Wrestling Scoring System

Now, since I believe i have convinced you to attend some wrestling matches, I should probably teach you how the scoring works.

A wrestler can score by:

• Taking their opponent down (2 points)
• reversing control (2 points)
• escaping control of their opponent (1 point)
• holding their opponent on their back for a certain amount of time (3 max points)
• holding them there for 2 seconds (2 points)
• holding them there for 5 seconds (3 points)
• note: if one holds an opponent on their back for five seconds, they only get 3 points, not 3 plus the 2.
• any technical violations (full nelson, locked hands, illegal headlocks, unnecessary roughness, etc.)
• the first technical violation is a warning, the second is one point, the third is 2 points, and the fourth is disqualification. some may vary due to the referee and/or the severity of the violation.
• Stalling (similar to technical violations, but the scoring and definition varies per ref)
• pinning the opponent is an automatic win for the pinning wrestler, no matter the score

Some of this may seem a little strange, but you will see the referee awarding points, so you can see what is ment by some of these. 

Now, the team points are different.  The team points are what decide who wins a match, and how a wrestler wins is taken into account.

A team scores by:

• pinning their opponent (6 team points)
• winning by points but by less than a ten point margin (3 team points)
• winning by more than 10 but less than 15 points (4 team points)
• winning by over 15 points, results in disqualification of losing wrestler (5 team points)
• a forfeit, which happens if a team doesn't have a wrestler for a certain weight class (6 team points)
• unsportsmanlike conduct towards the other team, may result from unnecessary roughness (deducts one team point from offending team)

After every weight class has wrestled, the team with the most team points wins. 

Now that you know how a wrestling match is scored, I urge you to come to our next match.  we have one at Blake at 6 on Tuesday, and our next home match is the week after winter break. Hope to see you there!

Wrestling Misconceptions

As many of you may know, I am a wrestler for Blair. We have already started our season and had a few teammates place at a tournament this weekend.  We graduated a bunch of good seniors last year, but we still have a good team that is looking to have an even greater role in Montgomery County wrestling in the future. Wrestling is a tough but rewarding sport, and once you get into it, you just can't get enough.

Most of you, however, have not even considered wrestling to be a sport and have forgotten about it.  Many of you believe it is too weird to watch, even though you probably havn't seen a match. You probably think the sport is too harsh and violent, and maybe even slightly homosexual. Although it could be those things, (except for that last part) it is really interesting and it helps build character. 

Wrestling is one of the toughest sports because not only does one have to go to practice like other athletes, but they also have to cut weight and make sure they don't gain too much.  Someone could argue that hockey or football is tough, but like the link says, those guys get to have a heaping plate of dinner after practice while wrestlers go to bed hungry.  Wrestlers sometimes lose a crazy amount of weight (myself included) just to face smaller people, which makes it more likely they will win. 

Since the sport is extremely tough, wrestlers build bonds with their teammates who are facing the same situation and they create tight friendships through it, as well as respect for each other for sticking with it. 

The sport is also very rewarding because its not your team beating another team, it's you beating one man in a fight.  On a hockey or football team, your team could be winning games without much individual contributions; but wrestling is a completely solo sport.  If you win or lose, it's all on you and not your teammates.

Wrestling is a tough sport, and it's also really fun to watch.  Sometimes, people get slammed to the mat, or there could be a sudden death overtime match that draws down to the wire.  It's cuper exciting to watch, and because of this, I urge any of you readers to go out and see a wrestling match or tournament or something.  You won't regret it, and once you get past the initial strangeness of the sport, you'll find yourself loving it.