MACON, Ga. - Saturdays at the GHSA Wrestling State Duals Championships can mean different things for different programs.
Though they didn't reach their goals of winning state titles, Sonoraville and Trion left Saturday with a strong sense of resolve after earning third-place trophies in Classes AAA and A, respectively.
Gilmer County left the Centreplex with a rare runner-up trophy in AAAA after falling to Jefferson, 35-28, but in doing so may have instilled a new level of incentive within one of the state's most successful programs.
None of the three teams felt the weekend was devoid of positives.
"I felt great about how we wrestled this entire weekend, but my hat's off to Jefferson," Gilmer coach Sam Snider said. "This gives us a lot of motivation, not only for the rest of this year but also for the next few years.
"We brought 24 kids and we got 23 of them mat time, which is crazy. That's a testament to how good some of our freshmen and sophomores are. They didn't all win, but next year they will be ready to step in."
The Bobcats started the finals match with a 7-0 lead on a 5-3 win by 106-pounder Dan Puac and Domingo Reynoso's major decision. However, Gilmer couldn't withstand a Jefferson onslaught over the next five bouts, which included a pin by Jarrad Blackburn at 120, major decisions by Dawson Bates and Cole Potts and two regular decisions.
Grand Ledford calmed the momentum for a moment with a 14-6 major decision at 152, but Jefferson's Hunter Allen and Mason Corbett followed with decisions before three-time state individual champion Calen Little clinched the Dragons' 17th consecutive duals title with a pin at 182. Gilmer made the score respectable with pins by Ryan Crump and Levi Seabolt and a technical fall by Matthew Waddell.
"We needed to get two wins between 145, 152, 160 and 170, but we only got one," Snider said. "We saved some points where I didn't think we could. I thought we needed eight out of 14, and it turned out we could have won with seven."
For Sonoraville, Saturday's effort showed the grit first-year coach Randy Steward wanted to see after a disappointing showing in Friday night's semifinal. The Phoenix opened their day with a 51-24 win over Pierce County and ended with a 31-29 win over Jackson County, a match secured when 106-pounder Allen Stone scored a 16-2 major decision to reverse a two-point deficit on the final bout.
"With him being the last one, we felt really good about it," Sonoraville first-year coach Randy Steward said. "We lost against Ringgold earlier in the season and he was the last match, so this is nice for him.
"Obviously, we wanted to win this thing, but it was nice for the kids to come back and finish with a win. It took the sting out of walking out of here Friday night after losing (in the semifinals). I was thinking it was going to take a year or two to be in this position, but for those kids to get there in one says a lot."
Sonoraville trailed 29-27 after getting pinned at 220 by Jackson County's Devontae Stephens and losing a 4-3 decision at heavyweight, but Stone, who went undefeated in the tournament, came through with a dominating effort at 106. Defending individual state champion Tyler Hunt had a pair of pins Saturday, while fellow champ Trevor Burdick had a pin against Pierce and 6-0 decision vs. Jackson and Hunter Wilson also had two wins for Sonoraville at 153.
Trion not only captured third place with three wins Saturday - the only team to win three matches in one day at the tournament - but avenged its lone loss.
After defeating Strong Rock 68-11 and Irwin County 45-22, Trion had a rematch with Turner County in the third-place match. After losing 33-30 Friday, the Bulldogs turned the tables for a 42-28 victory. Pins by Jamey Floyd at 120, Noah Deparlier at 132, Cole Luallen at 145, Hunter Stallings at 170 and Jake Wells at 182 overcame some bonus-point defeats. Seth Cox then sealed the win at 220 with a 6-2 win over Zion Blackshear. That weight class was a key loss in the Friday meeting.
"The effort the second day was tremendous," coach Eric Brock said. "I knew going in that one of the spots we don't like to start is 220, because we like to bump one to heavyweight depending on the matchup. We didn't know much about Turner and we made the move and got beat. We adjusted the lineup the second time around and Seth got a big win.
"They were spot on today and they came out with a vengeance. I feel like, from a coaching standpoint, this was a good learning moment for us. Finishing with a win gives us a little motivation to prepare for the traditional."
Also winning titles Saturday were Camden County (7A), Alexander (6A), Buford (5A), Bremen (3A), Social Circle (2A) and Commerce (A).
Contact Lindsey Young at lyoung@timesfreepress.com or at 423-757-6296; follow on Twitter @youngsports22