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Previous Hidden Gems Spotlights:
Jason Mara, Meridian
Matthew Martino, Bishop Kelly
Kolter Burton, American Falls
Daniel and Gabriel Rosales, Mountain Home
Manuel and Carlos Valdez, Bishop Kelly
Shilo Jones, Mountain View
Clare Waite, Boise
Talen Eck, Thunder Ridge
Bowen and Riley Brunson, Buhl
Aiden McGinnis, Mountain View
Joely Slyter, Lewiston
Tyson Barnhart, Post Falls
Amie Hartman, Mountain Home
The next wrestler in my Hidden Gems series is Elise Twait of Meridian High School. She comes from a family that has wrestling roots dating back several decades and for the past several years has had a strong presence on the wrestling scene in the Gem State of Idaho. The fourth of seven siblings in the family to have competed for Meridian, Elise enters her final prep season with two individual state titles, three All-American honors, and is among the favorites to win number three.
When it comes to siblings, there is no doubt that each play an important, yet unique role in the overall family dynamic. A number of studies have been conducted over the years that have analyzed the roles of each sibling, their position in the family hierarchy and structure, as well as the positive impact on development, which as a matter of course leads to a competitive advantage often present in the younger siblings.
Personally, I experienced this dynamic firsthand with my younger brother (3 years apart), Aaron, who during our competitive days on the mat went on to achieve at a higher level than me at the high school and collegiate levels. On top of that, during my senior year at Livermore High School, we had seven sets of brothers (Cazarez, Conover, Fontes, Nguyen, Peterson, Wong, and Ziegler) in addition to several groups of cousins on our roster. I recall this period of time being very special. We not only had a long sustaining wrestling tradition, the competitive spirit within our program produced a multitude of exceptional wrestlers, championship teams, as well as future coaches with a vast majority of the younger siblings surpassing their elder brothers in overall achievement.
Based on what I have learned thus far about the Twait family, it’s not difficult to surmise that Elise has been positively impacted by the precedent that has been set by her older siblings and family to this point in her mat and academic career. For starters, Elise’s father, Brian, was a two-time Alaska State Champion back in the late 1990s while her older brothers Matthew, Caleb, and Isaiah more recently earned a combined seven Idaho state medals, five state finals appearances, one state title, and three All-American honors for Meridian High School.
Elise’s journey in the sport of wrestling began at a very young age. From her earliest memories, wrestling was an inherent part of her family norms with her older brothers competing at several local and state competitions in addition to her older sister, Mikaela participating in the local club for a season. Elise developed an interest and decided to give it a try at the early age of five. Her initial entry into the wrestling circle was positive. In brief, Elise attended weekly practices with her older brothers at the Fighting Squirels Wrestling Club in Meridian and in due course competed at a local age group competition. Despite having a positive outlook and interest, Elise decided to depart after her initial attempt since at the time, she was the only girl in the wrestling room.
For the next several years, Elise spent a significant amount of time at wrestling competitions in strong support of her older brothers, but still remained apathetic about giving the sport another attempt. Then, after about a seven year gap, Elise’s mother encouraged her to participate in at least one more season with the club. In spite of her mother’s suggestion, Elise had some reservations, but gave it another try and after a few practices realized that she was fairly decent at it and actually enjoyed the challenges that wrestling provided. Fortunately, this was a huge turning point in Elise’s wrestling journey as she earned a medal at the 14U Idaho Freestyle State Championships in the girls division.
Moving forward, Elise’s love for the sport continued to grow at an exponential rate, especially when girl’s wrestling became a combined sanctioned sport with the boys at the high school level. Unfortunately, only one month into her initial high school experience at Meridian, Elise sustained an injury that sidelined her for the remainder of the prep season. In the face of this situation, Elise focused on recovery and by the latter half of the club season she was back on the mat and performed well at the Idaho Freestyle State Championships where she brought home a hard fought bronze medal.
