Earning way into tournament

First, congratulations to the Pioneer Valley High School girls' wrestling team. Their success is great and should be applauded.

However, I do not agree with the article in the newspaper stating that they earned a spot in the upcoming state tournament. The CIF rules for the girls' program are far different than the boys' program. In order for the boys to advance to the next round of competition, they must qualify. The girls' team is different, in that they do not have to qualify, rather register and pay a fee to attend the tournament.

The girls' team did place third overall in the Southern Section CIF tournament, and in the upcoming state tournament are expected to do well. However, many of the girls on the team who actually wrestled 0-2 - meaning they lost all their matches at the CIF tournament - will be wrestling at the state level. When anyone can merely pay to attend a tournament, without qualifying, their success cannot be measured in the same way as the boys' program.

The boys' program consists of several qualifying tournaments, league finals, CIF individuals, the Masters Tournament, and then the state tournament. To qualify to go on to the next tournament, the wrestlers must place either in the top six or eight positions, depending upon the tournament rules.

Again, good job to the girls, but let's be realistic, the boys have been working hard all season, too, and do not have the luxury of paying their way to state, like the girls do!

E. Martin

Santa Maria

February 6, 2008