High school wrestling teams will be on the mat a little less this season.

The PIAA has adopted a winter sports schedule that begins one week later, due in part to the length of the football season.

In response to the change, the PIAA Wrestling Steering Committee cut two competition points from its schedule. That means schools have only 22 scheduling points for dual meets and tournaments.

The WPIAL Wrestling Steering Committee maintained its section alignment, but cut the number of section matches by dividing each section into two sub-sections.

"It's a little strange to see that we only have four section matches, but I think this setup can work," Canon-McMillan coach Chris Mary said. "I just wish they wouldn't have cut two points from our schedule."

The section dual-meet schedule will conclude on Wed. Jan. 21 with a four-team playoff in each section to determine playoff seeding. The top two finishers from each sub-section will face off in a semifinal round at a site to be determined. A championship match and third-place consolation will also be wrestled that night, and neither round will count against the 22-point cutoff.

The four teams from each section playoff will also be invited to the WPIAL team tournament, which will take place the following week. The prior setup had only the top three teams from each section qualifying. That means 20 teams will participate in the Class AAA tournament.

Canon-McMillan has been placed in sub-section B of Section 5-AAA, along with Chartiers Valley, Mt. Lebanon, Montour and Trinity. The teams in sub-section A are: Ambridge, Blackhawk, Hopewell, Moon and West Allegheny.

"We have a good nucleus of kids coming back, but we're still young," Mary said. "We have only four seniors on this team."

Canon-McMillan has won seven consecutive section titles and is favored to win another this season. The Big Macs had a 16-2 record last season.

"Our goal every season is to win the section title," Mary said. "We have to reload and continue to improve throughout the season."

Four Canon-McMillan starters graduated, including four-time WPIAL champion Colin Johnston, who set the school record with 163 career wins. The Big Macs must also replace junior Mike Hull (35-8 at 215), a PIAA place-winner and football standout who has decided not to wrestle this year due to a back injury.

The Big Macs have five starters returning who recorded 15 or more wins last season -- Nick Catalano (36-7 at 119), Ron Schram (25-7 at 125), Sam Lombardo (19-13 at 140), Colin Ryan (17-15 at 152) and Sam Brownlee (37-6 at 285).

Trinity placed sixth in Section 5-AAA last year with a disappointing 4-5 record. The Hillers were 4-10 overall, but should be much improved this year as all but one starter is back.

"We had a young team last year," Trinity coach Jeff Bricker said. "We had five freshmen and five sophomores in the starting lineup. Those kids picked up valuable varsity experience last year."

Trinity has five starters returning who had 15 or more wins last year: Trevor Moffa (16-14 at 103), Michael Ardeno (28-12 at 112), Mike Standish (21-16 at 125), Jordan Roberts (18-18 at 140) and Kyle McWreath (27-12 at 171). Four of the five were WPIAL qualifiers last season.

Section 4-AAA now has 11 teams, as South Allegheny has been added. The teams in sub-section A are: Baldwin, Bethel Park, Central Catholic, South Allegheny, Thomas Jefferson and West Mifflin. The teams in sub-section B are: McGuffey, Peters Township, Ringgold, Waynesburg and Upper St. Clair.

"Bethel Park is clearly the team to beat in our section," McGuffey coach Jeff Breese Sr. said. "Bethel may have the best team in the WPIAL."

McGuffey had four starters graduate, plus four others who decided not to wrestle this year. The Highlanders, who went 8-9 last season, have four returnees who had 15 or more wins last season: Alex Dunaway (35-7 at 103), Nick Whipkey (26-7 at 125), Sam Scherich (17-16 at 135) and Nick Shuman (25-11 at 189).

"My varsity squad consists of 13 kids," Breese said. "We will be forfeiting at least one or two weight classes in every match."

Waynesburg was hit hard by graduation losses, with seven departures. Waynesburg placed second in Section 5-AAA with an 8-1 record and was 19-4 overall. Raiders coach Joe Throckmorton will rebuild his squad around four kids who recorded 20 or more wins last year: Zach McGinnis (26-8), Derrick Nelson (29-5), Vincent Camps (23-9 at 135) and Jacob Butcher (20-9). All four were WPIAL qualifiers last year.

Ringgold is a team to watch in Section 5-AAA. The Rams placed third in the section with a 6-3 record and were 17-11 overall. Four starters from that squad have graduated. Coach Luke Smith has six starters back with 15 or more wins: Brant Duda (21-6 at 130), Mike Tokar (23-13 at 140), Neal Rands (17-18 at 152), Fred Garcia (31-4 at 171), Todd Miller (34-6 at 189) and Justin Johnston (16-7 at 285). Four of the six were WPIAL qualifiers last year.

Belle Vernon missed the WPIAL Class AAA playoffs by one win last year. The Leopards had a 5-3 record in Section 2-AAA and a 17-8 overall mark. The Leopards had five starters graduate, including three PIAA qualifiers who combined for 342 career wins. Of the returning starters, only four had 15 or more wins last year: Dante Altemara (15-18 at 103), Bret Perry (23-15 at 130), Travis Scott (15-9 at 140) and P.J. Tasser (36-8). Tasser is a returning PIAA qualifier who placed third in the WPIAL.