Poway Has to Forfeit 3-A Wrestling Title

Poway High School, which had been the San Diego Section 3-A wrestling champions since the division was formed in 1982, has forfeited the Section title it won last weekend.

The Titans’ Brian Woods wrestled last Saturday in the 177-pound class, three weight classes higher than the 147-pound minimum he established in January. Section rules prohibit wrestlers from competing more than two classes above the established minimum.

Mount Miguel, which placed second in the 3-A meet, will be awarded the championship, and Monte Vista will be listed as the second-place team. Poway scored 277 points to Mount Miguel’s 182 1/2 and Monte Vista’s 178.

Poway Coach Wayne Branstetter, who had originally said he would appeal the forfeiture, said Friday night he may back off.

“It looks more and more like I misread the rule,” Branstetter said. “I want people to understand that nothing was done intentionally. It was an honest mistake. We weren’t trying to be sneaky or anything.

“I understood the intent of the rule to be that a kid may go up two but only come back one. I knew he could only come back one; I didn’t realize the rule meant he couldn’t go up three (classes).

“The National Federation rule says if he moves up, he must weigh as much as the next lower class (166). He established that weight at the weigh-in. But I misread the Section rule.”

According to Branstetter, the rule is usually exercised in reverse, to prevent wrestlers from shedding too many pounds to make weight. He said he now understands it works in both directions.

Woods may not have been on the team at all had he not wrestled at 177. Three wrestlers better than Woods already were wrestling at 147, 156 and 167. Trace Smith won the 147-pound title, Jessie John won the 156 title and Ray Navarette won the 167 crown for Poway at the meet.

“It was a case where we had a hole in our lineup,” Branstetter said. “It would have been a case of a great kid not getting to wrestle because we had great kids ahead of him (in the other classes). There was just no space for Brian, so we told him to wrestle at 178.

“I should have never certified him at 147 in January,” he said. “We didn’t need him on the team (to win the 3-A title).”

Poway will have an opportunity to win another Section title today when it competes in the Masters meet at Mt. Carmel High. Branstetter said this meet is more important because wrestlers from the 3-A, 2-A and 1-A classes compete against each other.

“The Masters has always been our emphasis,” Branstetter said. “The 3-A title is nice, but the Master’s (champion) is the true Section champion. That means more to us.”