MARYSVILLE — The sixth best youth wrestler in the nation lives in Marysville.

Her name is Alivia White, an 11-year-old fifth-grader who attends Kellogg Marsh Elementary.

“It’s pretty awesome,” she said. “Knowing there’s no other girls ahead of me.”

That’s right, boys included, White stands in the top-10 in the nation based on her current record. She championed at the state tournament in Tacoma Feb. 20.

Alivia placed third at the Reno World Championship last year and will compete again April 7-10.

As a result she is the Marysville Globe-Arlington Times Athlete of the Week.

“I was nervous,” she said. “I wanted to do better, but there were good kids that were better than me.”

Wrestling for Marysville Youth and Lake Stevens Pin City, she wrestles mostly boys and dominates.

“She’s only gotten better and better,” her dad Craig White said.

With girl’s wrestling rising in popularity, Alivia has developed quite a following.

“Everyone knows who she is,” White said.

With Marysville-Pilchuck High School starting a girls wrestling team, M-P’s athletic director told the Whites not to move anywhere, White said.

Alivia plays other sports as well, such as basketball and soccer. But she likes wrestling the best because she’s good at it, she said.

She likes being part of a team and the aggressiveness, but likes the independence in wrestling.

Other than listening to her coaches, she likes “being in charge, because I’m on that mat alone” she said.

Alivia got her start watching her older brother wrestle.

“It was boring sitting on the side at practice,” she said. “I just wanted to try it out.”

Alivia doesn’t remember much of her first match, but her dad said she cleaned house.

“She beat every kid that was her size,” Craig said.

Alivia developed a knack for wrestling getting “torn apart” by her brother at home, where she ultimately learned a lot of wrestling prior to kindergarten.

“For her she’s just good at approaching everything with a big smile, win or lose,” her dad said.

She’s also a good student. Math is her favorite subject. “Wrestling makes you pay attention details,” he said.