If you were looking for the Pleasant Valley wrestling team Wednesday night, chances are they were in the middle of something.

Make that three things, actually.The Bears were tied up in an Eastern Pennsylvania Conference quad-meet with East Stroudsburg South, Pocono Mountain East and host Stroudsburg.While wrestling multiple matches in one day, or night, is certainly nothing new, doing so in a dual format on a Wednesday is a little bit unique.Asked why, Pleasant Valley head coach Justin Micklos had a simple explanation."Last year, we knew we were going to be wrestling those old MVC (Mountain Valley Conference) teams at some point during the season," he said of his team's schedule. "But they were all spread out, or on weekends, and that's tough if you're trying to schedule tournaments."So it made sense for us to move it to one weekend - or one day - and get all of the matches in at once. It made sense to try to have it all in one setting, and I think it ended up working out really well."Certainly, knocking out three league matches in one night has its benefits.With winter weather frequently unpredictable and postponements always a possibility, it's hard to argue having the opportunity to cross off a nice chunk of the schedule in a few hours.But installing a quad meet during the season does more than just free up some time - it helps coaches try to maximize it."This helps us prepare for the end of the season," said Micklos, whose team hosted the quad meet last season. "It gets kids used to wrestling back-to-back matches in one night."And it's good for the kids to see different opponents like that. It will help them when they're at a tournament and they have to come right back and face another kid that has a totally different style. You get used to preparing to face one kid or wrestle one match in a dual. But this way, they have to be able to adapt and adjust to multiple opponents in a short amount of time."As for how the rapid fire schedule impacts the coaches?"It's no different," said Micklos. "I always try to give my guys the best chance to win and try to make sure they are prepared no matter who or how many times they are wrestling."Coming up with a lineup for three matches in one night is a little bit different, but it's the same situation for everyone."Though the Bears went 1-2 Wednesday, topping Pocono Mountain East (39-38) but falling to Stroudsburg (64-13) and East Stroudsburg South (65-10), Micklos was upbeat about his team - and the entire experience."I think it's great for the sport of wrestling," he said. "The kids get to learn and spend time with each other, and it's great for the community to be able to come out and see so many matches in one place. It's a plus for the sport."And I thought our kids wrestled great. They're improving every day, and they're getting better, which is all I can ask for."*****OFF THE MAT ... In Off The Mat's second issue of Class 2A state rankings, Northern Lehigh's Ryan Farber led the way with a second-place ranking at 160 pounds, while Northwestern's Caleb Clymer came in at No. 8. Palmerton's Jared Mooney (195) was ranked fourth and Tamaqua's Tanner McHugh (138) fifth in their respective weight classes. Northwestern's Bailey Wehr was ranked seventh at 120 pounds.*****CLOSING IN... Palmerton's Jared Mooney is nearing the century mark. Through Wednesday's matches, the senior had 98 wins. Tamaqua's Tanner McHugh is also getting close to Garth Lakitsky, Jr.'s school record win total and has a great chance to make up some ground this weekend at the Schuylkill League Tournament.*****SPEAKING OF ... Jim Thorpe will host the Schuylkill League Wrestling Tournament this Friday and Saturday. In addition to the Olympians, Lehighton, Panther Valley and Tamaqua will also be competing in the two-day event. "For us, it's exciting," Jim Thorpe head coach Shawn Albert said of hosting the event, which is on a rotating schedule. "You're bringing in teams from all around our league. This gym is going to be overtaken by the wrestling culture. For a wrestling program, and even for the school, it's exciting." Action will begin at 5 p.m. Friday with preliminary bouts, which will be followed by quarterfinals at 6 p.m.; first round consolations at 7:15 p.m.; and second round consolations at 8:30 p.m. The JV tournament will begin Saturday at 9 a.m. The varsity championship semifinals will be held at noon, and be followed by the JV finals and consolation semifinals at 3 p.m. The championship finals, along with the consolation finals (for third and fifth places) will be at 5 p.m.*****WHERE THEY STAND ... At the conclusion of Wednesday night's matches, Northwestern (7-4) and Lehighton (10-6) were sixth and eighth, respectively, in the District 11 Class AA team power rankings. Panther Valley (7-7) was 10th. Palmerton (9-13) slotted into the 12th spot. Northern Lehigh (4-8) was 13th, Jim Thorpe (1-6) 17th and Tamaqua (1-9) 19th. In the Class AAA power rankings, Pleasant Valley (2-12) was 17th. Saucon Valley (16-0) and Nazareth (11-0) were the top 2A and 3A teams, respectively.