There is the old saying, “Summer wrestling makes winter champions.” From this point in Elise’s wrestling journey, she understood firsthand that achievement is only possible through hard work and total commitment, a common trait she had gained an understanding of from her parents and older brothers who at present had achieved a great deal at the state high school level. In due course, Elise spent the summer between her freshman and sophomore seasons training to prepare for the upcoming prep season. Her extra time spent in the mat room paid off in dividends as she placed third at the highly competitive Reno Tournament of Champions where she also received All-American honors. Shortly after the Christmas break, Elise reached the finals at the Rollie Lane Invitational and followed with a championship performance at the Jaybird Memorial.
Now, with a few tournament titles under her belt, Elise began to gain more confidence in her capabilities on the mat. She entered the post season among the favorites to win the districts and challenge for a top spot at state. While at the District III Championships, Elise wasted little time on the mat as she registered one technical fall and three pins overall to secure the title and a week later followed with a strong performance at the Idaho State Championships. In summary, Elise pinned her first three opponents and, in the finals, battled Boise standout Clare Waite in overtime (tie-breaker) to win her first state title.
When the dust settled at the state championships, the Twait family had a lot to celebrate that evening. Not only did Elise achieve her goal of reaching the top step of the podium, her brother, Isaiah, also achieved the same in addition to earning his fourth state medal. This marked the first time in Idaho state wrestling history that a brother and sister won titles in the same season. As a result of her exceptional performance during the 2022-’23 season, Elise was awarded Idaho Women’s Wrestler-of-the-Year.
Having achieved the big prize at state, Elise was now among the top tier and on the Idaho radar. She understood very well that to be the best, she has to train with the best. Fortunately for Elise, one of the top Junior level wrestlers in the nation, Kaidance Gerg (Fargo Champ), just happened to live within a close proximity. Coached by her father, Sidney Copeland-Miller, Kaidance conducts a vast majority of her training regimen inside her garage, which has been converted into a makeshift wrestling room with a small mat, wall mats, pull-up bars, and an array of Suples training equipment. As a result, Elise upped her training regimen by spending many hours in the off-season training with Kaidance in preparation for future competitions and challenges ahead. According to Sidney, “Elise is amazing! She is always growing and looking to learn more or even a new perspective on things. She always brings this energy that elevates any mat room.”
Elise’s dedication and desire to compete at the elite level continued to pay off as she earned another Idaho Freestyle State title in addition to All-American honors at the 16U Folkstyle Nationals, which more than prepared her for the challenges in the upcoming prep season.
Entering her junior year among the favorites, Elise understood all too well that there was still a lot of work ahead to repeat. In due course, her extra work during the off-season was paying off and on full display. Without a shadow of doubt, Elise proved that she was the leader among her competition, winning titles at the Jaybird Memorial, Tiger-Grizz Invitational, and capping the 2023-’24 prep season with repeat titles at the District III and Idaho State Championships.
I had the opportunity to talk to Meridian Head Coach, Brad Muri, about Elise’s journey thus far and her impact to the program. He stated the following, “Coaching Elise has been a real joy. She works incredibly hard year around and is a true student of the sport. More importantly, she’s a great person with a great attitude and outlook on life. The entire Twait family has been a huge part of the success at Meridian helping cultivate a culture of hard work and toughness.”
Fast forward to the present, Elise is focused on finishing her final season at Meridian on top with the intent to continue her education and wrestling journey at the collegiate level. This past summer she continued her off-season circuit by winning both the Freestyle and Greco State tournaments, a Junior Western Regional Freestyle title, Junior Folkstyle All-American honors, and competed for Team Idaho at the Junior National Duals.
Based on my observations thus far, it is crystal clear that Elise is where she is today as a result of the positive influences, strong work ethic, and precedence set by her older siblings and family support. Her ability to persevere in the midst of adversity is evident with the challenges and shortcomings she has experienced thus far in her journey. As we approach the 2024-’25 season, Elise is in position to earn a rare third state title. Although she is on the honor roll and has many wrestling accolades so far, during my recent Q&A interview with her, she emphasized more than once that she feels she has a lot of hard work ahead to achieve her future goals in wrestling and academics. The fifth among seven siblings, Elise is definitely a pioneer in the growth of girl’s wrestling in Idaho and abroad. I want to wish her the best in the upcoming season and beyond.
One final note, Elise’s younger two siblings, Amy and Erin have also joined in the family tradition by entering the wrestling circle. Amy is a freshman at Meridian High School while the youngest, Erin, is in the second grade. Stay tuned!
