Wrestlers doubling as IM refs

By RYAN HOCKENSMITH
Collegian Staff Writer

After two minutes of wrestling, a towel zipped into the circle, narrowly missing the referee's head and signifying the conclusion of the first period.

Chuckles emanated from the side of the mat after the near miss. But the laughter quickly ceased and bodies dove for cover as the towel came flying back at a rate twice as fast as its initial departure.

The referee was Penn State wrestler Dana Weber, and his intended targets were fellow Nittany Lion wrestlers.

Weber and a group of his teammates from the No. 10 Lions were assisting with Penn State's intramural wrestling tournament. The tournament, held once a year, takes place in Rec Hall's wrestling room with matches spread over two weeks.

"It's so much fun," Weber said. "Once we get out there we love to have a good time."

"It is such a good time," said Lions 149 pounder and intramural helper Jean Celestin. "I love being there."

According to Mark Belden, assistant recreational sports director, about 190 students are participating in this year's tournament, which he said is normal for the program.

"I'd like to see more kids wrestle -- you'd always like to see a better turnout," Belden said. "But for the last 10 years, 190 or so kids is pretty representative."

Belden said in the past the intramural tournament has featured numerous former state champion wrestlers and the overall talent of intramural wrestlers is good most years.

"You'll see some real good kids out there wrestling," he said. "It's surprising sometimes."

"Some of the guys have some real good skills," Celestin said of the tournament talent pool. "A couple of guys I saw could probably do all right with the (Penn State) team."

Wrestlers are paid for assisting in tournament operations. With Penn State team practices normally running from 4 to 6 p.m. and intramural wrestling running from 7 to 10 p.m. some nights, wrestlers sometimes spend as many as six hours in the wrestling room.

Despite the amount of time required, wrestlers said helping out on intramural tournament nights doesn't seem like work.

"It's nice to get paid," Celestin said. "But I'm having such a good time doing it . . . I don't call it a job."

Besides refereeing bouts, Penn State grapplers are also responsible for keeping score and time for matches. Included in the time-keeping position is use of the towel, which is heaved at the referee to alert him of the conclusion of a period.

While tracking the score and watching the time for bouts may not present much of a problem, wrestlers said refereeing bouts and maintaining an objective position can sometimes be tricky.

"(Monday) night a kid was in on a single leg and I was reffing," Celestin said. "He wasn't finishing it right, so I threw my hands up and almost yelled, 'What are you doing?' But then I remembered I was reffing, not coaching."

"I always start thinking, 'Do it like this!' " Weber said. "But I never say anything because I'm the referee."

Many intramural participants are former high school wrestlers who decide to try their luck in the collegiate ranks, Belden said. He added that many intramural wrestling participants are repeat wrestlers, meaning they've wrestled in the tournament before.

Intramural wrestling continues this week, with semifinals of the tournament tonight at Rec Hall. Belden said finals will be at 8 p.m. Tuesday in Rec Hall's main gym, with winners receiving awards from either Kerry McCoy, a former NCAA heavyweight champion at Penn State, or former Lions coach John Fritz.