Wrestling State Tournament Goes to the Mat
By Chris Schmidt, Communications Officer | Wednesday, March 02, 2011 11:12 AM
Robert Rios of Lubbock Monterey High School and John Rodriquez of San Antonio Roosevelt High School meet during their Round 1 Match at the UIL State Wrestling Tournament in Austin.
Photo by Stephen Tidmore
Since its inception as a University Interscholastic League sanctioned athletic event in 1999, wrestling has exploded onto the Texas high school sports scene. Participation numbers have risen nearly every year, making it one of the fastest growing UIL sports.
Wrestling is still relatively new compared to other UIL sports – the last sport added prior to wrestling was Team Tennis in 1984 – however it has already become one of the largest programs of its kind in the nation.
In 2010, the UIL had the 14th-largest boys wrestling participation out of 49 states that crown state champions in boys’ wrestling. Texas led the country in girls’ wrestling participation with 213 more participants than the next closest state, California.
“We have an opportunity for girls to compete on their own teams with their own programs, and I think that has helped tremendously with the growth of wrestling,” said UIL Director of Policy and Interim Director of Athletics Dr. Mark Cousins. Cousins also served as wrestling tournament director from 1999-2008.
The UIL is one of only three state high school associations in the country – along with California and Hawaii – that has separate divisions for boys and girls wrestlers to compete at the state level. Eighteen other associations hold state championships with combined boys and girls participation while 28 others only sanction boys’ wrestling.
The wrestling state tournament, held this year at the Austin ISD Delco Center on Feb. 25-26, is also unique from other UIL athletic events because weight classes – not conferences – separate competitors. It is the only UIL state tournament where schools from all conferences can compete against each other.
“Regardless of what size of school you come from, you are wrestling against someone that is in the same weight class as you,” Cousins said. “When you are the state champion in Texas, there is no doubt that you are the best wrestler.”
The format of the state tournament was modeled after what schools previously competed under with the Texas Interscholastic Wrestling Association. With the exception of adding a girls’ division, the UIL emulated the format as much as possible to keep consistency.
For full results from the 2011 State Wrestling Tournament, go to: http://www.uiltexas.org/wrestling/state/results