More recently, I had the opportunity to meet with Elise and her family. We discussed wrestling, academics, future goals, college, and family. Below is my Q&A with Elise. Enjoy!
Q&A INTERVIEW WITH ELISE TWAIT
HOW DID YOU FIRST GET INVOLVED IN THE SPORT OF WRESTLING?
ELISE – I’ve always been around the sport of wrestling because my three older brothers have wrestled since a young age. I was always interested in it and even wrestled for a season when I was five years old, but ended up quitting because I was the only girl wrestler. Then in 8th grade my mom had me try out wrestling for a single club season. I didn’t want to but after going to my first practice, I realized that I was pretty good at it and really enjoyed it. Since then, my love for the sport has only grown. Once I entered high school, girls wrestling became an official sanctioned sport, so I decided to join the wrestling team.
WHO HAS BEEN YOUR BIGGEST INFLUENCE IN WRESTLING?
ELISE – My biggest influences in wrestling are definitely my dad, brother and my head coach Brad Muri.
My dad has coached me through almost every single tournament, and supported me through all my wins and losses. He has taught me to not be defined by my losses but rather focus on self-improvement.
My older brother Isaiah has been super influential in my wrestling career. He has always practiced with me and helped me on technique and match strategy. During my sophomore year we ran sprints, did pull ups, and flow wrestled (play wrestling) together at the end of every practice. He has helped me improve not only my physical strength but also my mental toughness by making me push my limits.
My head coach, Brad Muri, has always believed in me, even when I haven’t believed in myself. He has sacrificed his time to wrestle with me in season and do private wrestling practices with me in the offseason. He always pushes me to be the best version of myself.
NOW THAT YOU’RE ENTERING YOUR SENIOR YEAR, WHAT ARE YOUR GOALS FOR THE UPCOMING SEASON?
ELISE – My in-season goals in wrestling are to have an undefeated season and win my third Idaho State title. My off-season goal is to win a national title.
HAVING HAD SOME SUCCESS AT THIS POINT IN YOUR CAREER, DESCRIBE YOUR TRAINING ROUTINE AND OUTLOOK IN THE YEARS AHEAD.
ELISE – During the fall I weight lift, run, and attend all the pre-season practices. During the winter I have practice for two hours after school and weight lift as much as possible. After high school season ends, I continue to train about four days a week between offseason practices, private practices with my coaches and training partners, and again weight lifting as much as possible.
DESCRIBE YOUR ACADEMIC AND WRESTLING EXPERIENCE AT MERIDIAN HIGH SCHOOL.
ELISE – I am so grateful to attend Meridian High School and be a part of such an amazing wrestling program with so many high level coaches. Coming back from shoulder surgery, my coaches were super supportive and helped me ease back into the sport by wrestling me as much as possible and helping build my confidence back up. They are one of the biggest components for me having such a strong recovery and good season following surgery.
As for academics, I am grateful for Meridian High school as I am able to get a head start in college with my Advanced Placement (AP), concurrent classes, and specialized classes for students wanting to join the medical field.
WHAT ARE YOUR ACADEMIC GOALS ENTERING YOUR SENIOR SEASON AND BEYOND?
ELISE – My academic goals my senior year are to maintain my 4.0 GPA and prepare for college. Beyond high school, I plan to attend college and major in nursing. After working in the hospital for a couple years I am hoping to work in the OR (operating room) in a private surgery clinic. The amazing nurses who took care of me after I had my shoulder surgery inspired me to help others going through similar situations.
DO YOU HAVE AMBITIONS OF COMPETING IN COLLEGE OR INTERNATIONAL COMPETITION?
ELISE – I am planning on wrestling in college and hope to make the US World Team at some point.
IS THERE AN OLYMPIAN, COLLEGIATE LEVEL WRESTLER, COACH OR SOMEONE OUTSIDE OF THE SPORT OF WRESTLING THAT YOU WANT TO ASPIRE TO BE SOMEDAY?
ELISE – Some of my biggest role models and inspirations in women’s wrestling are Amit Elor, Tamyra Mensah-Stock, and Helen Maroulis.
WHAT LIFE LESSONS HAVE YOU LEARNED IN WRESTLING THAT APPLIES IN YOUR DAY-TO-DAY LIFE?
