In our “By The Numbers” series we will break down matches and analyze stats from competitions throughout the year. In our opening breakdown we will look at freestyle finals in the men’s and women’s division. All final matches from the Bill Farrell Memorial were analyzed and broken down according to scoring maneuvers.
Matches Analyzed: 10
Men: 6
Women: 4
Takedowns Scored: 15
Men: 11
Women: 4
Step Out Points Scored: 8
Men: 3
Women: 5
This is a big discrepancy between the men and the women when you look at step outs per match. Go back and watch Logan Stieber and Jordan Oliver use the boundary almost flawlessly. A two-point score is awarded without exposure or as much control on the boundary line. Both Stieber and Oliver used this to their advantage. Hopefully this becomes more of a trend for the United States as the athletes compete internationally.
The strategy Oliver and Stieber both used has roots in forced par terre in Greco Roman where you will see the top athlete get a reverse lift. He then walks his opponent to the edge of the mat and tries to send him flying. Even when they aren’t successful they normally are rewarded with a correct hold point. They also take away any risk of being stepped over and caught on their back. In freestyle guys can be more aggressive going for feet to back exposure using the same concept.
It seemed like Stieber had a definitive game plan to use the boundary line when he was in on Oliver’s legs. It could have been a coincidence, but it looked strategic. The disappointing part was he used the boundary masterfully on the offense, and didn’t react properly when defending defensively. Oliver was driving Stieber out of bounds before Stieber planted to stay inside the circle. His reaction led to a two-point takedown. He could have given up the step out point and been in better shape to close out the match.
Takedowns By Maneuvers: 19
Go Behind: 4
Ankle Pick: 2
Low Single: 1
High Crotch: 1
Misdirection Single: 1
Sweep Single: 2
Spear Single: 1
Knee Pull Single: 1
Double Leg: 4
Other: 2
*all two and four-point takedowns used in data
This is often one of the statistics people cite off the top of their head. When you count all the different variations of single legs, it is king. What stuck out to me is the amount of high crotches. Only one high crotch was scored in ten matches.
Four-Point Maneuvers: 4
Men: 3
Women: 1
*all leg attacks
This is a disappointing number in ten matches. As more matches are studied it will be interesting to see if this is a trend worldwide or just in the United States. Maybe taking your opponent feet to back should be worth more points.
Two-Point Exposure From Neutral: 3
Men: 3
Women: 0
Exposure from non-controlled positions is staggeringly low. I don’t have an explanation for the women, but thought the control mentality of folkstyle might account for the men looking to gain control over exposing the opponent. This is a stat I want to dig deeper into in future events with a larger international sample.
Par Terre Exposure: 9
Men: 8
Women: 1
The stats here have an outlier. Tyler Graff scored four leg laces to close Zach Sanders out early in the first period. When Graff is removed from the data, the information is disappointing. Every freestyle tournament that you see Coach Brandon Slay at you are sure to hear him stress the importance of a takedown to a turn. Hopefully his work with the developmental program will pay dividends as the athletes begin to make their impact on the senior level.
Exposure By Maneuver: 9
Leg Lace: 5
Gut Wrench: 2
Arm Turk: 1
Arm Bar Tilt: 1
Initially the leg lace looks to be the most effective turn, but remember four of those laces where from Tyler Graff in one sequence. A leg lace is definitely the best move to close out a match when it is executed.
Committed Attacks(#) Per Match: (64) 6.4
Men: (35) 5.83
Women: (29) 7.25
Passivity Calls (#) Per Match: (15) 1.5
Men: (4) 0.66
Women: (11) 2.75
When the attack rate is compared to passivity calls it doesn’t make sense. The women are attacking more, but being called for passivity at a much higher rate. Many of the women’s committed attacks weren’t close to being successful. The men got much closer to scoring or did score at a much high percentage and were able to fend off passivity calls.
Shot Clock Violations: 3
Men: 1
Women: 2
This is encouraging to only see three points posted in ten matches from shot clock violations. Two women scored while on the shot clock so it served its intended purpose in those matches.
Percentage Of First Score Winners: 90%
Men: (5/6) 83%
Women: (4/4) 100%
This stat is the most commonly stated, as well as my number one pet peeve when I hear it. If you are good enough to score first, you are usually good enough to score more points. Jordan Oliver was the only wrestler to win when giving up the first score. The 90% number looks convincing, don’t let it fool you. They score first because they are better not because there is something magical about the first score. I am ashamed I used this stat.
Percentage Of Wins If Exposure Is Scored In Par Terre: 100%
Men: (3/3) 100%
Women: (1/1) 100%
I need more data in this category. I think it will be a high percentage, but this is just way too small of a sample size to draw any conclusions. It is also a chicken or egg debate when you consider you have to score a takedown to get into par terre. Should more guys focus more on par terre offense or concentrate on takedowns that are needed to get into par terre?
