“Two! Two!”

It’s a common cry from fans, coaches, and wrestlers looking for a takedown during a match.

A new set of rules adopted by the PIAA for this season has created pleas for three. But a change to increase points for a takedown from two to three points is one of several new rules that have been implemented this season, most of which have been made to encourage offense, streamline calls on the mat, and make high school wrestling more similar to what is seen in college.

“I think the rule changes have had a positive impact,” said Jim Thorpe head coach Dan Heaney. “The three-point takedown has increased the action in neutral, making matches more exciting. I really like the change to the out-of-bounds rule too; it keeps the action going and encourages more aggressive wrestling. Overall, I think it’s been good for the sport.”

Tamaqua mentor Jim McCabe echoed those sentiments.

“I wholeheartedly agree with all the rule changes,” McCabe said. “It’s mostly to allow wrestling to continue, and to make decisions much easier for the refs on the out-of-bounds line. As far as more offense, I think it allowed more points to be scored on the line where in the past, those points would not have occurred because it would have been deemed out of bounds.”

The new rules also make near falls worth two points for two seconds, three points for three seconds, and four points for four seconds. It rewards more aggressive action, where wrestlers can hit a seven-point move with a takedown and four back points.

And it can quickly change the dynamic of a match.

“In the past, you might take bottom 95 percent of the time it seemed. But now, with a three-point takedown, if you can win on your feet, you get those three points back just with a takedown and you don’t have to go underneath,” said Lehighton head coach Floyd Brown, referring to previously needing an escape and a takedown for three points. Sometimes guys struggle getting out from bottom. It definitely changes strategy a little bit.

“It allowed for more wrestling on your feet, which is where the action and excitement comes from, (with) big moves. And if you get a seven-point move, now for the other guy, he has to really up his game and get a little more offensive because you’re trailing by more. And I love the new rule for back points, it just clears things up and makes things a little more solid.”

With a solid sample size to go by, coaches have had some apprehensions alleviated, though some others may still exist. For now, at least.

“Actually, I don’t mind the three-point takedown,” said Panther Valley head coach Kris Nalesnik. “At the start of the season, I was not a huge fan of it. After getting used to it, it’s not that bad. As far as the four back points, I’m not a big fan of that one still. Just the simple fact that a match can go from 0-0 to 7-0 in a matter of no time ... I mean, you’re one point away from a major 15 seconds into a match sometimes. I don’t really like that. To me, it takes a little bit away from the guys who have the skill to constantly put people on their back repeatedly instead of just one move that can get you almost there.

“But a three-point takedown, I actually don’t mind at all.”

It is a new normal that has altered how some wrestlers wrestle.

“Oh, I’ve seen it. Those guys who already like to point wrestle and try to get people close to a tech fall, you know, they’re doing it very, very quickly,” said Nalesnik. “It’s happening in the first period as opposed to the second and third periods now. So, yeah I mean, you see at any point wrestlers, they’re super taking advantage of it. None of those guys are trying to work for the fall, which I knew was the justification of changing the rule with the points. They said it was going to encourage people more to work for the fall. I see just the opposite, there. I see more of a work for your four points, let them up, get another four points.

“Again, I love the three-point takedown; not a fan of the four back.”

With the new out-of-bounds rule, wrestlers are deemed in bounds if they have one point of contact with the mat or line. The change eliminates confusion about supporting points such as knees and feet.

“There is no strategy change,” said McCabe. “The difference in most matches is scoring points in the last 15 seconds, and on the line when your opponents tend to ease up. Now, the whole outcome of those points change the complexity of the match because takedowns are three points.”

Pushing the pace and driving the action is something Palmerton and head coach Justin Petersen have continued to embrace, a mentality that helped the squad reach the semifinals of the District 11 2A team tournament.

“We’ve improved since last year, but if you go off of statistics, we have more technical falls that we’ve gotten and we’re not even through the full season,” Petersen. “And you would think maybe then there are less pins. But we still have more pins as well. So it shows that they’re going out and trying to score; we’re not looking to win matches 3-2, 4-3.

“And with the out-of-bounds rule, it’s creating less people running to the edge because they can’t just hang out on the edge. I think it’s a move absolutely in the right direction.”

Petersen’s team had won 40 matches via technical fall this season, and 118 with pins. The squad recorded seven technical fall wins last year, and had 95 pins.

That increase in scoring gives the Bombers and other teams a better chance to rack up points, and quickly get to major decisions or technical falls, which end when near fall criteria is no longer met.

“I think now it’s no longer that you’re just trying to win a match, you’re always trying to win with bonus (points),” said Petersen. “So if you’re up by three or four points going into the third period, you are one takedown, two takedowns from getting a major decision, where before it would have taken a lot more. So you’re looking to get bonus points a lot more often.

“It’s been positive for us. We’ve enjoyed it. Plus it’s consistent with what they’re watching at the college level.”

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TWENTY-SOMETHING ... The Northwestern boys basketball team finished the regular season with 20 wins, going 20-2.

The last time the Tiger boys posted 20 wins in a season was 2000-01, when they went 20-8 under Steve Gabryluk.

In addition to the boys, the Northwestern girls have also hit the 20-win plateau, finishing with an identical 20-2 mark.

Over the past 25 years, only two other times has a school’s boys and girls team both reached the 20-win mark.

It happened for Palmerton in 2022-23, with the boys going 20-8 under Ken Termini, and the girls finishing 21-6 under Dan Beck.

In 2010-11, both of Marian’s teams also reached 20 wins. The Colts were 20-6 under John Patton, while the girls posted a 20-5 record under Paul Brutto.

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TURNAROUND SEASON ... The Weatherly boys managed just a 2-21 record last season under first-year head coach Luke Medico.

This season, however, Medico and the Wreckers are an impressive 12-8, and have earned playoff berths in both the Schuylkill League and District 11.

No other area boys team over the past 40 years has gone from two wins or fewer in a season to a 10-or-more improvement the following year.

The next best change over that time period was a nine-game improvement Palmerton had from 2016-17 (two wins) to 2017-18 (11 wins).

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RECORD BREAKER … Natalie Vermillion broke the Panther Valley girls basketball team records for threes in a game with nine in a 69-26 win over Notre Dame of East Stroudsburg in December. Vermillion drained six treys en route to an 18-point performance Jan. 31 against Pine Grove to give her a program record 64 on the season, breaking the previous mark held by Macey Markovich.

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HOME SWEET HOME … The Palmerton and Northwestern girls basketball teams both went unbeaten at home this season. The Bombers (18-4) opened the year with a commanding 51-18 victory over rival Lehighton Dec. 3. They closed out the regular season at home with an impressive win over the Tigers on Feb. 3, handing Northwestern (20-2) its first loss since the regular season opener Nov. 29 against Eastern Lebanon Country. The Tigers won their home opener Dec. 3 against Northern Lehigh, and their last home game of the regular season Jan. 29 against Jim Thorpe.