ELISE – Wrestling has improved my mental toughness significantly. I have learned that no matter what, you will go through hard things (tough losses, injuries, mental blocks etc.), but it is important to work through those struggles and oftentimes you will come out a stronger athlete and person.
Wrestling has also taught me perseverance and to not take anything for granted. When training for Fargo in May of 2023, I completely tore my labrum and sustained several other minor injuries to my shoulder. There were some complications to the nerves in my arm, which caused my initial surgeon to say that I couldn’t receive surgery until October and wouldn’t be able to lightly start wrestling again until April of 2024. After hearing this news, I was broken because this would cause me to lose my full junior season as well as the majority of my off-season. My parents helped me to not give up, and so I got a new surgeon that could perform surgery in July. This was such a blessing and I had a complete and very successful recovery and had an amazing junior season. After going through a set-back like this motivated me to chase my goals even harder and with more diligence. I realized that nothing is for certain and to not take my health and opportunities for granted.
WHAT ADVICE WOULD YOU GIVE A YOUNG WRESTLER WANTING TO BE SUCCESSFUL IN THE SPORT OF WRESTLING OR IN LIFE?
ELISE – Some advice I would give a young wrestler is to not give up. Wrestling is such a brutal sport, but it is also such an amazing and fulfilling sport. You’re going to have losses and hard times but don’t let them discourage you, rather use them as learning opportunities to improve.
WHAT OTHER GOALS DO YOU HAVE IN LIFE?
ELISE – I hope to inspire more girls to try out wrestling and grow the sport.
DO YOU HAVE A SAYING, MOTTO OR PHILOSOPHY THAT YOU LIVE BY?
ELISE – A couple mottos that have stuck with me are as follows,
- “Hard work beats talent, when talent doesn’t work hard”
- “To be the best you have to beat the best”
- “Turn your setbacks into your biggest comebacks”
ONCE YOU ARE DONE COMPETING, DO YOU HAVE PLANS TO STAY INVOLVED WITH WRESTLING?
ELISE – Once I am done competing at the collegiate level, I plan to move back to Idaho and help coach girls wrestling at Meridian High School.
OUTSIDE THE SPORT OF WRESTLING, WHAT OTHER HOBBIES, SPORTS, AND FAMILY FUNCTIONS DO YOU ENJOY THE MOST?
ELISE – I enjoy drawing, painting, and ink. I also love spending time outdoors either hiking, paddle boarding, snowboarding, or just playing outdoor games with friends and family.
ACADEMIC AND ATHLETIC PROFILE
SCHOOL: Meridian High School (6A Division)
GRADE: 12 (Class of 2025)
WRESTLING CLUB: Fighting Squirrels WC, Meridian
PROJECTED WEIGHT: 145-155 lbs.
ACADEMIC ACCOLADES
- Cumulative 4.23 weighted GPA
- Advanced Placement (AP) courses
- Honor Roll Student
EXTRACURRICULAR ACTIVIES
- 4-H, Irish Dance, Cross Country, Volleyball, Basketball, and Wrestling (Middle School)
- Volleyball and Wrestling (High School)
WRESTLING ACCOLADES
- Selected to ID Jr. National Dual Team (10-2 record) ’24
- USA Wrestling Junior Western Regional FS Champion ’24
- Idaho Freestyle State Champion ’24
- Idaho Greco-Roman State Champion ’24
- USA Wrestling Junior Folkstyle ALL-AMERICAN ’24
- Idaho High School State Champion ’24
- IHSAA 5A District III Champion ’24
- Jaybird Memorial Tournament Champion ’24
- Tiger-Grizz Invitational Champion ’24
- Idaho Freestyle State Champion ’23
- USA Wrestling 16U Folkstyle ALL-AMERICAN ’23
- Nominated ID Women’s Wrestler of the Year, 2022-’23 Season
- Idaho High School State Champion ’23
- IHSAA 5A District III Champion ’23
- Jaybird Memorial Tournament Champion ’23
- Rollie Lane Invitational finalist ’23
- Reno TOC – 3rd Place/ALL-AMERICAN ’23
- Idaho Freestyle State Championships – 3rd Place ’22
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