Diagnosed with dyslexia in elementary school, Brianna Galvan has endured the "you can't" challenges in life.

That's why Carol Galvan, Brianna's mother and biggest fan, has always been the encourager, the voice that says "You can."

Friday, Carol believes her daughter will become a poster child for "can," an inspiration for the kids who were told they can't. Brianna, a freshman at Steilacoom High School, will wrestle at the girls' state tournament, Mat Classic in the Tacoma Dome.

"It's such a big accomplishment," Carol said. "I want kids out there that hear that they can't all time that they can. The hard work pays off."

Brianna is the first freshman girl at Steilacoom to qualify for state.

"It's pretty amazing," Brianna said. "I was pretty much in shock. And happy. I worked hard most of the time."

However, while Carol, and her husband, Jesus, a sergeant stationed at Joint Base Lewis McChord, are in celebration mode now and excited about their daughter's accomplishments in wrestling, it wasn't that way two years ago. They were less than enthusiastic when Brianna first asked if she could turn out for wrestling when she was a seventh-grader at Pioneer Middle School.

Carol didn't want her daughter wrestling against boys.

"I was 100 percent against it," Carol said. "Dad being a Ranger, Mr. Infantry, tough guy, he wanted a non-contact sport. He was saying ‘just do track.' We were both against wrestling."

But Carol reluctantly consented. When Brianna started wrestling, Carol saw something unexpected happen.

"We noticed she had a passion," Carol said. "She struggled education wise. This has definitely given her confidence. I've seen her just blossom. No one really thought she'd get where she's at."There's another side effect to wrestling, besides the discipline and self-confidence it taught. The hard work - running, exercising - also helped Brianna shed weight. The 5-foot-2 wrestler went from 170 pounds as a seventh-grader, to 140 pounds as an eighth-grader to 124 pounds this year.

"I was really a chunky child to be honest with you," Brianna said.

With her success on the mat, Brianna, who has twin sisters who are in middle school, has surprised more than her parents. Even her coach, Tom Johnston is pleasantly surprised. After placing second at sub-regionals and fourth at regionals, Brianna, who wrestled against girls all season, goes into state with a 20-9 record, pinning 11 opponents.

"She's a pretty tough kid," Johnston said. "She's just a competitor. She's a good athlete all the way around."

Brianna, who now has a 3.6 GPA, goes into state seeded fourth and will face a No. 1 seed in the first round.

"If she beats that kid, she'll be on the podium for sure," Johnston said.

Naturally, Carol, who was kicked out of a match for complaining about a ref's call - will be at state cheering for her daughter. But her husband won't because he's on assignment. At regionals, Brianna dedicated the tournament to her dad.

"I wanted to win for him," she said.

Now, she'll want to win for him at state. And for all the kids who've been told they can't.