Soddy-Daisy and the Bradley Central Bears wrestled to a virtual draw Tuesday night, but the Trojans used the only bonus points of the dual to secure a 27-21 win at home.
The District 8-AAA teams split the 14 matches evenly, winning seven apiece, with Soddy-Daisy's two pins in the first three matches serving as the difference.
"Whether you slip into them, luck into them, however you can get them, you'll take it," Trojans coach Jim Higgins said of the bonus points. "We kind of expected that it would be pretty evenly matched."
The dual started at 220 pounds, and Soddy-Daisy raced to a 15-0 lead.
Ty Boeck and Jacob Allen picked up pins at 220 and 106 pounds, respectively, and Addison Roberts won a 2-1 decision at heavyweight in between.
Roberts' win came over Kevin Gentry, who was a state medalist last year and bumped up a weight for the dual.
"Addison wrestled a great match," Higgins said. "He had a plan going in, and he executed it perfectly."
Allen's pin was the last match to deliver bonus points. Neither team won more than two in a row the rest of the way.
Bradley got on the board with decisions from Wesley Devaney and Daniel Mroz to make it 18-6.
Jacob Kilgore got a win for the Trojans, but the Bears answered with wins from Gaven Hughes and Ian Marchesa to get back within striking distance at 18-12 going into the 145-pound match.
"We've given up a lot of bonus points all year, so only giving up two pins, we did our job there," Bradley coach Ben Smith said. "We came in ready and in shape, but we wrestled their match. We just didn't get any bonus, and that's what it came down to.
"There were a couple of close matches where I felt we could have won at 145 and 160."
The 145-pound match provided plenty of fireworks with three takedowns and a 5-4 score in favor of Soddy-Daisy's Tony Wilson in the first period. He was able to hold off a third-period flurry from Andy Acbinson to win 11-8.
The Bears' Skyler Bradley shook off a shoulder injury to take a 16-11 win at 152, but the Trojans answered. Hayden Maynor won at 160 pounds, and 170-pounder Bailey Faires played hero for the Trojans with an intense 6-5 upset win.
Faires nearly locked up the dual with a second-period pin but held on for the close decision.
"I can't say enough about that 170 match," Higgins said. "He's always had to work and earn everything that's come to him. He really stepped up and came into his own."
Needing two pins for a team tie, Bradley got decisions from Trey Johnson and DJ Gibson for the final margin.
"Trey has a heart the size of Texas," Smith said. "He put out a great effort and is a great example. We came in and wrestled tough and fought."
Both teams will be back in action for the Region 4-AAA duals Thursday with state-tournament berths on the line.
Contact Idris Garcia at sports@timesfreepress.com