RENO -- She is competing in a sport dominated by men with no prior training, but in just six weeks, Tay Stratford has gone from an inexperienced 18-year-old to a respectable Mixed Martial Arts fighter.

Most of the fighters you see at the Reno Academy of Combat had some
form of training before they hit the mat, but not Stratford.

"I first came in and I was the only girl in that class that night," said Stratford about her first practice. "So, seeing all these big guys just wrestling and throwing punches and getting bloody. It was kind of intimidating."

Intimidating, but the Bishop Manogue graduate kept at it; quickly developing the same taste for combat that her father had as a boxer.

"I like punching and kicking," Stratford said while laughing. "The Reno Academy of Combat has become like my second home."

Getting into the cage period takes guts. but getting in there with little or no experience sounds suicidal. Maybe that's why Tay earned so much respect so quickly.

"She has a lot of tenacity," said Rick Collup with the Reno Academy of
Combat. "She does not give up in here. So, I have all the faith in the
world."

"She's great," said Nick Barbarigos. "There's not really any difference between her and a guy.

Barbarigos has worked especially hard with Tay; teaching her the
fundamentals of fighting; then watching in awe as she executes with
the skill of a pro.

"She came in and she had a great attitude," said Barbirgos, "and she
just absorbs everything like a sponge. We show her something and she's using it."

It is a life-changing hobby that's improved Tay's look as a fighter and a young woman. She has shed 20 pounds in six weeks, but as far as
Tai is concerned she is just getting started.

"I hope to make it to the top one day," said Stratford. "I'm slowly taking it one day at a time and I'm going to stick to it for a very long time."

And while that is good news for the Reno Academy of Combat. It is
frightening for Tay's upcoming opponents..

Tay won her first fight on Saturday, Nov. 14 over an opponent who had approximately one year of training.

She is currently enrolled at Truckee Meadows Community College where
she hopes to major in criminal justice.