2016 Who's #1Sep 22, 2016 by Wrestling Nomad
Overtime At Who's #1
Overtime At Who's #1
The overtime rules for the 2017 edition of Who's #1 in Grace Hall, the "Snakepit" at Lehigh University.
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The fifth installment of Who's #1 is here and it promises to be just as good as the previous four. When two top-ranked high school wrestlers are bringing their all at Lehigh University later today, there's a good chance we might see some overtime. As we've seen, WNO has been chock full of amazing overtime matches over the years.
And before we get into the history of OT bouts, let's go over this year's rules. With the No. 1 ranking on the line, you can't leave anything to chance. We don't want that spot determined by a coin flip in the rideout.
Who's #1 Overtime Rules
First OT: Five minutes of sudden death from neutral.Final OT: Turn off clock - sudden death where any point (takedown or stalling) ends match and 2 push outs = 1 point.
Now that we've got that taken care of, here is a complete history of overtime at WNO.
2013
It didn't take long to see a match go longer than six minutes. In only the second match ever contested at WNO, Michael Kemerer took down Zac Hall in overtime to give Team Bubba J the early lead over Team JO. Kemerer should be a starter this year for Iowa, so it's only fitting that he was able to grind out the first win under the "60 minutes on your feet" overtime rules.
At the time, this was the longest high school wrestling match of all time. The fans in the snakepit were treated to almost 10 MINUTES of action between Nathan Boston and Sean Russell. The takedown to end it was worth the price of admission.
A third of the matches at the first WNO went to extra time, and all three were nip-and-tuck, low-scoring affairs. This was the final OT match of the night, and Mason Manville emphatically held on to his top ranking against Grant Leeth.
2014
Just like the first event, WNO again went OT in the second match of the night. This capped off Larry Early's run of dominance over Joseph Smith in all three styles and is the highest scoring OT match in the event's history. It's one of the best WNO matches ever.
What else can you say about this one, it is the very definition of "turn off the clock." Daton Fix vs. Nick Suriano for more than a half hour. Just press play.
Some feel this is the most controversial match in WNO history. David McFadden ended up beating Isaiah White here. McFadden would go on to be an All-American as a freshman at Virginia Tech, while White was just coming off a scorching hot run at Junior Nationals in Fargo.
Zahid Valencia entered high school as a much ballyhooed star, while Myles Martin developed into every bit of the potential people saw in him from his 8th- and 9th-grade years. The first of many matches between these two couldn't be contained to just six minutes.
2015
Gavin Teasale and Roman Bravo-Young have made three cadet world teams and won six Fargo titles between them, so this was billed as a matchup of stud lightweights. It couldn't be solved in regulation and was the first iteration of last year's rule. It's the only time WNO has incorporated a top/bottom component.
Hayden Hidlay owned last summer over Mason Manville, but Manville got his revenge in the Snakepit.
Chad Red and Luke Pletcher put on a scramble fest in the nightcap.
2016
Last year, Brady Berge made his return to the mat after being sidelined by injury for months and Shane Griffith made sure that it was not going to be an easy return. After being tied at 5-5 they went to sudden victory where Berge finally prevailed to maintain his top ranking.