PIAA expands team wrestling tournament; Central's Whitecomb receives honor

A couple wrestling-related notes to pass along.

First, some news form the PIAA Board of Directors meetings. According to several outlets, the board agreed Thursday to expand the team wrestling tournaments to 17 teams in Class AA and 20 teams in Class AAA (both classifications previously qualified 16 teams). The board actually voted down the expansion on Wednesday night, but seemed to have a change of heart on Thursday, voting 20-10 to approve the measure. The new changes will take effect in 2011.

RodFrisco.com has all the info you need on this one.

Basically, the new format will feature one first-round match in Class AA and four first-round matches in Class AAA to see who qualifies for the 16-team field. The 16-team team wrestling tournament will then take place over a three-day period -- beginning Thursday, Feb. 10 in 2011 -- at Hershey's Giant Center.

At the very least, the new format should add a little bit more excitement back into the team wrestling tournament.

Central wrestler earns acclaim

This info was passed along by Central York wrestling coach Fred DeLuca. Tyler Whitecomb, a sophomore 125-pounder at Central, placed third in the Pennsylvania Amateur Wrestling Federation State Greco-Roman wrestling championships last weekend. That finish earned Whitecomb a spot on the Pennsylvania Team which will travel to the national championships in Fargo, North Dakota.

Whitecomb, who went 11-6 this year for the Panthers, is the first Central wrestler ever to qualify for the national event.