Cody Griswold enters his fourth season as the head coach of the Elmira College women’s wrestling program. Griswold was named the first head coach of the women's wrestling team in March of 2020 and assumed head coaching duties for the men's wrestling program for the academic year of 2021-22.
In 2023-24, the Soaring Eagles finished with a 10-8 overall record in duals as the Purple & Gold recorded ranked victories against Tiffin University, Gannon University, and New Jersey City University. With the victory against the Gothic Knights, Griswold improved to 4-0 all-time in duals during his time guiding the Soaring Eagles. Griswold would take the Soaring Eagles to Cedar Falls, Iowa to compete for the first time at the NWCA National Dual Meet Championships as EC won a pair of matches against Gannon and Adrian College.
For a second straight season, Elmira notched nine overall place-winners at the Ursinus College Invite and placed second in the team standings with Abby Duke '26, Tayana Labady '25, and Zoey Lints '27 each winning the championship at their weight class. Griswold guided EC to a fourth-place finish at the 2024 NCWWC Region 1 Championships as the Soaring Eagles notched nine regional place-finishers and three national qualifiers. Skylah Chakouian '25 qualified for her third consecutive national tournament, while Abby Duke '26 and Zoey Lints '27 earned their first trip to nationals. Lints became just the second Elmira wrestler to win a regional title after going undefeated with a 4-0 record at 143 pounds.
At the 2024 NCWWC National Tournament, the Soaring Eagles placed 17th out of 49 programs with Lints, Chakouian, and Duke each winning at least two matches. Lints went 4-2 overall at the tournament and joined teammate Skylah Chakouian '25 as the only All-American wrestler's in program history. The fifth-place finish by Lints was the highest in program history after Chakouian placed eighth at nationals during the 2022 season. Griswold would see five wrestlers notch at least 18 victories on the season as Lints set the single-season record with 34 victories, while Chakouian tallied 31 victories for EC.
In 2022-23, Griswold guided EC to a program-best 12 dual victories as the Soaring Eagles defeated nationally-ranked programs in East Stroudsburg, New Jersey City University, and Lock Haven. The Soaring Eagles set a program-record with nine place-winners and four individual champions at the Ursinus College Invite. Elmira would place fourth out of 11 programs at the 2023 NCWWC Northeast Regional Championships as six Soaring Eagles punched their tickets to wrestle at nationals.
At the 2023 NCWWC National Tournament, Elmira recorded its highest finish in the team standings as the Soaring Eagles placed 15th out of 37 programs as Skylah Chakouian '25 and Tayana Labady '25 both notched three victories while advancing to the fourth round of the consolation bracket. The Soaring Eagles finished the season with four wrestlers notching at least 20 victories, including first-year wrestler Gabby Bradigan '26, who recorded at the time a program-best 29 overall victories.
In 2021-22, the first year of competition for the women’s program, Griswold led the Purple & Gold to their first-ever program dual victory against Delaware Valley and to their first national ranking as they were voted No. 15 by the National Wrestling Coaches Association (NWCA). The Soaring Eagles would also pick up victories against Hiram and nationally ranked New Jersey City University (NJCU).
At the NCWWC Northeast Regional Championships, Elmira finished fifth out of 12 teams to secure 79 overall points with three wrestlers recording podium finishes and punching their ticket to the National Championships. Skylah Chakouian ‘25 became the first Soaring Eagle to capture a regional championship as she finished 3-0 in the 155-pound division at regionals, while Tayana Labady ‘25 and Merci Jessop ‘25 both finished top-5 in their weight classes of 191 and 123, respectively.
At nationals, the Purple & Gold would place 18th out of 32 programs that had a wrestler qualify for a national tournament. With Griswold’s guidance, Chakouian wrestled to an eighth-place finish at 155 pounds and entered the record books again as she became the first wrestler in Elmira College women’s wrestling program history to earn All-American status. Chakouian would also be recognized as the EC Female Athlete of the Year.
A former Division III student-athlete and Connecticut high school state champion, Griswold joined the Soaring Eagles after spending five seasons as the head wrestling coach at Williamstown High School in Williamstown, Vermont. During his tenure, Griswold transformed Williamstown from a small club into a formidable varsity program sanctioned under the auspices of the Vermont Principals' Association.
Under Griswold's tutelage, Williamstown has finished among the top 11 teams in the state on three occasions, placing as high as ninth at the 2017 state championships. In total, nine Blue Devils have placed at the state tournament, and the team has represented Vermont at the New England Championships three times. Last season, one Blue Devil finished fifth at the state tournament and two more took sixth. In addition to the success the Williamstown boys have found over the past five seasons, Griswold has spent the last two winters coaching the program's first-ever female wrestler, who recently earned a podium finish at an all-girls tournament in Vermont.
Before mentoring the team at Williamstown, Griswold spent one season as an assistant coach at his alma mater, Norwich University, in Northfield, Vermont. Among his responsibilities with the Cadets were the implementation and coordination of their strength and conditioning program, organizing and executing practice plans, and assisting in the team's recruiting efforts.
Not only did Griswold spend his undergraduate years as a member of the Norwich wrestling team, he received a military-style education while enrolled in the Norwich University Corps of Cadets and Reserve Officers' Training Corps (ROTC). A 2014 graduate, Griswold received a Bachelor's of Science in Physical Education with a concentration in Coaching from NU.
During his prep career, Griswold was a dominant force on the mats in the Nutmeg State. A standout wrestler and three-time team captain at New Milford High School in New Milford, Connecticut, he posted a stellar four-year record of 144 wins with 38 losses. As a senior, he captured a Class L state title at 171 pounds. During his junior campaign, Griswold earned a runner-up finish in the 160-pound weight class, while his Green Wave team placed second in the Class LL bracket.
