Dec 15, 2019 4 min read

Thanks to a new wrestling rule, more athletes will be able to compete in tournaments this year.

The rule allows two wrestlers from the same school to compete in the same weight class in tournaments.

There are a couple provisions to consider. The first is that there must be room in the bracket for extra wrestlers. For example, when a 16-man bracket has 13 competitors, those three spots can be taken up by a wrestler whose teammate is already in the bracket.

If the bracket is full, then you can’t put the extra wrestler into the tournament. The other major stumbling block is if a tournament has a JV tournament during or leading up to the main tournament.

An example of that would be the JV event held the day before the Powerade Wrestling Tournament at Canon-McMillan High School.

The rule will help some programs that have a logjam at a weight class, but it will really benefit programs that are not struggling with a numbers problem.

Not only is this a great idea, but one has to wonder why it took so long to come to fruition.

When Trinity High School attended the Eastern Area Tournament at Gateway High School, three of its wrestlers managed to get valuable mat time for their varsity career. If the rule had not been in place, then the Hillers’ Reece Seng, Adam Gill and Mason Clemens would not have been able to wrestle a combined 10 bouts.

“I really noticed a difference in team chemistry,” said THS coach Powell. “It helps the non-starters feel like they’re more than just a practice partner. This helps them prepare to be a starter next year or in the coming years. And it’s just nice to get them some matches. It keeps kids out for the team. Some of them feel that if they aren’t going to start this year, they will just come out next year. Kids want to wrestle. They don’t want to sit on the sidelines.”

Powell said he sees an increase in the amount of JV tournaments in the area but there is a problem getting his wrestlers to compete in them.

“They usually go on the same day as some other tournament or competition,” he said. “So if you are not fortunate enough to have a lot of coaches (to be with the kids), then you’re out of luck.”

Frank Vulcano, who heads the wrestling steering committee for the WPIAL, pointed out that the rule helps generate interest in the sport from fans who may not be making the trip to these tournaments because their child is not participating.

“I’ve heard some good things from the coaches at these tournaments and I think they are happy to be able to get kids an opportunity to wrestle,” he said. “You work your butt off in practice and some of these kids don’t get a chance to wrestle. When you go to these tournaments that allow extras, then a kid might stay out because he has a chance to wrestle.”

J-M down, not out

If you have seen the summaries of Jefferson-Morgan wrestling this season, it might make you feel there is cause for concern for the well-being of the program.

In a match with Washington Thursday night, only two bouts were contested and a little less than six minutes of combined time was used on the mat. The remainder of the bouts was a series of forfeits.

But Scot Moore, the Jefferson-Morgan athletic director, said the program might be going through some tough times right now but the outlook is actually quite positive.

“We’ll be OK,” said Moore. “We have some kids who are hurt and will be coming back and we have good numbers with our junior high program.”

Moore said there were eight wrestlers on the varsity roster, many of them freshmen. He said as early as next season, the roster will be more crowded and bouts such as the one with Wash High won’t be happening.

Moore said there has been no discussion about a co-op situation for the program, which produced two 4-time PIAA champions in Cary Kolat and Gavin Teasdale.

Assistant sports editor Joe Tuscano can be reached at jtuscano@observer-reporter.com