Adrian, MI – A recent development in the Michigan High School Athletic Association wrestling tournament will add the Madison Trojans to the list of Lenawee County teams heading to Kalamazoo for the team quarterfinals. The Hudson Tigers and Clinton Redwolves punched their tickets Wednesday of last week, but there was controversy in the Madison regional. The Trojans protested that Williamston wrested an ineligible athlete. The MHSAA office was contacted, and the Williamston wrestler was allowed to competed, with the MHSAA citing a “clerical error.”
Then the news broke from the MHSAA over the weekend. Here is the press release from the governing body:
“Williamston High School has been withdrawn from the Michigan High School Athletic Association Division 3 Team Wrestling Tournament and forfeited its Regional Final win over Adrian Madison from Feb. 12 after self-reporting the participation of an ineligible athlete in the match.
Adrian Madison instead will advance to the Division 3 Team Quarterfinals on Friday, Feb. 21, at Wings Event Center in Kalamazoo.
Generally, no team advances in MHSAA Tournament competition when there is a forfeiture after an event is complete; the win is simply vacated. However, Madison protested during the match against Williamston, citing the potential competition of ineligible wrestlers not listed on the team’s master eligibility list. The match was allowed to continue, citing an MHSAA rule allowing for an athlete to still be eligible if left off the master eligibility list because of a clerical error.
Williamston won the match 42-33 to advance; however, Williamston’s administration later reported that one of its wrestlers who competed in the match had indeed been ineligible to do so. Because Madison’s protest occurred during the appropriate time during the match under National Federation of State High School Associations (NFHS) wrestling rules and later was confirmed to be accurate, Madison will be allowed to advance instead and will receive a forfeit win for the Regional Final.”