North Carroll's Trevor Davison sailed to a 9-0 victory over Ben Bechtel in last night's final wrestling bout against South Carroll, a 140-pound match.
But as the clock ticked town, No. 3 South Carroll's wrestlers were the ones celebrating.
The reason? Bechtel's barely avoiding a pin clinched a 30-29 victory over No. 12 North Carroll, allowing the host Cavaliers to take back the Carroll County championship from the Panthers and gain a measure of revenge after losing it to them last year.
Davison knew he needed a pin, with South Carroll (12-0, 6-0) holding a 30-25 lead heading into that last match. The senior nearly got that six-pointer in the first period, putting Bechtel on his back with about 1:20 left and nearly pinning him moments later.
But Bechtel fought off Davison for the final 80 seconds and got out of the period down, 5-0.
"I just turned my back, and I was listening for the crowd," said South Carroll coach Dennis Frazier. "[Bechtel's] only a sophomore. He did a great job."
Said Davison: "I thought I did it. I knew what I had to do, and my heart was pounding the whole time. It was electric."
South Carroll took command midway through the match with pins from heavyweight Jeff Cumberland and Cameron Hoban (103), followed by Steve Willingham's decision at 112 for a 21-18 lead. North Carroll's Tom Goretsas (119) tied it with a 4-0 win over Zack Stavish before C.J. Naper (125) and Mike Horby (130) scored key victories.
