FRANKLIN, Tenn. — It was dismal outside the Williamson County Agricultural Expo. There wasn’t much of a crowd, and they were wrestling for third place in the Division II state duals.
Still, Baylor took a little sweet with the sour Saturday, posting its second victory over Chattanooga rival McCallie by a 40-28 margin.
“There was no ambience,” Baylor assistant Schaack Van Deusen said. “This one didn’t really mean a whole lot. We had our 2,000-fan match last week [Jan. 27]. Once per year is enough. Obviously for the kids it’s important, but we had the biggie already. And, yes, I’d rather win than lose.”
Both teams got an early start home, having wrestled their final match in the state duals at 2 p.m. There was plenty of time for reflection.
“We didn’t do anything different [from the first meeting]. We wrestled pretty much our straight lineup,” McCallie coach Mike Newman said. “We wanted to protect some seeds [for the traditional state tournament] and maybe improve our position in some other weight classes. We have told the kids all season that everything they do is in preparation for the final tournament of the year.”