FRANKLIN, Tenn. -- It was going to be third time's the charm one way or the other. Cleveland was shooting for a three-peat and Wilson Central was in its third state final but seeking its first Tennessee Class AAA duals wrestling championship.
It was a much closer challenge that Wilson Central offered this time around, but the Blue Raiders prevailed again, winning 34-26 over the Wildcats with 120-pound Tristian Blansit preserving the victory with a major decision.
For Baylor, this Division II championship final was the Red Raiders' third meeting with Nashville power Father Ryan, and they rallied for their second title with their third consecutive win over the Purple Irish, 32-30.
As the No. 3 goes, Hixson finally got away from it after four straight third-place finishes. The Wildcats finished as A/AA state runner-up following a 36-23 loss to now two-time champ Pigeon Forge.
A major key for Cleveland was the win at 138 pounds by Colton Landers, who posted a 4-2 decision over touted Lane Dickerson at 138 pounds. Landers went up to 138 when the Wildcats elected to forfeit to the Blue Raiders' unbeaten Chris DeBien at 132.
"Huge, huge win," Cleveland coach Jake Yost said. "We lost the (pre-meet) coin flip (to determine who comes out first) and knew what they were going to do (bump Dickerson up), but we felt confident that we'd win at that weight."
Yost was pleased but not for himself.
"I enjoy it, but I can't imagine it ever getting old for them," he said, pointing in the general direction of his celebrating squad.
Baylor escaped by the slimmest of margins.
"I told you beforehand it would be fun," Red Raiders coach Ben Nelson said. "I'm just glad it was more fun for us than them."
The Red Raiders were able to limit bonus points in some cases where they weren't favored, and their upper-middleweight guys came through as usual.
"The win by Cole (Holloway) at 182 (a pin) was big, and then Ryan Parker (195) and Cayman Seagraves (170) did what they've done all year," Nelson said.
Both pinned their opponents. Yet just as pivotal a win was at 220 pounds, where Jon Schmissrauter came through with a win, avenging a loss by major decision to Ben Stacy earlier this year.
"Yep, that was a huge win for us," Nelson agreed.
Wilson Central advanced to the final only after rallying past Bradley Central. The Wildcats were down 13-0 and 17-6 but ran off a string of four bonus-point wins -- three pins and a technical fall -- and forged a 41-23 lead before forfeiting the final two matches. Both of those were near-certain wins for the Bears, but the outcome already had been determined.
All six of the Chattanooga-area teams finished in the top four. While Baylor, Cleveland and Hixson were in championship matches, Bradley and McCallie finished third and Notre Dame wound up fourth.
This is the first time Bradley has finished third in a duals tournament. The Bears previously had 17 duals appearances with 12 championships and five runner-up finishes.
Rebounding from the loss to Wilson Central, the Bears gained the consolation final and bested Beech.
"I'm glad we had enough character to come back. I think it shows we're headed in the right direction," Bradley coach Ben Smith said. "I would hope that we would fight hard when the opportunity presents itself."
McCallie avenged a loss to Montgomery Bell Academy earlier this season with a 36-33 decision.
Notre Dame made a valiant run after losing its opener Friday. The Irish destroyed Martin Luther King 70-12 before tripping Greeneville 47-27. However, they again rain into their weekend nemesis, Alcoa, in the match for third and lost 40-30.
Contact Ward Gossett at wgossett@timesfreepress.com or 423-886-4765. Follow him at Twitter.com/wardgossett.