When Bethlehem Catholic wrestles, people take notice.

The Golden Hawks have produced countless Division I prospects over the last few years to go along with an unprecedented run of success that has included three straight PIAA Class AA Team Championships.But after winning its fourth consecutive District 11 Class AA title this past Saturday, Becahi has been making headlines for reasons other than its mat prowess.In the Golden Hawks quarterfinal matchup against Palisades, head coach Jeff Karam decided to rest several of his key starters and go with junior varsity wrestlers instead.That strategy, coupled with the new double-elimination format of the District 11 tournament, prompted Pirates' coach Omar Poratta to forfeit every match, resulting in an 84-0 defeat.But it wasn't the result that was analyzed.For the first time, a coach publicly acknowledged and took a stand on what has been the elephant in the room for many years.At what cost has Becahi put together these enormously talented teams?"The problem we have today, is that some people will do anything to win," said Catasauqua coach Mike Conner, whose Rough Riders defeated Palisades in the consolation quarterfinals. "Winning is bigger than character now. But character is still how you're judged."It tells a lot about your character in terms of how you get there. We do what we can do to win and be successful. But you have to weigh what you're willing to do to win."While some would argue that facing Bethlehem Catholic, which is ranked 13th nationally by InterMat Wrestling, is an opportunity to face good competition, not all coaches would agree."They beat us 76-0. I am not sure how it helped our program, and I am not sure how fair it was," said Panther Valley coach Tim Robb, referencing last year's loss to the Golden Hawks during district duals. "Competing against teams the caliber of Bethlehem Catholic is an honor in open tournaments when you choose to do so."But them competing against schools the size of Panther Valley, Tri Valley, Jim Thorpe, Salisbury, Palisades, Northern Lehigh, Northwestern Lehigh, Tamaqua, Jim Thorpe, Saucon Valley, Pen Argyl, Lehighton, Catasauqua, Pine Grove, Wilson, Williams Valley, Mahanoy Area and North Schuylkill is not fair. Period. Especially when it comes to our classification championships."But it's not just the size of the school that's an issue for many coaches."Our school will graduate 76 kids this year, and we draw from four little towns," Robb said. "If we were to take a kid from another school that borders us, we would be required to take half of that school's attendance of male athletes, and could possibly be moved up a class."The solution is very simple. Hold private schools to the same exact rules," the coach said. "If they take students from four school districts, they should be required to count 1/2 of the students from each school for their PIAA classification.Lehighton coach Dan Williams echoed Robb's sentiments."Everybody understands the situation with Bethlehem Catholic," Williams said. "The truth is, they don't play by everybody else's rules. They are allowed to get kids to come in that are very good wrestlers from other areas and they get to build what virtually is an all-star team."They also get to make a decision whether they're going to compete at the AA or AAA level. And they choose every year to go at the AA level. It makes it really challenging and it's tough for the sport. But for me as a coach, I can't control that. I don't make decisions on whether or not that's allowed to happen."While Williams was more than willing to acknowledge the issue at hand, the coach was also keen to shift the focus back to the competition that has been taking place on the mat, not just the recent flurry of action off it."It's a tough situation. But you don't want to see it take away from some of the really good things that are going on," he said. "But it is what it is. A decision was made and we have to move on."With Palisades scheduled for a district hearing on Feb. 16, odds are the issue won't be going away anytime soon. But at the very least, the concerns of many in the coaching community have been heard.**********WORTH THE WAIT … The first round of the PIAA Team Championships that were to begin Monday were postponed due to weather and will now take place tonight. Class AA runner-up Saucon Valley will take on Wyalusing Valley at 6 p.m. Wyalusing Valley finished fourth in District 3.The winner will face District 10 champion Reynolds on Thursday at the Giant Center in Hershey.In Class AAA, District 11 runner-up Parkland will take on Garnet Valley, which finished fourth in District 1, at 7:30 p.m. The winner will face District 6 champion Central Mountain on Thursday.