Dan Brun: 715-650-0411, [email protected]

Youth wrestling practices are fun, but tournaments are where the competition is. You can take your child to any youth tournament you want, but you are NOT REQUIRED to take them. Some parents choose to have their child just practice for a few years... some parents start tournaments right away. This is completely up to you.

Usually, there will be at least one Marshfield wrestling coach at the local tournaments. If you don’t feel comfortable coaching your child mat-side, let a coach know when he/she is up to wrestle. That’s what the coaches are there for!! But with so many kids, they can’t always keep track of who is wrestling and when. DON’T HESITATE TO LET THE COACHES KNOW WHEN YOUR CHILD IS WRESTLING!!

If you aren’t sure if coaches will be at a specific tournament, ask! There are many wrestling coaches at the youth level and they all don’t go to the same tournaments.

Youth Wrestling Tournaments can be intimidating if you are unfamiliar with them. They may even seem chaotic at times, but once you get the hang of how things are run, it gets easier.

Mats & Brackets – Each mat will display 2 numbers, Mat Number​ and Bracket Number​; the Mat Number remains the same throughout the tournament, while the Bracket Number changes. If your child is on Mat 2 - Bracket 4, you want to have him ready at Mat 2 when the Bracket Number is on 2 or 3. Sometimes brackets move quickly, so keep an eye on your mat! Some tournaments use bout numbers instead of bracket numbers. Find your bracket on the wall and take note of your bout numbers. Then just keep an eye on what bout number is up for the mat your bracket is on.

An average day at a youth tournament (this is just an example, times may vary):

The above is only an example that most tournaments follow, some tournaments have slight variations – for example, having a morning session for younger kids and a later session for older kids. Other tournaments require pre-registration. This will be noted on the tournament fliers.

All tournaments have concessions during the day, some start with breakfast, some not. Also, feel free to bring any food and drink your wrestler might have a fondness for.

Bring something for your wrestler (and any siblings) to do between matches, it can be as much as an hour or more between matches. Tablets and smartphones come in handy with just a few games.

The referees at tournaments are volunteers, and often they are High School wrestlers of the location you are at, be patient as they may be just as nervous as your wrestler!

At most tournaments, your wrestler will have 3 matches. The brackets are a 4 wrestler, round robin; with each person wrestling all the others through 3 rounds. There may be times where the bracket is a 3 wrestler, or 5 wrestler; but most of the time you will see 4 person brackets.

The brackets are made up of wrestlers who are sorted by weight, age, and experience; trying to keep all of the wrestlers as close to the same level on all three.

For youth wrestlers, the matches are 3 periods of 1 minute each.

Take Down (2 points) – a wrestler takes the other from their feet to the ground and gains control of the other, behind the arms, or on top with the other wrestler on their back.

Escape (1 point) – the wrestler who is on the bottom, with the other in control of them, gets away from the opponent and gets back to their feet (Neutral Position).

Reversal (2 points) – The wrestler on the bottom, reverses position with the wrestler who had control and gains control of them.

Near Fall (3 or 4 points) – a wrestler gets put into a position where their shoulder blades are less than 45 degrees from level with the mat. If this is held from 2 to 4 seconds – 2 points​, if it is held for more than 5 seconds – 3 points.

Penalty – Points can be given for committing a penalty, but at the very young ages of Youth Wrestling the official will often give several warnings before awarding penalty points. Often, the official will stop the match and even instruct the wrestlers on what had happened, and how to NOT have it happen again.

Pin – If a wrestler gains control of the other, and holds both of the other wrestler's shoulders to the mat for roughly 2 seconds they are given the win. Many tournaments give small pins, sometimes with beads or ribbon to a wrestler who pins another. You'll see many kids with them pinned into caps.

Overtime – If your wrestler ends up going into overtime in a match, the winner will be decided by takedown. The first wrestler to get a takedown on the other is the winner.

1st – Both of the wrestlers start out on their feet, the neutral position.

2nd – A coin flip will determine which wrestler get to choose between the neutral position, top position in the referee's position, bottom position in the referee's position, or deferring the choice to the other wrestler.

3rd – The wrestler who didn't choose position in the 2nd period chooses from the choices above, except deferring to the other wrestler. Coaches will assist the wrestler in their choice of what position, as it might benefit to be in a certain position depending on the score or situation.

If your wrestler starts to get serious about going to tournaments, it may be beneficial to discuss the scoring with them so they get a better understanding on HOW they can win. We will cover scoring points in practice, but as time is limited we will have to focus on technique and some fun more often than not.

The following link will take you to the Wisconsin Wrestling website – this includes a listing of youth tournaments: http://www.wiwrestling.com/upcoming-events

Each listed tournament has what it will cost for entry, what awards are given, and times for weigh-ins, registration information.

It will be up to YOU to register and go to the tournament of your choice. There will be a few tournaments throughout the season that coaches will be at and encourage others to attend.

If you have a Facebook account, search for Marshfield Wrestling Club​ and LIKE the page. Many times, tournament pictures will be posted and you may see your wrestler in action! Also, announcements are made via this page along with any Remind messages.

If you have any questions about practice, tournaments, things we've learned at practice, or anything else; feel free to ask your Coach.

When you get to tournaments, ask as many questions as you feel you need to. We are there to help, and are more than willing to do so. Also, sit with other parents and talk throughout the day. They have their own ideas and ways of doing things that work for them, and they may have advice that your coach may not have tried or thought of.