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West Valley City • There always has to be a beginning, and for the Pleasant Grove and Wasatch wrestling programs, the designation as the first-ever champions in the state dual tournament will forever be attached to their names.
Pleasant Grove knocked off Herriman, 37-29, in the 5A classification, while Wasatch defeated Maple Mountain, 44-24, in the Class 4A finals at the Maverik Center on Thursday evening.
"It's an awesome thing to go down in history as the first team to ever win it. That was our goal," said Pleasant Grove's Koy Wilkinson. "... Everybody is going to open up the book, and we're always going to be the first one at the top of the list to win the dual state championship."
Pleasant Grove, which is attempting to win its sixth consecutive traditional title in February, knocked off Mountain Crest, and Herriman defeated American Fork in the semifinals, setting up the all-Region 4 showdown for the title. Wasatch, which will look to repeat in the traditional tournament, beat Box Elder, and Maple Mountain routed Mountain View to concoct the all-Region 8 battle for the hardware in the 4A classification.
Pleasant Grove's Alex Young kick-started the championship round with a come-from-behind pin in the 145-pound division. Trailing 6-1 in the third period, Young trapped Herriman's Cole Clark with a front headlock to earn six points.
"[My coach and I] both knew that their team, once they go up, they tend to stall out the rest of the match, and we knew that we had a couple moves in our back pocket we could pull out to get the win," Young explained.
Ben Boss highlighted Wasatch's performance with a pin against Maple Mountain's Brad King in the 285-pound heavyweight division. Boss plopped on his back after the match, noticeably in pain, and was tended by the athletic trainer for an apparent knee injury. Boss chalked it up as a bruise, and said it was something he needed to battle through once he felt the pain mid-round.
"I got to win, so I got to keep wrestling. I didn't care what happened," Boss said. "He's clearly got a lot better since we last wrestled. He figured some things out, but I kept wrestling and fought hard."
The dual format is widely popular in wrestling-centric states, such as Minnesota and Pennsylvania, with attendance increasing to support the easier-to-follow scoring format and head-to-head competition, but the crowd sporadically peppered the Maverik Center, drawing less support than the traditional tournament, apart from a large Wasatch contingency. Many players believe the dual format will eventually supersede the traditional in popularity.
"It's good in some ways just 'cause you get to see the whole varsity team of all the best teams in the state," Young said. "We get to wrestle as a team; I think it will eventually catch on to be bigger than the normal state tournament, but right now it's a little bit smaller and not as hyped."
The main concern about two state championships being awarded is the possibility of watering down the state tournament in February. It's basically a foregone conclusion Pleasant Grove will add another trophy in several weeks, but Wasatch and Maple Mountain could split as co-state champions.
"Two different things. I think it enhances it," said Wasatch coach Wade Discher when asked if the dual diminishes the traditional tournament. "[If Maple Mountain wins in February], then they were the better team that day."
Twitter: @trevorphibbs —
Storylines
R Pleasant Grove and Wasatch capture the inaugural state dual wrestling championships in the 5A and 4A classifications. The Vikings, who have won five straight tournament titles, and the Wasps,who earned the tournament hardware last year, will attempt to win the traditional team championship in February, too.