The first in-depth wrestling column of the season makes its appearance in the Times News today.

In place of the rankings that the paper has run in past years, this season’s wrestling page will provide records and stats for all wrestlers in the coverage area - something we debuted two weeks ago. This week, notes will also be included for each individual weight class in boys wrestling, and for each individual school in girls wrestling.

The notes and stats can be found below.

For the remainder of the winter sports season, our Thursday paper will alternate weekly between basketball stats and wrestling notes/records.

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ANOTHER CHAMPIONSHIP ... Panther Valley’s Brenda Banks continues to dominate girls wrestling. Banks remained unbeaten on the season and claimed a title at the girls Coal Cracker Tournament this past weekend. The tournament championship was the fourth of the season for Banks, who also captured titles at the Elizabethtown Girls BAGUBA Brawl and the PA National Guard Invite in December, and the Mattness at the MACC on Jan. 15.

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REMEMBERING REFEREES ... The Schuylkill League will be honoring two dedicated and longtime officials who recently lost their battles with cancer - Dr. Frank D’Angelo and Mike Klembara. Beginning Thursday Jan. 25 through Saturday Jan. 27, all Schuylkill League teams will be wearing T-shirts during warm-ups in their remembrance.

The gesture is meant to promote the positive legacy that DeAngelo and Klembara left as both individuals and officials.

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MILESTONE MOMENT

... Marian’s Carly Minchhoff enjoyed a special night in the Fillies’ 58-46 victory over Schuylkill Haven Monday. In addition to clinching the Schuylkill League Division 3 title, Minchhoff hit an individual milestone when the superb four-year starter became the 22nd player in Marian girls basketball history to score her 1,000th-career point. Minchhoff finished with 14 points in the victory.

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THREE TEAMS CLINCH A SPOT

... Three area basketball teams clinched a playoff berth over the last week. The Lehighton and Northwestern boys secured spots, as well as the Tamaqua girls.

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EPC GIRLS WRESTLING ... The first annual EPC Girls Individual Wrestling Championships will take place on Tuesday, Feb. 6, at Stroudsburg High School beginning at 4 p.m.

Each EPC member school with a sanctioned girls team will be provided an opportunity to compete in the first sanctioned girls wrestling tournament in our conference’s history. Each school will be permitted one entry per weight class and medals will be provided to the top four place winners in each respective weight class. In addition, an EPC Girls Wrestling Tournament Championship will be awarded to the school who compiles the most points throughout the event.

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POSTSEASON MAT DATES ... The District 11 boys wrestling team tournament will take place Saturday, Feb. 3 at Freedom High School, with the top eight Class 2A and 3A teams qualifying.

The individual portion of the postseason for boys will begin Feb. 23 with the Class 2A and 3A tournaments at Freedom and Liberty high schools, respectively. All finals will take place Feb. 24 at Liberty High School.

Wrestling’s Class 2A regional tournament will be held March 1-2 at Freedom High School, while the 3A event will take place on the same dates at Liberty High School.

States for Class 2A and 3A will take place March 7-9 at the Giant Center in Hershey.

The District 11 girls wrestling tournament will take place Sunday, Feb. 18 at Easton Area Middle School, beginning at 9:30 a.m. The regional tournament will take place Feb. 25 at Quakertown High School, and states will be held at the Giant Center in Hershey from March 7-9.