ktownwrestling

I heard at least a dozen ask why we have it there. I suggested to our athletic director that we should look into hosting. I think some of the programs have improved and the number of fans seems to have increased which is good but the seating  is not adequate. 

I have attended all four IHSWCA Team State Duals and in my opinion the Ft. Wayne Coliseum has been the best facility. There are a couple small tweeks that I am sure the tournament director/coordinators will make that will help tremendously with seating. I received the impression from my athletes that the coliseum felt more like a state championship tournament facility than Westfield or Ball State. When we walked into the coliseum many of our wrestlers faces instantly lit up. I have always believed that if you treat a tournament like the super bowl then it becomes the super bowl, and for our kids the facility made that more true for them than in years past. Like I said, there can be some small tweeks made to make the facility even better like moving team seats to the center facing each other rather than on the sides of the scorers table which may allow the side bleaches to extend down further opening up 3-4 more rows of seating. Or moving the team food location somewhere else as well as the tournament directors stage which would allow there to be bleachers on both ends of the mats.

This was the first time I have attended so I have nothing to compare it to, but having all the teams together in this format was great! I think the above is spot on about the venue. If some changes could be made and the venue expanded with more seating  and space it would be fine. Restrooms, I went 3-4 times during and never waiting more than  like 2 minutes so I think that is a bit much to complain  about.  It is hard for fans who are used to bringing in food to feed themselves and wrestlers to have that restriction placed on them when that is not the norm. Concessions are not that big of an issue in my opinion. If you can increase the space, seats,  and improve the site lines so  everyone can see it should work just fine. This is a huge undertaking and as a fan  from Knightstown I appreciated being  a part of it. Thanks to all who put it together!!

Personally I feel Indiana is getting the best of both worlds. The single class individual is a awesome. Being able to compete with the top schools your class in a dual format is has also been great. I know for a fact it is helping us with our numbers knowing we have a shot at some form of a state title.
 
I appreciate the opportunity for our team to be a able to both.

I was in "wrestling heaven"!!!!!!! I am a mom who has become a big big fan of wrestling. Watching my older boy wrestle was just the beginning and now I am watching my freshman. He has wrestled since kindergarten and now I am enjoying not only watching him, but all the other boys he has wrestled in the past. I thought the venue in Ft Wayne was awesome. It was filled with non-stop action all day!!!! For the first time, I saw teams like Bellmont, Prairie Heights and a few others from the north all under one roof and wrestling at the same place. I just went with the flow. If my sons team moved, I moved right with them and when it was his turn to wrestle, I found a place to watch him. There was so much energy in the room how could you not be excited!!!!!! It was an unbelievable day of wrestling with some of the BEST WRESTLERS in the state. I can't wait till next year!!!!!!!

This was the first time I have attended so I have nothing to compare it to, but having all the teams together in this format was great! I think the above is spot on about the venue. If some changes could be made and the venue expanded with more seating  and space it would be fine. Restrooms, I went 3-4 times during and never waiting more than  like 2 minutes so I think that is a bit much to complain  about.  It is hard for fans who are used to bringing in food to feed themselves and wrestlers to have that restriction placed on them when that is not the norm. Concessions are not that big of an issue in my opinion. If you can increase the space, seats,  and improve the site lines so  everyone can see it should work just fine. This is a huge undertaking and as a fan  from Knightstown I appreciated being  a part of it. Thanks to all who put it together!!

Wasn't there but it seems like if a few things are done then most complaints will be addressed.
 
1. Use an extra expo hall.
2. Bring in more seating.
3. Change the mat configuration.
 
I have faith in the event organizers, that these changes will be made. It just seems that they were blind sided by the large number of fans (growing pains). Again, unfortunately I was not there but, I have been a part of running big events. It is very hard to predict shortfalls. Y2 seems to be open to suggestions. He also seems to be a fairly sharp guy. I am sure that things will improve.
 
Lastly, senior leadership or newbies they still give of themselves and should be respected for their efforts. Nobody intentionally gave people a bad experience. I know for a fact that people missed family holiday functions and days of work to run this event.

Individual state should not be classed, but I do like the idea of team being a class format. A school the size of say Carmel who has roughly 2400 boys in the top four grades definitely has better odds to put 14 solid wrestlers on the mat versus many 1A schools being able to do the same. That being said a small school can produce 2-3 really solid kids that can compete at a high level on an individual basis. Those boys want the opportunity to compete against all comers at least I know mine do!!

I certainly don't mean to open up a can of worms on this topic, or hi-jack the original intent of this thread, but I feel compelled to offer my opinion on this topic. I have
long been a proponent of class wrestling. It works beautifully in many other states across our nation and offers magnificent opportunities for kids and teams from
all size schools and communities (that they likely may not have the opportunity to experience in a single class system). The notion and need for some form of class wrestling
in Indiana becomes glaringly evident if you were in attendance at the Classed Team State Duals event. Teams/Schools of all sizes afforded the opportunity to compete within
divisions with schools their own size with similar enrollments, similar size coaching staffs, and similar school resources to name a few "pro-class" characteristics.
 
