Dover-Eyota finishes 4th, Kasson-Mantorville finishes second

(ABC 6 News) — Dover-Eyota had not made it to the state tournament since 2007, and they looked to make it count.

The Eagles’ Cinderella run ended with a fourth-place finish after they lost back-to-back matches in heartbreaking fashion to Royalton-Upsala (34-33) and West Central Area-Ashby-Brandon-Evansville (35-31).

Both instances saw the Eagles lead heading into the final two matches.

They can hold their head up high though as they got to that stage behind junior Jackson Duellman, who scored a pin to finish off the Eagles’ rally from a 16-6 deficit to a 30-26 victory.

As for Kasson-Mantorville, the KoMets bid for a fifth state title came up short as they lost in the title match to Simley.

The Spartans took control from the start and never looked back to collect their fourth consecutive Class AA state title with a 47-21 victory.

"You know, I hope these guys got a taste of it both ways, right?" head coach Jamie Heidt said. "You get a taste of being here, you get a taste of being in the finals and you get a little taste of what it feels like to get beat in the finals, you know? And that can be motivation.

"That can be motivation for these guys coming back next year. These underclassmen [who] put themselves in position and the next time they’re here they’re able to win this championship as a team."

Logan Vaughan, Cole Glazier (170) and Bennett Berge (195), and Kail Wynia all got wins for the Komets.

Kasson-Mantorville can’t dwell too long on their second-place finish. They have seven participants in the Class AA state individual wrestling tournament with Joe Kennedy, Luke Swanson, Dominic Mann, Glazier, Wynia, and Berge set to hit the mats at 9 a.m. Saturday.

The Minnesota State High School League tournament takes place March 3-5. See www.mshsl.org for more information.