Tigers on top

In a match illuminated with stars, it was one of Fred T. Foard High’s that shined brightest in the end.

Caleb Griffin calmed his nerves and then completed the comeback, and the Tigers now have their collective arms all but wrapped around a Northwestern 3A-4A wrestling championship after a 36-33 come-from-behind win over host St. Stephens on Friday night.

The victory was the first in school history for Foard over a team that has routinely collected conference crowns. At 6-0 in the league, the Tigers now sit comfortably in front of the Indians (3-1) atop the conference standings. 

But the win didn’t come until Griffin, a junior, quelled the butterflies he said were flapping all night. His pin of Jessie Hudson at 112 pounds came one minute, 28 seconds into the final match and brought jittery Griffin a welcome sense of relief.

More importantly, it provided Foard with the precious six points needed to leapfrog the Indians for the history-making outcome.

“When I knew the match was going to start at 119 (pounds), I thought it might come down to my match,” said Griffin, ranked second in the 112-pound class in the most recent 3A Retro Rankings. “I knew the weight of the match was on my back, and I was nervous. Butut the team fought hard and deserved to win.

“I kept adding up points in my head and knew it was going to be tight, win or lose. I was shaking the whole time.”

The match was a glitzy one -- with the teams offering a combined 12 wrestlers ranked among the top 10 in their respective weight classes -- and there was a clear distinction in where both teams’ strengths were on display.

St. Stephens looked to have the upper hand in the lower classes, and the match played out to form in the early going.

Starting at 119 pounds, the Indians rattled off decisions at 119, 125, 130 and 135 pounds to sprint to a 15-0 lead. But a chancy call by St. Stephens head coach Billy Baker failed to pay the bigger dividends he was hoping for at the outset.

With shoulder surgery sidelining Hunter Schronce at 125, Baker moved Bradley Baden (ranked sixth at 112) up to 119 and Ray Farnsworth (No. 1 at 119) to 125.

The Indians collected the wins but not the points Baker was looking for in the early run.

“We rolled the dice early, taking a chance with those early matchups,” said Baker. “We knew we needed a big lead going into the upper weights, but we didn’t get the bonus points like we needed.”

St. Stephens’ adjustment left Foard head coach Mike Carey knowing his the Tigers would need to weather an early storm, but calmer seas could lie ahead.

“We had some kids overmatched (at the start), but they fought off their backs and didn’t get pinned,” Carey said. “Once we got to some of the (upper weights), I knew we had a chance then.

“And once they bumped Baden to 119, I thought we had a really good chance.”

Decisions by Baden, Farnsworth, Alex Pollard at 130 and Ian Martin at 135 gave the Indians their quick double-digit lead before Jacob Harper’s pin of Jared Renner at 140 trimmed St. Stephens’ advantage to 15-6.

The Indians got the six points back with Dillon Lail’s pin of Ben Hughes at 145, before Foard picked up what Carey labeled the Tigers’ pivotal win at 152.

Tyler Stasiak earned a “toss-up” victory with his 7-2 decision over Jon Holloway and jump started a final surge that saw the Tigers claim victories in six of the final eight matchups.

“(Stasiak’s) very unorthodox and capable of beating anybody,” said Carey. “We knew he had a chance, but it was a 50-50 match and he just found a way (to win).”

Hayden Albert followed with a decision at 160 and Dillon Johnson’s pin of Warren Boyett at 171 cut St. Stephens’ lead to 21-18.

Dale Huffman pinned Josh Warner at 189 to lengthen the Indians’ lead to 27-18, but pins by Zach Edwards at 215 and Cole Schanilec at 285 gave Foard its first lead at 30-27.

St. Stephens then reclaimed the advantage with Blake Rogers’ pin of Dylan Cassidy at 103, putting the Indians in front 33-30 and setting the stage for Griffin’s clinching victory.