Imagine holding the entire NCAA Tournament in one arena. Fanatics decorated in their team's colors chant endlessly from rafter to rafter for those skilled enough to qualify.
Every minute of six three-hour sessions, eight contests take place, but somehow the fans understand when a huge upset is about to take place or a match comes down to the wire. Then the stadium shakes more than a golfer putting while a low-flying jet swoops overhead.
This tournament exists - and not only in my head. It took place in Kansas City, Mo. in Kemper Arena, while basketball teams like Dayton, Cincinnati and Xavier were meeting their NCAA doom.
But it was not basketball; it was wrestling. I had never been to the NCAA Wrestling Championships before this year, but after Ohio wrestler Jake Percival (149-pound weight class) qualified after completing a perfect regular season and Mid-American Conference Tournament, I decided I must make the trip.
Anthony Carrizales (133) qualified too after placing second in the MAC Tournament.
So I called the NCAA for a press pass a day after the two Ohio wrestlers qualified, only to hear that the passes had been gone for months.
Months! I have never needed more than a week to get a pass before, and last I checked I was able to walk into The Convo for free for any wrestling match.
Something told me the tournament would cost a bit more. After making a few phone calls, I found that I had to buy a $110 ticket into the sold-out arena from Oregon State, making my bank account lower than the Cincinnati Reds' current winning percentage.
Quickly, people were offering brackets and entering pools. Fortunately, I declined because my bracket was barely better than my NCAA men's basketball bracket. Creighton, you are still number one in my heart.
I mean, who would have picked the first-round upset at 174 where Hostra's Ralph Everett beat returning national champion Greg Jones of West Virginia? No top seed ever has lost in the NCAA men's basketball tournament. And who chose the ninth-seeded Alex Tirapelle (157) of Illinois to beat returning All-American Luke Becker in the quarterfinals?
But unlike their basketball brethren, wrestlers get a second chance - to finish less than second, allowing them to seed third through eighth. This provides even more intriguing matches for spectators.
The tournament is in St. Louis next year, and I hope to go - even if I have to spend $110 on a ticket.
-Pfahler is a junior journalism major. Send him an e-mail at eric.j.pfahler.1@ohiou.edu
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Eric Pfahler
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Eric Phaler
