics Participation Survey the number of female wrestlers increased by almost 5,000 participants in 2018-19, as 21,124 girls competed in 2,890 schools.

At least 15 states have separate state wrestling tournaments for girls, including Alaska, Arizona, California, Colorado, Georgia, Hawaii, Massachusetts, Maryland, Missouri, North Carolina, New Jersey, Oregon, Tennessee, Texas and Washington. Nebraska  added a championship for the 2019-20 school year.