Advertisement
Advertisement
Advertisement
Throughout the regulation time of the EBI match, Grace's devout training kept her neck and neck with Alyssa, who matched Grace's slow and calculated moves with rapid fire displays of strength and speed. The match was so close—Alyssa's agility perfectly foiled by Grace's stability—that broadcast announcers were quick to call it "the fight of the night" on a card of primarily adult fights, before noting that "both of these girls regularly beat up boys all across the country. That's what jiu-jitsu is all about.""Little girls are way smarter than little boys," said Holland. "I've never met a boy who listens like Grace does." Her focus and discipline extend so far beyond the mat that it's hard to spot a 12-year-old girl anywhere between those intense and nervous eyes. According to Mary Jo, "She's motivated in lots of different aspects of her life. She's type A, like, 'I want to get it all done, I want it set up a certain way.' She's very organized, disciplined, that's just her personality."Unlike many kids her age, Grace "doesn't care about Facebook, Twitter, pop music people, anything like that." She has harnessed all of her pre-teen enthusiasm into a quiet and steadfast drive that keeps her drilling without complaining and patiently accepting the sport's lessons as they're pummeled, sometimes aggressively, into her body."She's not lost the same way in a match again," said Mary Jo. "If someone's caught her at something it hasn't happened again. She will be upset, but then she shakes it off. It's all part of it." Still, Grace has little to say when it comes to articulating what drives her passion for the sport.
Advertisement
Advertisement