The senior Red Raider, who will wrestle at Edinboro, cracked a smile immediately and said that was what she wanted more than anything. She reached the state final a year prior but ended with a silver medal. So earning gold was the redemption she wanted.

And, almost two months to the day later in March, Furman got that redemption.

The Red Raider standout won state gold and cemented herself as the Sun-Gazette Girls Wrestler of the Year for the 2025-26 season. It’s Furman’s second consecutive Wrestler of the Year honor.

“Every day I go out and wrestle I say I’m going to get 1% better every day,” Furman said after this year’s MATNESS at the MACC tournament on January 3. “I just try to do my best every day. I really want that gold.”

DAVE KENNEDY/ Sun-Gazette Montgomery’s Zoe Furman gestures to her coaches after winning the 136-pound state title at Hershey this past winter. Furman was named Sun-Gazette Girls Wrestler of the Year for a second consecutive season

Not only did Furman get 1% better every day, she dominated her opponents en route to gold and making history. She became Montgomery’s first-ever state champ in girls wrestling and became the first girls wrestler from District 4 to win state gold. She also became the first two-time state finalist in Montgomery history and District 4 history.

Furman went 45-0 this year, her first undefeated season, and won gold medals at the District 4 championships, Central Regional championships and the PIAA girls wrestling championships.

Of her 45 wins this year, 42 were in contested matchups and 37 came by pins as she overwhelmed her opponents. Only three opponents were able to go a full six minutes against Furman this entire year.

One of them came from Greater Johnstown’s Sayona Harris-Haye, a fourth-place state finisher a year ago. Harris-Haye gave Furman everything she had in the state final at 136 pounds this year, but Furman came away with a hard-fought 10-6 decision for state gold.

In the second round of the state tournament, Furman earned a 17-9 major over Parkland’s Angelina Spachman, another wrestler who was able to go six minutes vs. the Red Raider.

DAVE KENNEDY/Sun-Gazette Williamsport’s Lillian Rumsey took home bronze this year at the state tournament in girls wrestling at Hershey. Rumsey (118 pounds) was named runner-up for Wrestler of the Year honors behind Montgomery’s Zoe Furman.

The only other wrestler who was able to take Furman to the end was Downingtown West’s Sarah Pearson, who fell to Furman by major decision, 8-0.

Furman didn’t just pin her opponents this year either, she completely overwhelmed and was too much for them.

Twenty-six of Furman’s pins were in less than a minute, some were blink-and-you-miss it speed, such as when she pinned Penn Manor’s Julie Hanna in 11 seconds to open the year. In the first eight contested bouts FUrman had this year, she pinned five opponents in 20 seconds or quicker.

That’s how good Furman was on the mat. Even if an opponent knew what would come from the top-ranked wrestler in Pennsylvania at 136 pounds, they still weren’t able to stop her from getting a pin.

“It is all her mindset. She has the confidence that she knows she’s put in the work every time and she’s just ready to go to the next competitor (and dominate),” coach Jodi Furman said after the MATNESS at the MACC tournament.

And Zoe Furman did exactly that. Time and time again.