Waynesburg University has named Leilah Castro as head women's wrestling coach.

Castro comes to Waynesburg after two seasons as an assistant at Otterbein, where she helped build the women's wrestling program from the ground up in its first two years of existence. During that time, Castro helped assemble a 24-woman roster that included 2025 103-pound NCAA national champion Olivia Shore. Shore was one of four Otterbein wrestlers to qualify for the national tournament. Castro also helped rising junior Kellie Kennedy qualify for the 2026 NCAA Women's Wrestling National Championships at 110 pounds, while freshman Morgan Leonhardt won the 124-pound championship at the Division III National Invitational earlier in the season. Otterbein posted a 9-8 dual meet record and placed fifth out of 18 teams at the NCAA Women's Region III Championships last season. Six Otterbein wrestlers earned NCAA Women's Scholar All-American recognition.

Before her coaching career, Castro was a standout competitor at NAIA powerhouse Campbellsville, where she was a member of back-to-back national championship teams in 2021 and 2022. In 2021-22, she placed second nationally at 123 pounds and won the Mid-South Conference championship while the Tigers claimed the conference team title. A three-time Mid-South Academic All-Conference honoree, Castro also represented the United States on the 2018 U.S. Women's Freestyle Cadet World Team, going 3-2 with a pin and a technical superiority victory en route to a fifth-place finish.

As a high school wrestler at New Lexington in Ohio, Castro won the 121-pound championship at the inaugural Ohio Girls State Wrestling Tournament in 2020, pinning all five opponents on her way to the title and earning the Toccara Montgomery Most Outstanding Wrestler Award from the Ohio High School Wrestling Coaches Association.

Castro holds master's degrees from Antioch University in allied health, exercise and health science, and from Campbellsville in fitness and wellness. She begins her role at Waynesburg in mid-July.