Prep wrestling: Maple Mountain wins 4A championship with dominant effort

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OREM — The 4A state championship wrestling finals provided spectators with an unbelievable seven pins and several close matches as Maple Mountain ran away with the state crown. The Golden Eagles earned the commanding victory with 305 points.

The journey to the team's first-ever state title was no easy stroll — though it may have appeared to be. The Golden Eagles went undefeated the entire season and placed the most wrestlers on the top of the podium.

The jaunt to class supremacy took the entire team according to Maple Mountain head coach Justin Judkins. Judkins attributed the win, in part, to the junior varsity performance earlier in the tournament. "The whole first round they (JV) just got after it," he said. "It was largely due to the JV and then our studs that really came through tonight in the championship."

Box Elder earned second place with 289 points. Mountain Crest finished third with 175 and Logan came in fourth with 108.

Britain Carter, wrestling in the 113-weight class, earned the first Maple Mountain victory of the finals on Thursday with a dominating 5-1 win over Shand Hard of Box Elder. Austin Rowley earned the next Eagle victory in the 126-weight class, defeating Brady Dart of Mountain Crest, 2-1, after losing upon their last two meetings earlier in the season.

His excitement was beyond words.

"I can't even express it," the senior said. "I've dreamed of it my whole life. I've wrestled since a kid to feel the accomplishment of being a state champ my senior year."

Rowley has been preparing for this particular match, learning how to counter Dart's moves and come out on top.

Fortunately, the work paid off for him and several teammates as they found themselves "peaking at the right time."

"It has been a really successful year and sometimes that can be your downfall when it comes to the end because you look past people," coach Judkins said. "We took the right steps throughout the season and did what we needed to win."

Grant Lamont was the third to top the podium for the champions with an impressive pin (5:16). Lamont earned the fourth pin of the 4A finals, following Chandler Strand's (Herriman) pin (5:15) in the 106-weight class,

Brandon Winward's pin (5:54) in the 120-weight class for Skyline, and Quinn Hinckley's pin (3:15) for Logan High in the 132-weight class.