Arcadia edged past Mathews and 11 other schools in last weekend’s Region A tournament, which was held at Mathews High School.

The Eastern Shore squad posted a team score of 187.5 points, defeating second-place Mathews (179 points) and the third-place finishers from Washington and Lee (171).

Mathews had a bad round in the semifinals—losing six of eight bouts—that ended up costing the Blue Devils the championship. "If we had gotten two more in the finals, we would have won," said MHS head coach Tom Holaday. "But we are happy to have eight place in the top four, qualifying for the state tournament."

Holaday also had three other wrestlers place fifth in their respective weight classes, allowing them to go to the state tournament as alternates. They would get a chance to wrestle if anyone should scratch by Thursday night.

Mathews had two regional champs—James Pavik (220 lbs.) and Willy Moore (285 lbs.). Both wrestlers went 3-0 in the two...