“Pathetic”: Wrestling Community Breathes Fire Over Unsportsmanlike Behavior During High School Match

What should’ve been a clean victory for the Easton Red Rovers wrestling squad turned into a shocking loss. The Rovers met the Nazareth Blue Eagles on the wrestling mat for the 98th time on Wednesday. However, the final bout between the two sides met a dramatic end when Easton pulled ahead in the last moment with a technical fall from the Nazareth wrestler. However, victory was not theirs.

The excitement turned into chaos when an Easton wrestler, caught up in the heat of the moment, tossed his ear cups to the ground in celebration. But the party was short-lived. Despite the technical fall giving Easton a 28-27 lead, the referee reversed the decision, awarding the win to Nazareth. As Kurtis Crossman stood in stunned disbelief, the referee explained to the Easton coach that the ear cups being thrown violated the code of conduct. The emotional rollercoaster left the Rovers with a bitter taste of victory that slipped right through their fingers.

Hence, despite the last-moment victory, Easton lost a point and lost the match. However, this decision didn’t sit well with wrestling fans on the internet. Shortly after the decision, the internet buzzed with clips of the controversial moment and the decision that lost Easton the match. PA Power Wrestling contributor Mitch Rupert posted the clip alongside the rules.

Soon, fans started leaving their opinions on what transpired. “This is pathetic and this referee should face some sort of disciplinary action. Completely making the match about himself. What a complete farce of an official.” one user commented on Rupert’s X post. However, the rule book distinctly points to such an act as a violation.

“Unsportsmanlike conduct involves physical or nonphysical acts which occur before, during or after a match. It includes, but is not limited to, such acts as failure to comply with the direction of the referee, pushing, shoving, swearing, taunting, intimidation, baiting an opponent, throwing ear guards or any other equipment, spitting, the clearing of the nasal passage in other than the proper receptacle, repeatedly dropping to one knee to break locked hands, indicating displeasure with a call, failure to keep shoulder straps up while on the mat and failure to comply with the end-of-match procedure,” stated the rule book.

However, Rupert himself was unsure about the severity of the violation and the resulting penalty, as it’s not something mentioned in the book. “I just don’t know if it’s a mandatory unsportsmanlike and a team point, or if there is discretion allowed by the official,” the sports writer stated in the caption. However, despite the lapse of this crucial piece of info, netizens formed their opinion and stood divided on the controversial issue.

Two opposing demands emerge from the online wrestling community

One fan asked if the action resulted in the Easton losing that singular bout or as a team. “Did that decide the team match??” asked the fan. “It did, the tech fall gave Easton the 28-27 win, team point deduction made it 27-27, Nazareth wins on criteria,” replied the reporter. However, it seemed the X-user wasn’t ready to accept the answer.

“Wow, Mitch. That’s a bunch of BS there. Nothing belligerent about his celebratory toss to his side. Wow.,” commented the disgruntled wrestling enthusiast in disbelief. Even those who have never seen a Blue Eagles vs. Red Rovers match shared their two cents about the decision. “Not knowing either of these teams, why would you throw it?” questioned the fan.

“Idk if it warrants the team point, but stupid to put your team in that situation,” wrote the netizen. However, one thing common in all their opinions was that no one knew if the unsportsmanlike truly warranted a points deduction as per the rules. Meanwhile, others had already made up their minds and blamed the referee.

“Ref should not be allowed to ref if they make these kinda calls,” commented a wrestling enthusiast, who put the onus on the referee and called out the officials for their harsh decision. As the debate continued, more eagle-eyed viewers spotted that the Nazareth wrestler had also taken off his ear guard while getting to his feet.

“The Nazareth wrestler also had his headgear off when he came to shake hands. Did he carefully place it in his side of the mat or did he toss it as well?” questioned the viewer. However, near the end of the clip, it captured the Blue Eagle still holding on to his earguard. And while he’d take it off, keeping the guard in his hand saved him a points deduction.

Finally, some didn’t even need to know the severity of the penalty to form their opinion. “He threw his headgear. That’s a team point. Which part is so hard to fathom?” commented another wrestling enthusiast, implying that simply breaking the justified deduction loss. Yet, which boat are you on? Do you believe the point deduction was fair? Tell us your view in the comments.