Wrestling’s New Rules Spur Debate

Jason Webster thinks it was time for a change.

Webster, a sophomore wrestler for Cal State Fullerton, believes the NCAA’s new rules for college wrestling probably will be good for the sport. But more important, he believes they will be better for the health of wrestlers.

“I saw some people almost have to crawl on the scales at the Pac-10 Championships last year because they were cutting their weight so hard,” Webster said.

The new rules, spurred by the death of three college wrestlers and adopted this month, prohibit wrestlers from using saunas, rubber suits or diuretics to reduce weight rapidly.

The NCAA also has added seven pounds of allowance to the weight limits in each division.

Wrestlers also are required to weigh in on the day of competition, instead of the day before.

“That’s the big difference,” said Webster, who competes at 167 pounds and has the team’s best won-lost record this season at 18-3. “Before, you could cut down a lot of weight, and then have a whole day to recover. This way you can’t cut down a lot of pounds right before a match and still have the energy you need.”

But the new rules have created a debate about whether they will make the sport safer, according to Titan Coach Ardeshir Asgari. And Asgari says he has some concerns the NCAA might have gone too far.

“Losing weight is a part of the sport,” Asgari said. “I was 170 pounds and I wrestled at 158. There was no way I would have wanted to wrestle at 170. One of my concerns is that wrestlers will be starving themselves to make weight.”

Asgari’s main complaint with the new rules is that the weigh-in is only two hours before the match.

“That doesn’t give the athlete time to recover and still be ready for the meet,” he said. “I think if they had the weigh-in five hours before the competition, that would be perfect.”

Fullerton’s first experience with the new rules came in dual meets last week against Brigham Young and Cal State Bakersfield.

“What I saw was that more athletes looked tired and didn’t perform up to their ability,” Asgari said.

But Webster believes the rule changes will make it more important for wrestlers to stay in better shape throughout the off-season.

“I’ve never had that much problem with my weight, although I do have to diet during the season to keep my weight down,” Webster said. “The guys who aren’t in good shape are going to have more problems with the weigh-in on the day of the meet.”

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The Titan softball team is expected to get a boost from the addition of catcher Stephenie Little, who played two seasons at Oklahoma State.

“She was All-Big 12 for two seasons there,” Titan Coach Judi Garman said. “She sat out last year while getting her [associate] degree at Mt. SAC. She’s a left-handed power hitter, and we think she’ll help us a lot. She has hit the ball hard in practice.”

The Titans also have added another Oklahoma State transfer, infielder Kristy Osborne. Osborne, who played in high school at La Mirada, played one season for Fullerton College before going to Oklahoma State. “She tore a ligament in her knee there in the fall and sat out last season, so she’ll have three years of eligibility left,” Garman said.

Junior Jana Oetgen, who pitched for the Titans last season, also transferred from Oklahoma State a year ago. “I guess we’ll have to call ourselves Oklahoma State West,” Garman said.

The Titans open the season Feb. 13 in the Arizona State Classic.

One of the keys this year will be how well a young pitching staff develops behind Oetgen, who was 16-13 with a 2.33 earned-run average last season. Two freshman pitchers, Chrissy Hartmann and Kati Franck, are expected to help.

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The Titan men’s basketball team will face two 7-foot centers on the road this week.

Fullerton goes against Long Beach State and Andrew Betts on Thursday, then takes on Pacific and Michael Olowokandi on Saturday.

Betts is averaging 20.6 points and 9.1 rebounds since gaining eligibility in December. Olowokandi leads the Big West in scoring (20.2 points) and rebounding (10.5).

Titan guard Chris Dade, ninth in the Big West in scoring, needs only four points to move ahead of Cedric Ceballos into sixth place among Fullerton’s all-time career scorers. Dade, in his fourth season as a starter, has 1,281 points in 94 games. Ceballos scored 1,284 in 58 games in 1988-90.

Titan Notes

Former Titan JoAnn Ferrierii has been hired as head softball coach at New Mexico State. Ferrierii, who played for the Titans in the mid-1980s, had been coaching at Palm Beach (Fla.) Community College. . . . The Super Bowl will have a little bit of a Titan flavor. Three former assistant football coaches--Greg Robinson, Mike Heimerdinger and Ed Donatell--are on the Denver Broncos’ coaching staff, and ex-Titan player Mark Collins is a safety with the Green Bay Packers. . . . The Titan gymnastics team (0-3) continues to be troubled by injuries. Katy Maty, Alexis Lott and Marianne Griffen are sidelined, and Cortney Bogart is competing on a limited basis.

Coming Attractions

Key events this week at Cal State Fullerton:

* Men’s basketball at Long Beach State 7:30 p.m. Thursday, and at Pacific 7 p.m. Saturday.

* Women’s basketball against Long Beach State 7 p.m. Thursday, and against Pacific 7 p.m. Saturday; both games in Titan Gym.

* Women’s gymnastics against San Jose State 7 p.m. Friday in Titan Gym.