On Saturday morning, ASU wrestling scored the same amount of points as West Virginia University. They tied, but ASU ended up winning due to criteria.
Criteria is decided by several different tiebreakers in wrestling, including amount of pins, forfeits, injuries and disqualifications.
The scoring system in wrestling can be confusing if you’re a novice to the sport. There is no end zone that gives you get six points automatically, and no goal signifying a point if you get the ball inside of it.
There are many ways to score, including takedowns, tilts and pins (and many, many more).
Takedown
When you force your opponent down onto his stomach and gain control, you get two points for a takedown. There are technicalities in this — often, an athlete will tackle the other, but he won’t have control over his opponent so he doesn’t get two points.
You’re holding onto his legs so he can’t move. For every minute you're on top of your opponent you get an extra point.
If, unfortunately, you’re the one who’s been taken down you still have an opportunity to get points, though!
If you "escape," or get out of the takedown, you get a point.
If you get a reversal (escaping and then putting your opponent in a takedown) you earn two.
Congratulations! You’ve now reversed the takedown and are on top of your opponent. It’s not over, yet. He’s fighting against you and drags you to the edge of the circle.
As long as one part of one of your bodies remains inside the circle, you continue wrestling. As he fights, your heel toes over the line. The whistle blows, and you go back to the center to reset.
When you reset, one player typically starts on top of the other. This player cannot gain points for a takedown, but the player on the bottom can win points for escaping or reversing.
You’ll also reset at the beginning of each period. Every bout has three periods: the first is three minutes and the latter two are two minutes. There are 10 rounds total, one for each weight class.
So while you’re wrestling, you can try to escape any takedowns and put your opponent in one of your own, or you can try to ice the bout with a pin.
Pin
As you fight, you’re attempting to fling your opponent onto his back. If you can get him there and get both shoulders on the ground, you win 16 points.
The scoring system is based off teams, not individual performances. A pin is worth 16 individual points, but six for your team. That’s the highest possible amount you can win.
If you can’t pin your opponent, the judges decide who won and how convincing the victory was, awarding anywhere from 1-5 points.
At the end of the bout, the winner is announced. That’s how ASU’s tiebreaker against WVU was decided; Tanner Hall won enough points in his match to not only win the match, but win enough points for ASU to tie WVU at 17. To decide the tiebreaker, the judges looked at individual points. Hall won enough for ASU players to have more than WVU (53-49).
If that score is also tied? No worries, the judges have 16 different tiebreakers. If all else fails, they flip a coin.
This covers the basics of a complex sport and scoring system. If you’re hoping to attend an ASU match, get there soon — there are only two more home meets this season.
Reach the sports editor at logan.newman@asu.edu or follow @Logan_Newsman on Twitter.
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