I don't know that we can put our finger on hard statistics, but I have enjoyed a number of conversations that I have had with coaches and fans from primarily the middle and
small classes regarding the Classed Team State Duals. One coach I spoke with said, "our team numbers are up because our kids want to come back each year and shoot to win the
Team State Duals. They are actually out recruiting friends to come and join the program on our quest to compete and win at the Team State Duals." Another coach noted that the Classed Team State Duals was THE pinnacle event of the season for their team. It's neat to see the teams (from all of the classes) who bought event-specific gear just for
the Classed Team State Duals tournament.
 
As noted in another thread, the fan base for this event is growing. I couldn't help but notice Prairie Heights' fan section when they sealed their championship
yesterday. The roar from their large fan base made everyone's head turn. I realize many people have their varying opinion on the need for classed wrestling in Indiana,
but I think the Classed Team State Duals event is a pretty good indication of what is right and best for ALL wrestling programs in the state.
 
Thank you to all of the schools who participated in yesterday's event and thank you to the fans who made the trip to Ft. Wayne to support your teams.
 
Coach McCormick

This team state idea won't get anywhere, anyone have any idea what the attendance was? Oh ya and great job Prairie Heights Panthers there first ever state championship of any sport ever.

Agreed. We should have seeded them #1

Guess they were deserving of that 2 seed after all. Congrats!!

I wanted to take a moment and thank the Pendleton Heights Wrestling Team and it's Coaches for the kindness, and great honor, they showed me this past Saturday at our Wrestling Invitational.  As many of you know, my wife Bonnie passed away in late August after a battle with cancer.  Anyone who knew Bonnie realized what a wonderful person she was.  She had a contagious smile, loved to make new friends , and went out of her way to help people when at all possible.  There were a number of years when she went to Pendleton to help the Arabian Wrestling Club with pairing their springtime tournament.  She got to where she looked forward to going because she had made friends with a number of the people and she enjoyed seeing them.  Anyway, at our meet Saturday the members of the Pendleton Heights team as well as Coach Cloud and the other members of his staff approached me and presented me with one of their Team T-Shirts.  On the sleeve of the shirt was a rembrance to Bonnie.  Needless to say this big guy was moved.  They all shook my hand and had something to say.  They all seemed happy to be doing it.  I deeply appreciated it, and I will never forget it.  Thinking about the kindness shown is moving me to tears as I type this.  I just want to say, "Thanks Arabian Wrestlers and Coaches for being so kind and for having such class.  I know Bonnie would appreciate it as well."

I don't usually get into many discussions on here, especially about class wrestling. I just feel like we are too divided and no matter how I express my point, I'm never going to convince those that believe "if it ain't broke, don't fix it". I for one love our individual state finals and I really enjoyed our experience at team state this year. But...our individual finals is broken. When you have the disparity we have in SQ and place winners that we have, something is wrong.
 
I'll give you an example that is not wrestling related. My daughter qualified with her 200 relay team for the swim state finals this year. She's a fine swimmer and works her tail off, so did her teammates! They were seeded 32 and finished 29th. Rochester was the smallest school represented at state in ANY events! Twin Lakes was the second smallest. Everyone one else were 4A and 5A schools. If it was classed my daughter and her team would have been state champs in the 200 free relay. No other times from small schools were even close. They, our school, and her mom and I would have been just fine with that because they put in the work to be that good. The issue is we don't have the same resources that the Carmels, Penns, etc have. We just don't. That's not a matter of opinion...its a fact because I live it. We provide her with every opportunity we can but we can't provide her with what the Carmel Swim club can provide its' kids. If you think sports like wrestling and swimming shouldn't be classed, then you just dont get it or you don't care to.
 
Tomorrow Rochester will play Tippy Valley for the class 2A semi state bball title and I'll bet anyone we have more fans in attendance for the little ole 2A game then you will for any other game in the state. Over 5,000 tickets have been pre sold and they are not sure there will be enough parking at Warsaw HS (5A) school. Class all sports, give the small schools a chance to build their brand, and I think you'll see some great stuff happen in Indiana Wrestling. As an association we can get this done if we get on the same page!!

Cash won. Definitely the better wrestler tonight. Great job. Interesting that Cash "caught" Lee, but Lee didn't "catch" James. Truth is.. All three are phenomenal wrestlers and deserved a state title today. Congrats to Cash, Lee, and James for tremendous seasons/careers!

Parris born 10-1-99 turned 15 in October a real freshman.  The poor boy just getting hair under his arms!!!! lol

Knightstown 69 Blue River 6
Knightstown 52 Shenandoah 27
Knightstown 54 Tri 24
 
Shenandoah and Tri tied on points 42 each I think