The action at the Bill Farrell did nothing, but reaffirm the consensus that freestyle rules are as good as they have been in a long time. The action was exciting and the results reflected the action on the mat.
The biggest takeaway I had from breaking the matches down is the lack of exposure points scored. This could be attributed to our folkstyle background. Only four four-point maneuvers were successfully executed in ten finals that were analyzed. Even more disturbing is the fact that only three holds were executed from the neutral position that created a two-point exposure.
Exposure is the name of the game in freestyle. It is what separates the very top tier wrestlers from the very good ones. With larger sample sizes that include international competitors we hope to have clear data that clears up the idea that the United States is behind when it comes to exposure points from the neutral position.
Low Single: 1
High Crotch: 1
Misdirection Single: 1
Sweep Single: 2
Spear Single: 1
Knee Pull Single: 1
Double Leg: 4
Other: 2
*all two and four-point takedowns used in data
This is often one of the statistics people cite off the top of their head. When you count all the different variations of single legs, it is king. What stuck out to me is the amount of high crotches. Only one high crotch was scored in ten matches.
Four-Point Maneuvers: 4
Men: 3
Women: 1
*all leg attacks
This is a disappointing number in ten matches. As more matches are studied it will be interesting to see if this is a trend worldwide or just in the United States. Maybe taking your opponent feet to back should be worth more points.
Two-Point Exposure From Neutral: 3
Men: 3
Women: 0
Exposure from non-controlled positions is staggeringly low. I don’t have an explanation for the women, but thought the control mentality of folkstyle might account for the men looking to gain control over exposing the opponent. This is a stat I want to dig deeper into in future events with a larger international sample.
Par Terre Exposure: 9
Men: 8
Women: 1
The stats here have an outlier. Tyler Graff scored four leg laces to close Zach Sanders out early in the first period. When Graff is removed from the data, the information is disappointing. Every freestyle tournament that you see Coach Brandon Slay at you are sure to hear him stress the importance of a takedown to a turn. Hopefully his work with the developmental program will pay dividends as the athletes begin to make their impact on the senior level.
Exposure By Maneuver: 9
Leg Lace: 5
Gut Wrench: 2
Arm Turk: 1
Arm Bar Tilt: 1
Initially the leg lace looks to be the most effective turn, but remember four of those laces where from Tyler Graff in one sequence. A leg lace is definitely the best move to close out a match when it is executed.
Committed Attacks(#) Per Match: (64) 6.4
Men: (35) 5.83
Women: (29) 7.25
Passivity Calls (#) Per Match: (15) 1.5
Men: (4) 0.66
Women: (11) 2.75
When the attack rate is compared to passivity calls it doesn’t make sense. The women are attacking more, but being called for passivity at a much higher rate. Many of the women’s committed attacks weren’t close to being successful. The men got much closer to scoring or did score at a much high percentage and were able to fend off passivity calls.
Shot Clock Violations: 3
Men: 1
Women: 2
This is encouraging to only see three points posted in ten matches from shot clock violations. Two women scored while on the shot clock so it served its intended purpose in those matches.
Percentage Of First Score Winners: 90%
Men: (5/6) 83%
Women: (4/4) 100%
This stat is the most commonly stated, as well as my number one pet peeve when I hear it. If you are good enough to score first, you are usually good enough to score more points. Jordan Oliver was the only wrestler to win when giving up the first score. The 90% number looks convincing, don’t let it fool you. They score first because they are better not because there is something magical about the first score. I am ashamed I used this stat.
Percentage Of Wins If Exposure Is Scored In Par Terre: 100%
Men: (3/3) 100%
Women: (1/1) 100%
I need more data in this category. I think it will be a high percentage, but this is just way too small of a sample size to draw any conclusions. It is also a chicken or egg debate when you consider you have to score a takedown to get into par terre. Should more guys focus more on par terre offense or concentrate on takedowns that are needed to get into par terre?
The action at the Bill Farrell did nothing, but reaffirm the consensus that freestyle rules are as good as they have been in a long time. The action was exciting and the results reflected the action on the mat.
The biggest takeaway I had from breaking the matches down is the lack of exposure points scored. This could be attributed to our folkstyle background. Only four four-point maneuvers were successfully executed in ten finals that were analyzed. Even more disturbing is the fact that only three holds were executed from the neutral position that created a two-point exposure.
Exposure is the name of the game in freestyle. It is what separates the very top tier wrestlers from the very good ones. With larger sample sizes that include international competitors we hope to have clear data that clears up the idea that the United States is behind when it comes to exposure points from the neutral position.